TIRMS, taking telecom and regulation a notch higher, by Okoh Aihe

TIRMS, which is an acronym for Telecoms Identity Risk Management System, has hardly enjoyed any special attention in the daily discourse of telecom regulation. Not even a sustained mention until the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, introduced it into the telecom lexicon last week. 

Much unlike other regulatory measures – like a huge telecom license fee, a blistering fine on an operator or even some other regulatory decisions which are instantly popular and hailed for good measure.

Like the one over the weekend, where the regulator has directed telecom operators to compensate subscribers for poor network services. The statement signed by Public Affairs Head, Nnenna Ukoha, directs “Mobile Network Operators, MNOs, to provide compensation to subscribers whose network quality of service experience is below specified targets within specific locations. The Commission’s position is that subscribers should not be made to bear the full burden of service disruptions where operators fail to meet prescribed standards of service delivery.”

Reactions to the regulator’s decision have been euphoric, especially from superficial minds who have waited for a fall guy to shoulder all the ills in the nation’s socio-economic ecosystem, hoping that just fixing an infinitesimal aspect will serve as a magic wand to fix the rest. 

While the quality of service experience has become very frustrating, one would only be too inept not to quantify the impact of the power sector which delivers less than 5000MW to a whole nation, including the telecom industry; it may not also sound well that a litre of diesel has gone beyond N1,500 which, of course, will pose further challenges on fuelling base stations. Let me not list other externalities that impact genuine progress in the industry. In the meantime, the regulator has given a directive. I, too, am waiting for my compensation, measured in airtime or even data replenishment. 

However, the TIRMS Platform whose final evolutionary process was the Consultative forum of last week, is a well reasoned regulatory intervention directed at ensuring fidelity and purity of SIMs, fool-proof from abuse and fraudulent practices, thereby securing the digital ecosystem. The forum was the final interface between the regulator and various stakeholders to put finishing touches to business rules that will affect the various industries that are digitally connected, with the SIM playing a vital role in the digital value chain.   

EVC Aminu Maida, speaking through Rimini Makama, Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, ECSM, observed that ‘’the Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number, MSISDN, commonly known as the SIM or mobile phone number has evolved into a critical identifier underpinning financial transactions, digital authentication, and access to essential services across all sectors of our economy.”

He noted, however,  that such evolution has created new and challenging vulnerabilities. For instance, ‘’the fraudulent use of churned, recycled, swapped, and barred MSISDNs has become a significant vector for financial fraud and identity theft, eroding public trust in our digital platforms and undermining the identity of systems we have worked hard to build.’’

The essence of the Consultative forum is to create a platform to tackle such vulnerabilities and fears, to enable people to engage in digital transactions without losing sleep. 

Expanding his thoughts, Maida said: ‘’TIRMS is designed to strengthen coordination across relevant sectors to enhance identity assurance of mobile numbers and prevent fraud stemming from churned, swapped, and recycled MSISDNs; these include the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN; Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC; the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC; National Insurance Commission, NAICON; the National Pension Commission, PECOM; Security and Exchange Commission, SEC; and other regulators. 

The ubiquity of the SIM which, once upon a time looked very ordinary, has been faithfully explained by Maida and stakeholders invited to share in, and take ownership of the process, had their views considered, supported by answers that may enrich the entire process as it headed towards validation. 

But why is the TIRMS platform necessary? The experience of the young lady who went into a market recently to purchase some items but got her card swiped and N75k immediately cleared from her account, would provide an answer. There is no indication yet that the culprit will ever be discovered. The obsession of wire fraud in the country which enjoys the shameful umbrella of  yahoo yahoo, and mind you, this does not include the yahoo plus, gives another macabre illustration. 

And just to add without increasing anybody’s fears, the fact that there are still a lot of illicit SIMs out there that seem to be active and functional which give bandits and other hardened criminals the opportunity to communicate and negotiate ransom without hindrance, means that the NCC has to be more creative and ingenious to deal with a peculiar Nigerian problem that has refused to abate. 

From the Consultation, the regulator seems to know the sources of some of these SIMs, and it is gratifying that efforts are being made to deal with them and give people more faith and hope in the digital economy. 

‘’Our collective responsibility today is clear: To ensure that every mobile number in Nigeria can be trusted – by users, by service providers, by regulators, and by the entire digital economy that depends on it,’’ Maida pledged. 

This does not communicate otherwise, that the SIM/NIN harmonisation exercise which ended September 14, 2024, has failed to achieve its objectives. Not at all. The real deal here is that there are always some fringe opportunities which the derelicts and criminal-minded among us will always try to exploit for tainted gains. The NCC wants to be miles ahead in denying them such unwholesome opportunities by ensuring that digital processes are clean and secure. 

As observed earlier, this is a very subtle regulatory exercise which may not enjoy so much acclaim but it is a deft move aimed at strengthening the digital ecosystem and a much needed opportunity for the regulator to demonstrate that somebody is in charge, and always in charge here. 

But on the matter of compensation for subscribers, NCC noted that ‘’while regulatory fines have traditionally served as deterrent against poor service delivery, the Commission is adopting a more consumer-focused approach that strengthens accountability within the industry.’’

Quite mindful that some of the industry challenges spill beyond the MNOs, the regulator also mandated Tower Companies who own the critical infrastructure for Quality of Service delivery, such as masts, to invest in infrastructure with measurable outcomes using sums that it has fined these companies, in addition to other financial fines the Commission will deem appropriate. 

In justifying its latest regulatory decision, the NCC said it has ‘’designed this measure to complement existing and ongoing efforts to strengthen service quality monitoring and enforce performance standards.’’

There is always something to hear from the NCC to the extent that we take such communications for granted, as something that should actually have been. Pray, can we export such templates to the power sector or a host of other sectors where practices remain woolly and shrouded in painful mystery? There are just so many sectors where accountability is urgently needed. Learning from each other might just be the right place to start. 

The post TIRMS, taking telecom and regulation a notch higher, by Okoh Aihe appeared first on Vanguard News.