Why are junk SIMs being processed but harassing calls still exist?
Báo Dân trí•10/07/2024
(Dan Tri) - Recently, many people have expressed their frustration at being constantly bothered by unwanted calls with content offering loans, brokerage, product introduction, or even fraud.
In 2023, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) requested network operators to standardize subscriber information to remove junk SIMs and unregistered SIMs from the system. After a large-scale crackdown, a total of 19.6 million subscribers with inconsistent information were handled. However, the problem of spam calls still haunts mobile users in Vietnam. Recently, many people have expressed their frustration at being constantly bothered by unwanted calls with content inviting them to borrow money, broker, introduce products, or even scam.
The problem of spam calls is still haunting mobile users in Vietnam (Photo: The Anh).
In fact, junk SIMs are not entirely the source of harassing calls, sales calls or service introductions. Even "genuine" SIMs can be the cause of this situation. This is the opinion of Mr. Pham Duc Long, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications , at a meeting held in September 2023. According to Mr. Long, the cause of this situation is partly due to telesales or remote marketing activities via phone. "This is a profession, it is marketing. Therefore, not only Vietnam but the whole world is suffering from this problem. And even when all junk SIMs are blocked, there will still be harassing and fraudulent calls. We need to clearly distinguish between these two concepts," Deputy Minister Long commented. The Ministry of Information and Communications has also had a scenario to prevent the spread of junk calls on cyberspace. However, this activity requires the proactive participation of relevant agencies, organizations and the people themselves. Accordingly, agencies and organizations such as schools, banks, and hospitals need to proactively disseminate phone numbers and official communication channels to users. People need to raise awareness of protecting personal information, be vigilant when listening to and following requests from strange numbers that are not in the contact list. Talking to Dan Tri reporters, a Viettel representative said that in the first 6 months of 2024, the number of spam and scam calls according to the suspicion criteria of the Ministry of Information and Communications has decreased by half compared to the same period in 2023. This network operator also said that it has applied drastic measures to prevent the spread of spam and scam calls. "Viettel has deployed an Antispam call system using AI (Pattern Matching) technology and Big data to quickly identify subscribers suspected of spreading spam and scam calls. Viettel hopes that people will actively respond to spam and scam call survey messages to join hands to completely prevent this problem," a Viettel representative shared. In addition, Viettel also forwards reports of fraudulent calls to the Information Security Department to coordinate with the police to verify and handle the case. In addition, to refuse to receive unwanted advertising calls, people can text to register on the do-not-advertise list. Network operators are implementing various solutions to limit spam calls (Photo: Ministry of Information and Communications). Meanwhile, a representative of VNPT network said that junk SIMs are often used in spam calls and scam calls. Standardizing information with subscribers can limit scam calls. However, junk calls such as advertising, marketing, and service product solicitations will not be eliminated because in essence, this type of call does not require hiding information. "Unlike scam calls, junk calls today even proactively provide information about the company or organization making the call to invite users to use their services. Typical of these are calls inviting investment, stocks, real estate, tourism, and foreign language learning," a representative of VNPT shared. This network also said that it has deployed systems to detect spam messages, screen subscribers suspected of making spam calls to include them in surveys and block them. At the same time, when receiving spam calls or calls with signs of fraud, people are also advised to contact number 156 to report.
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