THE failure of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to implement the SIM Registration Act significantly contributed to the wealth amassed by scammers masquerading as POGO firms.
This comes as Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian urged NTC officials to revisit the law for which the agency was created, adding that powers provided under the law are more than enough for the NTC to identify and hold accountable groups and individuals behind text scams.
Citing provisions under the SIM Registration Act, Gatchalian pointed at the NTC as the lead agency mandated to effectively track down perpetrators of crimes embarking on the use of SIM cards, just like the ones which were recovered by raiding authorities in illegal POGO hubs.
“But because the NTC has apparently forgotten its responsibility, scammers in the Pogo industry continue to use SIM cards unabatedly,” a statement from his office reads.
The SIM Registration Act compelled cellphone users to have their SIM cards registered for easy identification of the scammers.
“This is true in the case of the raids conducted against Smartweb Technology Corp. in Pasay City, Zun Yuan Technology located in Bamban, Tarlac, and Lucky South 99 which straddles Porac and Angeles City in Pampanga,” he added.
Interestingly, recovered SIM cards in the raided POGO sites were found to have been registered to false identities which are being used to pull off love scams, cryptocurrency and other investment scams.
According to Gatchalian, the SIM Registration Act was passed in 2022 with the main objective of reducing, if not eliminating, scams perpetrated through text or online messages which the senator claimed got worse in recent years.
“SIM registration is an important tool in combating online crimes that make use of a phone. The NTC should stop sleeping on its job so we can realize this goal,” adding that “the NTC should not ignore the law.”
Among the common phishing schemes in the country are text scams, which contain suspicious links leading to fake websites where unsuspecting victims are asked to provide personal data that are then used to, among others, get into their bank accounts. (ANGEL F. JOSE)
