Mobile service provider Safaricom has been slapped with a Sh115 trillion lawsuit for allegedly violating the data privacy of millions of its consumers.
In a case filed at the High Court last week, one of the firm’s subscribers has accused the telco of breaching the privacy of 11.5 million of its customers by exposing their sports betting history and biodata.
In his petition filed last Friday, Benedict Kabugi says he was approached by an individual who had the personal data of more than 11.5 million Safaricom subscribers, including his.
“The data, which the petitioner herein viewed personally, was specific to gamblers who had used their Safaricom mobile numbers to gamble on various betting platforms registered in Kenya,” says Benedict in his petition. This is the first time a law suit of this magnitude is being leveled against a mobile service provider in Kenya and could have far-reaching ramifications on Safaricom and its subscribers.
For close to a decade Kenya’s data protection law has been gathering dust in Parliament, with two duplicate bills currently set for debate by the National Assembly and Senate.
Article 31 of the Constitution protects the privacy of communication.
In the suit, the data allegedly contained specific identifying details of subscribers, including full names, their mobile phone numbers, gender, age, identity numbers, passport numbers as well as the total amounts gambled.
Also included in the data was the make and type of devices used by the subscribers as well as their location. Benedict says he informed the telco and the police about the data breach but was instead arrested and detained.
Last week, two Safaricom employees were charged in court for trying to obtain Sh300 million from the company by transferring priviledged information on a subscriber from the company’s database and sharing it with an unauthorised person.
In a case filed at the High Court last week, one of the firm’s subscribers has accused the telco of breaching the privacy of 11.5 million of its customers by exposing their sports betting history and biodata.
In his petition filed last Friday, Benedict Kabugi says he was approached by an individual who had the personal data of more than 11.5 million Safaricom subscribers, including his.
“The data, which the petitioner herein viewed personally, was specific to gamblers who had used their Safaricom mobile numbers to gamble on various betting platforms registered in Kenya,” says Benedict in his petition. This is the first time a law suit of this magnitude is being leveled against a mobile service provider in Kenya and could have far-reaching ramifications on Safaricom and its subscribers.
For close to a decade Kenya’s data protection law has been gathering dust in Parliament, with two duplicate bills currently set for debate by the National Assembly and Senate.
Article 31 of the Constitution protects the privacy of communication.
In the suit, the data allegedly contained specific identifying details of subscribers, including full names, their mobile phone numbers, gender, age, identity numbers, passport numbers as well as the total amounts gambled.
Also included in the data was the make and type of devices used by the subscribers as well as their location. Benedict says he informed the telco and the police about the data breach but was instead arrested and detained.
Last week, two Safaricom employees were charged in court for trying to obtain Sh300 million from the company by transferring priviledged information on a subscriber from the company’s database and sharing it with an unauthorised person.
