Namasār,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you today:
- Kenyans lose KSh 491M to SIM hijack scams
- Kenya expands undersea Internet capacity
- Canal+ secures UEFA rights until 2031
Kenyans lose KSh 491M to SIM hijack scams
Kenyan crypto investors are learning the hard way that your biggest security risk might not be your crypto wallet; it could be your phone number. New data shows that Kenyans lost an estimated KSh491 million ($3.8 million) worth of cryptocurrency through SIM hijacking over the past year. Instead of hacking blockchain networks, cybercriminals are increasingly targeting victims’ mobile phone numbers. Once they successfully take over a SIM card, they can intercept one-time passwords (OTPs), reset passwords and gain access to crypto exchange accounts within minutes. The growing losses have raised fresh concerns about the security of Kenya’s fast-growing digital finance ecosystem.
The figures matter because Kenya has become one of Africa’s most active digital economies. Millions of people rely on M-Pesa, online banking and cryptocurrency platforms for everyday transactions, and most of those services are linked to a single mobile phone number. That makes SIM cards incredibly valuable to fraudsters. Rather than attacking complex encryption systems, criminals simply convince a telecom operator to transfer a victim’s phone number to a new SIM card under their control. Once that happens, security codes sent by SMS land in the fraudster’s hands instead of the account owner’s. The attack is simple, relatively cheap to execute and often goes unnoticed until money has already disappeared.
The threat has been building for years alongside Kenya’s booming crypto market. As more investors entered the space after 2020, scammers shifted their focus from hacking wallets to exploiting weak identity verification processes and social engineering tactics. Authorities have responded with several arrests throughout 2026, including suspected SIM-swap syndicates accused of stealing millions of shillings from mobile money users. In June 2026, detectives arrested a suspect linked to a SIM-swap scheme that siphoned more than KSh450,000 from a victim, while another operation in July led to the arrest of eight suspects over an alleged KSh1.2 million M-Pesa SIM-swap fraud.
Kenyan courts are also beginning to hold institutions accountable. In June 2026, the High Court ruled that Safaricom and Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) were jointly responsible for a customer’s KSh4.4 million loss after fraudsters hijacked her phone number. The judgement made it clear that telecom operators and banks each have an independent duty to protect customers against foreseeable SIM-swap fraud, even when the attack originates outside their own systems. The ruling has been widely viewed as setting a higher standard of care for Kenya’s financial and telecom sectors.
The latest crypto losses are another reminder that cybersecurity is no longer just about choosing a strong password. In today’s digital economy, a mobile phone number has become the master key to bank accounts, mobile wallets, email addresses and crypto exchanges. As cybercriminals become more sophisticated, regulators, telecom operators, banks and crypto platforms will all need stronger safeguards. For users, relying solely on SMS-based verification is becoming increasingly risky, making stronger authentication methods more important than ever.
Kenya expands undersea Internet capacity
Kenya’s Internet lifeline is getting a major upgrade. The country is doubling down on undersea fibre-optic cables as demand for faster, more reliable internet continues to soar. According to recent industry updates, Kenya is strengthening its position as East Africa’s digital gateway by adding new submarine cable capacity and expanding the infrastructure connecting the country to the rest of the world. The move comes as internet traffic, cloud computing, AI services and data centre investments continue to grow across the region, putting increasing pressure on existing networks.
Victoria Fakiya – Senior Writer
Techpoint Digest
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The investment matters because undersea fibre-optic cables carry more than 95% of the world’s international internet traffic. Every time you stream a movie, make an international payment, join a Zoom call or use cloud services, chances are your data is travelling through one of these cables. Kenya already hosts several major submarine cables, including TEAMS, SEACOM, EASSy, 2Africa and PEACE, with Google’s Umoja cable, announced in May 2024, expected to strengthen connectivity between Africa and Australia further. More cable capacity means faster internet speeds, lower latency, better network resilience and fewer disruptions whenever one cable is damaged.
In February and March 2024, multiple submarine cable cuts disrupted internet services across several African countries, exposing just how vulnerable the continent’s digital infrastructure had become. The outages affected banks, telecom operators, fintechs and businesses that rely heavily on international connectivity. Since then, governments, telecom companies and hyperscalers have accelerated investments in redundancy, ensuring that traffic can automatically switch to alternative routes whenever one cable fails. Kenya has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of that shift because of its strategic location on Africa’s east coast and its growing role as a regional technology hub.
The cable expansion also ties into Kenya’s broader digital ambitions. The government is investing in its Digital Superhighway programme, rolling out more terrestrial fibre, supporting data centres and expanding digital public infrastructure to improve Internet access nationwide. At the same time, global technology companies are increasing their investments in cloud infrastructure across Africa, creating even greater demand for high-capacity international connections. Together, these developments are positioning Kenya not just as a consumer of internet services but as one of Africa’s most important digital transit hubs.
Ultimately, this is about future-proofing Kenya’s digital economy. AI, cloud computing, fintech, streaming and remote work are all consuming more bandwidth than ever before, and that trend isn’t slowing down. By investing in additional undersea cable capacity today, Kenya is preparing for the next decade of digital growth while making its internet more resilient against the kinds of outages that have disrupted businesses across Africa in recent years.
Canal+ secures UEFA rights until 2031
Canal+ has just tightened its grip on European club football in Africa. The French media giant has secured the exclusive broadcast rights to all UEFA men’s club competitions across more than 40 countries in sub-Saharan Africa from the 2027/28 season through to 2030/31. That means the UEFA Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League will all remain under the Canal+ umbrella, with SuperSport continuing to broadcast the competitions in English- and Portuguese-speaking markets, while Canal+ serves French-speaking audiences. The deal extends Canal+’s long-standing partnership with UEFA and ensures football fans across the region will continue watching Europe’s biggest club competitions on familiar platforms.
Why should you care? Football remains the biggest driver of pay-TV subscriptions across much of Africa. Broadcasters spend billions of dollars securing exclusive sports rights because live football is one of the few types of content people still prefer to watch in real time. For Canal+, keeping the UEFA package helps protect its subscriber base as competition from streaming platforms intensifies. For fans, the immediate viewing experience won’t change much in many countries since SuperSport — now part of the Canal+ family following its acquisition of MultiChoice — is expected to continue carrying the matches in English-speaking markets. But it also reinforces Canal+’s growing influence over premium sports broadcasting across the continent.
The deal is the latest chapter in Canal+’s aggressive expansion strategy. Over the past few years, the company has steadily built one of the world’s largest portfolios of football rights, renewing UEFA competitions in France until 2031, expanding its rights across Belgium, Poland, Austria, and Switzerland, and strengthening its sports offering in Africa. Its acquisition of MultiChoice further cemented its position by bringing DStv and SuperSport under the same corporate umbrella. With UEFA rights now locked in until 2031, Canal+ is effectively consolidating its position as the home of European club football across much of sub-Saharan Africa.
The announcement also reflects a wider battle for sports broadcasting rights. Global media companies are increasingly willing to pay premium prices for exclusive football rights because they remain one of the strongest tools for attracting and retaining subscribers in an era dominated by streaming. UEFA’s latest rights cycle reportedly generated significantly higher revenues than the previous one, highlighting the continued commercial value of elite European football. For African viewers, it means the Champions League isn’t going anywhere, but watching it will continue to depend on who controls the broadcast rights.
For Canal+, the timing couldn’t be better. As streaming services compete for entertainment audiences, live sports remain one of the few categories that consistently bring viewers back every week. By locking in Europe’s biggest club competitions until 2031, Canal+ isn’t just buying football; it is buying loyalty from millions of subscribers across Africa, where the UEFA Champions League remains one of the continent’s most-watched sporting events.
In case you missed them
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What I’m watching
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- The Psychology Of People Who Are Deep Thinkers
Opportunities
- Moniepoint is hiring for over 100 roles. Apply here.
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Have a fun weekend!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
