Safaricom to Mask M-PESA Phone Numbers in Transactions by Late 2026
Safaricom will extend data minimization to M-PESA by late 2026, masking customer phone numbers in bank transfers and merchant payments to prevent misuse for spam and fraud. The move follows masking of peer-to-peer transaction details starting March 24, targeting one of Kenya's most common data exposure points. Full phone numbers in merchant SMS alerts will be replaced with masked identifiers, affecting 37 million daily P2P transactions worth KES 27 billion. Small businesses relying on these alerts for sales tracking will need alternative reconciliation methods. Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa acknowledged dispute management friction but emphasized security over convenience. The rollout builds on 2020-2024 data reduction efforts, closing remaining gaps in cross-system payment flows.