[kictanet] [major UX fail] Safaricom 'Stealing' From Mpesa Users Who Buy Airtime For Subscribers With Okoa Jahazi Debt -

Mon Nov 19 12:00:34 EAT 2018

 Well said Ali. T&Cs can't be an excuse for absurdities. 
This is a *major* UX design fail because it merges two conflicting use-cases into one. Bad! Very bad! If you have ever provided user support you will know that people often don't read prompts and its just *horrible* UX design to place heavy reliance on that. 
Indeed its unethical, no matter what the crafty sunguras in legal/credit-risk dept say and a professional UX designer would push back (unless s/he doesn't have a say - then you have a culture problem)! 
I am a techie who knows (or ought to know) better but I still click thru the blurb prompts without reading because I expect all prompts to be logically tied to a *single use case* (meaning I too will occasionally fall victim to bad design), so what about the non-technical users?
For those that don't get it, here's an example: Suppose you click CTRL-X in a notepad app and it *deletes* all files off your hard drive... then you complain and the company smugly tells you it's in "our T&Cs" or "our EULA"... which really means "you should have read the fine print you dummy" would you not be outraged? First of all who reads (or why read) that crap when the only option is "take it or leave it" and the common sense use case for notepad apps clearly excludes wiping files off a disk drive? See the absurdity of it all?
Yet another example that it's not innovation or tech excellence that keeps a dinosaur like Safaricom at the top, it's *network effects* at scale. Customers are simply *locked-in* and can't escape. They have to bear mediocrity because there is no real choice - thus no real incentive to innovate or be truly customer oriented (hence the shady ethics of high prices for mega profits in a poor country where people choose between airtime and food etc). 
This is what the regulator should address. Dominance that is based on customer lock-in stifles innovation by blocking higher quality products from the market. So again its not abuse of dominance that is a problem, its the effect of dominance itself on the innovation ecosystem, market/economic stability, long term sustainability and on customers. 
Good day,Patrick.

    On Monday, November 19, 2018, 10:41:29 AM GMT+3, Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:  

  Barrack, Ahmed and all
There’s new thinking in 2018 that is needed for all organizations. On this Safaricom needs to quickly retract and apologize. It is wrong on so many levels:-
1. Expecting a third party to pay for someone’s loan simply because I am buying them bundles is sneaky to say the least.
2. Exposing my liabilities to a third party is ethically wrong whether I’ve accepted through T&Cs or not. 
3. Inserting that option in a process that has really nothing to do with it exposes the company to unnecessary bad publicity as is the case on this matter.
If the troubles of #BigTech globally is anything to go by I hope Safaricom will learn from this. 
Ali HusseinPrincipalAHK & Associates+254 0713 601113 

Twitter: @AliHKassim

Skype: abu-jomo

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"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."  ~ Aristotle

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On 19 Nov 2018, at 10:11 AM, Ahmed Mohamed Maawy via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

You have a point, but...
If that is the case Barrack, as a service provider - you should place it as part of the User Experience Journey. The one thing I don't understand is why do I need to understand that I need to pay your debt through terms and conditions?
On Mon, Nov 19, 2018 at 10:04 AM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack at gmail.com> wrote:

Ahmed,
Many thanks for your perspective but if indeed the service provider gave a warning that the person owed them some money and that you were assuming the role of a guarantor then look no further. Terms and conditions apply. Its just business. The elephant in the room is how do the service providers deal with Customers that abuse credit facilities, i suppose this system mimics the guarantor system used by bankers. When all is said and done, they cornered the party they were looking for.
Regards
Regards
Regards
On Mon, 19 Nov 2018 09:58 Ahmed Mohamed Maawy via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke wrote:

Hello Barrack,
You have a point. But however, someone else's bad habits shouldn't be my problem. Infact if its anyone's problem Safaricom should own it.
Can you imagine walking into Carrefour and someone shoplifted an item and your told you need to pay for it?
On Mon, Nov 19, 2018 at 9:35 AM Barrack Otieno via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

Hi Wangari,
I have seen the story but i don't see the problem here based on Safaricoms explanation. There are many people who take Okoa jahazi or Mshwari and throw away simcards hoping they can never be traced, it seems Safaricom is working overdrive to seal this loopholes. I guess this is an ethical issue that is double edged.
Regards
On Mon, 19 Nov 2018 09:28 WANGARI KABIRU via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke wrote:

https://www.kahawatungu.com/2018/11/18/safaricom-stealing-mpesa-users-buy-airtime-subscribers-okoa-jahazi/

*A courteos response by the attendant to an aggrevated concerned client.
Highlights how interlinked people are as FinTech becomes more entrenched.
For a business, this is a relatively sure way to repayments. As the client interactions/contacts also become by default payers. An extension of SACCO system which makes it one of the safest lending models.
How far might a customer be liable to the debts of the Supermarket they shop at? How much information about the Supermarket's debt profile would be at any customers reach.
Now that the favorite Mama Mboga is paid him mobile money also, then millions of Kenyans would be caught up in this. Paying off her debts as they just click twendelee... yes, yes, yes to the T&R.
So who says that it is wrong, illegal? Or why?
While in the sensation, most stones and spears may be thrown at the service provider, it's high time the consumer groups wear their hat as neutrals for a sober guide.
Kindly, might the Consumer lobby enlighten on this. 
*(Whether the case is true or not partly true or very true - it would still be good to know whether this is a model to watch out for or even borrow from).
Blessed new week!

Be blessed.Regards/Wangari_______________________________________________
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