Chapter 2. Mechanism of Fraud Prevention at Source
Section 2 Telecom fraud prevention measures
Article 14
Telecom businesses shall adopt reasonable measures to prevent their telecom services from being used in fraud crimes and shall promote information on fraud prevention to their users.
Upon notification from the competent telecom authority or judicial police regarding suspected fraudulent use of telecom services , telecom businesses shall, if technically feasible, adopt appropriate preventive, restrictive, reporting, or other reasonable measures to prevent users from encountering fraud information.
Telecom businesses and their practitioners are exempted from their confidentiality obligations when implementing fraud prevention measures stated in this Act.
Telecom businesses are exempted from the compensation responsibility when causing damages to customers or third parties due to the implementation of fraud prevention measures stated in this Act or arrangements made in cooperation with the judiciary police department and the target business competent authorities.
Article 15
Applicants for telecom services must present their ID documents.
When- an agent is authorized to apply for telecom services, the agent must present both their ID documents and an authorization certificate other than the ID documents mentioned in the preceding paragraph.
Before entering into telecom service contracts with users, telecom businesses must verify and register the documents provided by the applicant or the agent in accordance with the preceding two paragraphs.
Article 16
Users shall reapply for verification and registration with telecom businesses when transferring telecom services to others according to the preceding article. However, this shall not be limited to users providing telecom services for personal household use or internal activities of corporate customers.
For users who fail to complete the re-verification and registration with telecom businesses according to the preceding paragraph, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend the provision of relevant telecom services.
Article 17
Upon notification from the competent telecom authority or judicial police regarding users suspected of engaging in fraudulent activities, telecom businesses shall re-verify and register the users' information within a prescribed period.
For users who fail to cooperate with the re-verification and registration by telecom businesses or inconsistency found upon verification, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend the provision of such telecom services.
Article 18
Upon notification from the competent telecom authority or judicial police regarding users engaging in fraudulent activities, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend the provision of such telecom services.
For restricted or suspended telecom services according to the preceding paragraph, telecom businesses shall re-verify and register user data regarding other telecom services applied by such users within a prescribed period. For users who fail to cooperate with telecom businesses in the re-verification and registration by telecom businesses or those who do not match with him/herself upon verification, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend the provision of other telecom services to such users.
After the competent telecom authority or judiciary police department notifies of the elimination of the reasons for the restricted or suspended provision of telecom services mentioned in paragraph 1, telecom businesses may resume the services for users.
Article 19
Telecom businesses shall verify users’ identity with the assistance of the database designated by the competent telecom authority when accepting the application of telecom services. This requirement also applies when the competent telecom authority or judiciary police department notifies of the requirement for re-verification due to the suspected fraud when telecom businesses provide telecom services.
The database mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be designated by the competent telecom authority following consultations with the competent central authority.
Regulations and operating procedures for the inquiries related to the verification of user identity with the assistance of the database mentioned in paragraph 1 by telecom businesses, the regular inquiry frequency mentioned in paragraph 2 of Article 20 and paragraph 1 of Article 22, and other relevant matters shall be established by the competent telecom authority.
When collecting, processing, and using data in the database specified in paragraph 1, telecom businesses shall comply with the Personal Data Protection Act, shall not exceed the necessary scope for verification purposes, and shall ensure the confidentiality obligations of practitioners.
Article 20
Before providing the entire or partial international roaming services to offshore high-risk telecom businesses, telecom businesses, if technically feasible, shall verify the passport numbers and names of personnel using telecom based on the database specified in paragraph 1 of the preceding Article. No international roaming services may be provided if users are verified as lacking entry data. However, services may be offered if users present identification documents at the telecom counter for verification and registration..
After providing telecom services mentioned in the preceding paragraph, telecom businesses shall regularly check whether such personnel using telecom leave the country or overstay by connecting to the database specified in paragraph 1.
After providing telecom services mentioned in paragraph 1, if telecom businesses discover that personnel using telecom have untrue data, abnormal using behaviors, or leave the country or overstay based on the inquiries in the preceding paragraph, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend the provision of such telecom services.
The scope of offshore high-risk telecom businesses and the entire or partial international roaming services mentioned in paragraph 1 shall be announced following consultations between the competent telecom authority and the central competent authority.
The competent telecom authority shall regularly examine the scope of offshore high-risk telecom businesses and the entire or partial international roaming services as announced in the preceding paragraph and make timely adjustments.
Article 21
When entering into international roaming service agreements with offshore telecom businesses, telecom businesses shall comply with the principles of equality and mutual benefits and relevant requirements of laws and regulations in Taiwan.
After the competent telecom authority or judiciary police department notifies of the suspected violation of laws and regulations in Taiwan of particular telecom services provided by particular offshore telecom businesses, telecom businesses may not provide international roaming services of particular numbers or number sections for the particular user numbers of particular telecom services or the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI).
Article 22
During the period providing prepaid card services to non-Taiwanese users, telecom businesses shall check whether such users leave the country or overstay by connecting to the database specified in paragraph 1 of Article 19.
If it is discover that users have left the country or overstayed based on the inquiries in accordance with the preceding paragraph, telecom businesses shall restrict or suspend their prepaid card services.
If non-Taiwanese users mentioned in the preceding paragraph re-enter during the valid period of prepaid card services, after applying for the verification and registration of users’ identity with telecom businesses, telecom businesses may continue to provide the initial telecom services.
Article 23
Users whose telecom services have been restricted or suspended by telecom businesses according to paragraph 2 of Article 17 or paragraph 1 of Article 18, when re-applying with telecom services with the same telecom businesses, shall be limited to applying for only one user number or one telecom service with the same enterprise within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification. However, if users have other user numbers or telecom services provided by such telecom businesses, telecom businesses may not accept their applications within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification.
For corporations, non-corporation groups, and trade names notified of the restriction or suspension of telecom services by judiciary police department that used to use or provide telecom services for fraud, if their representatives apply for telecom services with the same telecom businesses in the name of different corporations, non-corporation groups, or trade names, such telecom businesses shall impose the restrictions of applying for up to one user number or one telecom service within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification. However, if the corporations, non-corporation groups, or trade names have other user numbers or telecom services provided by such telecom businesses, telecom businesses may not accept their applications within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification.
After being notified by the judiciary police department of users with records of restricted or suspended provision of telecom services by other telecom businesses for certain times, telecom businesses shall list them as high-risk users and impose the restrictions of applying for up to one user number or one telecom service within three years from the date of notification. However, if such users have other user numbers or telecom services provided by such telecom businesses, telecom businesses may not accept their applications within three years from the date of notification .
The certain times in the preceding paragraph shall be announced by the competent telecom authority after consultation with the central competent authority.
Article 24
If any of the circumstances occur to telecom businesses, the competent telecom authority may impose a fine of more than NT$0.2 million but less than NT$5 million and order them to make corrections within a prescribed period; those who fail to make corrections within the prescribed period, penalties shall be imposed per violation:
1. Failure to verify users’ identity with the assistance of the designated database in violation of paragraph 1 of Article 19.
2. Violation the requirements related to database inquiry operating procedures in the regulations stated in paragraph 3 of Article 19.
3. Failure to verify whether the personnel using telecom have any entrance data by using the database specified in paragraph 1 of Article 19 before providing international roaming services or provide international roaming services after verifying that personnel using telecom have no entrance data in violation of the requirements stated in paragraph 1 of Article 20.
4. Failure to regularly check whether personnel using telecom leave the country or overstay in violation of paragraph 2 of Article 20 or fail to restrict or suspend the provision of international roaming services to personnel using telecom in violation of paragraph 3 of the same article.
5. Failure to regularly check whether non-Taiwanese users leave the country or overstay or over-reside in violation of paragraph 1 of Article 22 or fail to restrict or suspend the provision of prepaid card services to non-Taiwanese users who left the country or overstayed in violation of paragraph 2 of the same article.
If any of the circumstances in the subparagraphs of the preceding paragraph that occur to telecom businesses are severe, the competent telecom authority may impose a fine of more than NT$1 million but less than NT$20 million and order them to make correction within a prescribed period; those who fail to make correction within the prescribed period, penalties shall be imposed per violation. When necessary, the approved distribution of user number volume within a certain period may be restricted.
Article 25
If any of the following circumstances occur to telecom businesses, the competent telecom authority may impose a fine of more than NT$0.1 million but less than NT$2 million and order them to make corrections within a prescribed period; those who fail to make corrections within the prescribed period, penalties shall be imposed per violation:
1. Failure to verify the consistency between documents and applicants or agents mentioned in paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 15 in violation of paragraph 3 of the same article.
2. Intentional Failure to restrict or suspend the provision of relevant telecom services to users in violation of paragraph 2 of Article 16.
3.Failure to re-verify or register-user data within the prescribed period in violation of paragraph 1 of Article 17.
4. Failure to restrict or suspend the provision of such telecom services to users in violation of paragraph 2 of Article 17.
5. Failure to restrict or suspend the provision of such telecom services to users in violation of paragraph 1 of Article 18.
6. Failure to re-verify or register user data within the prescribed period in violation of the former part of paragraph 2 of Article 18.
7. Failure to restrict or suspend the provision of other telecom services to users in violation of the latter part of paragraph 2 of Article 18.
8. Providing users, such different corporations, non-corporation groups, trade names, or high-risk users with over one user number or one telecom service within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification in violation of the requirements stated in paragraphs 1, 2, or 3 of Article 23.
9. Providing users, such different corporations, non-corporation groups, trade names, or high-risk users with other user numbers or telecom services within three years from the date of the restriction or suspension notification in violation of the requirements under the qualifying clauses stated in paragraphs 1, 2, or 3 of Article 23.
If any of the circumstances in the subparagraphs of the preceding paragraph that occur to telecom businesses are severe, the competent telecom authority may impose a fine of more than NT$0.5 million but less than NT$10 million and order them to make corrections within a prescribed period; those who fail to make correction within the prescribed period, penalties shall be imposed per violation. When necessary, the approved distribution of user number volume within a certain period may be restricted.
Article 26
For those who disagree with the administrative penalties made by the competent telecom authority based on this Act, the administrative litigation procedures are directly applicable.