TECHDIGEST – The number of connected telecommunication lines abandoned by their users has grown by 177.39 per cent year-on-year, according to data from the Nigerians Communications Commission.

The data revealed that the unused lines in the country grew to 105.31 million in October 2022 from 37.96 million in the corresponding period of 2021. In the period under review, the total active lines grew to 214.35 million from 191.62 million in October 2021, while the total connected lines increased to 319.66 million from 229.58 million in the prior period.

Experts attributed the high number of unused lines to Nigerians who are multi-sim owners and users.

The NCC and National Identity Management Commission disclosed that one Nigerian could have more than one SIM registered in their name.

Corroborating this, the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria, Gbenga Adebayo, had earlier in the year said, “Traditionally, a lot of people carry more than one phone. Some have an office line; some have private lines but use one more often.

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“Some are in the Diaspora, who though they hold Nigerian SIM cards, are not residents here. Some are students, who for half of the term are not around. It also depends on how and why these lines are said to be unused and for what period, because you could have someone not using their lines for three months, and after three months start to use them again,” he explained.

While the number of unused lines in Nigeria might have grown, the total number of mobile subscriptions is estimated to hit around 8.4 billion by the end of 2022. The number of people with phones is also expected to rise to 6.8 billion at the end of the year.

The Ericsson Mobility Report (November 2022) said, “Around 8.4 billion mobile subscriptions are estimated by the end of 2022, and this figure is projected to increase to around 9.2 billion by the end of 2028.

“During this time, the share of mobile broadband subscriptions will increase from 85 to 93 per cent, while the number of unique mobile subscribers is projected to grow from 6.1 billion to 6.8 billion. Subscriptions associated with smartphones continue to rise.

At the end of 2022, 6.6 billion smartphone subscriptions are estimated, accounting for about 79 per cent of all mobile phone subscriptions. This is forecast to reach 7.8 billion in 2028, accounting for around 84 per cent of all mobile subscriptions.”

Source : Punchng.com

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TECHDIGEST – The Nigerian government has banned the importation of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards. Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami announced this Monday in Lagos at the maiden edition of Nigerian Telecommunications Indigenous Content Expo (NTICE).

He said as Africa’s most populous country and largest economy, SIM cards should have long become a domestically manufactured product.

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With more than 200 million phone users and by implication SIM cards running on the networks, Nigeria should not be importing SIM cards, the minister told stakeholders at the NTICE organized by the Nigeria Office for Developing Indigenous Telecoms Sector (NODITS) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

His words: “Let me make it clear that the federal government will no longer tolerate the importation of SIM cards. We are now producing them in Nigeria. Our aim is to increase indigenous content in the ICT sector so that by 2025, we will be self-reliant by at least 80 percent.”

He urged stakeholders and citizens to support government efforts to boost local patronage and consumption.

“If we do this, history will be kind to all of us” said the professor of Cybersecurity.

The minister had in June announced the establishment of a SIM card manufacturing plant in Lagos built with private sector support with capacity to produce 200 million cards annually for local consumption and export.

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TECHDIGEST – The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) NCC has informed telecom subscribers that all already blocked Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards will not be unbarred by the service providers until they are linked with the National Identification Numbers (NINs).

The regulator stressed this while alerting telecom consumers of a fake, viral web link representing “misinformation and disinformation designed to mislead the general public about the [blocked] SIM cards.”

“This information has become necessary in view of a viral web link (https://bit.ly/NCC-Sim-Unbar-Gov-Ng) being circulated on social media and on some websites. The link and accompanying narrative represent patent misinformation and disinformation certainly designed to mislead the general public about the SIM cards that are barred from making calls, due to non-linkage with NIN at the set deadline,” noted NCC’s Director, Public Affairs, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, in an official statement at the weekend.

Part of the statement reads:
“The misleading, viral message mischievously displays NCC logo and ostensibly promises members of the public that, by clicking the web link and following further instructions in that regard, subscribers with barred SIM cards can unbar such SIMs across mobile networks without a valid NIN.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the NCC wishes to state categorically that it never issued such statement, directing subscribers or indicating that subscribers can unbar their SIM without a NIN. As such, the originators and peddlers of the spurious message were out to mischievously mislead unsuspecting members of public. Therefore, their message should be disregarded.

“The NCC is the national regulatory authority for telecommunications in Nigeria, and it is co-driving the process of the NIN-SIM linkage with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) as directed by the Federal Government.
“The commission will not, under any circumstance, act contrary to Federal Government’s directive to MNOs to bar SIMs cards not linked to NINs at the expiration of the last deadline given for the NIN-SIM linkage exercise.”

How to get blocked SIMs actively connected to make calls

The NCC also advised affected telecom subscribers on how they can get their SIMs actively connected to make calls.
First, for subscribers that have not registered for their NIN, what to do is to get their SIM registered at accredited centres across the country and then link the NIN with their SIM cards through channels provided by their service providers.
Secondly, for subscribers with registered NINs, what to do is to simply go and link the NIN with their SIMs through channels provided by their service providers.
“The NCC, therefore, uses this opportunity to reiterate its commitment to the Federal Government’s directive on the NIN-SIM Linkage to among others, strengthen security situation in the country, assist in other socio-economic planning activities of the government, as well as to always advance the course of consumer protection from falling victim to the antics of cyber fraudsters.” said Adinde.

Source : ITedgenews

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TECH DIGEST – Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo has lauded Africa’s leading smart card manufacturing and digital solutions company, SecureID Limited, for its manufacturing operations in Nigeria while creating copious job opportunities and bringing Nigeria to the fore of global competitiveness with its world-class smart card manufacturing plant in Lagos.

The statement was made during a visit to the company’s manufacturing facility on May 11 at Apapa-Oshodi, Isolo Lagos and was attended by several eminent guests.

The company recently bagged the esteemed Global System of Mobile Applications (GSMA) certification making it the first in Nigeria and 3rd in Africa; adding to its other global certifications including Visa International, MasterCard Incorporated, Verve, Card Quality Management (CQM) and ISO 9001/2015 for Smart Card Manufacturing and Personalization of credit and debit cards for all banks in Nigeria and clients in 21 countries across Africa.

SecureID also manufactures sim cards for telecom companies, loyalty cards for retail and security documents for public sector: driving license, national identity cards, international passports and more.

Osinbajo expressed confidence in the company to bolster local content and contribute to the growth of the economy, stating that the recent GSMA certificate and other global certificates bears glowing testimony to the level of high standards demonstrated in its production of first-rate smart cards in the country.

“Today marks a momentous occasion in the history of the technology and manufacturing sector, and I am delighted to be a part of it. SecureID Limited has proved to us with this state-of-the-art manufacturing plant that local production of smart cards at the highest quality is not only viable in Nigeria but also brings a plethora of opportunities with it for Africa.

“I must commend this indigenous company for laying the precedent for other local manufacturers to follow. I must also congratulate the founder and CEO, Kofo Akinkugbe, who through her grit and passion to contribute to the growth of the economy, has committed innumerable resources and manpower to bring this factory to fruition. It warms my heart to see a woman take charge and create something indelible for other young women to emulate. She is an attestation to the fact that women are dependable collaborators in our quest for nation building”, he stated.

The Vice President also extolled Akinkugbe for creating copious job opportunities for Nigerians, stating that this would bolster economic growth through local content.

Speaking on the company’s recent milestone, Akinkugbe stated that SecureID strictly upholds high quality standards and protocols to manufacture an array of smart cards in line with global best practices, emphasizing that the company worked resolutely, to attain the GSMA certificate and other certificates.

According to her, the company is an attestation that local production of smart cards at the highest quality is possible in Nigeria.

“As an indigenous company, we are able to produce high quality SIM cards and at the same time, providing job opportunities for Nigerians. The government has seen it, its volume, value and growth that we are able to contribute is something we would showcase and further prove that this can be done locally”, she added.

“On our journey, we sought and received support from many institutions, agencies, and initiatives that have been established to encourage startups SMEs and enterprises,” she said.

Some forward looking organizations also bought into our dream, early on and we must thank the Bank of Industry, in particular for the instrumental and continuing role.

“First Bank of Nigeria Plc, was also an early financial assistance, and they remain our primary lender.

“We are extremely grateful and proud of the patronage, that we received from most of the retail buyers, some of whom are represented here,not just in Nigeria, but across the continents, she said.

Also speaking at the event, Mr Simon Aranonu, Executive Director, Bank of Industry said that the bank was excited about SecureID because it was a pioneer project led by a woman.

” We are happy to be part of this journey which started ten years ago, the BOI will continue to support the company because it is a good innovation, “Aranonu said.

He also noted that the company would help safe foreign exchange in Nigeria.

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TECH DIGEST – The Federal Government of Nigeria has lifted the ban on the registration of new Subscribers Identification Module (SIMs).

This was made known in a statement signed on Thursday by the Technical Assistant (Information Technology) to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Femi Adeluyi.

According to the government, the new SIM card registration will commence on April 19, 2021.

It however placed NIN registration as mandatory for registering new SIM cards.

The statement read, “The implementation of the Policy will commence on Monday, 19th of April 2021.

“The issuance of New SIMs and other suspended activities will resume on the same date, as long as verification is done and the guidelines are fully adhered to.

“The Minister has also directed NCC and NIMC to ensure that the provisions of the Policy are strictly followed by all operators and subscribers.

“The Policy includes Guidelines on New SIM Acquisition and Activation, SIM Replacement, New SIM Activation for Corporates and Internet-of-Things/Machine-to-Machine (IoT/M2M), amongst others.

“The possession of a National Identity number will be a prerequisite for each of these categories. For the Corporate registration, institutions will be required to appoint a Telecoms Master (at the minimum of an Executive Management level) to provide the operational Primary NIN representation.

“The Telecoms Master will also be responsible for ensuring that the users provide their NINs to serve as a Secondary NIN.

“For IoT/M2M activations, SIM security protocols would be implemented on the SIM profile to ensure that SIMs can only be used for point to point data services specific to the URL they are working with. All other services will be barred.”

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TECH DIGEST – An arrested fraudster has confessed to the methods use to rob bank accounts via access to your phone.

A lot of people are highly ignorant to how losing their phones to fraudsters can lead to a complete clean-up of their bank accounts.

If you ask any banker, he or she will tell you about the hundreds of customers who have often come crying to the banks for help after realising that the money in their bank accounts have either fallen short of what it should be or has hit red.

These frudsters do this by stealing victims’ identity; name, address, bank information which they use in gaining access to their bank aacounts. They also use the stolen identity to defraud other people and even apply for loans, leaving the victim with debts.

A local fraudster arrested by the Police confesses to how he steals money from people’s bank accounts through their SIM cards. He claims he does “Wire Wire” also called SIM transaction or “Joker wire” where he can unlock, transfer and withdraw from any SIM card that is linked to a bank account.

In a video posted on Twitter by Jubril Gawat, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on New Media to the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the arrested fraudster confessed that once he gets hold of such a phone, he gains access to it easily by dialing the code, *425*100# to reveal the bank account connected to the SIM card.

For example, if it is an Access Bank aacount, he will dial *901*00# to show the users account balance. He will then proceed to reset the PIN, and the bank will ask for the account number and date of birth of the account holder. Since a lot of people save their account number on their contact list, He can easily get it there.

He will then proceed to use the account number to get the victim’s BVN, then use the BVN to get all his/her details by dialing *565*0#. With this information, he will proceed to reset the PIN, then use the date of birth to create a new PIN. From there, he will be able to transfer money out of the account.

He explains further that if the SIM card owner is a salary earner or owns a salary account, he will be eligible to apply for loans. As long as it’s the SIM used to receive bank account alerts, he can hack it. He does it so efficiently that the main owner of the account will receive no alert on any transactions done.

He transfers the stolen money to a “No trace Account” (Aza) using another stolen sim with its BVN to create it,
so the new account will be used to receive the funds and the owner of that stolen SIM card will be the one that will be traced.

Even if he does not see a SIM to use, as long as he can get the BVN, he can use it to receive the funds.

It can be tough to keep up with the many vices of internet fraudsters, who are constantly changing their techniques to keep ahead of the authorities. Being a victim of fraud can affect people of any age, and it can cost a lot of money.

We have valuable information we let out easily, but unconsciously. And there are people out there waiting to get hold of such information. It is advisable to always be careful of where and how we store our personal information.

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The Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has announced that subscribers with National Identification Numbers (NIN) can now replace their lost or damaged Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card at any of the customer centres across the country.

This was disclosed on Wednesday in a statement titled ‘ALTON’s Update on SIM Registration and NIN Integration’, signed by ALTON Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo and Publicity Secretary, Damian Udeh.

Subscribers with lost or damaged SIM cards had been complaining of the challenges they had been experiencing and difficulties to get SIM swaps.

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, had instructed the telecoms industry regulator, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), to stop the sale of SIM cards in Nigeria pending an audit of the SIM registration database.

Omolola Adedeji, an MTN subscriber who spoke to our correspondent, complained that she had been unable to communicate since her SIM card got damaged, even though her National Identification Number was linked to the line.

She said, “My SIM card spoilt, now MTN is saying I cannot retrieve my line because of NCC regulation. They should have at least considered cases like lost or stolen phones and given exceptions to line retrieval.

“Why will you direct telecom companies not to replace or sell SIM cards for people that have NIN? Must everything be this difficult? This is not proper but no one can question the Nigerian government.”

Glo subscriber, Uchenna Onyeyiri, also lamented, “This is my only line and I use it for work and everything else. How am I meant to contact my clients? How is anyone meant to contact me? And they’re telling me that it is the order from the government. Does that sound reasonable?”

ALTON stated that it had recognized the challenges experienced by customers that sought to replace or upgrade their SIM cards following the suspension of sale and activation of SIM cards.

The statement said, “We empathize with people who have been unable to reactivate their phone lines as a result of the suspension.

“Further to engagements with government on the matter, we are pleased to report that our members have been granted permission to carry out SIM replacement upon verification of the customer’s NIN.”

ALTON assured the public that their members were working with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to ensure seamless system connectivity for verification of NINs.

The operators urged subscribers to be patient as they worked with all stakeholders towards speedy resolution of issues affecting SIM registration/swap and activation, promising to restore normal services as soon as possible.

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TECH DIGEST – Telecom dealers in the North have said that about 2 million Nigerian youths were rendered jobless, allegedly by the suspension of sale, registration and activation of SIM Cards by the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.

Arewa Telecom Operators Agents and Simcard Dealers Association (ATOASDA), told journalists in Kaduna on Monday, that, they were aware of the Federal Government’s intention to address security challenges through linkage of National Identity Number NIN with mobile numbers and suspension of new Sim cards registration.

The telecom operators, however, expressed fear that, rendering 2 million youth jobless might worsen the security challenges.

President of the telecom operators, Hassan Yakubu said, as a registered association under corporate affairs commission of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with registration number CAC/IT/NO131761 and with Nigeria communications commission volume number as NCC/CAB/2019/VOL.1/011, “we are fully in support of FG measures to protect the lives and properties of the citizenry.”

“However, the federal government must trade carefully considering that, all available research works on the causes of insecurity across the country have been linked primarily to youth unemployment,” he said

According to him, the income of the telecoms business partners, staff and the agents, majority of whom are within the age bracket of 20 to 40 years in the value chain, was determined by the number of activations /SIM registration carried out within the month.

Yakubu said, “the suspension of SIM card registration may trigger another worse form of insecurity especially in zones most affected by the insecurity. In fact, the growth in the Telecom sector is determined by the very sub-sector that was suspended and the much celebrated 17% contribution by Telecom sector on the GDP was as a result of the activities of the sub-sector under suspension.”

“We therefore wish to advise that, the Federal Government can still achieve the desired result as well as avoid creating more problems in an attempt to solve a problem if the suspension is revised immediately to avoid the danger the suspension may expose the youth.”

“We suggest that, all existing SIM Cards must be paired with the NIN numbers within a stipulated time, while an average of three months should be allowed for smooth and effective pairing.”

“We also suggest that, the SIM Cards sale, registrations and activations should be allowed to continue, while an average of 10 new NIN machines be deployed in every local government in the 774 local governments of the federation for a better reach.”

“That no new SIM Card should be allowed to synchronize without the support of NIN number and ID card until the SIM Card and NIN number pairing is concluded, he said.

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TECH DIGEST – The Nigerian Communications Commission has directed Mobile Network Operators to immediately suspend the sale and activation of new SIM cards to allow an audit of the Subscriber Registration Database.

The Director, Public Affairs at NCC, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, in a statement on Wednesday, said it was absolutely necessary for operators to comply until the audit exercise had been concluded.

According to him, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, directed the commission to embark on an audit of the Subscriber Registration Database.

He, however, said an exemption might be granted following approval from the Federal Government through the commission.

He warned that non-compliance with the directive would be met with strict sanctions, including the possibility of withdrawal of operating license.

Adinde said the audit would help to consolidate the achievement of the SIM Card registration exercise.

The director explained that the objective of the audit exercise was to ensure compliance to set quality standards and requirements by mobile network operators.

According to him, the directive became necessary in view of the preponderance of pre-registered SIMs with the attendant security implications associated with the use of same to facilitate criminal activities.

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TECH DIGEST – The Minister of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has dismissed the claim that the Senate summoned him concerning the role of communication devices in national security.

The Minister in a statement made available to media said the claim was baseless, noting that there was no improperly registered Sim on networks after 9.2m SIMs were blocked in September 2019 based on the report submitted by the regulator (Nigerian Communications Commission) on the 26th of September 2019,

He, however, vowed to sanction any individual or institution found wanting in the event of evidence to the contrary.

The noted that the Ministry had supported security agencies in their statutory duty of protecting lives and property and this is why his first action after his appointment was to issue a directive that no improperly registered subscriber identification module (SIM) be allowed to remain.

Pantami further expressed his readiness to honour the official invitation from the Senators.

The statement reads in part: “The attention of the Minister of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has been drawn to some newspaper articles which claimed that the Senate summoned him concerning the role of communication devices in national security.

“Dr Pantami awaits the official invitation and would like to sincerely thank the Distinguished Senators for their concern and support towards improving national security.

“The Minister has supported security agencies in their statutory duty of protecting lives and property and this is why his first action after his appointment was to issue a directive that no improperly registered subscriber identification module (SIM) be allowed to remain on our networks.

“Based on the report submitted by the regulator (Nigerian Communications Commission) on the 26th of September 2019, there is currently no improperly registered SIM on our networks. In the event of evidence to the contrary, the Minister will sanction any individual or institution found wanting.

“Furthermore, Dr Pantami wrote to all security agencies on the 14th of October 2019 asking them to collaborate with the Ministry by contacting us whenever a crime has been aided and abetted through the use of telecommunication devices. No request by security agencies for assistance in the identification of owners of SIMs used for crime has gone untreated in his office.

“The Minister also submitted a detailed memorandum to the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Nigerian Security Challenges on the 12th of February 2020.

It contained details on policies developed by the Ministry to enhance security.

“In a similar vein, the Minister has directed the NCC to ensure that they put modalities in place to tie the National Identify Number (NIN) to SIMs, as well as see to it that no unregistered SIMs are sold.

“He has also directed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to significantly scale up the number of monthly NIN registrations.

“Moreover, Dr Pantami recently presented a Draft National Policy on Digital Identity for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) which took place on the 11th of November, 2020.

“The memo was approved and will support in the provision of Digital IDs for Nigerians, thus assisting in the implementation of the Policy to tie NINs to SIMs.

The Minister wishes to assure the distinguished Senators and Nigerians that the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy is committed to using technology to support the growth of our economy and the security of our nation”.

“We look forward to collaborating with the Senate and security agencies in this regard.”

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