The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has revealed that it has registered roughly 231 million telecommunications devices throughout Nigeria because it begins implementing a brand new verification system to stop counterfeit, cloned and unapproved telephones from accessing cell networks.
NCC stated the initiative would strengthen shopper safety, enhance community high quality and allow regulators to trace devices imported and offered within the nation.
The Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity on the NCC, Edoyemi Ogoh, disclosed this throughout a media briefing on the implementation of the Device Checker and Type Approval Compliance framework in Abuja on Tuesday.
“We had already registered about 231 million devices across the country. And those devices, basically, you don’t have to do anything. The subscriber does not have to do anything,” Ogoh stated.
He defined that the fee had robotically captured devices already working on Nigerian networks earlier than the verification system turned absolutely operational, eradicating the necessity for current subscribers to undertake extra registration.
However, newly launched devices should meet the fee’s verification necessities earlier than accessing telecommunications networks.
Ogoh clarified that beforehand related devices, together with people who won’t meet present approval requirements, wouldn’t be disconnected retrospectively.
“We are not blacklisting those that have come up before this,” he stated, explaining that the choice was supposed to guard customers who bought devices with out gaining access to verification instruments.
He added that the brand new framework would stop extra non-compliant devices from coming into the telecommunications ecosystem.
According to him, the fee is collaborating with the Nigeria Customs Service, producers, importers and sellers to make sure that imported devices are authenticated earlier than coming into the market.
The framework additionally permits regulators to establish the importer, date of importation and amount of particular person devices, strengthening enforcement towards suppliers of counterfeit merchandise.
Ogoh stated the initiative adopted the introduction of Type Approval Business Rules in August 2024 and intensive consultations with business stakeholders.
Under Section 132(2) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, telecommunications gear should acquire regulatory approval earlier than being offered or utilized in Nigeria.
The director defined that counterfeit devices might contribute to poor community high quality as a result of defective gear typically interferes with telecommunications infrastructure, affecting different subscribers utilizing the identical cell website.
He stated the fee’s assessments recognized device-related issues alongside infrastructure challenges, insecurity, flooding and different components affecting community efficiency.
On shopper verification, Ogoh suggested Nigerians to dial *315# or go to the NCC’s Device Checker portal to substantiate whether or not telephones, tablets, modems and different SIM-enabled devices had been authorised.
He stated subscribers who bought unverified devices ought to contact their sellers for replacements, whereas unresolved complaints may very well be reported via the fee’s toll-free 315 helpline.
Addressing considerations about doable surveillance, Ogoh insisted that the verification system wouldn’t give the regulator entry to subscribers’ private info.
“It is not a surveillance tool and does not provide access to personal information stored on devices,” he stated.
He defined that the system relied on gadget identification info somewhat than messages, pictures, contacts or monetary information.
Earlier, the Head of Public Affairs on the NCC, Nnenna Ukoha, described the initiative as a part of efforts to enhance telecommunications security, community high quality and shopper safety.
She urged journalists to coach Nigerians concerning the regulatory adjustments, noting that public understanding was important to their profitable implementation.
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