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The Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has given out impounded counterfeit phones and accessories valued at over N100 million to security agencies in Kano – a gesture that may have undermined government’s vigorous campaign against fake phones. Officials conversant with the matter including senior functionaries at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) are in rage over the development.
“This is unacceptable. Impounded counterfeit phones should be destroyed not distributed as gifts to security agencies,” a senior official of the NCC told IT Edge News in Abuja.
According to Director-General of SON, Malam Faruk Salim, the gesture is aimed at improving security, surveillance and communication in the state.
The items, which included different brands of phones, chargers and earpieces, were confiscated in the state some years back, said Salim who was a senior official of SON, Murtala Malami.
His words: “The items did not meet Nigeria’s set standard and requirements. That was why our director-general directed us to distribute them to security agencies.”
NCC regularly campaigns against counterfeit phones
The NCC regularly carries out awareness campaigns against counterfeit or sub-standard phones. According to the regulator, “a counterfeit phone is one that, without permission, bears a trademark that is identical or indistinguishable from a registered phone manufacturer.”
The NCC is empowered by “the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 to establish and enforce standards for all telecommunications equipment in operation in the Federal Republic of Nigeria and ensure that they operate seamlessly and safely within the Nigerian telecommunications environment. All equipment manufacturers, vendors and operators, including customer devices such as mobile phones and wireless adapters, must therefore ensure that their equipment conform to the applicable standards as mandated by the Commission before bringing them into Nigeria. The Technical Standard and Network Integrity Department of the NCC handles type approval of all equipment by ensuring they are up to standard.”
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Greater demand for mobile phones has resulted in a rise in counterfeit phones, batteries and accessories. Counterfeit mobile devices are therefore very cheap and have contributed to teledensity in the country.
Dangers of counterfeit phones
Counterfeit phones lower the quality of service of mobile telecommunication services, thus impacting the experience of consumers and businesses. In addition, fake phones create a safety hazard for consumers due to use of defective or inadequate components or materials; and according to the Mobile Manufacturers Forum (MMF), “counterfeit and substandard mobile devices pose growing threats to consumer health and safety as they are not tested for compliance and contain dangerously high levels of lead and calcium in phone parts exposed to consumers.”
Equally important, counterfeit handsets raise cyber security-related threats.
