The telecoms ministry seized fake BTS equipment on February 14. Telecoms ministry
Prime Minister Hun Manet has instructed authorities in the capital and provinces to investigate any new lottery businesses that attempt to operate within their jurisdictions.
In a related statement, the telecommunications ministry has warned the public about the danger of fake telecoms networks, often used to advertise gambling.
In a special audio address on February 14, the premier made it clear that such businesses must not be allowed to open. He added that he has issued a directive which firmly orders an end to the authorisation of such gambling operations.
“I instruct the governors of the capital and provinces to take immediate action and investigate these kinds of businesses. If you observe new lotteries opening, you must report them directly to me, so we can determine whether we shut them down in the province or nationwide,” he said.
“I order the governors to carry out this work meticulously. They must remain disciplined and report any developments related to this issue to me immediately,” he added.
He also told authorities to focus on developing their communities, rather than spending their time and resources dealing with existing gambling businesses.
In recent days, Kampong Speu provincial governor Vei Samnang issued a directive to all district governors to shut down lottery businesses and all other “games of chance” within their jurisdiction.
Following Manet’s order, Samnang told The Post that he has already issued orders to many of the districts in the province.
“After we received the order, I assigned working groups to investigate their respective jurisdictions. They have already closed down some operations, and will continue to monitor each pat of the province, to ensure that the safe village-commune policy is followed,” he said.
The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications issued a February 14 directive warning the public about other potentially harmful activities with links to illegal gambling.
According to the ministry, fake Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) or International Mobile Subscriber Identities (IMSI) are currently employed by some criminals to send advertisements for illegal services like gambling or private loans.
It explained that these activities can disrupt legitimate service providers and compromise people’s privacy and data security.
“A fake BTS scans the signal of a mobile phone and then temporarily switches reception from the licensed service provider to a fake one. This means it can send short messages, without going through the legitimate provider,” it said.
It added that on January 10, the ministry worked with Preah Sihanouk provincial police to investigate a suspected fraud operation. They raided a car wash and seized 19 fake BTS’, along with three signal jammers and other telecoms equipment used to conduct scam operations. Five vehicles were also seized, with several suspects sent to court.
The ministry warned the importers of telecoms equipment not to become involved with the unauthorised sale of this kind of specialised equipment.
It warned members of the public that they should not respond to messages from unknown sources, especially if they offer loans or gambling services. This will help to prevent them from having their social media accounts hacked, it added.
The directive also called on all capital and provincial authorities to work together to prevent the use of fake BTS’, while also sharing its warnings with the public.
It also warned the public about operating fake BTS’, noting that legal action will be taken against anyone who breached the Kingdom’s telecoms regulations.
Yong Kim Eng, president of the People Centre for Development and Peace, supported the prime minister’s calls to crack down on illegal lotteries, but suggested that concrete action is needed.
“We have definitely seen an increase in gambling, with the number of lotteries increasing across the country. You can see them in every district. This is a great concern, because we fear that people’s family members may become addicted to gambling. It is great that no new licences will be approved, but it would be even better if existing ones were revoked, or at least not renewed when the deadline arrives,” he said.
