SIM verification through Pak ID app, PTA’s new plan

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is considering a new verification system to make the SIM registration process easier and more efficient, under which users facing difficulty in verifying fingerprints can be identified through face verification through NADRA’s Pak ID app. NADRA’s Pak ID app already provides various identification services and biometric verification facilities.

According to sources, the main objective of this proposed mechanism is to facilitate those citizens whose fingerprints cannot be clearly verified in the traditional biometric system. This especially includes the elderly, the working class and users who repeatedly face verification issues during SIM issuance.

PTA has submitted its progress report on the project to the government and parliament. The authority maintains that significant progress has been made in developing a secure and reliable alternative verification system, while a formal request has also been made to NADRA to allow facial recognition to be used for SIM registration along with fingerprints through the Pak ID app.

The report recommends that NADRA formally approve this system for SIM verification across the country. If this proposal is approved, users will be able to complete their SIM registration through facial recognition at customer service centers and franchise outlets of mobile phone companies, which could make this process easier and faster for thousands of citizens than before.

According to PTA data, 70,871 SIMs have been issued under the alternative verification method since January 2025. This facility was provided to those whose fingerprints could not be verified through the usual biometric system. Such users completed their identification on the basis of verification letters or medical certificates issued by NADRA, after which they were issued SIMs.

The PTA says that this interim procedure has saved thousands of users from unnecessary waiting, while the process of SIM registration is expected to be made more secure, efficient and user-friendly after the approval of the proposed fee verification system. The authority has also directed users in recent years to keep their SIMs registered only in their own names and to follow the principles of secure registration.