The country’s leading telecommunication providers have issued guidelines on how their subscribers can register their SIM cards.
Republic Act 11934 or the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act was signed into law last October 10. It seeks to regulate the distribution of SIM cards in the country amid the rise of text scams.
RELATED: Social media weigh in on regulation of SIM cards amid text scams
The National Telecommunications Commission released its implementing rules and regulations (IRR) on December 12.
Based on the IRR, subscribers are required to register their SIM cards with their telecommunication providers within 180 days from the effectivity of the law.
In section 4 of the IRR, it was stated that the following types of SIM cards should be registered:
“All covered SIMs, including embedded SIMs (eSIMs), other variations/technologies and other future technologies thereof, which are provisioned by any PTE to provide SMS, voice and/or data services are subject to registration. These include SIMs intended for data-only or used for fixed wireless broadband modem and/or wireless local loop, machine-to-machine (M2M) service and/or Internet of Things (IoT).”
In adherence to this law, Globe Telecom and Smart Communications posted guidelines on how their subscribers can register their SIM cards.
Both companies will start opening their registration portals on December 27.
Smart end-users
Based on Smart Communications’ post, owners of the following products are required to register:
- Smart Prepaid
- Smart Bro
- TNT Subscribers
Individuals, business entities and organizations who wanted to purchase Smart SIM cards have to submit and validate their personal data first before their cards will be activated.
Read the rest of the guidelines via the telco firm’s post here:
Smart also provided the link to its registration page. It can already be accessed but the registration itself is not yet live.
Instead, users will be greeted by a “coming soon” landing page.
Globe end-users
In Globe’s infographics on Facebook, it was highlighted that the following subscribers are affected:
- All new SIM users – No registration, no SIM activation
- All existing customers – Must register to prevent SIM deactivation
Globe also noted that verified GCash users are also required to register their numbers.
In its online briefer of the law, the company stated that it is supporting the government’s implementation of this new measure for financial inclusion and financial aid in times of crisis.
“Globe supports the SIM Registration Act and is working with the government in the crafting of implementing rules and regulations. The new law will also serve as an enabler for financial inclusion and may also serve as a channel for the government to send financial aid to those in need in times of [crisis],” the firm said.
Subscribers can read the rest of the guidelines here: SIM Card Registration Act FAQ – Globe Help & Support.