Egypt Refers All Mobile Phone Companies to the Public Prosecution for Violations - Sarmad
(Royters) – Egypt’s National Telecom Regulatory Authority announced on Monday that it has referred all mobile phone operators operating in the country to the Public Prosecution following the discovery of violations related to the registration of phone lines in the names of citizens without their knowledge or possession of those lines.
The authority, a government body that has managed and regulated the telecommunications sector since 2003, said in a statement that “in light of monitoring complaints received from some users regarding the existence of mobile phone lines registered with their personal data without their knowledge or possession thereof, the Authority has referred the four mobile operators to the Public Prosecution to take investigative action regarding the facts at the heart of the complaints, based on the inspection and audit procedures carried out by the Authority over the past two days, which led to the completion of evidence, circumstantial evidence, and related documents.”
The Authority added that it “approved a package of urgent regulatory measures aimed at tightening the mobile line registration system, verifying the identity of actual holders, and preventing the recurrence of such incidents in the future,” following meetings held with telecom companies.
It clarified that these measures included “halting the sale or activation of any new lines through companies’ systems for entities and institutions, whether belonging to the private sector or government bodies and agencies,” while obliging companies to send text messages to all old lines registered in their systems, notifying holders of the necessity to visit company branches to sign new contracts.
Telecom companies in Egypt allow the creation of an electronic “wallet” linked to a mobile phone number, through which cash amounts can be transferred and received. The government also links many services to individuals’ phone numbers, such as bank accounts, traffic violations, and bill payments, as part of a national digital transformation plan.
Over the past few days, several citizens recorded videos or posted on their social media pages revealing that they had accidentally discovered phone lines registered under their names without any prior knowledge. Some stated that they had filed police reports to absolve themselves of responsibility for any legal violations committed using those lines.
The Ministry of Communications estimated the number of mobile phone service subscribers in Egypt at the end of December at approximately 123 million. The service is provided locally by Orange, Vodafone Egypt, Etisalat Egypt, and Telecom Egypt (WE).
