In light of the increasingly common telephone scams and related crimes, the SAR government has launched a public consultation to solicit views from the telecommunications industry, relevant stakeholders and members of the public on the implementation of a real-name registration program for subscriber identity module (SIM) cards, which will facilitate effective law enforcement against cyberfraud activities. The proposed scheme requires users of prepaid SIM (PPS) cards to provide personal particulars contained in their Hong Kong ID cards or valid travel documents, including name, date of birth and identity document number, as well as a photocopy of each document, for registration. Each user can register no more than three PPS cards with a telephone company. Such practices have been adopted in countries like Japan, Thailand and some European nations as an effective measure to forestall telephone deception and is of great benefit to maintaining public safety and social harmony.

In recent years, the police have even discovered a new scheme in which criminals used “burner phones” with PPS cards as remote controls to detonate homemade bombs. Because it is difficult to trace the identity of PPS card users, the masterminds of many syndicated crimes are still at large

There are currently more than 21 million registered mobile phone numbers here in Hong Kong, 44 percent of which are assigned to the monthly service subscription plans offered by telecom network operators while the remaining 56 percent, or about 12 million numbers, are PPS cards, which are often anonymous in nature and do not require users to provide their personal particulars upon purchase. Criminals, therefore, have been exploiting this loophole to commit offences such as human smuggling, drug trafficking, syndicated burglary, smuggling, technology crimes and immigration frauds. In recent years, the police have even discovered a new scheme in which criminals used “burner phones” with PPS cards as remote controls to detonate homemade bombs. Because it is difficult to trace the identity of PPS card users, the masterminds of many syndicated crimes are still at large.

Figures released by the Hong Kong Police Force reveal that more than 70 percent of serious cybercrimes with mobile phones involve the use of anonymous PPS cards, which also account for up to 90 percent of telephone scams. In the past three years, telephone fraud cases have increased from 615 in 2018 to 1,108 in the first 11 months of last year. The amount of money defrauded in the first 11 months of 2020 alone exceeded HK$560 million (US$72.2 million), which shows how rampant such crimes are.

Furthermore, lawbreakers took advantage of the anonymous PPS cards to peddle a large amount of rumors and untruths about the extradition law amendment bill back in 2019, and the SAR government’s anti-epidemic campaign since early last year. These criminal activities, together with organized cyberbullying, are psychological abuses designed to compromise social stability by terrorizing law-abiding citizens. Consequently, be it for combating telephone scams or maintaining social order, it is absolutely necessary to register the identity of every PPS card user to stem this spreading mobile-phone-transmitted cyber disease.

In fact, real-name registration has been widely adopted for mobile phone users in three-quarters of the countries and regions globally, including popular holiday destinations such as Japan, South Korea, European countries, Southeast Asian countries, etc., meaning that whenever a PPS card is purchased, the person is required to present their identity/travel documents and fill in their personal information. The Chinese mainland implemented the scheme for telephone users as early as 2013. The Macao SAR government enacted the Cybersecurity Law in 2019, which also requires mobile phone users to register with their real name. Evidently it has become a common tactic for law enforcement authorities around the world against cyberfraud.

However, as preventive measures like this will no doubt limit their criminal enterprises, various separatist groups, also known as the “mutual destruction camp”, have resorted to accusing the SAR government of using the real-name registration program to monitor public communication and curtail freedom of speech. They forgot Hong Kong is a society under the rule of law, where law enforcement agencies are required by law to obtain a court order for personal information kept by telecom network operators. It is only fair to subject PPS card users to the same security protocol anywhere they go. Besides, there has not been any contention over possible violation of free speech among subscribers of monthly service plans who provided personal data such as their name, identity document, permanent address, etc., upon registration. People have a very good reason to believe only those who defraud others or harm public interest are scared of and therefore hate the real-name registration program, because it will make their nefarious ends harder to achieve.

The author is a current affairs commentator. 

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.