Safaricom faces High Court class action over SIM recycle and M-PESA access claims
Key points
- Public-interest petition at Milimani High Court challenges Safaricom’s alleged SIM deactivation and number recycling without notice.
- Petitioner Mabeya N. Moses cites his line 0758979998, reassigned after alleged inactivity over 120 days.
- Orders sought include class-action leave, a 10-year audit of reassigned SIMs and Sh50 billion security deposit.
- Justice Gregory Mutai set service and response timelines; mention on 17 September 2026; respondents not yet answered.
Safaricom PLC has been sued in the High Court over claims it unlawfully deactivates, deregisters and recycles subscribers’ mobile numbers without prior notice — practices the petition says expose customers to financial loss, privacy breaches and identity risk, Eastleigh Voice reported from court filings.
Advocate and public-interest litigant Mabeya N. Moses filed a constitutional petition at Milimani naming Safaricom, the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the Competition Authority of Kenya and the Attorney General. Interested parties listed include the Law Society of Kenya, Okiya Omtatah and the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority.
One number as digital identity
Court papers say the petitioner’s Safaricom line 0758979998 — tied to M-PESA, M-Shwari, KCB M-PESA, social media and professional contacts — was deactivated and reassigned without notice. He says he learned on 16 June 2025 that the number sat under another person’s name; Safaricom later allegedly said the line had been inactive for more than 120 days. He further claims M-PESA funds stayed with the company after deactivation and that a later transaction on the old number showed continued access to his account data.
“A mobile telephone number in modern Kenya is not merely a communication tool; it forms the core of a citizen’s digital identity,” the petition argues. Remedies sought include a declaration that unilateral recycle without safeguards is unconstitutional, leave to run a representative class action, a comprehensive audit of deregistered and reassigned SIMs over ten years (including M-PESA balances, Bonga points, airtime, SMS and data), and an order that Safaricom deposit Sh50 billion as security pending audit and settlement.
Court calendar
Justice Gregory Mutai directed service within three working days and gave respondents 14 days after service to file answers, with a mention on 17 September 2026. Safaricom and co-respondents had not filed responses when the story ran; the allegations remain untested. Business desk: Business. Verified: petition parties, personal number narrative, Sh50bn/security and 10-year audit prayers, Mutai directions. Outcomes depend on full pleadings and any regulator interventions.
Based on Eastleigh Voice reporting of the petition. Allegations are unproven; Safaricom’s reply is still due.
