PTA blocks over 27,000 SIMs and blacklists 1,407 CNICs

ISLAMABAD: In a bid to combat fraudulent activities, the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) has taken decisive action, blocking over 27,000 mobile phone SIMs in the past three years alone, according to documents obtained by the Hum Investigation Team (HIT).

The crackdown also saw nearly 23,000 IMEIs blocked and 1,407 CNICs blacklisted, with a staggering 123,741 warnings issued to mobile numbers and SIMs linked to forged CNICs.

Moreover, four raids were conducted and 37 gateways confiscated during the last three years to stop grey trafficking.

Along with this, the PTA restored 5.4 million blocked SIMs after biometric verification.

PTA Actions against Grey Telephony

PTA has been taking action against illegal Gateways which terminate Grey International calls. Such gateways predominantly use Mobile SIMS which are identified through data mining and Grey traffic detection Systems. In this regard around 3.6 Million SIMs have been blocked since 2020. In addition, around 100,000 IMEIs have been blocked due to involvement in grey traffic.

According to documents available with the Hum Investigation Team (HIT), biometric verification helped law enforcement agencies overcome crimes.

Previous reports suggested that 98.3 million unregistered SIMs were blocked by May 15.

The HIT approached the PTA to inquire about the reasons for blocking mobile numbers and SIMs, asking if holders of these numbers and SIMs were involved in terrorist activities or scams. And why did the PTA block the CNICs of citizens? And what precautionary measures had been taken by the PTA to eradicate scams?

According to the PTA’s response, the PTA has blocked mobile numbers, SIMs, and CNICs due to their involvement in fraudulent communication, which was reported by different sources, including complainants.

These actions were taken under the Protection from Spam, Unsolicited, Fraudulent, and Obnoxious Communication (Amendment) Regulations, 2020.

The PTA stated that if any consumer lodges a complaint to the PTA about fake or fraudulent communication, the number and IMEI involved in such scams were blocked, along with other numbers mentioned in the contents of the fraudulent message, after verification within 24 hours.

The PTA said that a warning is also issued on all other active numbers subscribed against forged CNICs not to indulge again in fraudulent activities.

“In case of second time involvement in any fraudulent activity, all other active numbers subscribed against forged CNICs are blocked immediately, and the CNIC of the fraudster is also blacklisted for the issuance of mobile connections in the future,” the PTA said.

In order to take proactive measures to control or curb fraud, the PTA has amended the regulations and notified a gazette titled “Protection from Spam, Unsolicited, Fraudulent, and Obnoxious Communication (Amendment) Regulations, 2020.” Various actions are being taken under these regulations against complaints involving fraudulent activities, the PTA said.

The PTA runs public awareness campaigns from time to time through print, electronic, and social media, as well as by disseminating SMSs to the general public on fraudulent or fake communication, the regulator said.