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Japan will require identity verification for data-only SIM cards under amendments to its mobile phone regulations, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has said.
This move, according to the Prime Minister, is part of the government’s moves to prevent the misuse of anonymous mobile communication services in fraud schemes.
The Prime Minister said amendments to the Act on the Prevention of Improper Use of Mobile Phones, passed during the previous Diet session, would introduce stricter identity-verification requirements and limits on mobile phone contracts.
The move follows record losses from special fraud, which reached approximately 325.7 billion yen in 2025, according to the government.
Sanae said criminals are increasingly exploiting communication services, including mobile phones, making stronger safeguards necessary.
Under the amended law, identity verification requirements will be extended beyond voice SIM cards containing phone numbers and contract information to include data-only SIM cards.
The government said the measure was intended to prevent the misuse of anonymous mobile communication services, particularly in fraud conducted through data communications.
The Prime Minister said more than 90 percent of contacts with victims in SNS-based investment and romance scams involved the illicit use of data communication services.
The amendments will also introduce a uniform limit on the number of mobile phone lines that an individual can hold under a single contract.
Telecommunications companies will be allowed to reject applications that exceed the prescribed limit, in a move the government says will help prevent large numbers of mobile lines from being used for fraudulent activities.
The Prime Minister said the amendments were based on emergency recommendations issued by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Investigation Committee on Security, Terrorism and Cybercrime Measures, which he chaired until last year.
The government is also working with communication carriers to make information about fraud-prevention measures more accessible to the public.
It said authorities and telecommunications companies would work together to implement the new measures and create a safer environment for people using communication services.
The government’s latest action comes as Japan continues to grapple with increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes that exploit mobile phones, messaging applications and social networking platforms.
