SSPAB placed 7-point demands including the ban of SMS surveillance company Infozillion
NMP company Infozillion Teletech Bangladesh is violating the privacy of customer's personal information by acting as an intermediary to monitor the exchange of messages on mobile phones in the name of national security. For this, the company has to pay 5.75 paisa per SMS to the merchants. This government-backed company has been doing this alone since May 16 last year through an order of the Regulatory Commission. The SMS Providers Association of Bangladesh (SSPAB) claims that the service quality and financial loss are also being violated as well as national security.
For this reason, on Thursday afternoon under the BTRC building of Agargaon in the capital, more than a hundred businessmen of the organization protested with 7-point demands, complaining about how the common intercommunication platform is crippling the sector in sending SMS from aggregators to individuals. After the protest, a 5-member delegation led by the organization's president Feroze Mahmud and vice-president Moin Uddin held a meeting with BTRC vice chairman Aminul Haque. From the meeting, the BTRC Vice Chairman talked to the Secretary after sending their demands to the Ministry. At that time, he said, I do not understand the whole technical matter well. However, as the matter is serious, I informed the ministry. BTRC will do its best to meet your demands within the law.
Among the demands raised by SSPAB are cancellation of ATUP SMS common interconnection platform, removal of corrupt and corrupt BTRC officials in this surveillance work, cancellation of tariff guidelines due to technical defects, withdrawal of obligation to provide Bangla SMS, cancellation of content validation system, revenue share and contribution to welfare fund. Disabling and allowing international SMS transmission.
When asked about the cancellation of the SMS Common Interconnection Platform, SSPAB President Feroze Mahmood said that this system illegally monitors SMS. They are not from us; Apart from knowing the secret code number, people are also looting government money through OTP used in banks and government services. So, we demand an investigation against this institution and their immediate ban.
SMS merchants claim that the NMP company Infozillion Teletech Bangladesh, run in the name of the ICT advisor of the former government, has been extorting SMS merchants in the name of VAS with the connivance of some dishonest officials of BTRC. As a result, there was no benefit by filing a complaint against the company with the regulatory body.
Evidence says that the then chairman of the commission, Shyam Sundar Sikder himself, had directed the SSPAB leaders not to speak highly of the accused company. Warned them and said that the company has been given the job as per the instructions of Sajeeb Wazed Joy, the ICT Advisor. After the fall of the government last month, he made a written complaint to advisor Nahid Islam and held a meeting according to the SMS decision. The committee submitted its report within the stipulated time. However, the protestors claim that due to the formation of the committee with the accused officials, they may be a threat to the national security as well as the revenue loss of the country by doing business in the new Bangladesh. In such a situation, traders are united and demanding reforms to save the SMS business.
