• Mobile money users enter their PIN for their mobile money account unknowingly or knowingly.
• No bank or Mobile money service provider will call and ask consumers to enter their PIN.
• ZICTA will be training Police officers on how best mobile money scams can be averted

Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA) says it has heightened consumer awareness regarding fraudsters who are swindling mobile money users through fake money transfers.
Speaking in an interview with Money FM News, Authority Corporate Communications Officer Hanford Chaaba said there is need for consumers to know that no Commercial bank or Mobile money service provider will call and ask them to enter their Personal Identification Number (PIN) in order to approve any transaction.
Mr. Chaaba noted that some mobile money users enter their PIN for their mobile money account either unknowingly or knowingly immediately they receive a text message requesting them to reverse a supposedly wrong money transfer, and end up being swindled.
“The first starting point that we have identified is heightening consumer awareness because for any money that is sitting in your sim card to be gotten, there is for the password or PIN to be entered. From what we have discovered, consumers do enter their PIN for their mobile money account some of them unknowingly, some of them knowingly.”
“So the first starting point is awareness, basically to tell the people that no bank, no mobile money service provider is going to call you to ask you to enter the PIN,” Mr. Chaaba said.
He added that averting mobile money fraud requires a lot of concerted effort from consumers themselves, mobile money service providers as well as other stakeholders like the Police, Bank of Zambia, and ZICTA itself.
And Mr. Chaaba revealed that ZICTA will next week be training Police Officers as part of vigorous awareness programs.
He said Police officers will be trained on how best mobile money scams can be averted and scammers brought to book.
“So we are arranging this particular workshop which will start on Monday next week with Police officers where we will be strategizing and basically grounding on how they can corner such kind of perpetrators.”
Mr. Chaaba further stated the Authority is also targeting to train the Judiciary because whoever is arrested as a scammer ends up in the hands of the Judiciary.
“We are going to have another vibrant workshop and training where will be training the magistrates across Lusaka province so that these issues once they are taken to the courts of law, the magistrate will be able to understand exactly what is happening, and what the law provides with regards to such kind of cases,” he disclosed.
Mr. Chaaba’s comment comes in the wake of increased reports about mobile money users being swindled by scammers who are sending messages of fake money transfers and asking for reversals.