I am writing with regard to the article "SIM cards are being sold without the need for an iqama" (June 6). A SIM card is available without your iqama (residence permit) because vendors registered it with the iqama of a previous customer who visited the outlet. When I found that there were five  SIMs registered under my iqama, I contacted the service provider and demanded that they cancel those numbers. However, instead of helping me, they asked me to visit another branch in order to cancel the numbers. So, every time some greedy person registers a SIM under my iqama without my consent, am I supposed to waste my time visiting the office of the service provider? This is clearly fraud that the provider is also involved in in order to increase business. This SIM card fraud must be stopped.

Ashref, Online response



The Saudi government should institute a biometric fingerprint system for buying SIM cards. This system is followed in Pakistan.  Your finger must be put on the machine and no one can issue a SIM card in your name. This system is very secure  for both customers and operators.



Hamid, Online response