This archive report was first published on 29 June 2019.
Published on June 29, 2019, Airtel Kenya has revealed a massive insider corporate theft that has seen Sh670 million lost through its mobile money transfer platform.
The theft was revealed by Airtel Kenya's parent firm Airtel Africa, which indicated that only Sh86 million of the Sh670 million was recovered through insurance.
According to Airtel Africa, the loss was due to 'cash control frauds' identified in the group's Airtel Money operations in Kenya in 2018, which involved circumvention of the group's controls by Airtel Money employees.
Despite the introduction of 'stringent controls' to check on fraud, Airtel Kenya has admitted that risks posed by their employees could not be completely eliminated.
Additionally, technical or administrative errors could result in customer losses for which the group could be responsible, and the group may be liable for fraud and problems related to inadequately securing group payment systems.
It is worth noting that this is not the first case of telco insider fraud in Kenya. Two weeks ago, two Safaricom senior employees were arraigned in court for unlawfully copying and transferring private consumer data.
Airtel Kenya is under Airtel Africa, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel from India. Airtel Africa was established after Bharti Airtel bought Zain Africa's mobile operations in June 2010.
Airtel Africa is currently operating in 15 countries, including Chad, DRC, Gabon, Ghana, Zambia, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Congo, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya.
