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28 March 2024

Another UAE SIM card deadline

Free voice minutes for its customers subscribed to fixed business bundled propositions, at no extra cost. (File)

Published
By Vicky Kapur

Mobile subscribers of UAE telecom operators etisalat and du who have received an SMS to complete their re-registration process but fail to do so before the deadline will have their numbers deactivated from May 4.

“Outgoing will be deactivated  if you do not complete the process by the date mentioned in the SMS,” an etisalat call centre employee said.

This is the fourth phase of SIM card re-registration, with etisalat deactivating 1.3 million mobile ohone lines in the first two phases of the re-registration process. With coming Saturday’s deadline looming, etisalat expects an increase in mobile number registrations via its two new channels introduced last month – online and third party partners.

Mandated by the UAE Telecom Regulatory Authority or TRA, the authorities state that the registration of SIM cards will ‘ultimately protect subscribers from misuse or confidentiality infringement’

However, with a few more days to go before the deadline, there were no long queues (not longer than usual) at the etisalat and du counters that Emirates 24|7 visited this morning.

An etisalat staff manning one of the counters at their Mall of the Emirates outlet said: “You don’t need to worry if you haven’t received the SMS. The re-registration is being done in phases, and it is only for those subscribers who have got received the re-registration SMS. You have to fill the re-registration form and carry your original Emirates ID.”

In addition, he said that those who do not have an Emirates ID (visitors) should carry their passports with valid visas to complete the process. “The form can be filled online as well,” he added.

In October 2012, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) had extended the deadline for the re-registration of mobile subscribers under the “My Number, My Identity” campaign after etisalat and du were unable to provide smooth mechanisms to facilitate, accelerate and stimulate subscribers to update their data.

Ayman Eldessouky, Chief Sales Officer, Etisalat, said: “Etisalat’s business strategy is aimed at service excellence to ensure customer satisfaction. To this end, registration of their numbers is a crucial step towards preventing the global threat of identity theft and misuse.

“Etisalat has extended all necessary support to the TRA’s campaign by introducing new registration channels and adding new partners to ease the process for customers.”

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