The Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC) has extended the deadline for mobile phone users to register their SIM cards, following a request by the country’s wireless operators. The Khmer Times reports that mobile service providers must now ensure that the details of their pre-paid customers are registered by 22 March – extended from the original deadline of 22 December – following which wireless operators will be required to deactivate any unregistered numbers.
TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database states that in September 2015, as part of a government crackdown on unregistered SIM cards, Cambodia ruled that subscribers must register their details with their services provider or at a police station within three months, or face the disconnection of their service. At the time of the announcement, the National Police’s deputy chief, Chhay Sinarith, claimed that up to 70% of the country’s roughly 20 million SIM cards were unregistered.