Jeddah Police have clamped down on street vendors selling illegal SIM cards warning them of punitive action due to violation of local laws. They said that these SIM cards can be used in suspicious activities as the customer is provided with an unknown ID number. However, despite strict regulations, SIM cards of major mobile firms continue to be sold without customers showing proof of identity.

The trade in illegal mobile SIM cards is flourishing on Palestine Street in Jeddah despite the recent crackdown by the authorities. Some traders are exploiting the loopholes in the regulations to obtain the cards and then selling them illegally. Some shop owners selling mobile phones assist the hawkers and draw a commission. The presence of large numbers of illegal workers has made this a very profitable business for the hawkers.

The Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) announced in 2012 that entering a user’s ID number, together with a prepaid card number, would be mandatory to charge a cell phone’s credit or transfer money from the user’s credit to that of another subscriber. In a press statement earlier, the telecom regulator said this procedure aims to end the practice of anonymous persons misusing SIM cards. The regulations of CITC stipulated that only legal residents can buy SIM cards by producing their residency permits.

“There are some small mobile stores which sell a number of SIM cards with one ID to street vendors,” Salah Jameel a worker in a mobile store located on Palestine Street told Arab News.

This practice opens the door for suspicious persons who can take advantage of illegal SIM cards with unknown ID’s and sell them in front of mobile stores. The vendors offer various numbers to customers who choose one and buy the SIM with an unknown personal identification number to charge prepaid cards.

Abdullah Radwi, a street vendor denied that the police arrest them for selling SIM cards to a person with their personal ID number. This person is responsible when any customer uses the SIM cards in suspicious activities.

Meanwhile, there is an equally lucrative trade in legal SIM cards whose owners sell them on the black market, while there are others who sell SIM cards to mobile stores which are passed on to street vendors.

A source in a major telecom firm who asked not to be identified told Arab News: “A customer cannot buy more than 10 SIM cards with his own ID. This privilege is only available to private firms which have commercial records certified by the chambers of commerce and industry or to some private companies which buy SIM cards for their staff.”