Will "Big Pee Chai" (Big Brother, Thai style) be Watching?

[Gaybutton]

I can see an advantage to this. For example, suppose you are involved in some sort of health emergency, but you can't speak enough Thai to describe precisely where you are? With this sort of system in place an ambulance could reach you much more quickly - and that could mean the difference between life and death. All that would be needed would be a universal emergency number, similar to the USA's 911. Dialing that number would instantly trigger off your location.

Other than that, personally I don't care if they know where I am or not.

I like how this is supposed to track foreign criminals. If you were a criminal, would you be stupid enough to actually carry the SIM to the crime scene? Unless it's surgically implanted, it seems to me any idiot could avoid carrying it if he wants to.

It sounds like they're talking about SIM cards for mobile phones. Great! What about foreigners who don't own a mobile phone? Would every foreigner in Thailand be required to have a mobile phone? Will travelers entering Thailand have to buy one within the airport before clearing customs? At what age would foreigners be subject to the requirement?

What would prevent someone from getting a Thai to buy a SIM card for him, along with buying a second cheapie mobile phone, putting the mandatory SIM card in that phone, and then opting to either carry it with him or just leaving it wherever he wants?

I'm wondering how this is supposed to work. If they go through with it, I guess we'll know soon enough. Maybe some of you know much more than I do and can explain how they could make something like this actually work, but for now, to me it seems like yet another cockamamie idea.

Am I missing something?
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ALL Foreign Passport Holders In Thailand Could Be Tracked Via SIM Cards

9 August, 2016

The government plan to track foreign tourists by SIM card, as reported this morning, has been quickly updated to include ALL foreigners living in Thailand, regardless of what type of visa they hold.

The new idea, which is being reviewed this afternoon (Tuesday) would require anyone, who doesn’t hold a Thai passport, to use a new style SIM card which would enable the authorities to track its owner’s location at any time.

According to a statement made this morning by the Secretary General of the Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission.

No exceptions will be made for residents on long-term visas such as marriage, employment or retirement.

‘We will separate SIM cards for foreigners and Thais,’ Takorn Tantasith said on Monday. ‘The location will always be turned on in this SIM card for foreigners. And it cannot be turned off.’

The idea was originally announced on August 2 following a meeting of ten ASEAN nations in Phuket and Takorn claims he heard the idea from Malaysian and Singaporean officials who were discussing the same idea.

However, those countries would require registering SIM cards with valid ID and do not have any tracking systems planned. He also said he was unconcerned about any rights or privacy issues raised by the system, as he said it was no different to ‘foreigners writing in the address of their residences in immigration documents.’

‘We would just facilitate the police. So they could more easily track foreigners who enter the country and commit crimes,’ he said. ‘The function is not in SIMs card for Thais because we can always easily track them anyway.’

Takorn expects the policy to come into effect within six months.

While the system would raise concerns Thailand was moving closer to a Big Brother state, Takorn said foreigners shouldn’t worry, as police would need to seek a court order to track someone by their SIM card. He said any abuse of the system would be punished.

‘If a service provider tracks the SIM’s location without a court order, they would be charged with a criminal offense.’

Takorn said it would also help maximize the use of pre-paid phone numbers in the country. Currently numbers must go unused 90 days before they are ‘recycled,’ but he proposed that anyone leaving the country could have their number revoked after fifteen days, instead.

http://pattayaone.net/pattaya-news/2297 ... sim-cards/

[Geezer]

Before doing anything nefarious I shall turn the phone off, take the battery out or let it run down.

If I need an alibi I’ll leave the phone in another location, then hurriedly retrieve it.

[Gaybutton]

Welcome to the latest item on my "I Don't Get It" list.

This is supposed to be "in the interests of national security." Can anyone explain how this would, in any way, help national security? All any criminal would need to do is simply not carry his phone with him. He could even get someone else to dial a number from that phone or receive a call to "prove" he was someplace else when the crime was committed.

Again, this assumes all foreigners coming to Thailand are even going to have a mobile phone in the first place.

Am I missing something? What are these people thinking?
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Foreigners to be required to use tracking SIM cards

by Komsan Tortermvasana

9 Aug 2016

Telecom regulators on Tuesday approved in principle a requirement that foreign visitors to Thailand use special SIM cards in their phones that can be tracked by the authorities.

Takorn Tantasith, secretary-general of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), said the resolution was in the interests of national security.

The NBTC would discuss the measure with mobile phone operators, the Customs Department and other related state agencies.

Mobile operators can preset some technical features in SIM cards to ensure that they can always locate users, who will be unable to turn off the function, he said.

From January to July this year, 19.06 million foreigners visited the country, up 12% year-on-year, according to the Tourism and Sports Ministry.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... -sim-cards

[ilz]

The country that I used to love is becoming a disgrace by the day. Time to spend more time in more welcoming places.

[Gaybutton]

Time to spend more time in more welcoming places.

Where do you have in mind?

[ilz]

Cambodia ?

[Alex]

The country that I used to love is becoming a disgrace by the day. Time to spend more time in more welcoming places.

You do have a point, I think. I don't believe it will actually get implemented (and Gaybutton has already mentioned why it wouldn't make much sense anyway), but if it were, I think that would push me over the edge as well. If Communist Vietnam trusts me enough to have a regular SIM card, I expect no less from Thailand. I had hoped that silly new form would keep them busy for a while, but then again, that's another agency now.

[Gaybutton]

It looks like at least they're beginning to realize this is not exactly the greatest idea. Now they're saying expats living in Thailand will be exempt.

I like the quote, "All countries do this." Is that so? Name a few of the countries that do this. Why have I never heard of any such thing? Why have I never been to a country where I've been asked to replace my SIM card with some sort of 'special' SIM card?

If they're truly concerned about our safety, then how about issuing SIM cards that, at the touch of a button, would send an instant alert that we're experiencing an emergency, here's our precise location, and help will be dispatched immediately. If they would do that, I'd be the first one in line to get one.

I live alone. The possibility of something happening to me in the middle of the night at my place is always in the back of my mind. I'd feel much more secure if I knew I could simply press a button on my phone and have an ambulance and police immediately sent to help me.

The way it is now, I'd have to be trying to explain where I am while I'm in the middle of a heart attack, a stroke, or God knows what. Of course, it would also help if I knew they would actually bother to respond. Under the current system if I have to make an emergency call and ask for help, it would come as no surprise if the response I get is "How much you will give to me?"
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Takorn: Tracking SIMs not for expatriate foreigners

10 Aug 2016

The requirement that foreign tourists must use special SIM cards that enable tracking of their movements will not apply to expatriates living in Thailand, NBTC secretary-general Takorn Tantasith said.

Telecom regulators on Tuesday approval in principle of the requirement that foreigners use the special card in their phones after a meeting on Tuesday.

The announcement drew immediate criticism from foreigners working or living legally in Thailand, and concerns that they would be included in the scheme.

Mr Takorn's later comments clarified the issue, as reported by Post Today.

The "tourist SIM" cards were intended to improve visitors' safety and help track down overstayers, he said.

"We are not limiting any rights. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission has no authority to check on the location of users," he said.

"But if tourists commit wrong, or there is a court warrant, we will then forward the warrant to a mobile phone operator and seek cooperation.

"All countries do this," he said.

The use of "tourist SIM" cards would not be applied to expatriates legally residing here, Mr Takorn said.

Mr Takorn said after the meeting on Tuesday the resolution was in the interests of national security. The NBTC would discuss the measure with mobile phone operators, the Customs Department and other related state agencies.

Mobile operators can preset some technical features in SIM cards to ensure that they can always locate users, who will be unable to turn off the function, he said.

From January to July this year, 19.06 million foreigners visited the country, up 12% year-on-year, according to the Tourism and Sports Ministry.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general ... foreigners

[Gaybutton]

As I would have expected, this idea is already causing a nice brouhaha. When it would be the easiest thing in the world for criminals, terrorists, visa overstayers, and whoever else would want to avoid being traced to do just that, this idea seems absurd to me.
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Tourists baulk at SIM tracking

Foreigners voice fears over privacy

by Prangthong Jitcharoenkul

11 Aug 2016

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission's (NBTC) plan to boost national security by asking foreign tourists to use special SIM cards on their phones during their stay in Thailand has drawn mostly negative reactions.

"I will never buy any local SIM card that allows the authorities to track my movements. This is an invasion of privacy," said Tim Ronning, 45, from Denmark.

He said roaming services would be another option for him if the plan comes into effect early next year.

The NBTC on Tuesday agreed in principle to demand that all mobile operators sell special SIM cards to foreign travellers who want mobile services through the purchase of a local SIM.

The regulator initially planned to embed location-based service software into the SIM cards to enable mobile operators to track the call history of the user in the event he or she became a criminal suspect.

NBTC secretary-general Takorn Tantasith said earlier the regulator will discuss the matter with mobile operators, the Customs Department and other state agencies governing national security.

All mobile operators are expected to start launching the special SIM cards by early 2017.

Mr Takorn said the NBTC has no intention to breach the fundamental rights of foreign visitors. "We only want to ensure the nation's security."

"Whatever the reason is, it is discomfiting," Alex Petrov, from Russia told the Bangkok Post, shaking his head.

A Muslim visitor, Sofiane, who travelled from Paris to Bangkok, said the new measure would be acceptable as long as the safety of foreign tourists is ensured and immediate state assistance can be provided during emergencies.

"The measure could be useful in terms of national security. I do not mind [installing the SIM card required by the state] if the government can reach me in any emergency case more quickly," he said.

Mr Sofiane said, however, he had not heard about this idea before even in Malaysia where the NBTC earlier said the SIM cards have been a requirement for foreign visitors for the same reason.

"I visited Malaysia recently and nobody asked me to put in any SIM card," Mr Sofiane said. Even China does not have this rule, he added.

A visitor aged 33 from Holland who asked not to be named said the new requirement is understandable, but he was worried it could discourage foreign tourists from visiting the country.

"From migrant crises to other security problems around the the world, I am really not surprised about the Thai government coming up with this idea, but I'm concerned it would make foreigners feel uncomfortable and avoid travelling to Thailand," he said.

Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said foreign tourists normally use international roaming services for their mobile phones when they travel to Thailand and can be tracked eventually.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... m-tracking
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NBTC plays down tourist SIM plan

by Suchit Leesa-Nguansuk

11 Aug 2016

The telecom regulator has tried to ease concerns about the requirement for tourists to use traceable SIM cards, saying the plan is not set in stone and will need to go through public hearings and several procedures before it can be implemented.

At least five and maybe six public hearings will be held before the regulator launches the special SIM cards, tentatively set over the next six months, said Takorn Tantasith, secretary-general of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

The idea of tourist SIM cards, aimed at boosting national security, originated at a meeting in Phuket of the Asean Telecommunication Regulations' Council. Among the 10 Asean countries, Malaysia is the only country using them.

If the plan is approved in the final stage, the NBTC might allow the SIMs to be valid for another 30-45 days after tourists depart the country.

Mr Takorn said the NBTC had meant well when adopting the plan. "We have no right to violate tourists’ privacy ... If we disclose personal information without a court warrant, we could face five years in jail," he said.

From January to July this year, 19.06 million foreign tourists visited Thailand, an increase of 12% year-on-year, according to the Tourism and Sports Ministry.

An NBTC panel on Wednesday approved in principle to require tourists seeking to buy SIM cards in Thailand to use only the traceable type. Those on roaming services and expatriates will not be affected.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/tel ... t-sim-plan