There are many reasons why Nigerians should lend support to the plan of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) to register pre-paid mobile users. Many countries of the world have taken similar action towards removing the veil of anonymity from this category of phone users. From an initial plan to prohibit, Brazil settled for registeration of pre-paid mobile phones as part of a package of measures to combat crime in Latin America 's biggest country. In Austria , the mobile phone identification scheme serves as the fulcrum of e-government. In Sweden, an open standard for secure electronic identification via mobile phones exists. Mobile phone subscribers in China are also required to register with their providers. Sri Lanka is one oif the countries that recently tightened mobile phone regulations by forcing service providers to maintain full details of phone users. In Japan , the law known as the "Act for the Prevention of Illegal Mobile Phone Use" requiring mobile telecommunications carriers to verify the identity of mobile phone users took effect on April 1, 2006. This Act requires mobile phone service operators to verify the identity of mobile phone users by examining a passport or driver's license (or other valid form of identification) before the delivery of mobile phones - whether for sale or rental.

In addition to Germany , Italy and the UK , prepaid anonymous SIM cards have been banned in Slovenia and other countries. Closer home, the Kenyan Parliament is considering a new law to amend the Kenya Communications Act (1998) which will compel all subscribers to register their numbers using their national identity cards or passports in order to acquire a sim card. Similarly, the government of Tanzania has announced plans to register all mobile phone numbers in the country in a bid to curb the rising tide of mobile phone thsft and related crime. Under the proposal, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), has been directed to constitute a national committee to work out a scheme for recording and logging all mobile phone numbers in that country.

The current thinking around the world appears to be that mobile phones should aid and not deter criminal investigators. In many countries it is now an accepted procedure in crime detection to track suspects through their mobile phones.In the EU the communications of every mobile telephone user are recorded. By tracking the whereabouts of the SIM card police are able to locate criminals. In the 2000 Omagh Bombing in the UK recordings of mobile phone conversations made on the day of the incident were crucial to the police investigation. It was calls made from a mobile phone by Hussain Osman, one of the key suspects in the failed suicide bombings in London on 21 July, 2005 that enabled Italian police to track Osman to his brother’s flat in Rome.

Similarly, the detection of the hiding place of Pablo Escobar, a notorious Columbian cocaine dealer, was facilitated by tracing his mobile phone activity. In all cases, the police worked with mobile phone providers to apprehend criminals. Last year, police in Kenya worked with Safaricom to apprehend Simon Matheri, a notorious criminal that terrorized residents of Gachie, a village near Nairobi.

 Aside from prepaid phone registers, NCC has also announced a phone blocking scheme that will make it difficult to steal and use any handset. Indeed, with current technology, it is easy to follow a person via their mobile phone. Many companies have developed softwares that can do so. Even when a person changes his sim card as somemobile phone users often do, it is still possible to keep tabs on him. The reason is simple. Whenever a mobile phone connects to the mobile phone network, it identifies itself in two ways: the SIM card transmits it's International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) number which starts with the country code of the user followed by the network code and finally the telephone number; the handset itself transmits another number - the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number - which is a unique electronic serial number assigned to each handset which remains constant even if the SIM card is changed.

 The IMEI number of any mobile handset can generally be ascertained by dialing star hash zero six hash (*#06#). With the IMEI number, it is possible for the telecom company to locate, track or immobilize a handset. If NCC compels mobile operators to transmit the IMEI number, detecting the location or user of a stolen mobile phone will become as easy as ABC. With these numbers and working in collaboration with telecom operators, it should not be hard for the police to detect or locate stolen handsets and criminals using phone lines anywhere in the country.

The major problem that will bedevil the eventual implementation of this initiative will be subscription fraud – that is, the supply of bogus or false identification information. With the breakneck competition for subscribers among operators, some unscrupulous dealers are likely to sell subscriptions without properly authenticating the buyer. And that is where the law comes in. A stiff penalty should be used to sanction both subscribers and dealers that sabotage the effort to unmask mobile phone subscribers. Again, rampant unlocking and re-programming of handsets should be discouraged. While 'unlocking' is a legal activity and involves the use of software on a computer or a machine called a flasher (electronic device used to remove information held in electronic circuits) to unlock the phone from a particular air time provider's network, re-programming (more commonly known as “unblocking”) is an illegal activity through which unscrupulous individuals attempt to change the IMEI number or configuration to make it work again. Such practices should be the prerogative of the manufacturers.

Whatever, Nigerians have every reason to support the plan to register prepaid users because of the potential of the idea for enhancing national security and public safety. Stakeholders in the telecom sector must work together to create a standardized registration procedure so that mobile phones will cease to be weapons of harassment, embarrassment, and intimidation that they have recently become in Nigeria.

uchebush@yahoo.com; 08051090050

Robot  Villager

# 1 There are many reasons why Nigerians should lend support to the plan of the Nigerian Communicat...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 19.08.2008 00:16

E_Pluribus_Unum  Villager

# 2 jolly good sho though i hope they dont misuse this. tracing stolen phones hmm how so aplicable to our enviroment. Posted by E_Pluribus_Unum| 19.08.2008 07:42

Tempest  Villager

# 3 Good thinking. If ever it will be implemented. Reminds me of the National ID card thing. It only ended up as one big saga! Just another hole to burry our money. I do hope this is not another one we are trying to dig. You know what? These guys do not expect us to believe in them any more. Or do they? Posted by Tempest| 19.08.2008 08:03

10Kobo  Villager

# 4 I am sure the writer of this article meant well, going by the first one written earlier. Everyone is concerned and the concern has been on for close to two decades now, even before Nigeria joined the "Mobile Community". =Ohia>In addition to Germany , Italy and the UK , prepaid anonymous SIM cards have been banned This statement is blatantly and patently false. Where are you writing from? As of four days ago, l still walked into a Vodafone shop, “took” two SIMS pack, one for the wifey and myself and walked out, to avail of a promotion, though l do have a subscription with 3G-Network! Same goes, in so many other European countries, Ireland for sure, l know about. You only register if you want to…..otherwise, you “Pay-As-You-Go” :D =Ohia> The IMEI number of any mobile handset can generally be ascertained by dialing star hash zero six hash (*#06#). With the IMEI number, it is possible for the Telecom company to locate, track or immobilize a handset. If NCC compels mobile operators to transmit the IMEI number, detecting the location or user of a stolen mobile phone will become as easy as ABC. With these numbers and working in collaboration with Telecom operators, it should not be hard for the police to detect or locate stolen handsets and criminals using phone lines anywhere in the country. The major problem that will bedevil the eventual implementation of this initiative will be subscription fraud – that is, the supply of bogus or false identification information. With the breakneck competition for subscribers among operators, some unscrupulous dealers are likely to sell subscriptions without properly authenticating the buyer. And that is where the law comes in. A stiff penalty should be used to sanction both subscribers and dealers that sabotage the effort to unmask mobile phone subscribers. Again, rampant unlocking and re-programming of handsets should be discouraged. While 'unlocking' is a legal activity and involves the use of software on a computer or a machine called a flasher (electronic device used to remove information held in electronic circuits) to unlock the phone from a particular air time provider's network, re-programming (more commonly known as “unblocking”) is an illegal activity through which unscrupulous individuals attempt to change the IMEI number or configuration to make it work again. Such practices should be the prerogative of the manufacturers. Between the first and the second paragraph above, you have actually “defeated” you own arguments. Laws are made to be enforced and any law which is impossible to enforce, is better left un-enacted. They tried to muscle-in in this same manner, some years back, in technologically advanced countries but when the issue of “Consumer Rights and Privacy” is pitched against need for “Regulation and Security”, the thinking and verdict is that “find a better way to achieve the same objective without eroding the Rights and Privacy” of subscribers. Needless to say, UK and some advanced countries have found ways of achieving this balance and l would encourage our political players to stop being “mentally lazy and trying to re-invent the wheel”. There are “technology in-use” today, to virtually listen-in, locate, seize control or divert the communication of any phone-line, from a remote control center (as far as you know the number), without the cooperation of the user, in any manner. The Security apparatus will normally use it with based on a “court warrant or if there is a substantive threat” to national security. Frightening, but this is how far technology has evolved and we should stop peddling “traumatically raw and brute tactics” that have since been abandoned for better alternatives, that yield better results. If l may add, mobile communication has really gone "Mobile" as l can speak "on the move" with anyone l want, not using a Mobile Phone but using the "free for all softwares" like Jaxtr, Yahoo Messenger, Skype, MSN and tens of other VOIP (Voice Over IP) softwares, using wireless internet that is itself, "Pay-As-You-Go"!! ...and they dont have any "IMEI" number! :cool: Let us move along with the times, you can not false people to “Register” if they don’t want to, doing so as you have rightly pointed out, will lead to and encourage “false identity registration”…something which in itself, defeats the original purpose.:D:D Lets Keep it “Stupid and Simple”.:mad: 10Kobo Posted by 10Kobo| 21.08.2008 11:11