The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) announced that it will be launching “Project: SIM Check Mo” in the coming days which aims to fight cybercrime.
With this project, users can easily send a text message through the DICT hotline 1326 to help them validate a mobile number in just 10 seconds.
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The user will only need to text SIM CHECK, the 11-digit mobile number, and send it to 1326.
Once done, they will get a reply with the partial identity and status of the SIM and its owner. That includes the registration status of the SIM, the initials of the owner, and a remark if the number has a good or derogatory record.
DICT Executive Director Alexander Ramos for Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center stressed the need for the feature’s immediate launch.
Ramos said that the three-month extension of the SIM registration is a “very long and dangerous time that can be taken advantage of by scammers to continue all sorts of scheming to swindle unsuspecting individuals.”
“Cybercrime prevention is a three-way shared responsibility between the telcos and the consumers-subscribers. The government acts as the supervising-cyber security to ensure that the public enjoys a safe cyberspace,” said Norma Ancheta, OIC of the Inter-Agency Response Center that’s behind the DICT hotline.
Ramos assured the public that the privacy requirements for the said feature are currently being ironed out by the National Privacy Commission and the CICC.