Swiss collar terrorists through their mobiles

A Swiss mobile operator has helped to crack an al-Qaeda cell linked to terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia – by using their mobile phone numbers.

The provider, Swisscom, offers pay-as-you-go mobiles for which users don't need to register their details and also offers coverage that spans 155 countries worldwide. Following the bomb attacks in Saudi Arabia in May last year, Swiss police began monitoring pre-pay phone numbers that they believed were linked to the attacks, according to the Wall Street Journal Europe.

The investigation led the police to an al-Qaeda cell based in Switzerland, suspected of providing the terrorist network with support including fake IDs and financial backing. The investigation has resulted in eight arrests.

Later this year, a law passed by the Swiss parliament is expected to go into effect which will prohibit the sale of SIM cards that can be used without any details being registered.

Should we expect the UK to follow the Swiss example? It is unlikely, according to a Vodafone spokeswoman, because it simply wouldn't stop criminals.

The Mobile Broadband Group is currently looking into the issue of registration and has found that registering the details of shoppers buying pay-as-you-go phones would be ineffective as criminals don't buy them themselves. They're more likely to buy a resold phone.

The resources needed to implement such a system would also be an issue, with the main sellers of the phones – Tesco, Asda and co – all apparently unable to carry the costs of registration at the point of sale.

Another alternative – banning the phones altogether – is also unlikely, because "pay-as-you-talk phones bring massive economic benefits to the people that use them", Vodafone's spokeswoman said, adding that registration would only serve to "nuture an illicit market" in second-hand phones among criminals.