The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has brought to light a troubling issue of police officers being implicated in the leakage and subsequent sale of mobile phone SIM data of consumers in the open market.
The matter was formally raised before the Ministry of Interior, with the PTA urging a revision of the existing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to prevent further breaches.
According to PTA sources, an investigation into 21 complaints regarding data leaks revealed that police officers from Balochistan, Punjab, and Sindh were involved in selling sensitive telecom customer data.
The investigation found that as many as 72 investigating officers had access to this data, which was reportedly being sold for prices ranging from Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 per user. It was also disclosed that these officers were earning between Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh daily from these illegal activities.
The implicated officers, when confronted, claimed that their accounts had been misused by others. However, PTA sources pointed out that telecom companies had not provided the data, and false cases were subsequently registered against the officials of these companies.
Despite the serious nature of the allegations, the PTA is reportedly powerless to take direct action against the officers involved. The authority has formally requested the Ministry of Interior to amend its SOPs, emphasizing the need for a robust strategy to prevent such data leaks by security personnel.
