Islamabad: In a joint operation, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) have cracked down on the illegal sale of SIM cards, leading to the arrest of 11 individuals and the seizure of over 7,000 unauthorized SIMs.
According to a press release issued by PTA, the two agencies conducted coordinated raids in major cities including Multan, Lahore, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Rawalpindi, and Karachi. As part of the operation, authorities confiscated illegally activated international SIMs.
The statement detailed that five raids were conducted in Multan, resulting in the seizure of 7,064 SIMs and the arrest of eight suspects. In Lahore and Gujranwala, officials confiscated 252 SIM cards and detained two shopkeepers. Similarly, in Rawalpindi, authorities seized 335 UK-based SIMs and other related cards. Additionally, in Karachi, 10 SIMs were confiscated, and one shopkeeper was apprehended.
On February 15, the FIA had revealed that unauthorized international SIMs, particularly those from the UK, were being widely used in Pakistan for serious crimes, including child pornography, kidnapping for ransom, and online financial fraud.
Additional Director General of FIA's Cyber Crime Wing, Waqar Uddin Syed, termed cybercrime a "complex issue" and stated that for the first time, FIA had launched a crackdown against the unauthorized trade of illegal SIMs. The operation led to the arrest of 44 suspects from Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Peshawar, Sukkur, and Abbottabad.
The authorities have reiterated their resolve to curb cybercrime and illegal telecommunications activities, emphasizing the need for stringent measures to ensure public safety in the digital domain.
