“Deactivate Unused Sims”, NCC Tells Telecom

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)  has said yesterday and has given telecommunications order to shut down any subscriber identity module (SIM) card that was registered but unused after 48 hours.

Tony Ojobo, its Director, Public Affairs who spoke yesterday in Lagos, said ongoing SIM card registration by the telcos has reduced criminal activities perpetrated via the use of mobile phones.

Speaking on: Trackable Identity and Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria at a function organised by public relations practitioners, he said trackable identity has become a sine qua non to ease of doing business.

He said: “In spite of whatever challenges, the global trend is for all citizens to be registered, and for each citizen to be covered with a legal identity including birth registrations.

“Citizen registration is now an item in post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda with 2.4 billion people identified as having no official identity and these people reside in Africa and Asia.

“While traditional identification relies on passwords, PINs, smart cards, and the likes, biometric identification, using fingerprints and iris scans are generally more reliable and secure. They are adopted more universally like in driving licences and international passports.

“Biometrics identity are also more reliable in linking individuals to event and actions. It is therefore preferred by security institutions in fighting crimes.”

He urged the Federal Government to pay more attention to identity management in the country, arguing that the existence of a central database for the citizens which potential investors can depend on would engender trust and reliability.