DICT readies guidelines for SIM card registry audit

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is preparing the guidelines for the conduct of an audit of the subscriber identity module (SIM) card registration database.

Jeffrey Ian Dy, ICT undersecretary for infostructure management, cybersecurity and upskilling, said the DICT is now crafting a department order that will form a task force to lead the undertaking, as well as lay down the guidelines for the audit of the SIM card registry.

“The audit team will be a composite team from different bureaus in DICT,” Dy yesterday told The STAR.

The audit team will most likely be headed by ICT Undersecretary for e-government David Almirol Jr.

The audit could be held as early as next month.

The DICT has been looking to make changes in the SIM card registration process such as the interconnection of the SIM card registration database of the three telecommunication companies (telcos) and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to that of the national ID database to allow a mechanism for the authentication of identities.

Dy said the interconnection of the SIM card registration database was planned to be implemented in parallel to the audit to be held by the DICT. The plan seeks to link the SIM card registration database with that of the DICT e-Gov app’s National ID database.

Dy earlier said the SIM card registration database audit will seek to check and update the subscriber database of SIM card holders as the problem of persistent text scams and unsolicited text promos continue to bug telco service subscribers despite a year of enforcement of the SIM Card Registration Law.

The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) announced last month their plan to go after erring telcos allegedly providing services to subscribers whose SIM cards were not registered with the NTC in violation of the SIM Card Registration Law.

The CICC discovered that thousands of unregistered SIM cards were found in erring Philippine offshore gaming operators that were being used for text and online scam transactions and communications despite the enforcement of the law.