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| Some fake phones were not switched off |
This belated list of FAQs is meant to get distressed Kenyans, who might call the commission's offices demanding answers regarding phone barring, off the its back. (Please note that you cannot reach the regulator via phone because its office phones were also barred after they were found to be fake.)
1. How do I know my phone has been switched off?
Ans: Eeh...because you pressed and held down the power-off button. Contrary to popular belief neither we nor your network provider have super powers to switch off your phone.
2. Why did they target me? My phone was the first to be switched off.
Ans: I already explained how your finger made contact with the power-off button. (If you didn't get it, check 1. again.)
b) But how come my neighbour's fake phone was not switched off?
Ans: If your phone doesn't know networks then it's small fish and has no space on the airwaves. The alternative is for you to know people who can switch your phone back on.
3. What is the difference between network barring and phone switch-off?
Ans: You might need to retake English language lessons.
4. How do I know my phone was barred from the network?
Ans: Count the network bars on the top left corner of the phone. If they are between one and five your phone is alive. (This does not work with the service providers who always have network problems.)
5. Speaking of network problems, why does my provider always have issues? There are too many delayed SMS and dropped calls on my congested network.
Ans: Please stick to the issue at hand, I only prepared answers concerning the phone barring!
6. What do I do now that my phone has been barred?
Ans: I don't know why you are asking this question; maybe it is because you think that CCK came up with this brilliant idea, but it is the network providers to blame for following through with this big joke. I suggest that you march from Uhuru Park to your service provider's headquarters and then look for a judge whose phone was barred to issue an arrest warrant against the head of your network company. If you are lucky enough to have university students joining your demo, you can force motorists to give you their genuine phones in exchange for your fake one.
5. No really, is my phone useless?
Ans: Regardless of what haters say, your phone may not connect to a network but it still has swagger. I suggest you call it your re-loaded PDA gadget, engrave a cool-sounding name on it, and front it as the must-have device for any bigwig worth their salt. Also, your phone has not lost the cool features it used to have and you can still use it as a calendar, phone-book, picture and music storage device and camera, among many other uses.
6. Now what next?
Ans: Don't despair, I know how you can make money from this. Just because your phone has been barred in Kenya does not mean it can't work in other countries that do not have a law to block fake phones. Collect all the 'useless' counterfeit phones you can find, ship them to neighbouring countries such as South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, and sell them. That way you can turn your misfortune into a profitable venture and buy the real gizmo you've always desired. The Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority has specifically said that it will not switch off counterfeit phones because it does not wish to interfere with the people's right to communicate. What other green-light could you be waiting for?
On a serious note:
All handsets imported for sale are supposed to meet certain standards set by the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) in a process that is called type approval. Any handset that does not meet the standards is considered to be counterfeit. Such are the kind of phones that were barred from connecting to mobile telephone networks between 30th and 1st October 2012.
Once the phone is deactivated by the network provider, one cannot make or receive calls or messages, connect to the Internet or send or receive mobile money using the blacklisted phone. The barred phone is likely to display the message: "SIM registration failed" or you may find that the phone shows no signal strength or a "no service message". However, even if your counterfeit phone shows full signal strength you will not be able to use network services.
Remember that the phone's hardware and other features that don't require connection to a phone network are not affected by the blacklisting and you can continue to use them. If your phone has been blacklisted you can also change the handset's IMEI number (mobile phone reprogramming), but only if the memory chip is the kind that can be overwritten, and possibly enable it to connect to a network just like before. However, CCK had warned that one of the reasons that counterfeit phones were barred is that they emit radiation above the recommended levels and thus could harm your health. Radiation levels are judged using a the Specific Absorption Rate standard, which basically refers to the amount of radio frequency energy absorbed by the body when using the handset.While all mobile phones emit RF energy, the SAR varies depending on the model. In most countries, the maximum acceptable SAR varies between 1.6 watts per kilogram to 2 watts per kilogram.
One of the standards used to measure whether a phone is genuine is the IMEI number - the code that uniquely identifies each phone. This was what was used to block counterfeit phones, as those without the unique identifier were blacklisted for barring. Nevertheless, critics say that using IMEI as the standard to identify the so-called genuine phones, blocks out small-scale phone makers, who do not produce phones at the scale required by the GSMA to be given IMEI numbers for their phones. Moreover, there is the aspect of some renowned phone makers having phones with duplicate IMEIs defeating the whole purpose of the IMEI being a unique phone identifier.
Check out the Communications Commission of Kenya's (CCK) frequently asked questions on counterfeit phones here:
http://www.cck.go.ke/counterfeit-campaign
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