Biometric has no correlation with spoofing: Tarana
A spoofing attack is a
situation in which one
person or programme
successfully
masquerades as another by falsifying data
Staff Reporter
State Minister for Posts and Telecommunications Tarana Halim yesterday said biometric SIM verification has no correlation with spoofing, a computer apps-based technology that is now being resorted for mobile phone-based crimes.
After completion of biometric SIM verification, miscreants are perpetrating mobile phone-based crime especially life threat which is called spoofing or call masking and it has no correlation with biometric verification as this is being generated using computer apps, she said.
The state minister explained it at a press conference at her minister office this morning to clear the perception about biometric SIM verification and computer generated call on the wake of few mobile phone based crimes recently.
She said if anybody is received such call, at first he/she should do call back the number to know whether the number is registered biometrically.
After calling back, if the person receive the call, he/she must be owner of biometrically verified SIM that would make clear that someone third person has perpetrated it resorting computer apps for toll or any other purpose, added Tarana.
The state minister at the press conference also demonstrated how the spoofing call is generated for crime. An official of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) generated a call to a number of a journalist through spoofing using number of Tarana Halim, but when the journalist called back, it came to the state ministers mobile phone.
BTRC Chairman Dr Shahjahan Mahmood said they are working on priority to address the issue properly. But, problem is that when we shut a technology, another technology is emerged, he added. Mahmood vowed to stop the technology in Bangladesh.
According to BTRC, over 11.40 crore SIMs have been verified biometrically which the posts and telecommunications division had launched in December 16 last year and ended on May 31.
Turning on the accuracy of biometric SIM verification, the state minister said the process has below 0.5 percent dissimilarities due to lack of awareness of subscribers. If the subscribers were conscious during providing finger prints, the errors wouldnt be happened.
She urged the subscribers to be more conscious and careful during giving finger prints. BTRC Director General Brigadier Gen Emdad Ul Bari said they have found the incidents of selling finger prints for money.
Besides, over 3.5 lakh people have completed SIM verification using birth certificate or other documents temporarily, but national ID or passport is only possible to be verified, he added.
Bari hoped when the national ID is become mandatory, the error or dissimilarities would be eliminated fully.
Tarana Halim said the biometric SIM verification has helped to bring down the illegal VoIP to below 10 percent from 35 percent.
Posts and Telecommunications Secretary Faizur Rahman Chowdhury, Director General of Directorate of Telecommu-nication Jahangir Alam, BTRC high officials and representatives of law enforcing agencies were present at the press conference and spoke about different issues.
