The news:
- South African-based telecom company Vodacom has disclosed arresting 15 suspects for fraud and several other irregular activities at the company.
- The network operator also fired 631 employees and contractors after facing disciplinary action for various reasons.
- These developments were contained in the company’s 2023/24 financial year’s annual results.
Per the report, the corporate security divisions of the company investigated more than 8,652 cases — 6,872 external cases and 1,780 internal cases — of alleged fraud or irregularities from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024.
The report also indicated that the cases resulted from direct reports from customers and other channels, including reports from service providers, online reports, business referrals, external whistleblowers, and the in-company fraud management system.
Vodacom claims its systems have advanced technology to detect and identify internal and external irregularities.
Explaining the fraud and irregularities charges to one publication and why they led to the dismissal of 631 employees and the arrest of 15 others, a spokesperson for the network operator noted that dismissible offences varied significantly, ranging from being involved in ID and SIM swap fraud to fraudulently allocating free airtime to loved ones.
“Vodacom Group has zero tolerance for fraudulent activity on networks in each of the countries in which it operates and remains committed to taking appropriate action to ensure the protection of its customers,” the spokesperson added.
The company stated that investigating each of these cases was critical, and it’s part of its unrelenting responsibility to meet the expectations of customers and regulators.
Concerning plans to replace the dismissed employees, Vodacom said the decision to hire new workers happens at an individual operating company level and will vary from country to country.
In March 2024, Vodacom Group announced that it was planning to reduce its South African workforce across all levels of the company to cut costs. The Competition Commission slammed the Group, whose Tanzania subsidiary recently acquired Smile Communication Tanzania for approximately $27.4 million to strengthen its 4G and 5G offerings, over its plans to acquire a stake in Vumatel's parent company.
