STAFF REPORT ISB: Under a recently signed agreement signed, mobile phone SIMs would be activated only after biometric verification of customers.

The agreement aimed at stopping the use of SIMs in terrorist activities was signed by telecom operators and the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).

“The new procedure for issuance of SIMs would come into force by the end of July,” said an official of the ministry.

Under the agreement, the telecom companies will buy the required equipment and Nadra will charge Rs10 for verification of each consumer through its database.

During a presentation by Nadra Chairman Imtiaz Tajwar just before the signing of the agreement, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that biometric SIM verification would provide sound technological support to the law-enforcement agencies and help them improve the security situation.

Under the new system, nobody would be able to buy a new Sim without going through the biometric verification process, he said.

The minister asked Nadra and the mobile companies to devise a mechanism for clearing the heavy backlog of unverified Sims.

By Web Team

Technology Times Web team handles all matters relevant to website posting and management.