Gangs that misuse biometric data to obtain duplicate SIMs and empty bank accounts have also targeted two members of the National Assembly, according to an investigative media report.
One case exposed the role of a bank insider.
When MQM MNA Farhan Chishti landed in Islamabad on January 12, his phone was dead. At a service centre he learned that a duplicate SIM he had never requested had been issued against his number in Karachi's Malir area.
Meanwhile, the person holding his number registered him for online banking, raised his withdrawal limit and moved Rs1.5 million to accounts opened without their owners' knowledge in the names of women in South Punjab and Sindh.
The case was reported to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). Investigators believe fraudsters harvest biometrics in bulk from leaked data or from places where fingerprints are not mandatory, then load them onto software to misuse them.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority rejected the operator's argument that a third party had deceived its retailer, ruling that the operator bears sole responsibility for any SIM it sells. Citing monitoring failures, it fined the company Rs77.8 million.
In a separate case, a Karachi businessman lost Rs8.5 million. Investigators found that a bank branch officer in Mardan had viewed his account before the SIM was issued and had accessed around 30 accounts, with suspected fraud of about Rs25 million. The PTA imposed the same fine on the operator in that case.
According to the report, the telecom company was penalised in both cases, while action against the banks was limited to orders to return the victims' money.