Assessment of Mobile Money Transaction Frauds and Consequences Confronting Zanzibar Telecom Service Providers

Abstract

This study investigates Mobile Money Transaction Frauds and the consequences stimulating Telecom Service Providers in Zanzibar, Tanzania. It provides a clear understanding and assessment of precise level of phishing, spoofing and fake call transaction frauds to Telecom service providers in Zanzibar and evaluates the consequences and solutions of the same. Purposive sampling was used among managers, staffs & agents in the telephone service providers explicitly Zantel, Tigo and Airtel companies. These selected operators are giants and widely used by the majority in Zanzibar. The qualitative analysis had been recorded and coded. The data gained from the descriptive survey design were themed for the analysis. The study revealed that phishing (handset hacking, unauthorized SIM swap and PIN reset), spoofing (Fraudulent SMS, Whatsapp messages, phone calls for money transfer) and fake call from operator call center which include receive call from call center are common and committed frequently in mobile money transactions fraud. The common consequences of mobile money transactions are originated in marketing consequences, financial consequences and legal consequences which indeed affect the companies in operations and therefore, awareness program concerning with precautions of using mobile money transactions should be initiated besides the establishment of a clear mandate on mobile money issues between Communication Regulatory Authorities such as TCRA, Police Unit and Service providers in improving performance outcomes.