Vodafone Ghana assures customers of data security

In a statement, Vodafone said it “has acted responsibly and transparently in abiding by the laws of Ghana and categorically rejects all claims that there has been a breach in the privacy rights of our valued customers.”

“We will always uphold the rule of law and comply with our legal and regulatory obligations including the Data Protection Act,” the statement added.

This is coming after a private legal practitioner petitioned Vodafone Ghana’s mother company the Vodafone Group UK over allegations of privacy rights violations.

According to Francis Kwarteng Arthur’s solicitors, Archbridge Solicitors, they petitioned Vodafone Group UK, due to the “nonchalant posturing” of Vodafone Ghana in protecting the privacy of its customers.

“While other telecommunication network or service providers, like MTN, have vehemently contested the request as overly disproportionate or even irrelevant to the stated purpose and, thereby, a threat to subscribers’ right to privacy, your Ghana office has, at best, remained completely silent and unconcerned about the issue”, the petition states in its paragraph 2(e).

Mr Kwarteng Arthur has also dragged President Akufo-Addo, the National Communication Authority, Kelni GVG, Vodafone Ghana, and MTN to court over allegations of privacy rights violations.

The statement from Vodafone explained that in March this year, President Nana Akufo-Addo, passed an Executive Instrument (E.I. 63) that demanded the mobile network operators in the country, including Vodafone Ghana, to submit subscriber information known as Call Data Records (CDRs) to the National Communications Authority (NCA).

The statement explained further that the requirement was part of the government’s contact tracing initiative in the ongoing fight against COVID-19.

The statement said all the mobile network operators complied with the E.I 63.

“The Executive Instrument was subsequently challenged by a customer, who filed an application at the High Court for an injunction to stop all mobile network operators from sharing his data with the National Communications Authority (NCA).

“Upon receipt of the injunction application, Vodafone Ghana, immediately stopped the transmission of all subscriber data related to the contact tracing initiative, pending the court’s ruling on the case, scheduled for June 23rd, 2020,” it noted.