Report Thailand to Verify 700,000 Foreigner-Registered Phone Numbers for Mobile Banking Use

[BritManToo]

7 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I don't think I've ever had any direct contact from any of my Thai banks about this, thus far... I only found out when suddenly I discovered SCB some weeks back had cut me off from being able to contact their Customer Service call center because my name was on the government's "not in compliance" list that had been given to the banks sometime earlier this year...

 

And, I never have gotten any explanation of why SCB was enforcing that now, at least in terms of accessing their Call Center, when supposedly the government deadline for being in compliance isn't until April 30, and all my problems and dealings with them on this happened weeks prior to that.

Same game for me ........ an nothing they did worked until I insisted they set up facial recognition.

Then all the problems and locked account disappeared.

Counter staff seem to have no idea what they're doing, and little interest in troubling themselves.

First line of refusal ....... 'Sorry, you must do this at your home branch' nearly every time.

[Gottfrid]

6 hours ago, Kinok Farang said:

There you go again,lecturing people.you must be a delight to live with.

First, I am very sorry, but you will not have a chance. I am straight. 😉 

Second, there is no lecturing here, as I am asking the OP simple questions and at the end give give advice about the situation.

[TigerandDog]

18 hours ago, lordgrinz said:

 

Or avoid it all together and use your Pink ID 😉

no that was the issue I had. My mobile was registered with my passport and Krungthai bank used my pink ID as ID for the bank account because it was opened to receive my tax refund. As the ID's did not match I had to contact my mobile phone provider and change my ID to the pink ID card #. Either way, whichever form of ID you use, they must be an exact match with the bank and mobile provider.

[Jerzy Swirski]

Yesterday I got a message for each of my Bangkok Bank accounts when I logged in.

They gave me the USSD code  *179*13 digit thai ID#

Unfortunately the reply is in Thai so I am none the wiser.

 

Hopefully that USSD code will be useful for someone more skilled than me.

[Photoguy21]

Why is it just foreigners accounts, why not verify Thai national accounts? Many of the scams I have had tried on me have not been foreigners but Thais.

It would be nice if the banks, once given information about scammers would at least put a watch on the account but they don't do that.

[JimGant]

20 hours ago, orchidfan said:

So very nice BBL staff pointed.out that due to the new law, the sim card (and same number) must be in my name (as per my bank acc) or no go with the mobile app OR ibanking !

Yes, iBanking too.

 

I got this message in my iBanking account mailbox from BBL:

 

Quote

Dear Bualuang iBanking member,

To enhance your security, please ensure that your mobile no. registered with Bualuang iBanking is up to date and that the mobile no. owner's name matches the name registered with Bualuang iBanking.

You can verify the ownership of your mobile no. by dialing *179*your 13-digit Thai citizen ID no.# and call.

If your mobile no. owner's name does not match the name registered with Bualuang iBanking, please follow with one of the options below.
Option 1: Contact mobile service center with your citizen ID card to update your mobile no. ownership name.
Option 2: Contact our branch to change your mobile no. or request an exemption if updating mobile no. owner name is inconvenient.

If you want to update your mobile no., please follow with one of the options below.
Option 1: For member who uses Mobile Banking, you can update mobile no. via Mobile Banking by going to "Settings" Click "My profile"
Option 2: For member who does not use Mobile Banking, please visit any Bangkok Bank branch to update your mobile no.

For assistance, please contact Bangkok Bank Call Center 1333 or (66) 2645 5555.

Yours sincerely,
Bualuang iBanking

 

All our household phones are in wife's name. Thus, my iBank account is paired with a phone in my wife's name. I have no Mobile banking; so iBanking is the only thing affected by the phone number mismatch.

 

But, from their message (in bold, above), I can just have the requirement waived, if I just request an exemption due to "inconvenience." Sounds like Bangkok Bank has some adults in the loop, when dealing with "fire drill" requirements coming down from on high.

 

Will check it out, next time I have to go to the bank.

[Lopburikid]

On 4/28/2025 at 8:55 AM, lordgrinz said:

Still haven't gotten any warning from SCB bank, and my wife contacted True and they told her not to worry if the number was registered before a few years ago. The number is registered in my wife's name. Have had this sim/number on my phone for probably 7-8 years now. We got it as part of our True cable and internet package. I'm just going to wait it out, not worth stressing out over.

I don't do mobile banking, but same as you I have True online and True Vision and my phone is in my wifes name. I just pay the bill!

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

11 hours ago, SABloke said:

Genuine question: How do the banks check your SIM name registration? Do they have access to private telecom records? In my case, last month, I updated my address and phone number at the bank (wife's name, they didn't know or ask) and the only extra step was cancelling my mobile banking and registering the new number at the ATM. Haven't received any notification from the bank as of today, so...

 

From what SCB reps told me recently, the Thai government's digital ministry issued a list (or lists) to Thai banks earlier this year identifying people whose mobile phone name registrations didn't/don't match their bank account name registrations.

 

 

[lordgrinz]

1 hour ago, Lopburikid said:

I don't do mobile banking, but same as you I have True online and True Vision and my phone is in my wifes name. I just pay the bill!

 

I'd be ok with having my name applied to the number, but I don't want any bills in my name. The SCB account is the only thing I want in my name here in Thailand, in fact, if I didn't have to have a bank account for immigrant purposes, I wouldnt have that either. 

[tjintx]

5 hours ago, Jerzy Swirski said:

Yesterday I got a message for each of my Bangkok Bank accounts when I logged in.

They gave me the USSD code  *179*13 digit thai ID#

Unfortunately the reply is in Thai so I am none the wiser.

 

Hopefully that USSD code will be useful for someone more skilled than me.

The reply is that USSD Code process doesn't work for foreigners.  Foreigners have to go into the branch, lucky us.

[stevenl]

8 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

Why is it just foreigners accounts, why not verify Thai national accounts? Many of the scams I have had tried on me have not been foreigners but Thais.

It would be nice if the banks, once given information about scammers would at least put a watch on the account but they don't do that.

What makes you think this doesn't apply to Thai?

[SABloke]

Who is this helping? It's not protecting me as the account holder, since the mobile phone number is the least significant of my security, and if I noticed something suspicious, I would contact the bank (as I've had to do twice with my Kbank Credit card details seamingly being sold by employees - New card that I never used so no chance it was skimmed). The 2022 arbitary date proves that the name is clearly not important since anything before that year is ok - same name ir not.

[Agusts]

I read some of the posts, but sorry in case I missed it, how does bank know the registered name of a phone number given to them...? I thought only SIM card company can do that (and maybe police - probably through them). 

 

Are the banks given access or they can contact some place to verify this info..., because if this is not going to be automatic, or say quickly done via some computer, it will take forever for bank staff to go through every phone number of every account - probably for Thais too... 

 

My number was registered many years ago with True using old passport number, but banks has my new passport number, I hope that's not a big deal, same name after all..., not received anything from the bank yet..., I pop on to True and update the passport number, just in case. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

27 minutes ago, Agusts said:

I read some of the posts, but sorry in case I missed it, how does bank know the registered name of a phone number given to them...? I thought only SIM card company can do that (and maybe police - probably through them). 

 

Are the banks given access or they can contact some place to verify this info..., because if this is not going to be automatic, or say quickly done via some computer, it will take forever for bank staff to go through every phone number of every account - probably for Thais too... 

 

My number was registered many years ago with True using old passport number, but banks has my new passport number, I hope that's not a big deal, same name after all..., not received anything from the bank yet..., I pop on to True and update the passport number, just in case. 

 

As I mentioned above, I was told by SCB that they were working from Thai government list(s) of non-complying names -- those where the mobile phone registration info didn't/doesn't match the mobile banking registration info.

 

AFAIK, the Thai banks don't have direct access to mobile phone provider registration data.. But apparently, the Thai government does.

 

 

[Lorry]

15 hours ago, TigerandDog said:

I had to contact my mobile phone provider and change my ID to the pink ID card #.

Most branches of AIS in Bangkok are very reluctant to so this. Some outright refuse to do it.

[Lorry]

11 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

Why is it just foreigners accounts, why not verify Thai national accounts?

Because it's aimed against scammers. And "Thais would never do this", as a well known person in authority once said. 

[Lorry]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

As I mentioned above, I was told by SCB that they were working from Thai government list(s) of non-complying names -- those where the mobile phone registration info didn't/doesn't match the mobile banking registration info.

 

AFAIK, the Thai banks don't have direct access to mobile phone provider registration data.. But apparently, the Thai government does.

 

 

My bank told me that my bank account information and the information for my SIM were not identical.

Less than 20 hours after updating my profile with AIS i called  the bank and was told that everything is ok.

That looks like an automated exchange of information between banks and phone companies. It certainly doesn't look like  the government is sending around some lists.

 

BTW the bank told me casually on the phone that my information didn't match when I called them regarding another matter.   They never sent me any notification through their app or whatever. 

[TigerandDog]

8 hours ago, Lorry said:

Most branches of AIS in Bangkok are very reluctant to so this. Some outright refuse to do it.

with AIS you can update this info via the AIS app.

[Photoguy21]

15 hours ago, stevenl said:

What makes you think this doesn't apply to Thai?

Because I have given such information to a bank here in Thailand and when inquiring if they did anything 3 months later the answer was "no, we have not done anything"

[Photoguy21]

12 hours ago, Lorry said:

Because it's aimed against scammers. And "Thais would never do this", as a well known person in authority once said. 

How could I be so silly as to forget that. You are totally correct my apologies.

[Pompeygeezer]

On 4/28/2025 at 3:27 AM, Gottfrid said:

How hard is it to understand. They have been talking about this for about a year now. There is no Geez, what do I do. By now everybody must know they just need to go in to their bank and check that the phone number connected to the account is in the same name as the name on the account. That´s the only thing they ask for. There is no need to make it complicated.

Instead, I say Geez, haven´t you fixed this yet? Just fix it and everything will be ok.

It's not easy if you do have a new number though.  You then have to go to the bank you originally opened the account with.   What utter nonsense is that!   So, I opened the account in Pattaya and now live in Phuket and they expect me to go to pattaya because that where i first opened the account.  WTF.  I thought that's what computers were for.     Not happening

[Mutt Daeng]

On 4/29/2025 at 6:26 PM, tjintx said:

On 4/29/2025 at 12:53 PM, Jerzy Swirski said:

Yesterday I got a message for each of my Bangkok Bank accounts when I logged in.

They gave me the USSD code  *179*13 digit thai ID#

Unfortunately the reply is in Thai so I am none the wiser.

 

Hopefully that USSD code will be useful for someone more skilled than me.

The reply is that USSD Code process doesn't work for foreigners.  Foreigners have to go into the branch, lucky us.

Works for me and the message  (my words not actual translation) says that my pink ID matches the ID registered against my phone number.

I think the *179 USSD code may only work for DTAC numbers.

 

[TigerandDog]

13 hours ago, Pompeygeezer said:

It's not easy if you do have a new number though.  You then have to go to the bank you originally opened the account with.   What utter nonsense is that!   So, I opened the account in Pattaya and now live in Phuket and they expect me to go to pattaya because that where i first opened the account.  WTF.  I thought that's what computers were for.     Not happening

You don't go to you bank to make the change, you make the change with mobile your phone provider, and it's very easy if you have your provider's app. My bank account had my full name and my pink ID card was used as the id to open the account. When I originally got my mobile phone # AIS did not register my details at all. So when I received my first data mismatch message from the bank I updated my profile via the app and used my passport #. I received a 2nd mismatch message and when I contacted the bank they advised me that they ahd used my pink id card # to open my account, not my passport #. So all I had to do was login to the app again (in my case AIS) and update my profile and change the passport # to my pink id card #.  All good, no more mismatch messages from the bank.