For years now, Kenyans have been complaining of losing millions to SIM swap scammers, who in most cases target the well off in the society.
A police boss in Nairobi is the latest victim of a sim-swap fraud syndicate that has been using technology to con Kenyans of their money held in banks and telecommunication firms.
Mr Peter Mwanzo, in charge of Kasarani police division, narrated in court how he lost Ksh600,000 within six hours through the syndicate.
“Within less than six hours Sh597,100 had been transferred from my Equity Bank account to my M-Pesa account and later sent to a number unknown to me and withdrawn in Mulot, Bomet County. How this happened is still a mystery to me,” said Mr Wanzo.
To protect subscribers from such, Safaricom has a self-whitelisting service where one locks their own number to ensure no one else can swap your sim card without your knowledge.
All you need to do is dial *100*100# to whitelist your number.
This service ensures that a customer’s SIM card can only be replaced by visiting a Safaricom Shop or Care desk with your ID, or by calling Safaricom customer care.
Read: Safaricom Revenues Hits Ksh281B As Profits Soar To Ksh67B
