CYBER criminals swap victims’ SIM cards after stealing their identities, personal information and account authentication as well as authorisation codes, using the data to access mobile money and bank accounts, the regulator says.

Dr Jabir Bakari, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) director general, made this observation when delivering a quarterly operational report relating to mobile network fraudulent acts.

He said fraud attempts had decreased by 28 percent in the June to September 2024 period, following concerted law enforcement and heightened consumer awareness campaigns.

The latest TCRA sector performance statistical report shows that mobile phone fraudsters’ acts slid to 16,069 by the end of the period from 22,267 attempts in the period ending June 2024.

The decrease in attempted theft is tied to enhanced public awareness educational programmes, as members of the public have been reporting fraudsters’ phone numbers to 15040.

Collaboration among key sector stakeholders including mobile phone service providers contributed to the success, he said, even as observers felt that the 16,000 or so attempts reported show the situation is not good yet,

A high-level stakeholder consultative meeting to address network fraud and cyber security was recently convened, informing the regulatory minister as well as law enforcement met, also inviting mobile phone service providers and other online safety stakeholders.

SMS number 15040 was extolled by the sector minister Jerry Silaa in a recent press conference, saying the fraudsters include conmen who target unsuspecting customers and mobile money agents.

SMS-based fraud undermine governments efforts to promote financial inclusion and build a digital economy, he said, reminding people that communication between service providers and users is accessed via number 100 only.

Communication and Home Affairs would intensify action against mobile network fraud, particularly in regions with the highest number of incidents such as Rukwa, Morogoro and Mbeya regions accounted for 77 percent of the incidents, he added.