Sim card registration Kenya

Parents will now be required to provide the identity of their children when registering sim cards for their use according to new proposed guidelines by the Communications Authority of Kenya that are aimed to protect children against online abuse.

According to CA, the proposed Child Online Protection and Safety Guidelines released last week, are aimed at giving children better protection from online risks such as cyberbullying, pornography, identity theft inappropriate contact with adults.

“Mobile phone subscribers are informed of the need to appropriately register their SIM cards and declare the intended subscribers of the SIM cards,” the guidelines released said in part.

Presently, parents submit their ID to register sim cards for minors.

Mobile Service providers will be required to ensure that the guidelines are followed.

“Mobile service providers in the development of age-verification mechanism (should) ensure that all SIM cards that are to be used by children/minors shall be registered,” the guidelines state.

The minors’ registration details will help the communications Authority keep a database of children using smartphones in the country.

The registration of SIM cards will be done under the Kenya Information and Communications (Registration of SIM-cards) Regulations, 2015.

Parents or telecom firms that fail to abide by the registration guidelines could face a six-month jail term or be fined Sh300,000.

CA to switch off unregistered SIM cards by April 15

The Communications Authority also plans to switch off all unregistered simcards by April 15, 2022, in an effort to heighten security and improve data accuracy.

There has been an ongoing exercise in the country where mobile service providers are expected to verify users of existing simcards. Users are required to visit service centers to update their data.

“There is no need to protect consumers and the general public from criminal elements who exploit a lacuna in SIM registration. Many people have fallen prey to fraudsters,” CA said in a statement.