Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa promised that if the SIM Registration Bill becomes law, text scammers and other cybercriminals using subscriber identity modules or SIM cards for cell phones, will no longer be able to conceal their identities.
In his co-sponsorship address, Dela Rosa asked his colleagues to swiftly enact Senate Bill No. 1310 or the SIM Registration Act, which would require the registration of SIM in order to quickly find and eventually apprehend text scammers.
“Lagyan nating ng mukha at pangalanan ang mga mamamatay tao at mga manloloko. No more unknown callers. No more scams. Hindi na sila makapagtatago sa likod ng kanilang mga cellphones. Gamitin natin ang teknolohiya upang matukoy ang mga kriminal,” he said.
The first paragraph of Section 4 of the proposed SIM Registration Act’s, which reads, “In order to deter the proliferation of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) or electronic communication-aided crimes, such as, but not limited to: terrorism, text scams, unsolicited, indecent or obscene messages, bank fraud, and massive disinformation, all Public Telecommunications Entity shall require the registration of SIM as pre-requisite to the activation thereof,” captures the main goals of the bill, according to the former head of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
“Malinaw po ang gustong makamit ng panukalang inihahain natin sa araw na ito. Nais natin na tanggalan ng kapasidad na makapanloko at makapanakit ang mga masasamang loob gamit ang ating mga cellular phones,” said Dela Rosa.
He added, “Marami pong nasasawi at binabawian ng buhay dahil sa mga masasamang loob na ginagamit ang mga cellphone upang makapaghasik ng terorismo. Ngunit higit na marami marahil ang nawawalan naman ng kabuhayan dahil sa mga text scams gamit ang mga hindi rehistradong mga SIM cards. Dalawang magkaibang sirkumstanya, pero parehong nakamamatay.”
Citing data from the Philippine Bomb Data Center of the PNP, the lawmaker said there were 14 improvised explosive device bombing occurrences involving cellphones as switching or triggering mechanisms from January 2019 to February 2021. Thirty-nine Filipinos have lost their lives in the 14 bombing events, while 206 more have been wounded.
He further said despite efforts by the government and telecommunications firms to stop the spread of the fraud, text scams are still on the rise.
Over 23 million text messages with warning indications of fraud threats were apparently blocked by PLDT in June of this year, along with 78,000 SIM cards. Almost a billion fraudulent text messages were apparently blocked by Globe Telecom last year, Dela Rosa added.
“Sa gitna ng kaliwa’t kanan na pag-block ng ating mga telecom campany, hanggang sa ngayon, wala tayong makasuhan sa mga nagtangkang mang-scam sa ating mga kababayan. Hanggang ngayon, hindi natin matukoy ang mga mukha sa likod ng mga ?text scam na ito. Habang pinapaigting ng ating gobyerno ang kanilang aksyon para masugpo ang mga panloloko, tila mas nagiging “sophisticated” ang kanilang mga modus,” he said.
According to the senator, the proposed SIM registration will not result in the total eradication of crime, but it will give our law enforcement forces a tool to both solve crimes and prevent their commission.
Photo Credit: Senate website