This archive report was first published on 23 October 2019.
On October 23, 2019, Safaricom subscribers woke up to a surprise as they benefited from a technical glitch in the company's newly introduced No Expiry bundles and airtime. The glitch, which occurred in the wee hours of the morning, allowed subscribers to access free airtime and data bundles.
The issue arose just four months after a similar glitch occurred, resulting in free bundles being taken back by the company. However, this time around, Safaricom's swift introduction of the No Expiry service left room for errors, allowing a limited number of subscribers to benefit from the glitch.
According to reports, the glitch was a result of Safaricom's efforts to comply with a court case filed by lawyer Adrian Kamotho, who sought to sue Kenyan telcos for denying consumers their unused data. The Communications and Multimedia Appeals Tribunal is yet to decide on the case.
As the case is still pending, Safaricom moved to introduce the No Expiry bundles and airtime service, which may have been done to avoid huge penalties if the tribunal rules in favour of lawyer Kamotho. However, the company's haste in introducing the service led to the glitch, allowing a limited number of subscribers to benefit from the free airtime and data bundles.
Subscribers who were awake and online at the time of the glitch were able to access the free bundles, while those who were asleep missed out on the opportunity. Safaricom has yet to comment on the issue, but introduced a number for subscribers to contact CEO Michael Joseph.
