Nigerians To Submit Phone IMEI From July – NCC

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has asked Nigerians to submit the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) of their phones to it from July.

The regulatory body made this known in its revised National Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration on Thursday.

The NCC noted that President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that the Device Management System be implemented within three months.

The NCC said, “With the aim to curtail the counterfeit mobile phone market, discourage mobile phone theft, enhance National Security, protect consumer interest, increase revenue generation for the government, reduce the rate of kidnapping, mitigate the use of stolen phones for crime, and facilitate blocking or tracing of stolen mobile phones and other smart devices, one of the means to achieve this is through the deployment of Device Management System.

“The implementation of a Centralised Equipment Identity Register otherwise known as Device Management System will serve as a repository for keeping records of all registered mobile phones’ International Mobile Equipment Identity and owners of such devices.

“IMEIs that have been reported as either stolen or illegal will be shared through the DMS to all the operators and service providers.”

Naija News reports that the IMEI number is the mobile phone’s 15-digit number unique to each phone.

This new platform understands that with the IMEI number, a phone can be tracked and located irrespective of the cellular number in it.