In an updated SIM card registration policy, the government of Nigeria has limited subscribers to 3 cards. This means none of the people living in the country can have more than three SIM cards registered to their name.

As part of the new measure, the government has ordered the Nigerian Communications Commission -NCC- to make sure that the National Identity Number now becomes the prerequisite for future card registration. All cards already registered should be updated with their owners’ NIN before December 1, 2020. Foreigners will now have to use their valid passport to register SIM cards.

According to the Ministry of Digital Economy, the registration process is now to be handled by fully accredited agents, no pre-registered SIM cards should be sold and no unregistered SIM should enter the mobile networks. The eventual registration is to be led by operators themselves.

NCC should ensure that subscribers can easily check the number of cards registered to their name as well as the associated phone numbers and networks. Other measures is to ensure that mobile operators strengthen their networks against cyber-attacks, and comply with the provisions of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR). Operators are to set up tracking systems to spot SIM card fraudsters and block them.