Globe Telecom said Friday it is supporting a proposed government audit of its SIM registration database amid persistent scam texts.
Globe vice president and head of consumer mobile business Darius Delgado said the audit would serve to affirm the integrity of Globe’s SIM registration database and its efforts to consistently enhance its SIM registration platform.
“We’re halfway into the second year of the implementation of the SIM Registration Act, and the DICT’s call is timely. We take this as an opportunity to show our efforts in ensuring that our SIM registration data have been validated,” Delgado said.
He said most scam messages now reaching mobile users are sent outside telco networks. These instead use over-the-top media services or chat apps, Rich Communication Services (RCS) chats for Android users, other Internet-based messaging platforms and fake cell towers.
Globe also renewed its call for the full implementation of the National ID system to standardize the type of ID accepted for SIM registration, adding credibility to the process. The law allows the use of various types of government-issued IDs that may be prone to tampering and at worse, fake.
GCash was tapped to pilot test the government’s National ID eVerify Platform, which will authenticate the identities of public and private sector customers in various transactions.
Globe initiated a sweep of its SIM registration data last year, following reports that non-human photos had been used to register SIMs. Since then, it has been deactivating unverified submissions.
It also deactivated and removed from its subscriber base over 30 million unregistered SIMs following the lapse of the registration period (Dec. 27, 2022 to July 30, 2023) for SIMs already in use before the SIM Registration Act took effect.
Globe said it also continues to proactively block SIMS linked to fraudulent activity.
Globe blacklisted 36,549 SIMs from other networks in the first quarter, a 62 percent spike compared to the 22,455 competitor SIMs blocked during the same period last year.
Globe also deactivated 841 SIMs from its network in the firs quarter of 2024 after they were identified as potential sources of spam or scam SMS, or misuse.