The proliferation of mobile phones and smartphones has almost become unanimous. It's great when technology is available to access by everyone. But the proliferation and the business that accompanies it should be done responsibly because any great technology is a double-edged sword. It can be used for both good and bad. Therein lies the responsibility for the businesses and authorities to ensure that the wrong hands don't get hold of powerful technology through crony means.
In a shocking report, it has come to the attention of the authorities that private telecom companies have sold a large number of sim cards to people with false addresses and many times multiple connections have been issued to the same address. When we mean multiple connections, we are talking about 2 or 3 dozen connections.
Crime investigations have been stalling because of improper identities in a huge number of cases. It is estimated that over 42 lakh fake sim cards have been issued to 15 lakh fake addresses. It's a staggering number and this issue has to be dealt sternly because almost every crime in today's world has been carried out with the help of mobile phones.
In a startling revelation, more than 3 lakh fake sim cards have been distributed in Coimbatore alone, says Krishnan, a local sim card distributor. He also added that "In Krishnagiri district, there are 48 fake sim cards in one person's name. 480 fake sim cards are there in Coimbatore's PRP colony in Peelamadu where many high officials and affluent residents are located."
Today a young woman, Naganthini, residing in Selvapuram, Coimbatore has reportedly informed that she has complained to the Coimbatore City Police that there are 4 fake sim cards in her name without her knowledge but police officials have refuted this claim saying that no such complaints have been reported.
Tiruppur and Chennai have more fake sim cards than Coimbatore, reports say.
This issue has already been reported to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and to the Police Departments. The Delhi Police have written to TRAI in February asking them to impose a fine of Rs. 1 crore if a fake sim connection is issued by the telecom operator.
Though it is understable that monitoring multiple connections might be a tricky issue under some scenarios, responsible business checks and periodical evaluation of business processes are required to stop such unethical proliferation of useful technology.
The lack of responsible proliferation makes technology a potent tool in the wrong hands. With even greater technology available at their disposal, telecom companies need to put in the necessary checks and balances to weed out this issue. Issuing sim cards without the physical presence of a person or checking out the number of connections that are being held in a single identity are not necessarily huge business breaking endeavours. Even if they are, these are necessary steps to keep the world around us safe.