Exclusive: How we are dealing with digital loan apps engaged in criminality – FCCPC

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has promised to go after digital loan apps that hack into customers’ mobile phones to retrieve their details which they later use to harass and intimidate them.

This was in reaction to a Neusroom story that exposed how these digital loan apps gain access to the phone of their customers to retrieve sensitive information like their contacts, address, social media account, work information, bank details, etc. Sometimes, loan collection officers use this information to harass and intimidate defaulting customers. Some of them go as far as to impersonate security operatives when they speak with defaulters.

Babatunde Irukera, who is the chief executive officer of the FCCPC told Neusroom.com the commission is aware of some of the illegal and unethical tactics used by the loan apps and are working towards delisting them.

“We have become aware of some of the issues you’ve raised but continue to be hampered by how to find the perpetrators considering they are nebulous and only online.

“We have engaged CBN to gather intel about the operators but they are unlicensed and operating illegally, so CBN neither has information about them or regulates them.”

Irukere added that the FCCPC is working with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to prevent online scams too.

“For platforms like Facebook, we are able to work with them and shutdown such sites but that’s not the case for every platform on the internet.

“We are cooperating with EFCC and the FTC of the U.S in preventing online scams too.”

The Neusroom report that generated the reaction of the FCCPC detailed what Nigerians are subjected to by these digital loan applications when they default. In some cases, these illegal actions are already taken even before the due date of the loan.

A customer claimed that he lost his job after one of the loan apps reached out to his boss and lied that he used his name as a guarantor. Another person said the app sent a text message to his fiancee that he was a criminal and should be reported to the nearest police station for committing fraud.

You can read the complete story here.