Malaysia’s telecoms regulator again penalised mobile operators for not properly verifying the identity of prepaid subscribers, fining five companies a total of MYR750,000 ($184,539).

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) imposed fines of MYR250,000 on Digi, MYR200,000 on Maxis, MYR150,000 on U Mobile, MYR100,000 on Tune Talk and MRY50,000 on YTL Communications.

It based the action on discoveries made during audits carried out in three states between August and October 2019.

In early October, it fined six mobile operators a total of MYR700,000 for similar registration errors.

The regulator has increased its action against operators in 2020, issuing fines totalling MYR3.5 million (including the prepaid penalties), which it stated is 19 per cent higher than it imposed on the industry in 2019.