[kictanet] "Talk to Safaricom" Responses to Day 1 Questions

[Barrack Otieno]

Many thanks for the comprehensive answers Steve. I have been in touch
with the engineers and  i am looking forward to the issue being
resolved and coverage increased to more than 70 % if possible.

Ahsante

On 2/14/17, Stephen Chege via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
> Dear all
>
> Below are the responses to Day 1 Questions. Will try to do a better job with
> the formatting for the next set of responses.
>
> regards
>
> Steve
>
>
>
>
> Talk-2-Safaricom, Days 1 (Monday 6th Feb) - Consumer Issues
> Guideline: Share  our experiences and challenges with regard to Safaricom
> Services along the following topics
>
> a) Affordability (of Bandwidth, Data bundles, SMS, Over The Top Services )
> b) Quality of Service(Congestion, Dropped Calls, 2G, 3G, 4G)
> c) Data Protection & Intermediary liability (Premium Service Providers,
> Unsolicited sms, KRA & MPESA accounts)
> d) Privacy Issues-As the largest ISP, how is Safcom handling Censorship
> threats, Child online Protection from harmful content, Security Cameras,
> etc)
>
> Questions+Comments from Discussions:
> Barrack Otieno:
>
> My question regards mobile signal coverage of Kisamese and Olepolos areas
> which are within 50 Kilometres from Nairobi. The quality of the signal is
> very poor yet there is a growing urban populace. I had raised this issue
> with Safaricom Customer service and they promised to work on it but it has
> been a year waiting for some positive feedback. Can our good friends at
> Safaricom do something about the blind spots and strengthening of 3 G in the
> area? By extension coverage is very bad and non existent as you move further
> towards Magadi in particular Oltepesi and Tinga areas. I hope to get some
> feedback on the plans Safaricom has to boost the signal in this area.
>
> Hi Barrack. As you mentioned, our technical team has been in touch on this
> issue and are currently scoping out the options in the area. We aim to
> improve connectivity in the Kajiado County by adding increase the County
> coverage footprint from 60% to about 75% of the inhabited area, while
> increasing network capacity within the urban areas. In the last ten months
> we have increased our coverage by 18 Base stations with plans ongoing to
> identify new coverage locations in the next FY 2017/18, to be available by
> mid-March. The new rollout drive is being done as part of our
> regionalization program that kicked off last year.
>
>
>
> Ali Hussein
> How is Safaricom leveraging NOFBI and USF to ensure their customers get high
> internet connectivity in the furthest corners of the country - From Mandela
> and Wajir to Kilifi and Lamu?
>
> Yes we do leverage both NOFBI and USF. NOFBI is a backbone Fibre network by
> the Government of Kenya, available to all network operators. We use it for
> backhauling from our terminal sites to our main network points.
> On USF, (and I’m answering both Ali and Mwendwa here), for context, the USF
> Fund is created under KICA by donations from licensees of the CA. To date,
> Safaricom has contributed almost half of the approximately Sh4 billion in
> the Fund as at January 2016.
> The CA has adopted a methodology that targets the application of the Fund to
> marginalised and underserved areas by offering incentives (a subsidy from
> the USF) to operators who are still expected to invest and expend capital
> expenditure to erect the required infrastructure. In identifying these
> areas, the CA conducted an Access Gap study, which identified different
> geographic areas of the country that require intervention under the USF
> fund.
> The proposed methodology further targeted the existing operators (and
> principle contributors to the Fund) to bid for certain geographic Lots,
> erect base stations and extend network coverage for both voice and data to
> these underserved areas.
> A total 105 Lots were on offer. A Lot consists of a geographical region in
> Kenya, which may require building between 5-6 BTS per Lot. Each operator was
> given the opportunity to bid for any number of Lots, and in return, the USF
> would give a subsidy of between 20-80% to the operator for the total
> construction cost of the required BTS. The operator would be required to
> undertake capital expenditure and together with the subsidy to meet the full
> cost of the BTS in these remote regions.
> For example, if a Lot located in Samburu required 6 BTS to be constructed
> whose total cost was Sh120m, an operator would be required to undertake
> capital expenditure of 60m, and the USF would grant a subsidy of 60m.
> Unfortunately, the subsidy offered for a large number of the Lots was not
> sufficient to attract investments. Safaricom bid for 28 Lots out of which we
> were awarded 24 Lots. We are now preparing to rollout in the next two
> months.
> The application of the USF is determined by the CA in consultation with the
> Universal Service Advisory Council (USAC).
> As the largest contributors to the USF Fund, telecommunication service
> providers including Safaricom do not have a say as to how the funds are
> utilised – yet we have the best information as to the constraints that
> impede rollout of network in marginal areas and the subsidy from the USF
> facilitates in closing the capital challenge.
> In fact, telecommunications providers had requested for representation in
> the USAC and had received promises that this would be done, but
> unfortunately the council does not have any operator representation.
>
> 2. Does Safaricom get requests from the government regarding customer data?
> a) Phone numbers b) SMS Messages c) Browsing history?  d) add any other  And
> if so does Safaricom feel that they may have an obligation to make these
> requests public on a quarterly basis?
>
> No we do not get such requests. Where we do get requests, it is usually in
> criminal investigations and court proceedings where typically the
> information sought is call data records.
>
> Edwin Kiama
>
> My question is on privacy. Rumour has it that GoK through NIS mirrors all
> telecom networks. Are copies of my Smses on the Safaricom Network also
> delivered to the government? Are my calls listened to?
>
>
>
> No. As you correctly pointed out, this is a rumour. We have no visibility of
> call or SMS content nor do we keep copies of the same. Operators act as a
> conduit for transmission of the communication, therefore we only have a log
> for purposes of billing for the service.
>
> Such logs will contain information such as the duration of the call, date
> and time stamp of the message, the sender /recipient numbers and amount
> charged. Under the terms of our licence and laws such as KICA, we are
> required to keep customer information confidential. This standard is raised
> to the higher level by our Constitution, which ensures customers have the
> right to privacy.
>
> We are aware that the Communications Authority has stated that they intend
> to implement a monitoring system whose objectives include getting access to
> customer information. I wish to point out that this request has only been
> made in recent weeks by the CA to the operators.
>
> All operators (and here I believe I speak for the industry, but I stand to
> be corrected) are not in favour of any third-party system that would have
> access to confidential customer information.  We have registered our strong
> reservations with the CA and discussions on this matter are ongoing.
>
> I think this is a matter that this forum should take a keen interest in and
> one that should be subjected to robust discussion as it touches directly on
> issues of data privacy, confidentiality and access to private information
> before operators are forced to implement the system.
>
> Walu J
>
> Affordability.  The idea that bundles are cheap e.g 50Ksh or 0.5$ for 150MB
> per day is misleading. In 30days, this comes to 1,500Ksh or 15$ per month
> for 4.5GB of data.  If I watched an educational movie or downloaded some
> serious research data or software, this volume of data can disappear in
> 5minutes.  Meaning, 15$ gone in 5 minutes! My conclusion is that data
> bundles are not cheap - unless you are simply tweeting the whole day.  How
> can Safaricom give Kenyans a better data bundle-price mix that encourages
> more value adding activities rather than just social-media activities?
>
>
> Walu, different customers have different consumption patterns, this is why
> many operators world over have differently priced data bundles. Some
> customers would prefer to pay for a larger bundle upfront and enjoy the
> benefits of deeper discounts, whereas others can only afford to buy smaller
> bundles and we have to provide those options. This actually addresses
> affordability as different customers have different purchasing power. What
> we tend to see over a period of time is that customers gravitate towards the
> bundles that give them the most value in their circumstances, whether its
> daily, weekly, or monthly and depending on what use they apply the data.
> Typically, most data consumers use it for social media such as Facebook,
> Twitter, Whatsapp, Netflix, and so on. As users mature in their usage habits
> we expect more enterprise, academic and professional use of data.
>
>
> 2.  On Child Online Protection(COP); As the largest 'ISP' in Kenya, what
> modalities do you have for parents to control and protect kids from adult,
> terrorist or other harmful content?  Do you have something equivalent to
> DSTV parental control for mobile devices? Ni hayo tu for now.
>
>
>
> Safaricom, as a responsible global citizen recognises that parents need
> support in keeping their children safe online. We recognise the importance
> of child online safety as part of our commitment to promote children’s
> rights, as detailed in the Safaricom’s Children’s Rights Policy.
>
> Needless to say monitoring and protection of children’s online activity is
> the primary responsibility of parents, guardians and care givers. As an ISP,
> the most effective way of aiding parents to effect child online safety is
> through device specific tools. In the past, Safaricom has provided a
> parental control applications as the Guardian App. This free Android-based
> App empowers parents to among other things, block specific contacts or
> numbers form sending unsuitable text messages or calls to their children’s
> phones, specify times during which the child can use the gadget, as well as
> restrict outgoing calls to white-listed contacts. In addition to this,
> Safaricom is currently in discussion with various vendors to offer an array
> of child friendly mobile phones and tablets and parental control products
> and solutions. Further, we regularly partner with relevant stakeholders
> including the CA, the GSMA, and other stakeholders to create public
> awareness and education on the online safety of children.
>
> Kevin Kamonye
>
> Hello Stephen, My issue is with the data products pricing and durability. I
> yearn for the peace of only managing one SIM please..  Otherwise, well done
> overall.  Kevin
>
> Hi Kevin, thanks for this comment, we will contact you offline to discuss
> your needs.
>
> Sydney Ochieng
>
> I'd like to know what Safaricom is doing to make it affordable for people to
> come online? While prices have reduced its not enough when half the
> population lives on less than a dollar a day. On the same note, why do
> bundles expire? Other than to make me buy more?
>
>
>
> Sidney, we have received a number of queries on this so I will give you a
> comprehensive answer.
>
> Over the last 7 years, the price of data on our network has dropped by 80%
> for example, in 2010, one GB was Sh2,500 versus the current Sh500. Over the
> last year, we further reduced the price of data on our network by 37%. We
> keep on reviewing customer needs and react accordingly where we can.
>
> Data in Kenya is relatively more affordable than say South Africa (where 1GB
> is Sh582), US (where 1GB is Sh1,814) and in the UK (1Gb is Sh1,944). These
> are countries that have significantly more backbone and metro fibre compared
> to Kenya.
>
> There are a number of factors that make up the cost of a bundle of data. The
> first most significant one is the expenditure on getting the data to the
> customer. Over the last 10 years, we have spent billions on securing
> undersea cable links, building a data capable network and paying for
> spectrum fees - for example, in December last year we paid $25 million to
> Communications Authority for the 4G Licence. In a typical commercial
> setting, these costs necessarily inform the retail pricing strategy. As the
> costs of connecting customers (so called last-mile) reduce over time, we are
> able to pass these benefits to customers as explained above.
>
> In addition, we understand that the cost of the device is often a barrier
> for our customers, this is why we are working with phone manufacturers to
> reduce the costs of data enabled handsets where we can – you can now buy a
> 4G handset for less than Sh5,000.
>
> Lastly, expiry of data bundles is line with global practice – I shall go
> into this in more detail on my follow-up response to Liz.
>
>
>
> Why is M-PESA so expensive compared to other options? When is the M-PESA app
> coming? The USSD option is so cumbersome.
>
>
>
> Sidney – I believe M-PESA is still affordable when compared to the other
> options for sending money across the country. Think of the days when we
> would have to hope and pray that relative we sent by bus with money would
> make it, or even how much in terms of money and time it can cost to travel
> to bank branch and send to someone else.
>
> Quite simply, we price our service as it is not sustainable to offer
> services at no cost – it means you’re either sacrificing on security or you
> have not invested in some part of the delivery chain. It costs money to
> maintain and retain the over 124,000 agents we have across the country, as
> well as to maintain the technology running the service.
>
> Nonetheless we continue to reduce the tariffs on M-PESA proactively. You
> will note in December, we removed the cost of all transactions under Sh100
> as part of our agenda to expand access for customers who typically transact
> in small amounts. Since then, we have witnessed a 93% increase in average
> daily transactions. As most payments are under Sh100, customers who pay now
> access energy and additional services like radio or TV without paying a
> transaction fee.
>
>
>
> What sort of information do you have on me, as a subscriber? How long is
> each category of information stored for? What internal processes protect
> this data and who has access to it, within Safcom? What is the process for
> outsiders (government, private citizen) to get access to it?
>
>
> Sidney, we are required by law to have the following details in our files
> for every subscriber: Name, ID, Photo and Address (collected as part of your
> subscriber registration). Access to customer data is highly restricted at
> Safaricom, and only authorised personnel are allowed to access it.
> However, our customer care team is able to view data such as top-ups and
> transactions - but only following a query from a customer.
> The data retention duration depends on the type of information in question
> and the governing law – for example, subscriber registration information is
> retained for a period of two years after the subscriber leaves the network.
> This kind of information is also stored as machine form data, meaning no one
> would be able to access it or decipher it in the normal course of business
> and is stored in well-secured servers.
>
>
>
> Those cameras you put in all over the city, who has access to them?  What's
> the plan for fiber? Right now I think you're my only hope for fiber in my
> home in Siaya.
>
> In 2014, Safaricom signed a landmark agreement with the Government of Kenya
> that saw it create a first-of-its-kind National Surveillance, Communication
> and Control System for the National Police Service. This project involved
> installation of surveillance cameras which are controlled and managed by the
> National Police Service. The project has now been fully handed over the NPS,
> who have access to the cameras and who use them to fight crime and maintain
> the rule of law.
>
> Ali Hussein
> Actually I honestly don't understand this business of expiration of
> Bundles..  I mean if I go and fuel at the petrol station and the fuel in my
> car lasts a month will the fuel expire??? It's my money, it's my bundles. I
> think CA is sleeping on the job. Telcos need to change this policy. It's
> very unfair.
> Ali let me explain this from the eyes of Telcos – not necessarily Safaricom.
> The practice amongst mobile companies all over the world is that resources
> (airtime, SMS, data bundles) are made available to customers at a certain
> price and duration. This information is given to the customer before they
> purchase these resources. As such, the expectation from the mobile company
> is that the customer is aware that they have to utilise their resources
> within a set period of time. This is how it is done in may parts of the
> world. As such these resources, be they data bundles, SMS or minutes are
> deemed not to be available to a customer after the communicated date.
>
> However, Safaricom is among the few operators that allow these resources to
> 'roll over' or be extended once a customer tops up their line with
> additional resources.
>
> Grace Bomu
> Thank you so much Steve , Walu et al for the engagement. First of all, I am
> grateful to Safaricom for being almost everywhere. I was in parts of Kapedo,
> Baragoi and Mandera last year and it was unbelievable that I could post
> pictures and read news online from some of those far flung places. It just
> struck me that Safaricom is a company that intends to stay in Kenya for the
> next 100 years.
> Grace – we certainly hope so. At the moment we are trying build the
> foundations of a sustainable business by aligning with the SDGs as our
> business blueprint. See more here:
> http://www.safaricom.co.ke/investor-relation/sustainability
>
> Realising that the company is an important part of Kenyan life,  my question
> is whether Safaricom has a human rights policy or guidelines for its
> operations. This is not just in relation to access to customer data, child
> online protection and privacy but also in other areas such as environment,
> how/who you contract and compensation for victims of rights abuses.
> Grace, this is an interesting question, however I would need more details to
> frame an appropriate answer especially on the human rights angle.
>
> Racheal Nakitare
>
> Dear Walu et'al
>
> Thank you for this brilliant idea. I ran out of bundles last night hence my
> questions this morning. Following up on Grace Bomu's issue on human rights.
>
> Does Safaricom make any effort to let subscribers know and understand their
> rights. I would expect that I will find the terms and policy guidelines on
> the home page of the website.
> Across all our customer touch points - be it TV, Radio, Online, Print or at
> the shop/agent - we are required to ensure that our customers have easy
> access to the terms and conditions that govern their use of all our
> services. In line with our drive to be the most transparent operator in the
> market, we take this requirement very seriously.
>
>
>
> How long is the data collected through our transactions kept?
> Please see my response to Sidney above. The data retention duration depends
> on the type of information in question and the governing law – for example,
> subscriber registration information is retained for a period of two years
> after the subscriber leaves the network. On the other hand, M-PESA
> transactions data is kept for seven years.
>
>
>
> Does Safaricom respect the rights to privacy of its users? How do you
> respond to third party requests for user information collected through SIM
> card registration?
>
>
> Walu, Bonface, Rachel,
> The aspect of data privacy is at the heart of telecommunications services,
> which is why it is a right protected under the constitution. In addition to
> this, Safaricom has strict license obligations to maintain customer
> information confidentiality.
> Safaricom makes no disclosure of information to third parties except as
> provided in the law. Specifically, we make disclosure to law enforcement
> agencies in relation to criminal proceedings in Courts.
> We have a zero tolerance approach to the illegal use of our customer data
> and are willing to take aggressive steps to defend it.
>
>
>
> I live in Ongata Rongai and can not communicate on safcom while in  my
> house. Yet this is ideally a well networked area.
>
>
> In-door coverage is a challenge for all networks but certainly one that can
> be overcome! Signal propagation in built-up areas can be difficult but it is
> our job to ensure that you can enjoy the benefits of communication in the
> comfort of your house which we do by in-filling already covered areas and
> through optimisation. In large office-blocks we have to deploy dedicated
> in-door solutions. We can chat offline and our technology team will be in
> touch with you for details on your location so we can address this issue
> more specifically.
>
> Boniface Witaba
>
> @Safaricom My concern (though already mentioned by one of the listers) is
> privacy and data protection. In 2013, a political party in my area colluded
> with M-PESA agents to phish customer details from M-PESA registers for
> political purposes. As a result, my details and those of others ended up
> with the party, and were eventually forwarded to the registrar of political
> parties.
>
> 1. What mechanisms have you put in place to protect customers data
> especially at the agents level?
>
> Walu, Bonface, you both had questions around confidentiality of customer
> data at the M-PESA agents.
> Due to Know Your Customer and Anti Money Laundering legislation, we are
> required to capture certain information in order to process M-PESA
> transactions.
> In the past, we made a change to our data capture processes at our Agents in
> order to tighten security around our customer data. So today, the M-PESA
> Agent will only record your ID number and not the phone number, name and ID
> as was the case previously.
> We undertook this step in response to reports of unscrupulous users who
> would lift this data from the books to sign up customers up for services
> without their permission.
> We spend a lot of time working with the CBK to train our M-PESA Agents on
> the latest developments in Anti-Money Laundering, KYC, Insurance and
> Security. In doing this, we also place strict regulations on how they handle
> customer data in their possession through their daily interaction with
> customers. We also conduct regular, random checks to see how that data is
> secured to ensure that customer transactions remain confidential to them.
>
>
>
> 2. Can you compare notes with your sister company in Tanzania  (Vodacom) to
> borrow some of their best practices in handling customer data?
>
>
> When it comes to customer data protection, we actually share best practice
> with all M-PESA markets including Tanzania, and will ensure that we
> implement the best in the class operations across the country.
> We have a zero tolerance approach to the illegal use of our customer data
> and are willing to take aggressive steps to defend it.
>
>
>
> The other issues is Internet cost.  Tanzania has been voted as the #1
> country with affordable Internet costs in Africa (again Vodacom takes the
> lead). With about 150 Kshs, you get 1GB for 24 hours.
> I had responded to Sidney’s question on data in some detail, but let me add
> Kenya is comparable to markets that are offering data on technologies
> comparable to what we offer. If we compare using that as a basis, 3G/4G data
> in Kenya is currently more affordable than South Africa (where 1GB is
> Sh582), US (where 1GB is Sh1,814) and in the UK (1Gb is Sh1,944). In
> Tanzania, they charge about Sh420 for 1GB per month.
>
>
>
> Why is it so hard for you to pass such benefits to Kenyans after years of
> dominance? Kind regards
> Timothy Oriedo
> Safaricom remains the one network in Kenya that keeps investing in the
> country. Our strength is due to years of dedicated investment in our
> network, our choice to roll out in rural areas and relentless innovation.
> For instance, MIT recently released a new study revealing that, since 2008,
> access to mobile-money services — which allow users to store and exchange
> monetary values via mobile phone — increased daily per capita consumption
> levels of 194,000, or roughly 2 percent, of Kenyan households, lifting them
> out of extreme poverty (living on less than $1.25 per day). Benefits such as
> these have been the driving force behind our Transforming Lives strategy.
>
> Timothy Oriedo
> Thank you Admin and moderator for taking the initiative on this subject.
> Before the day breaks allow me to make submissions.
>
> Affordability - To what extend is Safaricom deploying dynamic pricing? It
> might not be evident to consumers but are the call rates relative to the
> anchor BTS ? Meaning if am in Kawangware i pay a different call rate than
> when am aroumd Kileleshwa?  Will dynamic pricing apply On OTT platforms as
> well to drive consumption of certain types of content?
> We strive to offer all our services in a consistent manner to democratise
> the value of mobile services to all Kenyans. Moreover, we constantly
> innovate to package and price our services to suit the individual needs of
> our diverse customers.
>
>
> Roaming service when will safaricom deploy E-Sim and enter strategic
> partnerships with global players to reduce roaming costs?
> At present, Safaricom does not have plans to rollout E-SIM. The eSIM is a
> relatively new technology even in more advanced markets, we are monitoring
> its development in order to identify the right solution for our market.
> Safaricom currently has standing agreements with over 1,000 networks around
> the world and have been actively campaigning to reduce the cost of roaming.
> While there have been some successes, we are still pushing for more,
> especially on the regional front especially in Vodafone partner markets
> where you can roam for as little as Sh30 in South Africa or in London for
> Sh15, or as low as Sh30 in East Africa.
>
> b) Quality of Service - 5G is to roll out in 2020 where are we with 4G? Will
> we have optimised it? How about white space? When do its benefits trickle
> down to consumers to bridge the last mile as an affordable alternative and
> for redundancy checks.
> Over the last financial year, we rolled out 1,000 4G masts across major
> towns in Kenya. However, we still believe there is much more to be done in
> enhancing access to 3G and indeed, 2G in some areas. We were first to launch
> 3G and 4G, and we do intend to trial 5G in the short to medium term. Our
> view is that we shall invest in the latest cutting edged technologies to
> meet the needs of our customers, however we shall not lose sight of the fact
> that some of them still require basic - or even improved - connectivity. On
> white spaces, we are a firm believer in licensed spectrum use as the best
> model to deliver connectivity to the largest number of Kenyans hence our
> position as the first company to trial and implement both 3G and now 4G
> services in Kenya.
>
> c) Data Protection & Intermediary liability- Has Safaricom started investing
> in big data analytics tools that can harness metadata so as to cushion data
> breaches? Have come across studies in an international university I attended
> of a study done with anonymised call records of 15M safaricom phone
> subscribers that did predict disease spread patterns from rural to urban
> areas...there are many more other studies that can be done for social good.
> Is there a particular department in safaricom that collaborates with
> scholars for such ground breaking studies ? Are they published and
> publiced?
> We have several big data tools that help us sift information on our network
> in order to improve the customer experience. We have a dedicated team who
> conduct big data analysis to explore the opportunities therein, including
> Mobile for Social Good initiatives such as in the areas of health, disaster
> management, etc while still ensuring that the necessary data protection
> safeguards for our customers remain in place. In time we shall publish any
> findings as relevant.
>
> d) Privacy Issues - How safe is our transactional data with the planned
> release of mpesa API to developers?
> Good question. This is an issue that has been brought up about Safaricom for
> some time, which I would want to clarify.
> First, we do have API platform that enable developers to integrate with
> M-PESA and customize their offering. Is it the best? No, because we require
> handholding of the developers, hence we have only managed a few hundred
> developers and the process is quite clunky. But the good thing is, we know
> this, and are working to fix it.
> We have already chosen a platform and vendor to manage the APIs, which will
> allow developers to go into a developer portal, get access to a sample code
> and a testing environment.
> Once they are ready to take their API live, they can go through automated
> and secure testing of the API. We expect this to be in place in the next few
> months. We will invite all the necessary users to test it before official
> launch.
>
> There are couple phone apps that we install that phish up our phone and sms
> records....can safaricom play a role in blocking then?
> Timothy, at the point of downloading an app, most will ask you whether you
> accept their terms and conditions. Many times when we do this, we tend to
> accept terms and conditions that are extremely risky, for example, some ask
> for access to your phone book, camera, call records, call history, etc. and
> simply because we want the app we go ahead and download the app.
> This engagement is entirely between the customer and the app provider. It is
> therefore difficult for Safaricom or any other operator to secure customers
> in such circumstances.
> However, we occasionally run awareness campaigns informing customers of the
> inherent risks of downloading apps without full knowledge of what they are
> consenting to and which apps to avoid based on international benchmarks.
>
> Liz Orembo
>
> Thanks Steve, Grace and Walu.  Still on privacy and data protection issues,
> Vodafone has reported that the laws are not clear as to whether it should
> release reports on government request of citizen data. Can you please
> explain this?
> Liz, in every country in which Vodafone operates, they are required to abide
> by laws which compel the company to disclose information about its customers
> to law enforcement agencies or other government authorities. Those laws are
> designed to protect national security or to prevent or investigate crime and
> terrorism. If a Vodafone affiliate refuses to comply, governments can remove
> their licence to operate, preventing Vodafone from providing services to its
> customers. Vodafone, therefore, has to balance its duty to respect our
> customers’ human rights against its legal obligation to assist government
> agencies and authorities when exercising their legal powers.
>
>
>
> On Mpesa payment, please consider notifying customers when they are about to
> reach transaction limits (like the below 2mbs bundles notification) Imagine
> someone being  caught in a 'chonga viazi' situation yet they have money in
> mpesa.
> Sorry if I've misunderstood your question. Liz, if you have a look at your
> last M-PESA transaction, there's a notification that tells you what your
> current balance is. In addition, you are free to query your balance at any
> time if you are unsure about your balance on your M-PESA menu, USSD or by
> calling our customer care. We hope this addresses your concern as you'd be
> able to understand when you might be in a chonga viazi situation. If you're
> in the upper limit, then this shouldn’t be a problem.
>
>
>
> Lastly, why should my bundles expire?
> Liz, this is an interesting one. Again let me explain this from the eyes of
> Telcos – not necessarily Safaricom. The practice amongst mobile companies
> all over the world is that resources (airtime, SMS, data bundles) are made
> available to customers at a certain price and duration. This information is
> given to the customer before they purchase these resources. As such, the
> expectation from the mobile company is that the customer is aware that they
> have to utilize their resources within a set period of time. This is how
> it's done all over the world. In line with efficient network operations, it
> is impractical to hold network resources indefinitely.
> In fact, Safaricom is among the few operators that allow these resources to
> 'roll over' or be extended once a customer tops up their line.
>
>
> George Sidney
>
> Hello,  I've been on postpaid since 2013, all that time, I have been
> receiving 100 Mbs per month, we are now in 2017, is there a way Safaricom
> can add the amount of bundles it gives to its postpaid customers? 100 Mbs
> cannot even last one day and to make it worse it, there is no way one can
> sambaza bundles to a postpaid number. Since I rarely exhaust the voice
> bundles given to me, maybe there should be a plan to choose which bundles to
> receive more than the other.  Lastly, to those unused voice bundles at the
> end of every month, instead of just wiping them out, and you don't carry
> them forward like you used to anymore, why don't you convert them to Bonga
> points instead.  Cheers.
>
> Sidney, this appears to be a specific customer query. We are getting in
> touch with you to clarify this issue further.
>
> Esther Kamande
> Thanks Walu and team for this.    On reporting tools available; my concern
> is regarding the *reporting procedure*, the current system of going to
> social media and calling customer care is cumbersome and doesn't provide the
> anonymity that most users would prefer in such instances.
> Safaricom needs to add *a report option on their *100# menu* that majority
> of its users know how to operate *to simplify the process of reporting fraud
> and bullying for anonymity* like facebook. You can also add the "*block
> button" *while at it to keep away the persistent "bad boys". Most phones
> don’t have the screening function.    Thank you for your indulgence Steve.
> Thank you for your question! We continuously explore ways we can improve
> service delivery. For instance, if you use our Safaricom App, you can report
> and chat to a customer care representative in real time. In addition,
> customers should be aware that most smart phones have these
> functionalities.
>
> Odhiambo Washington
> I am waiting for the day Safaricom will "listen to me, and invite me for a
> road trip through Kapiti (we buy and eat mangoes), all the way to Marwa (I
> abhor that name but don't ask me why), then we can detour to that market at
> Kibingoti and come back. Purpose - network survey :-)
> Washington…be careful what you wish for! I would be happy to arrange for
> road trip with our engineers – maybe not that particular route though! Let’s
> talk.
>
> Emmanuel Khisa
>
> Safaricom in the new strategy have decentralised their operations fully to
> different regions in the country...I would be glad if the staff posted in
> these regions focussed on improving quality of service across the
> country...An example is the Western Kenya office in Kisumu should try and
>>resolve quality issues between Kisumu and Busia...e.g Ojolla to Maseno
> section has serious signal drops.
>
> Emmanuel, this is exactly why we set up the Regional organization structure
> – our representative for the region will be in touch with you identify your
> problem spots.
>
>
>
> I second that, Emmanuel.  Can Safaricom tell us when they expect to have the
> BS at Chulaimbo? I tried pushing for this for years till I gave up. They can
> put it kwetu Nyumbani :-)
>
> Mwendwa Kivuva
>
> Thank you all who have raised issues of access to marginalized areas.  The
> Chair of The Universal Service Advisory Council (USAC), Catherine Ngahu,
> when she appeared before senate sought to answer some questions on USF and
> the role of Operators. She said they have 2.3 billion that operators have
> refused to bid to covers some areas using those funds.  "In the bidding we
> have faced challenges where some areas we are willing to provide funding the
> operators are unwilling even for pay to proceed. They have bid less areas
> than we intended" - Catherine Ngahu, Chair USAC.  Evidence: at the 49th
> minute mark of this video
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XerhfH8xD3c&t=2904s
>
>
>
> 1. Has Safaricom been able to utilise the USF in providing access to the
> underserved?
>
> 2. Has Safaricom requested for the USF in the first place?
>
> 3. If yes, where have they utilised the funds?
>
> 4. Does Safaricom have any need of using the USF given the amount of capital
> they command?
>
>
> Mwendwa, I have answered this above.
>
> Vincent Mosoti
> Thanks Walu et al for facilitating this.  I have 3 questions here;
> 1) What's Safaricom's commitment to fight fraud directed to its users? For
> example, attached here is a screenshot of an SMS i received purportedly from
> KCB advertising some form of loans. While safaricom/kcb/equity advises
> consumers to be vigilant, can't you deploy technologies that prevent/filter
> such spam/fraud messages getting through the network to intended users. Most
> of these SMSes have a common pattern and IMHO, i believe Safaricom have
> capabilities of deploying sophisticated technologies like machine learning
> to filter out/ prevent them from reaching to the intended persons.
> We have noted these incidents and are continually collecting the information
> alongside our partners to track down and deal with the perpetrators in real
> time. We advise our customers to forward any such messages to 333 for our
> teams to investigate and act upon.
>
> 2) Why are unregistered SIM cards allowed to use Safaricom network. Most
> frauds and crimes committed are likely to use unregistered sims to conceal
> their identities.
> Vincent, we are curious to establish how you determined that the SIM cards
> were unregistered considering the information is only available to the
> network operator and to the Regulator.
>
> We do not allow unregistered SIMs to operate in our network. In order for
> any customer to use services on our network, they must be registered as such
> there are no unregistered SIM cards on the Safaricom network.
>
> 3) Any plans lowering MPESA rates? Honestly why charge a transaction twice.
> I feel withdrawing money should be free, because the phrase 'utume mpaka ya
> kutoa' always results you incurring more sending costs that initially
> anticipated.
> Vincent, the ‘utume mpaka ya kutoa’ phrase is a culture that has risen
> outside of our influence or control. Ideally, each user should bear their
> own transaction costs for these services.
> We have continuously reviewed M-PESA charges over the last 10 years. The
> charges are structured to ensure the sustainability of the ecosystem, which
> not only includes our customers, but more than 124,000 agents who play a
> critical role in making access to M-PESA convenient for our customers. We
> believe that the our charges are competitive and as mentioned we have waived
> transaction charges for transaction below Kshs. 100 to ensure that everyone
> is able to use M-PESA.
>
>
> From: Stephen Chege
> Sent: Tuesday, February 14, 2017 10:03
> To: 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions'
> Cc: Grace Githaiga
> Subject: RE: [kictanet] Handing over to Safaricom: "Talk to Safaricom"
>
> Dear all
>
> Let me start by thanking Walu and Grace again for the opportunity and the
> moderation effort throughout last week. We have received all your questions
> and will be sending out the responses to questions from Day 1 later today. I
> will respond to each of the questioners and do my best with those that were
> more statements/opinions than questions. I realise that this group is well
> represented by all actors in the ICT and if I refer to your institution in
> any way that you are not comfortable with, you are welcome to clarify your
> position. Please feel free to send supplementary questions in case you deem
> that the offered response needs clarification.
>
> We shall also share a single document containing all the questions and our
> answers with Walu to assist with reporting after this exercise. My hope is
> that we can go into more detail on some of the broader themes during the
> planned evening cocktail, details of which Walu and Grace will advise.
>
> Otherwise thanks again and let’s keep the conversations going!
>
> regards
>
> Steve
>
>
> From: kictanet
> [mailto:kictanet-bounces+schege=safaricom.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On
> Behalf Of Grace Githaiga via kictanet
> Sent: Monday, February 13, 2017 13:37
> To: Stephen Chege
> Cc: Grace Githaiga
> Subject: [kictanet] Handing over to Safaricom: "Talk to Safaricom"
>
> Dear Listers
>
> Thank you so much to all of you who participated in the one week moderated
> debate 'Talk to Safaricom'. Your dedication is highly appreciated.
> The questions when responded to by Safcom, will indeed shed light on many of
> the concerns raised.
>
> @Walu, asante sana for your moderation skills and all the hours you put into
> the discussion.
>
> We now hand over to Steve Chege, Director, Corporate Affairs at Safaricom to
> guide us on the next steps and the time frame within which we will get
> responses.
> We welcome Safaricom's willingness  to engage with the community and
> ultimately provide us with the very needed information.
>
> Once again, all your contributions are valued.
>
> Best regards
>
>
> Githaiga, Grace
> Co-Convenor
> Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet)
> Twitter:@ggithaiga
> Tel: 254722701495
> Skype: gracegithaiga
> Alternate email: ggithaiga at hotmail.com<mailto:ggithaiga at hotmail.com>
> Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga
> www.kictanet.or.ke<http://www.kictanet.or.ke>
>
> "Change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged and come
> together to demand it. I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to
> bring about change – but in yours"---Barrack Obama.
>
> ________________________________
> Note:
> All emails sent from Safaricom Limited are subject to Safaricom’s Email
> Terms & Conditions. Please click here to read the policy.
> http://www.safaricom.co.ke/images/Downloads/Terms_and_Conditions/safaricom_email_terms_and_conditions.pdf
>


-- 
Barrack O. Otieno
+254721325277
+254733206359
Skype: barrack.otieno
PGP ID: 0x2611D86A