Telkomsel launches facial recognition for prepaid SIM registration

Details: John Tanner; Category: Cybersecurity; 23 February 2026; 1217 views

Indonesian mobile operator Telkomsel has officially implemented facial recognition as a verification tool for new prepaid SIM registrations, after almost a year and a half of trialling the technology.

Under the initiative announced on Thursday, customers need to present a national identity card and a portrait of their facial to register for a new prepaid SIM card. Customers can register at Telkomsel’s GraPARI shops or online.

Telkomsel said the first card can only be activated after the data is validated or verified. Government regulations limit customers to three prepaid numbers per identity per operator, with exceptions for certain needs.

Customers who have registered their biometric data will be able to check all numbers registered with their national identity cards, and can request a block of any registered number they don’t recognise.

Telkomsel is launching the facial recognition scheme to comply with the new Senyum Nyaman dengan Biometric (SEMANTIK) programme from the Ministry of Communication and Digital (Kemkomdigi). Customers will still have the option to register for SIMs without facial recognition biometrics until June this year, when the new regulation takes effect.

Telkomsel said mobile numbers registered before the regulations take effect can still be used, though it will also provide re-registration facilities for customers who want to switch to the biometric system.

Telkomsel has been trialling facial recognition biometrics for SIM registration since October 2024. Rival telco XL Axiata (which became XLSmart in April last year) adopted facial recognition as a biometric ID verification measure for prepaid SIM card registration in September 2024.

Filin Yulia, Telkomsel’s VP of customer care management, said facial recognition biometrics will better protect customers from digital fraud, including scams and phishing. She added that all biometric data will be used only for the identity verification process in compliance with personal data protection policies.

"Our focus is to support Kemkomdigi through the SEMANTIK program, to present a safer and more convenient registration process for all customers,” she said in a statement. “Through biometric registration, we can all take a role to ensure that every number is connected with the correct identity.”