SIM box operators in Ghana: Profits, Business, Government, GSM Operators

Simboxing in Ghana is so popular that there are special USSD codes (for instance 02xxxxxxxx Simbox to 419 – Report SIM-Box fraud) and which could be send by any citizen. But won’t it cause some inconveniences if someone want to settle scores with ex-girl or business competitor phone number or just joke? Seems not so good right?

Let’s make a review of articles about simboxing in Ghana and get 2-3 highlights from each. Lets start our journey around activities of SIM box operators.

Profits in Simboxing Ghana

Ghana’s Government has lost over $900,000 to SIM boxing in the past five months “Title says it all. Communications experts in Ghana say that it took just five months for Ghana to lose over $900,000 because of the activities of SIM box operators. We remember that only 2 months ago, the Police Commissioner said that they lost $33 million to SIM boxing between August 2015 and January 2016.”
Read Full article at techcabal.com >

“Cellular network operators lose about 3% of the annual revenue due to fraudulent and illegal services. Juniper Research estimated the total losses from the underground mobile network industry to be $58 billion in 2011. Ghana has experienced several SIM Box fraudulent activities since 2010 and it is estimated that Ghana has lost close to $100million.”
Read Full article at iipgh.org >

“… Simboxer operators deny telcos 13 cents on every minute of inbound international calls, and also deny government 6 cents per minute plus taxes on the telcos’ 13 cents.”
“We generate at least 5,000 calls from 57 countries into Ghana every day…”
Read Full article at ghanaweb.com >

“But in Ghana, there is a huge arbitrage because local call rates are as low as 15Gp per minute maximum and the floor price for incoming international traffic is 19 cents, which is over 67Gp, so there as much as 52Gp for simbox fraudsters to cash in on.”
Read Full article at simcardblog >

“According to an article by biztechafrica.com, in 2014, the government of Ghana reported an annual loss of about $40 million through the activities of bypassing the Approved International Gateway.”
“Research indicates that some of the fraudsters make as much as GH¢9 million on a monthly basis.”
Read Full article at ghanaweb.com >

Ghana: SIM Box fraudsters busted in $100m fraud The activities of the fraudsters had led to a revenue loss of $33 million dollars within a five to seven month period, police told the media on Monday during a parade of the seven arrested persons and their seized gadgets.
Read Full article at theafricareport.com >

Govermnent & Telecom Operators about Simboxing Ghana

Simboxing: Fraud or technological advancement? Another view “Global telecom operators, who usually pay the international call rate, worked with small unlicensed operators in developing economies to bypass the approved routes of terminating international traffic.”
“Simbox operators collaborate with their foreign partners to work against the economic interest of Ghana and its licensed telecom operators for their personal financial gains.”
Read Full article at graphic.com.gh >

According to the NCA, over the past six years about US$200million which otherwise would have been lost has accrued to the state following implementation of the international termination rate regime.

“This is in spite of the fact that SIMbox fraud is still growing and is seen as a profitable venture, since international wholesale traffic carrier trade is still regulated in the country.”
Read Full article at ghanaweb.com >

“But the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications says the solution to end the crime is for the country’s mobile network operators to review downwards their rates on international calls into Ghana and make SIM box fraud unattractive to criminals.”

“In the past, the crime was limited to the capital Accra, but signals received on the ground and the arrests made in various parts of the country confirm that the activities had become widespread, Minister of Communications, Edward Omane Boamah said.”
Read Full article at theafricareport.com >

“According to the NCA (National Communication Authority), over the past six years about US$200million which otherwise would have been lost has accrued to the state following implementation of the international termination rate regime.”

“Simboxing — an activity in which fraudsters terminate inbound international call traffic without routing the calls through registered international gateways and make the calls appear as local calls — has offered a huge challenge to government to maximise revenue from the telecom sector.”

“This is in spite of the fact that SIMbox fraud is still growing and is seen as a profitable venture, since international wholesale traffic carrier trade is still regulated in the country.”

Read Full article at ghanaweb.com >