MANILA (UPDATED) - Telco giants Globe and Smart have reported issues with their SIM registration systems on the first day of SIM registration, as many subscribers also expressed disappointment with difficulties in registering.

Globe took down its registration site as early as 7 a.m. Tuesday. By afternoon, the site was still not up and redirected to its FAQs on SIM registration.

Smart meanwhile said its registration portal was down for less than 20 minutes.

• SIM card registration begins; some users report difficulties

Yoly Crisanto, Globe's Corporate Communication head, said they took down the website not because of congestion, but because they wanted to improve the user experience as there were still lags or latency in the process Tuesday morning.

She added that while they tested the system beforehand, the company was "not very happy with the experience."

"Ang gusto natin mabilis, right? Baka kasi 'pag may latency mag-time out ang registration. Gusto natin pagandahin pa."

(We want it fast, right? If there's latency, the registration may time-out. We want to improve it further.)

An added challenge was the inclusion of "selfie" verification which, Crisanto said, was just recently added by the government.

"Even in the past when we were discussing the requirements, ang selfie is not included. Even if you check the requirement, wala naman nakalagay doon na mag-take ka ng selfie mo. And selfie is a requirement, but again we were enjoined," Crisanto said.

In a separate statement released Tuesday night, Globe said it has asked the NTC for a maximum of 72 hours to observe its SIM registration portal after it discovered some minor issues.

"Globe is committed to make SIM registration easy and convenient for its 87.9 million customers. However, it is very unfortunate that we discovered potential minor vulnerabilities in our microsite that require careful patching in order to prevent any serious threat to customer data. We take this very seriously hence even minor issues are given utmost attention," it said.

"In light of this development, Globe has requested the NTC for a maximum of 72 hours from today to observe our SIM registration portal to ensure all patches made are technically stable," Globe added.

Globe also assured subscribers that they will have enough time to register their SIM until April 26.

"Globe likewise assures existing customers that there is enough time to complete their registration. All Globe Prepaid, TM, Globe At Home Prepaid WiFi, Globe Mobile WiFi and Globe Business prepaid customers have until April 26, 2023 to register," it said.

Smart's Corporate Communications head Cathy Yang said they had no such problems with the selfie verification.

The issue was the congestion or surge of registrants earlier in the morning, but this was quickly resolved, Yang said.

"Nagkaroon ng heavy traffic, registration traffic. Diyan tayo nagkaroon ng challenge na makalagpas ang ating subscribers sa hinihinging OTP o yung tinatawag na One Time Password, pero agad-agaran din namin tinugunan by increasing the capacity para ma-accomodate ang surge in registrant traffic," Yang explained.

Dito, which has fewer subscribers than Globe and Smart, reported fewer issues as well. Its Chief Administrative Officer Adel Tamano told Teleradyo that aside from having fewer subscribers, the telco also does not have 2G or 3G phones which may have added challenges for the bigger telcos.

"Wala kaming legacy system, wala kaming 2G and 3G, kasi yung mga tao na hindi (may-ari ng) smartphone, medyo hirap silang mag-register unlike sa amin," Tamano said, adding that subscribers can visit Dito's stores should they need assistance in SIM registration.

Smart said its subscribers can also visit its stores nationwide for SIM registration, while Globe said its subscribers have the option to register using its Globe One app by January and through on-site assisted registration by February.

Many mobile phone users said they could not access the sites of some telcos. One group of college students in Manila registered together, but out of 4, only 1 was able to enter the site.

The National Telecommunications Commission said problems are expected during the first few days. It said it is continuously monitoring the registration process which will last until April, unless extended.

"Marami po ay dinadagsa yung sistema nila ngayon na gusto magpa-rehistro," NTC deputy commissioner Jon Paulo Salvahan told Teleradyo. "Humihingi po understanding ang ating mga kababayan at patience para makapag-rehistro, pero sa NTC, kami ay continous na mino-monotor natin yan and we requested telcos to keep us updated every so often... kung ano po ang status ng kanilang sistema."

For postpaid subscribers of both Globe and Smart, registration was easier. Globe said postpaid subscribers were considered already registered, while Smart postpaid subscribers were only required to send a text message to a certain number to register.

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GCash meanwhile warned users against scam texts and messages that said their accounts would be deactivated if they didn't click on a registration link.

• Mga dapat malaman sa pagpaparehistro ng SIM card simula Disyembre 27

In a statement, the Department of Information and Communications Technology said the first two weeks of SIM registration are considered a "test period", after which telcos are expected to assess what needs to be done to make the registration more efficient.

DICT also said it has a 24/7 complaint center for issues related to SIM registration.

"Concerns related to the SIM registration can be directed to them through hotline 1326," it said.

"We request the public for their patience as this process is new to both the subscribers and the PTEs (telcos). We also ask for the public’s cooperation in reporting to the telcos or to the complaint center the difficulties, glitches, or technical issues they experience," DICT added.

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