Innovation Exchange challenge: eSIM reader for officer safety

There is a rapidly increasing prevalence among mobile phone manufacturers to move away from using removable SIM cards in favour of embedded or integrated SIMS (eSIM). The iPhone 14 sold in the US, for example, no longer has a physical SIM card holder, but uses an eSIM instead. It’s anticipated that many other manufacturers will also transition from physical SIM cards to eSIMs in the near future. Commercial software solutions are able to read eSIMs but they also collect collateral data, such as contact lists and SMS messages in addition to IMSI numbers, which is unacceptable for this scenario as it contravenes data handling regulations. There is therefore, no currently no acceptable means to read and record IMSI numbers from the emerging generation of eSIM enabled mobile phones and devices.

A Government employee  who is about to be deployed overseas will provide her mobile phone IMSI number to the security officer. In case of emergency, her IMSI may be used to track her last known locations by providing the IMSI to local telecoms providers that the Government has good and well-established relationships with.

Apps could be used to find her phone, which are readily available, but there is little assurance with what is done with this data. If the employee has a modern phone with a non-removable eSIM, the officer needs a secure and non-intrusive solution to easily and privately read the eSIM IMSI.

Desirable functions:
1. The solution(s) must be able to read and display IMSI numbers from a wide range of unlocked mobile phones that utilise eSIMs.
2. Where more than one eSIM is active within a given mobile device, the solution(s) must be capable of reading and displaying the IMSI number for each SIM.
3. The solutions(s) should read and display the IMSI number of the phone of interest, only, and no other data from this phone nor any data, at all, from other phones, nearby.
4. The solution(s) must not pose a risk of damaging or corrupting the device being read or its associated eSIM.
5. The solution(s) should be intuitive to use, such that non-technical people can read and record IMSI numbers, effectively, with little or no training.
6. It is also desirable, for the solution(s) to read and display IMSI numbers from conventional SIM cards and satphone equivalents in addition to those from eSIMs
We are interested in developing innovative technology to approximately TRL 5 or 6, that can take an IMSI reading from an eSIM device (device agnostic) without taking collateral information. We are not prescriptive on the format of the concept demonstrator. But it must comply with data protection and GDPR, data aggregation must be considered and handled securely.

We are not interested in horizon scanning, technology mapping or low TRL developments.

Competition opens – Monday 4 December 2023

Online briefing link – join on Tuesday 9 January 2024 at 10:00am

Clarifying questions published – Monday 22 January 2024
Competition closes – Thursday 1 February 2024 at 5:00pm
Applicant notified – Friday 16 February 2024
Pitch day in Milton Keynes – Thursday 22 February 2024

Target project kick-off – March 2024

Clarifying questions or general requests for assistance can be submitted directly to cocreation@hmgcc.gov.uk prior to the cut-off date. These clarifying questions may be technical, procedural, or commercial in subject, or anything else where assistance is required. Please note that answered questions will be published to facilitate a fair and open competition.