MCMC: 5 telcos fined RM750,000 in total for registering prepaid SIMs without verification

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has slapped 5 telcos with a total of 15 compounds valued at RM750,000 on the 4th December. The compounds were issued for failure to register new prepaid SIM cards with required user ID verification.

The MCMC states that they have acted based on an audit performed in Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu between August and October 2019. In total, the MCMC has issued a total of 70 compounds so far in 2020 which accumulates to RM3.45 million. This year’s collection is already 19% more than the RM2.9 million compounds issued in 2019 for the same offences.

Digi received the most with a total of 5 compounds worth RM250,000. This is followed by Maxis with 4 compounds valued at RM200,000, U Mobile with 3 compounds worth RM150,000. Tune Talk is slapped with 2 compounds worth RM100,000 while YTL is slapped with 1 compound worth RM50,000.

The MCMC said registration of new prepaid SIM without verification is a violation under Section 127 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998 which carries a fine of not more than RM100,000, 2 years prison, or both if found guilty. The verification is required to curb misuse of prepaid services for terrorism and criminal activities.

In October, the MCMC has issued 15 compound worth RM700,000 to a total of 6 telcos for similar offences. The Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah had earlier revealed that almost 1.4 million prepaid lines were registered with dubious details. A total of 920,217 lines have been terminated while 457,645 accounts have been updated with valid information.

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