Hola!

Before heading to the story, I want to tell you that I mention products but it's for education only, based on my life story.

So today, I want to share a personal story—something unexpected. But I’m sharing it in the hope that it can serve as a warning and a lesson for anyone who, like me, relies on their phone number as a digital key to everyday life.

It all started with my old Telkomsel number, which I had used since 2018 to 2024. Later, I decided to switch to a by.U number, mainly because it offered something that felt like a dream: a number that stays active forever, as long as it's installed on your device. No more worrying about top-ups or expiration. It sounded perfect.

And yes, I lost the SIM card with the old number. I don't know why I was so careless this time. :( Actually, managing some SIM cards is quite tiring.

Moving on—

I began using that new number from by.U for all my crucial digital activities: e-banking, e-wallets, e-commerce platforms, social media—everything. It was secure, easy, and worked just fine.

However, here’s where my carelessness began to show. While I had switched all of my accounts to the new number, I forgot to update my WhatsApp. I continued using the old Telkomsel number, assuming it would be fine. Spoiler: it wasn’t. 😐

And...

Yesterday, around 5:45 PM, I received a notification from WhatsApp that someone was trying to log into my account. A few minutes later, I was logged out. Just like that, my access was gone. (Pathetic, right?) 🙂

I panicked. Then it hit me—I had never enabled two-factor authentication (2FA) on my WhatsApp account. I always use 2FA for my banking and email accounts, but I had overlooked it here. That small mistake opened the door wide for someone else to take over.

Part of this, of course, was my own oversight. But what made it worse was this question that kept nagging me:

Why are Indonesian mobile providers allowed to recycle inactive numbers without warning? ☹️

Sure, some people abandon their numbers. But shouldn’t there be a more secure, consumer-friendly way to handle that? Giving someone else a number that may still be tied to banking, e-wallets, and personal communication feels risky—if not outright dangerous.

Actually...

When I lost my SIM card with the old number back in 2024, I tried everything I could to get it back before it was recycled and sold to someone else. I searched for solutions online and even found some reactivation forms. But just like many government and provider systems, they were riddled with errors and bugs. The pages didn’t load properly. The verification process failed. In short: it was a dead end. 🙂

I considered visiting GraPARI, Telkomsel’s service center, but it’s far from where I live. I felt stuck—and honestly, defeated.

Long story short...

After registering WhatsApp with my new phone number, I informed my contacts that the new user of my old number was no longer me. Fortunately, I didn’t have hundreds of WhatsApp contacts. My list was under 50 people, consisting mostly of work colleagues, families and close friends. I quickly tried to broadcast a message from my new number to let them know my old number user isn't me anymore.

But only one gray tick appeared.
The message didn’t go through.

So, I had to do the only thing left: message them manually, one by one.

It was tedious, but I couldn’t risk people thinking it was me if the new number sent something suspicious. Imagine if I’d had 500 or even 1,000 contacts? 😅

Finally, this experience taught me some painful but important lessons about digital hygiene and security:

  • Never let go of a number that’s tied to important accounts until you’ve updated everything.

  • Always enable two-factor authentication, especially on messaging platforms like WhatsApp.

  • Never assume something is “safe enough”—especially when it comes to security. Complacency can lead to disaster.

Technology can make our lives easier—but only when we use it wisely and responsibly. If we’re not careful, it can open doors we thought were locked.

So if you’re reading this and haven’t checked your security settings or updated your account details in a while, consider this your friendly nudge:

Don’t wait until it’s too late.

Stay safe. Stay vigilant. And don’t make the same mistake I did. ✨