SIM Card Rules: Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that to prevent digital fraud, the government has made verification of SIM card dealers mandatory and the provision of giving SIM ‘connections’ in bulk has also been stopped. The minister told that the government has made police verification of the SIM card dealer mandatory.
The central government on Thursday announced new rules for SIM verification, in which the provision of bulk (in bulk) connections was discontinued and verification was made mandatory for dealers selling SIM cards. The new rules come at a time when the government is working to tackle cyber fraud cases. Union Communications, Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that taking comprehensive action against digital fraud related to SIM cards, the government has closed 52 lakh mobile connections. The names of 67,000 dealers have been blacklisted. 300 FIRs have been registered against SIM card dealers since May, 2023. He told that WhatsApp itself has blocked about 66000 accounts which were involved in fraud cases.
Learn the main things related to SIM card verification
Mandatory Verification for Sellers
As per the new rules, all SIM card vendors will have to complete police and biometric verification along with mandatory registration. Verification of SIM card dealers will be done by the telecom operator and violation of this provision can lead to a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh. The minister said that before appointing a dealer, telecom companies will collect details of each applicant and his business related documents for verification. Earlier the detailed documentation of the dealer was not included in this rule. The minister said that there are 10 lakh SIM dealers and they will be given enough time for verification. Not only this, now the Department of Telecom has also stopped the service of giving ‘connection’ in bulk. Instead, a new concept of business connections will be introduced.
12 months time for verification
The government has announced to give 12 months time to the existing vendors for registration. The purpose of the verification will be to identify, blacklist and remove unscrupulous sellers from the system.
Now KYC will be done only digitally
Under the KYC reforms, in case of taking a new SIM or applying for a new SIM on an existing number, the customer’s demographic details will be obtained by scanning the QR code of Aadhaar. The minister has told that now Aadhaar is not necessary to get a SIM card. He said that soon KYC (Know Your Customer) done through documents will be stopped and KYC will be done only digitally. He has said that this will reduce fraud.
SIM cards will not be given in bulk
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had stopped the provision of bulk (block) connections and instead implemented the rule of business connections. Now in addition to the business KYC verification, the KYC of the person handover of the SIM will also be done. A person can still take up to nine SIMs on the basis of one identity.
For how many days will the sim work after disconnection?
Now the mobile number can be given to the new customer after 90 days of disconnection. In case of migration from one company to another, the customer will have to complete KYC process with 24 hours relaxation on outgoing and incoming SMS facilities.
Let us tell you that the government had launched Sanchar Saathi portal to report and block stolen or lost mobile handsets and AI-based software ASTR to identify illegal mobile connections.
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