Bengaluru cyber police have registered separate cases against five SIM-card agencies after finding that more than 45 numbers activated in the city were allegedly used in cybercrime cases reported across several states, as part of the police operation named Cyber Shield.
The action follows an investigation based on data from the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, which was sent to the Cyber Command Centre for analysis. Police found that SIM cards activated through agencies in Bengaluru had allegedly been used in fraud cases reported in New Delhi, Kerala, Maharashtra, Bihar, Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
The five agencies include Balaji Enterprises in Kurubarahalli and employees of a private mobile company outlet in the RT Nagar and Sahakara Nagar areas, according to the report. The North Division cyber police have registered separate first information reports against the agencies, while cyber police stations in other divisions are examining additional SIM-selling points across the city.
A senior police officer said the agencies allegedly activated and sold SIM cards without properly checking the required documents, motivated by commissions. Police have issued notices to the agencies and directed their representatives to appear for questioning. They have also been asked to produce Aadhaar and other original documents collected while activating the SIM cards.
The investigation centres on whether customer identity information was misused to activate SIM cards that later reached cyber fraud networks. The report said police have registered cases under the Information Technology Act and provisions related to cheating in connection with the alleged sale of more than 45 SIM cards.
Telecom rules require agencies to collect officially recognised identity documents, including Aadhaar or voter identification, when issuing a SIM card to an Indian citizen. The customer’s live photograph must also be captured and the electronic know-your-customer process completed before activation. An individual is permitted to hold a maximum of nine SIM cards, subject to the required verification.
The police said some telecom representatives were allegedly misusing Aadhaar numbers and other personal information belonging to unsuspecting citizens to activate SIM cards. Such numbers could then be transferred to cyber fraudsters, making it more difficult to establish how the connections were obtained and who controlled them.
The Bengaluru operation comes amid wider concern over the use of mobile connections in cyber fraud. The report also referred to a recent Karnataka High Court decision refusing to quash a case against a person accused of illegally selling SIM cards in Abbareddy Layout. The court has directed the Cyber Command Director General of Police to frame guidelines for investigating the misuse and unauthorised activation of SIM cards.
Further questioning of the five agencies and examination of their verification records are expected to determine how the SIM cards were activated, whose documents were used and whether other outlets were involved. Division-level cyber police units are continuing checks at additional SIM-selling points across Bengaluru.
