Verification A Sham: Here's A Sim In Home Secy's Name

[KumaarShah 143]

Verification a sham: Here's a SIM in home secy's name

19 Oct 2007, 0030 hrs IST,Pradeep Thakur,TNN

NEW DELHI: Two terror attacks, one at Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad and the other at Dargah Sharif in Ajmer, were triggered by mobile phones. Investigations revealed that in both the cases, the SIM cards were taken in the same fictitious name — Babulal Yadav — and the picture given for the purpose of verification was that of a Noida-based yoga teacher, Tarak Nath, who protested when his photo was published as a suspect after the Hyderabad blast.

What was the motive behind spinning the same story for procuring mobiles for the deadly missions? At one level, it was to proclaim that the same terror outfit had carried out the attacks. At another, it was done to mock at our security system.

The procedure for getting a mobile phone connection, you probably know, has been tightened — the service providers can't give it without verifying the subscriber's identity and bona fides. Obviously, the jihadis were thumbing their noses at this "tightening".

You would imagine that after this gratuitous taunt, the authorities would have plugged the holes. But, no. Only two days ago, TOI acquired two SIM cards under fictitious names.

It could have been under any name. We chose the names of home secretary Madhukar Gupta and Intelligence Bureau director P C Haldar. It's not that any one service provider is lax, most of them are, with the exception of state-owned BSNL and MTNL.

The connection in the name of Gupta is a post-paid one from Vodafone (9873310143) and Haldar's a pre-paid Airtel connection (9958784077). The shady agent who got us the connections bragged that he could provide any connection, under any name.

Given the speed with which he delivered the new SIM cards — all of 48 hours — and activated the connections, this didn't seem an idle boast.

We might have identified the agent if that would have plugged the hole in our security. But the entire apparatus of identity checks is really a sieve — it leaks at all places. In the race for getting more customers, the mobile phone operators have appointed area agents who, in turn, have recruited boys — neither of whom have any appreciation of security needs; their aim is to simply boost numbers.

As a result, not only are connections given with flimsiest of checks, there is proactive help for the necessary paperwork — identity proof and the rest are "arranged" by the boys. We, for instance, merely gave the names in which we wanted the connections. We don't know whose pictures or what addresses have been used or who confirmed proof of residence. All we had to do was pay Rs 200 for the post-paid connection and Rs 150 for the pre-paid connection.

Truly, it's a frightening situation. After recording a terror toll that's the highest in the world after Iraq, it is frightening that India takes its security so casually.

Link: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Verific...how/2472027.cms

[manishag 17]

in Delhi you can the fake address and ID proof just for Rs 10 I have seen thats it has been done openly and many senior peoples of Telecom industry knows whats going on. And if you wanted to know that how it's done just ask them they will help you in doing this faking just to boost their nos. I remember few days before I have heard that one of very reputed person is forcing the sales team to do the faking just to boost the no and to make the company name big.

few months back in MP it was found that laks of HUTCH prepaid connections were issued with few thousand of Ids. Infact in many of the cities HUTCH/Vodafone is billing the fake SIM cards to the dealers to hit their targets

[Honest 836]

My dear friends in my point of view this matter must be taken very seriously. I don't know why our government is not taking strict actions on this cell operators which are issuing these sim cards in fake names without any proper verifications. Is the government waiting for another disaster to happen ?

Actually in this type of case only innocent people have to face the problems which they even can't think about that this can happen to them also.

Regards.

[manishag 17]

we are equally responsible for this act. specially college students and so called extra smart peoples. they change their no very quickly and they want insta activation. So many dealers preactivate SIM cards(IVR) with the fake Ids during the period of bonus schemes and then sell them at the cheaper rates.