By Jessica Mwansa
MOBILE money scams will soon be a thing of the past but it will require concerted effort from subscribers to not only report the scammers, but also stop sharing their contact details online, the Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA) has said.
ZICTA Public Relations officer Hanford Chaaba has told The Scoop that there is need for subscribers to exercise patience while continuing to report scammers through the *707# code initiative if the scourge is to be stumped out.
Mr. Chaaba explains that since the initiative was launched last year, 10.9 million Sim Cards needed live facial capture and that out that number, 7 million Sim Cards were registered by end of last month and that if the collaboration between consumers, mobile service providers, as well as the Zambia police is strengthened, the scourge will be completely curbed.
He says consumer behavior is key in curbing the scourge as they play a big role.
“The initiative, which has been put in place, also requires consumers to stop sharing their mobile numbers on social media because that way, scammers and fraudsters take advantage. As a regulator, we are very hopeful and confident that with the initiative and maximum support from consumers, we will be able to reach a certain level where these scams will be a thing of the past,” Mr. Chaaba said.
“Since the initiative was launched, the response has been overwhelming but the mere fact that we have put that initiative in place does not guarantee that scammers and fraudsters will stop immediately. It does not work like that. It is a process that takes time,” he said.
ZICTA, in collaboration with Zambia’s three mobile network operators, launched the *707# code initiative last year to protect customers from fraud and mobile scams.
