PTA & FIA Raid Illegal SIM Vendors in 3 Cities

In recent times, the crackdown against illegal SIM vendors and mobile franchises has increased, keeping in mind the risks related to it. In yet another instance, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Zonal Office Rawalpindi and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cyber Crime Wing successfully carried out three raids on franchisees of a mobile phone company and an illegal SIM registration vendor in Hasan Abdal, Wah, and Rawalpindi, respectively.

According to a credible source, 3 BVS devices, 3550 pre-active SIMs, 748 silicon thumbs, 11 thousand digital fingerprints, and a printer were seized during the raid. Moreover, the sale channels were involved in the illegal issuance of SIMs.

A team consisting of FIA officials arrested three people from the raid site, and FIRs have been registered against them. It is pertinent to mention here that the raids are part of PTA’s ongoing efforts to deter the circumvention of the Multi-Finger Biometric Verification System (MBVS).  Before these raids, the national telecom regulator filed a complaint with the FIA based on information regarding the illegal issuance of SIMs by these sales channels.

The FIA is currently conducting a thorough investigation into the matter. We will update you as we get further details regarding the matter. So stay tuned with us!