China Slams Spam

According to AP on Yahoo News, in 2006, Chinese citizens will have to register their cell phone accounts using their real names. The growth of prepaid cell phone accounts, with which can be obtained without giving out personal information, have led to an increase in spam and fraud on mobile services. 200 million mobile users in China have prepaid accounts.

Because of illegal and fraudulent messaging, China shut down 10,000 accounts this year. And spam and fraud aren’t the only problems. Bombs can be triggered using mobile phones. While some feel that forcing users to register with their real names could create privacy issues, several other countries, including Singapore, Malaysia and Switzerland, have instituted the real-name rule. And Thailand is doing too – in an effort to curtail the bomb attacks the country has been suffering from.

–Margaret Locher