Stories by Bode Adewumi
THE Federal Government has unveiled a Device Management System (DMS)- a new security measure that will help tackle the increasing rate of mobile phone theft in Nigeria.
DMS, which will be managed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), will serve as a repository for all registered mobile phones’ International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) and owners of such devices in the country.
The IMEI is a 15-digit unique number for mobile devices that identifies each mobile device and its model specification. It can be used in the tracking of stolen phones.
This new development is contained in the revised National Identity Policy for SIM Card registration recently unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari; Dr Isa Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy; Professor Adeolu Akande, chairman of the NCC and Professor Umar Garba Danbatta, executive vice chairman of the NCC.
According to the 45-page policy document, the DMS will serve as a database for sharing information on stolen devices across all networks.
It will also provide access to all operators to cross-check the IMEIs and their status before allowing a device to become active on their network.
Also, registered mobile phone technicians will be provided with an interface to check IMEIs and ensure it has not been reported as stolen or illegal before they render their technical services.
The FG explained further that this would help to curtail the counterfeit mobile phone market, discourage mobile phone theft, enhance National Security, protect consumer interest, increase revenue generation for the government, reduce the rate of kidnapping, mitigate the use of stolen phones for crime and facilitate blocking or tracing of stolen mobile phones and other smart devices.
Setting an implementation window of three months, President Buhari’s objective is to register and capture the IMEIs of all mobile phones and other smart devices on the DMS, which will serve as a repository for sharing data of stolen devices across all networks.
It is to also ensure all un-registered devices do not work in any of the networks in Nigeria, ensure every reported IMEIs for stolen and illegal mobile phones and other smart devices are blacklisted and shared with all operators across all networks, mitigate mobile phone theft and protect Nigerians from been attacked to snatch their mobile phones and other smart devices and blacklist and render all stolen mobile phones and other smart devices valueless in the Nigerian mobile phones market.
Other objectives include easing the use of mobile phones and other smart devices in all public places without fear of been attacked by mobile phone snatchers, facilitating the use of digital technology solutions to address key issues bothering Nigerians in the telecommunication sector and facilitating the implementation of DMS following best global practices.
The workings of this directive will ensure that IMEIs of mobile phones that have been reported as either stolen or illegal are shared through the DMS to all MTN, Globacom, Airtel, 9mobile and other network operators and as a result, such devices will not work even if different SIM cards are inserted.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents
In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. This report x-rays the lives and experiences of residents in getting clean, potable and affordable water amidst the surge of COVID-19 cases in the state…
Selfies, video calls and Chinese documentaries: The things you’ll meet onboard Lagos-Ibadan train
The Lagos-Ibadan railway was inaugurated recently for a full paid operation by the Nigerian Railway Corporation after about a year of free test-run. Our reporter joined the train to and fro Lagos from Ibadan and tells his experience in this report…
[ICYMI] Lekki Shootings: Why We Lied About Our Presence — General Taiwo
The Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry probing the killings at Lekki Toll Gate, on Saturday resumed viewing of the 24hrs footage of the October 20, 2020 shooting of #EndSARS protesters by personnel of the Nigerian Army…
ICYMI: How We Carried Out The 1993 Nigerian Airways Hijack —Ogunderu
On Monday, October 25, 1993, in the heat of June 12 annulment agitations, four Nigerian youngsters, Richard Ajibola Ogunderu, Kabir Adenuga, Benneth Oluwadaisi and Kenny Razak-Lawal, did the unthinkable! They hijacked an Abuja-bound aircraft, the Nigerian Airways airbus A310, and diverted it to Niger Republic. How did they so it? Excerpts…
Sahabi Danladi Mahuta, a community mobiliser and APC chieftain. Mahuta spoke to select journalists at the sidelines of an Islamic conference in Abuja recently. Excerpts…
•Restructuring of security architecture, bi-camera legislature, revenue formula on agenda•Moved from May 27, 28 to…
The Power of Unity presents a heartfelt and ambitious narrative centered on the enduring strength…
Your reward is never in what you do like others. It is in what you…
When vision is short-sleeved, innovation will be short-lived. The above statement is also true for…
As Nigeria prepares for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting…
The enemy is behind everything that happens to anyone here. In electronics and computing, a…
This website uses cookies.