Starting from Feb. 28, the number of postpaid SIMcards a person can register would be limited to 10 across all the telcos.
Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) said the move is the latest anti-scam measures jointly with telcos “to protect the public against scams.”
The new rule is a further tightening of the measure taken in April 2024 where the registrations for each person was tightened to a maximum of 10 postpaid SIM cards per telco, from an unlimited number of registrations previously.
The change was in consultation with the Singapore Police Force (SPF), according to IMDA.
IMDA and SPF have observed an increasing trend of mules purchasing postpaid SIM cards in bulk and handing them over to criminal syndicates or scammers.
IMDA also said other safeguards are put in place for the registration of postpaid SIM cards “to restrict scammers’ ability to abuse the use of SIM cards while minimising inconvenience to legitimate users.”
They include requiring the use of government-issued identification documents for registration, disallowing the use of foreign passports to register for postpaid SIM cards, and requiring the use of Singpass for online registration.
The new rule will not affect those who have purchased the postpaid SIM cards before Feb. 28.
Subscriptions under corporate plans and data-only SIM cards that cannot send SMS and make calls will also be exempted from the new rule.
With effect from Dec. 30 last year, scammers and recruiters of scam syndicates face mandatory caning of between six to 24 strokes.
Scam mules face up to 12 strokes of the cane and will also be barred from registering new SIM cards.
