Anonymous tip-offs to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) netted KES 6.8 billion in recovered taxes in the financial year ended June 2025, a 61% jump from the KES 4.22 billion recovered the year before.
The source of this intelligence was ordinary people and KRA’s own staff quietly filing reports through a web portal called iWhistle.
Fewer tips produced more money, as 821 cases filed this year were actually down from 883 the previous year as per Business Daily, meaning the quality of intelligence is improving, not just the volume.
iWhistle launched in 2004 and works simply: anyone can report tax fraud, bribery, cargo diversion, or abuse of office without giving their name. Each report gets a unique tracking code so the informant can follow up anonymously.
READ: KRA Is Tracking Traders Switching Till Numbers to Evade Taxes
Before this existed, KRA’s tip line required people to identify themselves, which, predictably, kept most people silent.
The financial incentive matters as well. Whistleblowers get 5% of whatever taxes are successfully recovered, capped at KES 5 million per case. For tips that lead to unassessed taxes being identified, it’s 1%, capped at KES 500,000.
The catch is that you have to reveal your identity, PIN, and bank details when it’s time to collect, but anonymity holds until the payout stage.
iWhistle isn’t just catching outside fraudsters. 45 KRA staff faced disciplinary action from the platform’s reports in the last review period alone.
READ: KRA Introduces Bodycams for Customs Officers at JKIA to Tackle Bribery
In the year to June 2024, 255 employees were investigated, 41 underwent lifestyle audits, and over 2,100 background checks were run, much of it triggered by insider tip-offs.
The most dramatic example of what this kind of intelligence can uncover came earlier this year at the Port of Mombasa. Investigators found a scheme where imported cargo was being cleared without paying tax.
The fraud only surfaced when invoices logged into KRA’s iTax and customs systems didn’t match actual payments. A cluster of mobile numbers tied to the suspicious transactions led back to KRA staff and clearing agents.
6 employees were interdicted, 21 cargo agents had their permits suspended, and KES 452.5 million was recovered.
