SINGAPORE: From November 1, a person buying a pre-paid Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card in Singapore has to be 15 years of age and above.
SIM cards are tiny removable circuit boards fitted into cellular phones containing data including a directory of phone numbers used by the owner.
The number of pre-paid SIM cards will also be capped at 10 cards per person, regardless of which mobile service providers the cards are purchased from.
And the details of all customers and their purchases will be keyed into a new electronic system.
This will replace the manual recording method, which often yields inaccurate or incomplete data.
Existing users will be given a six-month grace period to re-register their purchases before their cards are de-activated.
The Home Affairs Ministry announced these details on Friday as Singapore strengthens its security control in its fight against terrorism.
Studies show terrorist groups have been using pre-paid SIM cards extensively because of the anonymity they offer.
Mr Wong Kan Seng, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, said: "In the region, we have seen Jemaah Islamiyah elements using pre-paid SIM cards extensively to avoid detection.
"In Songkhla (Thailand) this April, three simultaneous bombings happened in the evening. All three bombs were detonated using mobile phones, possibly utilising pre-paid SIM cards."
The prepaid phone card market has seen an exponential growth of some 120 times since the cards were introduced in 1999.
Currently, there are more than 1.4 million local pre-paid SIM cards in Singapore, comprising 35 percent of the mobile market in circulation.
To ensure that customer particulars are recorded accurately, all existing pre-paid SIM card users must re-register at retail outlets which sell the cards sold by their respective mobile service providers.
They can do so from November 1 till May 1 next year.
If they fail to do so, their pre-paid SIM cards will be de-activated from 2 May 2006.
Also, come November, mobile phone service providers could face heavier penalties if their dealers fail to register the customers' particulars.
They could be fined or even have their licence suspended or revoked.
Under the current system, the service providers only receive a warning letter.
While the new regulation will apply to mobile phone users in Singapore, it still will not be able to close all the gaps.
Dr Choong May Ling, Home Affairs Ministry's Deputy Secretary for Security, said: "There are overseas prepaid cards that can be used in Singapore. So the system that we are coming up with is not 100% foolproof. But what I want to stress is that it is a start, a necessary start and it will cover the majority of prepaid cards that are in use in Singapore. It would also make investigation simpler."
The Home Affairs Ministry says it hopes to work with other countries to clamp down on illegal activities involving prepaid phone cards.
Its neighbours, like Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines are also considering similar legislation.
The legislation has already been enforced in countries like Switzerland and Australia.
Service providers in Singapore say the new ruling will not severely affect the prepaid phone card market.
M1's director of sales and marketing, P Subramaniam, said: "The propositions for prepaid are pretty much the same, so the customers who want the benefit of prepaid cards will continue to use them."
Telcos expect the authorities to come up with checks to keep their dealers in line.
SingTel's vice president (consumer sales), Ooi Lay Yong, said: "There could be a class licence for the retailers, the sort that says they would have to comply with the registration process."
The Home Affairs Ministry says flyers will be distributed to foreign workers who are big users of such cards. - CNA/de/ir