Cellular fraud is not new in the Kenyan market. The vice takes many forms, including complex ones that are perpetrated by industry insiders. The activity entails unauthorized use, tampering or manipulation of cellular phone service or data for monetary gain or unlawful access of private data.
The two scenarios appear to have been exploited by two Safaricom employees who were arraigned in Milimani Law Courts yesterday. According to Citizen, the suspects were charged with computer fraud that allowed them to obtain money illegally.
Specifically, it is alleged that the culprits unlawfully copied and transferred privileged and private Safaricom subscriber data. The information was then passed on to another person who, according to the suit, is not authorized to handle such data. It has also been reported that the data was copied from one of Safaricom’s databases.
According to the case presented to court, the two Safaricom employees planned to acquire KES 0.3 million from the carrier in a move that targeted to defraud the nation’s top carrier. Both crimes were staged at Safaricom’s head office in Westlands, Nairobi.
Safaricom’s privacy statement maintains that the carrier is ‘committed to respecting and protecting customer privacy in compliance with the applicable laws and obligations on data use and privacy.’ Also, the carrier adds that it has installed processes, resources, controls, tools and other measures to protect user data from unauthorized access, accidental loss or destruction.
While the specifics of the stolen user information have not been revealed, Safaricom is clearly and strictly adhering to its data privacy policy by punishing staff that use their access to privileged information for personal and unlawful gain.
