40 Days For Conmen: ”UCC Issues A Warning Over Mobile Money,  Free Data & Reward Scammers,” To Be Trucked From WhatsApp Groups 

The Uganda Communication Commission (UCC) has issued a public warning about the rise in fraud cases. According to UCC’s Acting Head of Communication and International Relations Rebecca Mukite, conmen are increasingly tricking customers into surrendering their mobile money details, while others claim to be conducting Sim Card upgrades using national IDs.

Without specifying the number of people who have been scammed, Mukite claims that the crime has been systematic since Uganda, along with the rest of the world, went into lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

According to Mukite, because many were staying at home with less activity and others chose not to work from home, there was an increase in dependency and use of government services.

Fraud in the form of transactions, fraud in the form of disinformation or fake news, cyberbullying, and email fraud, according to UCC, have all been on the rise. According to UCC, scam artists call customers claiming to be from their company, asking to upgrade or check consumers’ SIM cards.

Other fraudsters phone pretending to be agents of telecom firms like as Airtel and MTN, requesting verification of their mobile money pin codes because they have discovered unlawful access, according to UCC.

Members of the public have raised concerns after receiving these anonymous calls from fraudsters claiming to have won promotional prizes or authorities from telecom firms verifying Sim Card ownership.

Abdul Tumwesigye, who was just notified that he needed to reset his mobile money pin code, wonders why telecom providers are powerless to stop scammers when our SIM cards are linked to our national identification numbers.

“When they phone you posing as MTN or Airtel employees, they ask for the last four digits of your mobile money pin code. They pretended not to hear you and then asked for the first four digits of your mobile money pin code. Why can’t these telecom firms track these folks with the police since all our Sim Cards are registered?” Tumwesigye inquires.

According to a 2020 report from the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), 5 billion shillings was unlawfully paid to 877 Airtel SIM cards, while 755 MTN SIM cards obtained 5.5 billion shillings via mobile money. All funds sent to Airtel and MTN Sim Cards were quickly removed.

UCC also cautioned Ugandans about free data and reward scams. According to Mukite, they have registered 17 fraud instances, 11 of which have already been sent to the courts.

Ugandans should avoid sharing or clicking on dodgy links provided via WhatsApp to avoid being duped.