CEBU CITY, Philippines — About 500,000 Globe subscribers in Cebu have registered their sim cards as of Jan. 31, 2023, according to Rofil Sheldon Magto, the Regional Corporate Communications Manager of Globe for Visayas and Mindanao.
Magto said the number is part of the 13.3 million successful sim card registrations nationwide as of Feb. 13.
Magto said they still have a long way to go as far as sim registration is concerned as they target to complete the registration of their 86.7 million customers.
Magto, in a news forum on Tuesday, Feb. 14, emphasized the purpose of the Republic Act 11934, or the Sim Registration Act, in protecting the public from spam and scam messages.
“If atong mamatikdan, nagsugod kining spam and scam messages, specially, ni shoot-up ang kining statistics during the [COVID-19] pandemic. Maybe, because daghan kaayog mga creative individuals nga wala nay nahimo sa ilang balay. Niagi pod sila og kalisod mao ng nangita pod silag other creative means to find livelihood,” he said.
“[But] Your identity and your data are very important nowadays. So, this time, Globe Group, is fully supporting the Sim Registration Act,” he said.
“Ang pinaka giawhag namo sa among mga customers, nga mag register na ta because this is not for the Telcos, this is for everyone’s safety and security,” he added.
(We are calling on our customers to register now because this is not for the Telcos, this is for everyone’s safety and security.)
Magto said they also expect that with the sim registration, they can also rightsize their customer base, especially that some of their clients own more than one sim card, with some already inactive.
Magto said Globe is currently implementing measures and updating its systems to curb the spread of spam and scam messages using their platform.
In 2022 alone, Magto said, Globe was able to blacklist 50,000 sim cards reportedly linked to fraudulent activities.
It also blocked 2.72 billion scam and spam messages last year.
Out of the 2.72 billion, 83.4 million are related to bank transactions, he said.
“Of course, dili man na nato ma likayan nga our friendly hackers, they get creative everyday. So, mag improve pod sa ilang mga pamaagi, naay makalusot nga usa o duha ka mga texts, that’s why, we are really encouraging our customers to be vigilant,” he said.
(Of course, we can’t avoid our friendly hackers, they get creative everyday. So, we have to improve also on our ways. There are one or two texts that go through, that’s why, we are really encouraging our customers to be vigilant.)
Photo screenshot from Globe’s official sim card registration portal.| via Wenilyn Sabalo
Magto said it only takes about 10-15 minutes to register prepaid sim cards online by visiting the registration portal of Globe at new.globe.com.ph/simreg.
Subscribers only need to enter their 10-digit mobile number, wait for an OTP, fill out the online registration form, and submit a selfie with a valid government-issued ID.
Postpaid subscribers only have to send the text message “simreg” to 8080 to register free of charge.
Magto said they are also supporting the National Telecommunications (NTC’s) campaign for assisted sim registration in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.
Globe will conduct an assisted sim registration in Tabuelan Municipal Court, Cebu on Feb. 16 and in Balamban Municipal Tennis Court on Feb. 17.
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