Kenya's chief detective says criminals are using the electoral commission register to engage in cybercrime

david nganga

August 17, 2018 5:43 PM

The fight against SIM card fraud has taken a new twist

The Director of Criminal Investigations George Kinoti has said that criminals engaging in the SIM swap scam are now using the IEBC register to commit fraudulent activities.

The electoral commission listing, which is available online, is used to register SIM cards which end up being used to carry out criminal activities.

He said that this is one of the sophisticated avenues used by culprits to defraud innocent Kenyans even as the government continues to clamp down on cybercrime.

Kinoti was speaking during a mobile money fraud risk engagement forum by Safaricom and the banking industry.

Despite the challenges, Kinoti maintained that the fight against SIM swap fraud was on course.

Fraud activities

He called upon all Kenyans to avail information that would help identify criminals that are engaging in fraud activities across the country.

A number of people have been arrested over the past few weeks in connection with Sim swap fraud.

Safaricom has over the last one month taken measure in addressing the issue by educating and cautioning the public on how to protect their personal data, avoid sharing PIN numbers and passwords.

david nganga