Mobile phones with illegal, cloned IMEIs won’t be blocked immediately under NEIR

Following the launch of the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR), citizens should not panic as illegal or cloned handsets will not be blocked automatically during the first 90 days, Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser on Posts, Telecommunications, and ICT, said on Friday.

In post on his Facebook account, Taiyeb stated that the authorities have received over three billion data sets from mobile operators, including historical records.

"Due to the way migration data is currently displayed, some NIDs show a higher number of active SIMs or handsets than actually in use," he explained.

Taiyeb added that BTRC and mobile operators are working together to archive historical data in the background and only the number of currently active handsets will be displayed in the future. "This process will take some time," he said.

Taiyeb also noted that the NEIR system is not new; it was first attempted in 2021. "We have now reactivated it with enhanced functional features.

Previously, one individual could use up to 20 SIMs per NID, later it was reduced to 15, and currently limited to 10. Therefore, seeing higher handset numbers in the NEIR mapping is normal," he said.

The system will provide citizens with awareness about how many SIMs and devices have been used under their NID, which can help detect financial crimes such as mobile banking fraud or online gambling.

Regarding data security, Taiyeb confirmed that measures have been taken, including secure JWT digital tokens and rate-limiting. Future access to data will require NID verification, with an additional security layer to enhance protection.

He thanked the public for pointing out errors and reporting issues, and requested patience while the system resolves technical complexities.