If it were up to the cabinet, telecom providers would start monitoring text messages. There should also be a ban on anonymous prepaid SIM cards. With these measures, the government wants to form a fist against spoofing, phishing and other forms of online fraud. This is stated in the Explanatory Memorandum of the bill adjustments number policy, Security.nl discovered.
The government wants to make a number of changes to the Telecommunications Act. To this end, an Internet consultation was launched this week. Anyone who has an opinion about this can make it known to the cabinet. All relevant documents on the subject can also be found there.
The bill contains several proposals to better protect Dutch citizens from spoofing, phishing, friend-in-need fraud and other forms of online fraud. According to recent calculations by the University of Twente, the financial damage caused by online fraud amounts to some 2.75 billion euros annually. Four in ten Dutch people have experienced online fraud and one in six have actually become its victim.
This is most likely only the tip of the iceberg: far from everyone reports if they are victims of online fraud, because they are ashamed of it, for example. About a third of victims say they do not seek help.
Therefore, the Cabinet is coming up with proposals to address these forms of cybercrime. The bill includes making it easier to link a number to a user. Furthermore, the government is coming up with proposals to reduce the number of victims of spoofing and phishing.
One such measure is a ban on anonymous prepaid SIM cards. According to the cabinet, anonymous SIM cards facilitate online fraud and make tracking down suspects more difficult. "The obligation to register in combination with a ban on extraterritorial use [use outside the Dutch borders, ed.] raises a now relatively low threshold for malicious persons to carry out deceptive practices from abroad with such SIM cards, and improves the traceability of the users of these SIM cards," the Explanatory Memorandum reads.
The idea of banning anonymous prepaid SIM cards has been around for years. In 2017, then-Minister of Justice and Security Stef Blok said there would be no ban. Research had shown that criminals would hardly benefit from detection with this measure. His successor Ferd Grapperhaus said two years later that a ban on anonymous SIM cards hardly added value for investigative and security services. The turn by the current administration is therefore remarkable.
Tackling spoofing is not enough to tackle online fraud from the telecom domain, according to the Cabinet. Therefore, it is looking at whether legal measures can be taken that will ensure telecom companies can monitor metadata and message content.
"This touches on the one hand on the duty of care for telecom providers to protect their users from unwanted messages and on the other hand on the fundamental right of communication secrecy and the protection of personal data," the government acknowledges. A "careful balance" is therefore needed.
"For all possible measures, the relevant regulations, such as the Constitution (communication secrecy) and European regulations (ePrivacy Directive and the General Data Protection Regulation), must be complied with," the explanation of the number policy states.
The above measures are currently only proposals and are thus not mentioned in the bill. Through internet consultation, the government will see if there is support for them. Anyone who wants to can respond to the bill until September 9.
