The Delta State Police Command has warned Nigerians to check phone numbers registered against their National Identification Numbers to avoid being linked to crimes committed with SIM cards allegedly registered without their knowledge.
The police said some SIM registration agents were allegedly collecting customers’ personal information under the guise of registering their phone numbers but using the details to register other SIM cards for criminals.
The command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Edafe Bright, gave the warning in a security advisory posted on X on Friday, urging residents to verify all numbers connected to their NINs at official offices of telecommunications companies.
Bright said some unsuspecting customers might submit their personal details to agents without knowing that the information was being used to register additional phone numbers.
He explained that after secretly registering the numbers, the agents could tell customers that the network was poor and advise them to visit another outlet.
“You can just go and say I want to register an MTN SIM card. They will tell you, okay, what’s your name? What’s your mother’s maiden name? What’s this? What’s that? And eventually, you will not even know that they are not registering your SIM card but they are registering another SIM card entirely,” he said.
The police spokesman warned that such numbers could be sold to fraudsters and other criminals, leaving the unsuspecting owners of the identities exposed to police investigations.
“Whatever offence they commit with that SIM card, then your NIN, your name and your other very important details, it becomes almost your responsibility, and it will be difficult to prove that it was not you who committed that particular offence,” Bright cautioned.
He said criminals could use the phone numbers to defraud people, facilitate kidnappings and make ransom demands.
“If they use your number to defraud somebody of 20, 30, 40 million, my brother, my sister, it will be difficult for you to say you are not aware. If they use your number to collect ransom money, if they use your number to kidnap somebody, if they use your number to call for ransom money, it will be very difficult to say you are not aware,” he warned.
Bright disclosed that the command was investigating a related case but declined to give further details because the matter was still under investigation.
He advised subscribers to visit the official service centres of MTN, Globacom and other telecommunications companies to obtain a list of all phone numbers linked to their NINs.
“My brother and my sister, any number that you find there that you know you are not using, please ask them to delist it. That’s the most important advice,” he said.
He stressed that the check was necessary even for people who had registered their SIM cards at official telecommunications offices, as other numbers could still have been linked to their identities without their knowledge.
The police urged residents to be careful when sharing personal information with SIM registration agents and to use authorised service centres for SIM registration and verification.
