The Philippine National Police (PNP) expresses its support for the signing into law and implementation of the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) Registration Act as a tool to deter crimes and track criminals in the course of a police investigation.
The SIM Registration Act carries the feature of securing the identity of every pre-paid SIM card subscriber.
Under the Act, Public Telecommunications Entities (PTEs) must require the registration of SIM cards for collection in a centralized database as a pre-requisite to the sale and activation of SIM cards.
Direct sellers will require the end-user to present their valid identification with a photo along with an accomplished control-numbered registration form provided by the respective PTE.
A person who wants to purchase a SIM card but can’t personally register for a valid reason may opt to authorize another person to buy given that there is a Special Power of Attorney and proper identification of the principal buyer and representative.
“We have seen how the criminal elements maximized the anonymity of pre-paid SIM cards, thus it was easy for them to constantly change SIM cards for communication and transaction without being identified,” PNP Chief General Dionardo Carlos said.
Carlos believes that in this way, the PNP can directly access vital information regarding the criminal to ensure that future crimes perpetrated by the same person can be prevented.
The PNP also noted that PTEs and direct sellers will really be compelled to strictly adhere to the provisions to avoid being penalized according to the law.
“We ask for the public’s cooperation as this will be an added security against those who will attempt to commit a crime against a person. The PNP sees no breach in the privacy of information as a collection of identification has been a practice already for post-paid application,” Carlos said.