SINGAPORE--Singapore announced new rules on Friday to prevent militants and other criminals from using prepaid subscriber identification module (SIM) cards in mobile phones.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng said three bombs in Thailand's Songkhla province in April were detonated using mobile phones, possibly with prepaid SIM cards.
"Criminals exploit the anonymity of prepaid SIM cards to avoid detection. Singapore must address this problem urgently as there are over 1.4 million local prepaid SIM cards, comprising 35 percent of the mobile market, in circulation today," he said in a statement.
From Nov. 1, all sellers of prepaid SIM cards will be required to ask for and electronically verify personal details of purchasers, said the Ministry of Home Affairs and the city-state's telecoms regulator, the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore.
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Oct 21, 2005, 01:47 PM
