Senator Grace Poe is certain that Senate Bill No. 1310, also known as the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act, will become a law this 2022 following a unanimous vote from the Senate.
Poe, the chair of the Committee on Public Services and the bill’s primary proponent stated on Wednesday September 28 that she hopes President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would sign the bill into law by October or November.
According to the senator, registering SIM cards will be a “huge assist” in combating crime and will act as a deterrent to internet scammers.
“It’s really more about tracing. Now, we will find out who registered that number. Even if a fictitious identity was used, at least there is a lead,” read a statement from Sen. Poe.
She recounted that when someone attempted to defraud Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, the offender was found and detained when the scammer’s phone number was handed to police enforcement.
This came after Zubiri revealed to the public that he had been targeted by a few fraudsters.
After obtaining his personal mobile number, the fraudsters pretended to be governmental authorities and tried to extort money for a phony political conference.
The SIM Registration Act, according to Zubiri, who primarily wrote and co-sponsored the measure, is a tool to combat the evolving use of devices in criminal operations.
“As scams to harm the public rapidly change, so must the regulatory antidotes to them,” said the Senate President.
