Co-sponsorship Speech on the SIM Registration Act
Mr. President, esteemed colleagues, it is my honor to co-sponsor this measure, Senate Bill No. 1310, under Committee Report No. 5, entitled “Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act.”
In this day and age, it is clear that even cellphones and SIM cards are now likewise being used for all sorts of cruel, unscrupulous or illegal activities including scamming or defrauding individuals. These new generation of cybercriminals have become so ingenious that they now know our names, and in my case, even my sister’s name, and appear to be from legitimate sources.
This representation is particularly upset by recruitment text scams or smishing because they feed on the desperation of unemployed Filipinos who are tricked to part with their personal information and money in order to land a non-existent job. At a 5.2% unemployment rate for July this year[1], these people need real opportunities for employment, not scams. Unfortunately, these acts are made possible thanks to the anonymity in SIM card ownership - an anonymity that has been exploited by criminals.
There are a total 162.7 million mobile phone subscriber in the country, and they are the potential pool of victims. We could just imagine the disaster it will bring if we don’t do anything to stop these perpetrators.
Mr. President, as of March 2022, there are a total 162.7 million subscribers of Globe, Smart, and DITO Telecommunications.[2] These 162.7 million subscribers are the potential pool of victims; and we could just imagine the disaster it will bring if we don’t do anything to stop these perpetrators.
The Philippines is not alone in its effort to address this particular issue. As of 2021, 157 countries have enforced mandatory SIM card registration, including democratic countries like Norway, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, Germany, South Korea, and Brazil.[3] Perhaps it is high time we follow suit, Mr. President.
We need to undertake strategic and proactive measures that will uphold the data privacy rights and other rights of our citizens.
We can learn out a lot from the best practices implemented by other countries. Our neighbor, Singapore, has established its Anti-Scam Center (ASC). In an article by The Straits Times, it was reported that more than 27,300 bank accounts have been frozen and recovered more than $200 million since the establishment of the Center in June 2019.[4] While they aim to recovery funds lost to scams, the Center’s operations will now include dismantling scam operations even before people make a report.[5]
At this juncture Mr. President, I would like to put on record that at the proper time, this representation may introduce some suggested amendments to the measure to further safeguard and protect our citizens, aimed not only to penalize scammers, but also to protect our citizen’s rights to speech, expression, and privacy.
Thank you and may God bless us all.
[1] https://psa.gov.ph/content/employment-rate-july-2022-estimated-948-percent
[2] https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1608917/text-scams-saying-youre-hired-must-stop-poe
[3] https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/how-other-countries-implement-sim-card-registration/
[4] https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/over-200m-recovered-by-anti-scam-centre-new-command-targets-scammers-before-victims-make-report.
[5] Id.