Check Out These Tips To Distinguish Between Official Cell Phones And BM

Ilustrasi smartphone (Photo by George Beridze on Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Mobile Black Market (BM) is still widely circulated in Indonesia. Even though the government has established a cellphone blocking system based on International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), there are still rogue traders who can still get away with this.

It is known, recently the owner of the PS Store cellphone shop, namely Putra Siregar, was arrested by the Customs and Excise authorities regarding the cellphone he sold had the illegal status or BM. Of course this is far from the official word.

Although not a few are tempted to buy BM cellphones at low prices because the devices are free from taxes and licenses, they often suffer damage or defects. As a result, buyers cannot complain to smartphone vendors because there is no official guarantee. Usually it's just a store warranty like what the PS Store does.

For that, as a potential mobile buyer, you have to be very careful in distinguishing which cell phones are official and not. How to? Here are tips from VOI so that you are not easily fooled when buying a cell phone.

1. Make sure the cellphone is officially sold in Indonesia first

Sometimes we find cell phones in a shop where the official vendor has not issued the product in Indonesia. The cellphone has been confirmed to be illegal or BM.

If you want to buy a cellphone, you should first do your research, whether the cellphone you want has been officially sold in Indonesia so that there is no loss or even being deceived because of its authenticity.

2. Low Price Does Not Mean Official Cellphone

Not a few of the BM mobile phones circulating in the country have low prices. Of course, because they escape government tax payments.

For that, before buying it, try asking why the store is selling at a low price, also ask about the warranty and check the completeness of the box. If you find anomalies, you should not need to buy it because it is certain that the cellphone is not official.

3. Check the authenticity of the IMEI

The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) has created an IMEI check site to find out the status of our official cellphones or BM. You can access it at the address https://imei.kemenperin.go.id/.

Alternatively, you can also find out the IMEI number by pressing the * # 06 # button on a phone call on your cellphone, the IMEI number will appear on the screen. You can enter the IMEI listed on the https://imei.kemenperin.go.id/ site.

If the site is registered, the display will appear "IMEI is registered in the Ministry of Industry database." Conversely, if it is not registered, a display will appear that the IMEI is not registered in the Ministry of Industry database.

4. Mobile Phones Are Government Certified

Make sure the cellphone you want to buy is certified by the Ministry of Industry and Kominfo. Official cell phones usually have a label that contains the certificate number. Then, you can check the number at certification.postel.go.id.

Later, if the certificate number of the cellphone appears, it means that the cellphone is official. Meanwhile, if the certificate number does not appear, it is certain that the cellphone is BM.

5. Software on the phone is not compatible

Lastly, BM phones are clearly not compatible with certain applications. So it is often found when applications are installed but cannot be operated on the cellphone.

This is the most obvious weakness of BM phones. Because, these phones usually adjust the standards and production abroad. If the cellphone is official, then it has been set to follow the standards in the country.