CITC increases penalties on use of illegal SIM cards

The Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has increased the penalty for companies and shops involved in the illegal sale of SIM cards from SR 5 million to SR 25 million, with a rider that the penalty would be doubled if it was found that there was a recurrence of the offense.
Addressing the media on the royal decree issued in this regard, CITC spokesman Sultan Al-Malik said that further to the penalty imposed on the company or shop, individuals who buy such SIM cards knowing that it is registered in someone else’s name would be guilty of impersonating other people.
The jurisdiction, according to the royal decree, to impose penalties on violating companies would lie with the local municipalities. Expatriates who indulge in such act will be referred to several authorities including the police, the Labor Office and the Passport Department.
The CITC directive comes in the wake of exposure that several stores were indulging in the sales and promotion of cards of public communications in Saudi Arabia, even though the commission prohibited selling undocumented SIM cards.