Uganda's cybersecurity conference pushes banks and telcos closer
Uganda is strengthening safeguards around mobile money and digital banking as telecom operators, financial institutions and regulators step up efforts to counter a growing wave of cyber-enabled fraud.
The push was highlighted at the inaugural National Cybersecurity Conference organised by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), where industry players discussed ways to protect users as digital financial services become more widely used.
Speaking during a panel on digital financial security, Airtel Money Commerce Uganda Limited Managing Director Japhet Aritho urged service providers to move beyond consumer awareness campaigns and make fraud protection a built-in feature of digital financial platforms.
Aritho said scams involving social engineering, SIM swaps and account takeovers are often linked, with criminals using personal information obtained from victims to take control of their mobile lines before accessing financial accounts.
He cited cooperation between telecom operators and banks as an example of how technology can be used to disrupt the fraud process. Airtel Money Uganda developed an API that allows financial institutions to check whether a customer’s SIM has recently been swapped before approving transactions.
The initiative subsequently contributed to a Bank of Uganda requirement that commercial banks adopt an IMSI check API, enabling them to verify SIM-related changes in real time.
Airtel has launched an AI-powered Spam Alert Service that analyses suspicious SMS patterns and alerts customers to possible scams.
According to Aritho, technology alone will not be enough if fraud prevention continues to depend heavily on customers identifying scams themselves. He noted that some fraudsters now use legitimate cybersecurity advice to gain credibility, warning victims about scams before eventually persuading them to disclose sensitive information such as PINs.
He called for greater use of security-by-design measures, including device binding, which can help identify unusual changes to a customer’s registered device or SIM card.
Under Airtel Money’s system, any change to the registered device or SIM can trigger transaction restrictions until the customer completes additional verification.
The conference also examined the risks associated with the collection and use of personal information. UCC Manager for Data Protection and Legal Advisory, Macgyver Mugamba, said Uganda’s Data Protection Act gives individuals the right to obtain information from private organizations about how their personal data is collected and handled.
Consumers who are unable to resolve data protection complaints with an organisation can escalate the matter to Uganda’s Personal Data Protection Office under the Ministry of ICT.
The discussions come as mobile money and digital banking become increasingly central to financial transactions in Uganda, creating a larger target for criminals seeking to exploit weaknesses across telecom and financial systems.
Further, industry stakeholders are therefore pushing for closer coordination between telecommunications companies, banks and regulators, alongside stronger technical controls and greater protection of customer data.
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