Senator Win Gatchalian urged the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to crack down on the rampant sale of pre-registered SIM cards, warning that these are being widely used for financial crimes and online scams, especially with the holiday season approaching when scammers are expected to prey on more victims.

 “I am calling on the NTC and DICT to use everything in their power to compel the telcos to come up with mechanisms that would identify the subscribers. You need to come up with an innovative solution. We cannot allow this to continue. The law is already there,” Gatchalian said.

“We need to put an end to this. Matagal na nating pinag-uusapan ito, lalo na ngayong magpapasko na naman,” he added. During a recent Senate hearing on the agencies’ proposed budgets for next year, the senator presented photos of pre-registered SIMs being openly sold on Facebook and Shopee. 

One of the authors of the SIM Registration Act, Gatchalian, pointed out that the objective of the law, which is to enable law enforcement agencies to identify unscrupulous groups or individuals involved in financial crimes and online scams, has not been achieved because of the availability of pre-registered SIMs to anyone interested.

Photo by Mark Cayabyab / OS WIN GATCHALIAN