The House of Representatives has urged the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to extend the waiting period before inactive phone numbers are reassigned to new users to one year and six months (18 months).

The lawmakers said the move would strengthen compliance with the Data Protection Act, 2023, and protect Nigerians from fraud, identity theft, and wrongful criminal allegations linked to reassigned SIM cards.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by the member representing Orhionmwon/Uhunmwode Federal Constituency of Edo State, Billy Osawaru, during Tuesday’s plenary.

Osawaru proposed that the additional six months should allow for inactive SIM cards due for reallocation to be publicly announced in national newspapers and reported to the police once or twice annually.

He said the measure would improve transparency and make it easier to resolve criminal or fraudulent cases arising from SIM card reassignment.

The House further observed that the NCC’s Telecom Identity Risk Management Policy allows network operators to deactivate and recycle inactive SIM cards after a defined dormancy period, a policy, operators’ defended as necessary for operational and financial sustainability.

The lawmakers expressed concern that commercial considerations should not override subscriber protection, warning that improperly managed SIM recycling could expose Nigerians to data breaches, financial fraud, and identity theft, especially where recycled numbers remain tied to banking and identity verification systems.

House of Reps also mandated its Committees on Communications and Commerce to engage the NCC, the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, and other relevant agencies to review the policy framework and ensure stronger safeguards for mobile subscribers, with a report expected within four weeks for further legislative action.

Currently, the NCC guidelines mandate network providers in Nigeria to deactivate inactive SIM cards after 180 days (six months) and permit reassignment to new subscribers after one year of dormancy, without notifying the former subscriber, as provided in their new Telecom Identity Risk Management Policy.

Indeed, diverse opinions have continued to shape the development around SIM recycling in the country.

In an earlier interview with The Guardian, Chief Digital Officer, Lotus Bank, Akin Adegoke, said re-allocated SIMs must be de-linked from ex-users to curb fraud.

According to him, the solution is in coordination, not more customer warnings. He said banks and telcos should establish a secure, real-time notification system where any SIM swap or number reassignment automatically triggers a status update to the linked bank.

Adegoke said before authorising sensitive transactions, the bank should be able to confirm whether the SIM has been recently recycled. “If it has, the system can temporarily step up authentication or restrict high-risk activity. This does not require reinventing infrastructure. It requires agreed standards, shared responsibility and regulatory backing to make real-time information exchange mandatory rather than optional,” he stated.

Further, he said: “IF a SIM is reassigned without the previous owner de-linking their Bank Verification Number (BVN), the bank’s system should automatically treat that number as high-risk the moment its status changes. Digital banking cores can trigger a temporary freeze on high-value Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) transfers, block profile changes, and require stronger re-verification before any sensitive transaction is approved. This should be automatic, not customer-driven. Once a SIM tenure is reset or a swap is detected, risk controls must activate immediately to protect the account until identity is properly confirmed.” (The Guardian)

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