[Taiwan - NCC] To Prevent 2G (GSM) Fake Base Station Scams, NCC Plans for Mobile Phones Sold in Taiwan to Have the "Default 2G Base Station Signal Disabled" Feature

The National Communications Commission (NCC) has discovered that recently, criminals have started using fake base stations to send "foreign country codes or test 2G signals" for mobile communications to commit fraud. This causes mobile phones within the signal coverage to mistakenly recognize the network as "abroad" or "under testing," thereby automatically connecting to the 2G base station and receiving phishing messages, leading to financial losses for users.

Considering that some countries still use 2G networks and base stations, and given that many Taiwanese citizens travel abroad, the NCC plans to require that mobile phones sold in Taiwan must have a "manual switch" to disable 2G base station connections, with the feature "disabled by default". This will allow users to "manually enable" the 2G connection feature when traveling abroad to maintain necessary communications, thereby protecting consumer rights.

The NCC has confirmed that the latest version of the Android operating system already supports the "manual switch" for 2G base station connections and is set to "disabled by default", which meets the NCC’s requirements.

Based on the above, the NCC plans that mobile phones sold in Taiwan must include the "manual switch" for 2G base station connections, with the default setting set to "off", according to the following schedule (manufacturers may implement the change earlier):

1. From May 1, 2025: Mobile phones obtaining type approval certificates must comply with the aforementioned NCC requirements.

2. From September 1, 2021, to April 30, 2025: Mobile phones that obtained type approval certificates during this period must comply with the aforementioned NCC requirements via an Over-The-Air (OTA) software update by September 30, 2025.

For further inquiries, please contact:

• Phone: +886-2-2602-9393

• Email: service@glodacert.co

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