In light of the ongoing rampant SMS scams, a consumer group has urged the government to reassess the "Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act" or "Republic Act No. 11934".
"It appears that RA 11934 is a failure itself, as cybercrime remains unchecked and, in fact, has intensified with the advent of modern technology," said Pet Climaco, Secretary General of Mamamayan's Konsyumer.
"We call on the government to continue evaluating whether the SIM card registration law is truly effective. It's not because we already have a law (that's what we're saying), let's ignore it," he said.
"We are boasting (about the SIM card registration law), but in reality, there are still many scammers using SMS and mobile phones," he added.
Despite the implementation of the law, the Philippine National Police reported a 21.8% increase in cybercrime in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.
Climaco pointed out that laws must be reviewed periodically to ensure their efficiency and adapt to rapidly changing digital innovations.
"We think it's best to study the law every six months... Is the IRR formulated by the TWG (Technical Working Group) still effective after six months? From then on, we can say we are upgrading again, as we are still in the process," he said.
Senator Win Gatchalian had previously stated that given the widespread use of SIM cards for fraud and scams, the government is considering revising the "SIM Card Registration Act" signed into law in October 2022.
Meanwhile, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) acknowledges that the SIM registration law is not a "panacea" for combating SMS scams, as it still faces many challenges during implementation.
