The National Privacy Commission (NPC) said it found “some gaps” in the handling by local telcos of personal data privacy of subscribers while implementing the SIM Registration Act.
The DICT also held a presscon this week to formally launch the SIM Registration 24/7 interagency response center at the DICT Cybersecurity Bureau Building in Quezon City where subscribers who have concerns regarding SIM registration can dial the response center via its hotline 1326.
The study from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) noted that the Philippines is the only country in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation region that requires interested companies to secure a legislative franchise before applying for a certificate to operate as a telecom firm.
The DTI said the agreement opens doors for possible collaboration between the Philippines and China in undertaking joint case studies and capacity building programs to enhance the knowledge and skills of MSMEs and maximize the potentials of e-commerce.
The study also noted that the demand for IT-BPM-related onsite jobs remains low in rural areas and local talents had to move to another province to find jobs.
With traditional agricultural methods falling short, investing in new technologies is key to transforming the country’s livestock, poultry, and dairy (LPD) industries.
One of the authors of the SIM registration law said local telcos should consider adopting an incremental strategy on registering the tens of millions of SIMs instead of opening the doors wide open all at once.
Globe said it has logged over 1.5 million SIM registrations as of Dec. 28, while Smart Communications said it has received close to 400,000 successful applications. Dito Telecommunity, meanwhile, said subscribers who successfully register their SIM cards will receive 2GB bonus data.
Under the law, those who are required to register are all SIM subscribers, whether postpaid or prepaid, including embedded SIMs or eSIMs and other variations that are provisioned by any telco to provide text messages, calls, and/or data services.
The IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) recently reported that the total headcount of full-time employees in the local IT-BPM sector is now at 1.55 million with total revenue valued at $32 billion driven by industry-wide stabilization and reinvigorated support from the public sector.
