Palace is open to amending the law requiring the registration of SIM cards, emphasizing that part of the amendment should be the inclusion of in-person registration.
Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Usec. Claire Castro said that the SIM Card Registration Act should be reviewed for such to be more effective.
“‘Yung batas patungkol sa SIM card registration, ito po ay isang dahilan kung bakit nagkakaroon pa po ng mga text scams. Dapat po ito ay masuri muli, para maging epektibo ang batas na ito (The law regarding SIM card registration, this is one of the reasons why text scams are still happening. It should be reviewed again, so that this law can be effective),” Castro said.
“We have not yet talked about that but as a lawyer, kailangan magkaroon ng amyenda. Dapat personal na pumupunta. Kakayanin natin marehistro nang tama ang SIM cards na ito para maiwasan ang scams (We have not yet talked about that, but as a lawyer, there needs to be an amendment. People should be required to register in person. We can manage to register these SIM cards properly to prevent scams).”
The Palace official likened the situation to getting National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance, which individuals register physically.
“Kakayanin po natin ito magrehistro nang tama ang mga SIM cards para maiwasan po iyong mga ganitong klaseng scams (We can manage to register these SIM cards properly to prevent these kinds of scams),” Castro remarked.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed into law the SIM Registration Act (Republic Act 11934) in 2022. The law requires the registration of SIM cards to regulate the sale and use of SIMs, ensuring that only registered individuals can access mobile networks.
The law also seeks to battle scams by preventing criminals from using unregistered SIMs for fraudulent activities.