[日本語版]
このたび、IMEI ロック機能をリリースしました。
「SIM ロック」をご存知の方は多いと思います。通信端末を購入しても指定されたキャリアのSIMカードしか認識せず、その他のSIMカードは認識することができない機能です。
「IMEI ロック」は、その逆の機能を提供します。
「IMEI ロック」が設定された Air SIM は、特定の端末でしか通信できなくなります。他のデバイスに挿しても、通信できません。
※ IMEI(端末識別番号:International Mobile Equipment Identifier)とは、3G/LTE の通信モジュールを持つすべてのデバイスに付与されているユニークな識別番号です。
たとえば、遠隔地にある IoT デバイスで使用している Air SIM が盗難された場合の悪用を防いだり、特定の業務用端末のみ使用を許可するといった利用ができます。
当機能は、ユーザーコンソールおよびAPIから使用することができます。
コンソールの利用については、Air SIM が利用できるデバイスを固定（IMEI ロック）をご確認ください。
また、APIも提供しており、大量のAir SIMに当機能を適用する際や任意のIMEIを指定して複数のAir SIMをロックする場合におすすめです。
なお、当機能の利用に関する追加料金等はございません。
IMEI ロック機能は、Canal や Door といったセキュアなネットワークサービスをご利用いただくお客様から「SIMが盗難にあったら心配だ」というフィードバックにより提供することとなりました。
今後ともお客様からのフィードバックを心よりお待ちしております。
ソラコム
Mason Mark
[English version]
I am pleased to introduce a new feature of the SORACOM user console and API: IMEI lock.
Most people are familiar with a “SIM lock”, where a device is locked so that it works only with certain SIM cards. That’s a common way for telephone companies to prevent their discounted phones from working on other carriers’ networks.
An IMEI lock is the opposite: it locks the SIM to a certain device. Every device that can use a SIM for communications has an unique IMEI number. So the IMEI lock feature allows you to tell the Soracom network “I want this SIM to work with this device, and no other devices”. Once locked, the SIM will not work even if somebody removes it and inserts it into a different device.
Registered SIMs may be locked or unlocked via the SORACOM API (Japanese / English), using the new setImeiLock and unsetImeiLock operations. That is the most appropriate method for locking a large group of SIMs, or locking SIMs to arbitrary IMEIs.
SIMs can also be locked and unlocked via the user console. A new column in the SIM Management screen displays the lock status. To lock a SIM, select it and choose Enable IMEI Lock from the Actions menu. Unlocking a SIM works the same way, except you choose the Remove IMEI Lock action.
You can select multiple SIMs and lock or unlock them with a single command. SIMs will be locked to the IMEI of the device they are currently in, so they have to be online in order to be locked. (One or more SIMs can be unlocked at any time, regardless of online status.)
It is also possible to lock a SIM to an arbitrary IMEI, which does not require it to be online. To do this, select a single SIM in the SIM Management screen, then choose Enable IMEI Lock. When only one SIM is selected, the confirmation screen allows you to edit the IMEI directly before enabling the lock.
It is often convenient that a SIM can connect any number of devices without restriction. However, for some use cases, it is important that once a device has been provisioned with a SIM, that SIM cannot be used if it is removed. The new IMEI lock feature addresses those use cases.
It is important to note that IMEI lock doesn’t provide perfect security; there are devices that can be configured to use any IMEI. So it is a recommended to keep your IMEI numbers private — if a bad actor were to obtain both your SIM card and the IMEI it is locked to, then in some cases they would be able to bypass the lock.
But for most common scenarios, the new IMEI lock feature provides a powerful tool to control how your SIMs are used.
Many thanks to all of the people who let us know they needed this feature, and who gave us feedback during its development!
ソラコム
Mason Mark