The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications, Sylvia Owusu-Ankomah, has cautioned that SIM registration by itself will not eliminate fraud in the country. She emphasized that consumer awareness and safeguarding personal identification numbers (PINs) remain vital in combating the rising cases of mobile-related scams.

Speaking in a Citi Business News interview, Owusu-Ankomah noted that most fraud cases in Ghana today are driven by social engineering schemes. In such scams, fraudsters impersonate trusted individuals or institutions to trick users into revealing sensitive information, including the PINs used for mobile financial transactions.

“SIM registration is not a silver bullet that stops fraud. The nature of fraud we are experiencing is mostly social engineering. This involves legitimate-looking calls from people pretending to be someone else to fraudulently obtain your personal information,” she explained. “Your PIN is sacred. Protecting it is the most effective way to prevent fraud.”

Owusu-Ankomah also stressed the importance of consumer education. She urged subscribers to avoid buying pre-registered SIM cards and to ensure that any SIM card they use is properly registered in their name. Linking SIM cards biometrically to the national identification database, she said, enhances traceability and accountability in the telecommunications ecosystem.

“What SIM registration does is link every subscriber’s number to the national ID database. This ensures that if someone uses a SIM card registered under your name, any crime committed with that number will be traced back to you. Therefore, it’s crucial to register SIM cards authentically and avoid pre-registered ones,” she said.

Her remarks come as the government plans another nationwide SIM registration exercise, which will be Ghana’s third major subscriber registration drive. The exercise, approved by Cabinet, is expected to introduce revisions to the existing regulatory framework governing SIM card registration.

Meanwhile, some mobile phone users have expressed hope that the upcoming re-registration exercise will help curb the persistent problem of mobile money fraud. Despite previous efforts, cases of mobile money scams and related cybercrime continue to be reported, causing financial losses for many.

“The advantage of re-registration is to tighten our security system. If it can help prevent the mobile money scams and fraud we keep hearing about, why not?” said Diana Opoku, a trader, in a Citi Business News interview.