The Nigerian Communications Commission is to improve processes to better manage and cases of financial fraud due to stolen identities due fraudulent SIM cards replacements.
In the first quarter of 2019, the commission carried out an audit exercise on Subscriber Identification Number (SIM) Replacement Guidelines in the Nigerian Telecoms Industry against the background of prevalence of complaints regarding illegal SIM Swap by fraudulent individuals in the telecoms market.
The Commission had established a Guideline for SIM Replacement which came into effect on 9th June, 2017.
Consistent with NCC mandate as enshrined in Section 89 of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003, the Commission says it prepared a quarterly audit exercise of MNOs’ platforms with a view to ascertaining the level of compliance with the Commission’s Guideline on SIM Replacement.
Requirements and procedures were outlined by the Commission to safeguard subscriber’s identity from fraudulent activities of some criminal elements in the telecoms sector.
The audit exercise was considered very critical in reducing instances of fraudulent SIM upgrade and replacement which accounted for financial loss and security breaches in the country.
The appropriate departments of NCC are currently working on processes to address and manage the findings from the audit exercise in a manner that will quantifiably address the challenges of fraud around SIM cards.
