JB
Jonathon B
1 reviews | Active since Jan 2013
15 Jul 2026, 16:42
Spam Caller - Ignore POPIA and then defend their decision
As everyone else has noted, the spam calls are out of control.
Now the company themselves, will respond to this saying all they do is provide numbers to clients and businesses. This is such a poor excuse. Firstly, maybe you should check laws of POPIA, because if this many people are complaining about spam calls, then you are clearly not following the laws of POPIA.
Secondly, that excuse is poor in and of itself. If that is true, then you are clearly just selling users data without any proper background checks into the companies or establishments asking for your user's details. Which leads back to point 1 above
Thirdly, it doesnt matter if you "just provide numbers to clients." You are still responsible for MY details. Whether they are sold or given. YOU are the responsible party.
BE BETTER!
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Replies (1)
Centracom's replyOfficial
16 Jul 2026, 14:44Dear Jonathon,
Thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns with us. We completely understand how frustrating unsolicited calls can be, and we certainly share your view that they are a nuisance.
We would like to clarify our position to help explain how these situations occur. As a Tier 1 telecommunications operator, Centracom provides voice infrastructure to businesses and wholesale resellers. Often, while a number displayed on your phone may be connected to our network, the party actually placing the call is not Centracom itself. It is frequently a customer of one of our resellers, and until we investigate a specific report, we do not have visibility into who that end user is.
To put this into perspective, think of it like public infrastructure: if someone uses a road to commit an offence, the responsibility lies with that individual, not with the authority that built or maintains the road. Similarly, while we provide the technology that carries these calls, we do not control how every end user chooses to utilise our services. However, please rest assured that when misuse is brought to our attention, we take it very seriously and investigate every single case.
Regarding your concerns about POPIA: Centracom does not sell, distribute, or provide customer information to third parties for marketing purposes. Furthermore, we have no knowledge of how an organisation may have obtained your contact details. Under POPIA, the responsibility for lawful direct marketing rests solely with the organisation deciding to process your personal information, not the network provider carrying the call.
For context, this is the same standard applied across the industry. South Africa has several Tier 1 operators such as MTN, Vodacom, and Telkom, and if an unsolicited call is carried over their networks, the same principle applies: the network provider is the carrier, not the initiator of the call.
That said, we are committed to helping you resolve this. Our support team will reach out to you shortly to gather the specific details of the calls you have received. From there, we can trace the number to the relevant reseller and follow the necessary legal channels to identify the user. While we do not have direct access to private end-user information, we will work through the appropriate procedures and take necessary action if we confirm our network is being misused.
Thank you again for bringing this to our attention. We look forward to working with you to address this matter.
Thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns with us. We completely understand how frustrating unsolicited calls can be, and we certainly share your view that they are a nuisance.
We would like to clarify our position to help explain how these situations occur. As a Tier 1 telecommunications operator, Centracom provides voice infrastructure to businesses and wholesale resellers. Often, while a number displayed on your phone may be connected to our network, the party actually placing the call is not Centracom itself. It is frequently a customer of one of our resellers, and until we investigate a specific report, we do not have visibility into who that end user is.
To put this into perspective, think of it like public infrastructure: if someone uses a road to commit an offence, the responsibility lies with that individual, not with the authority that built or maintains the road. Similarly, while we provide the technology that carries these calls, we do not control how every end user chooses to utilise our services. However, please rest assured that when misuse is brought to our attention, we take it very seriously and investigate every single case.
Regarding your concerns about POPIA: Centracom does not sell, distribute, or provide customer information to third parties for marketing purposes. Furthermore, we have no knowledge of how an organisation may have obtained your contact details. Under POPIA, the responsibility for lawful direct marketing rests solely with the organisation deciding to process your personal information, not the network provider carrying the call.
For context, this is the same standard applied across the industry. South Africa has several Tier 1 operators such as MTN, Vodacom, and Telkom, and if an unsolicited call is carried over their networks, the same principle applies: the network provider is the carrier, not the initiator of the call.
That said, we are committed to helping you resolve this. Our support team will reach out to you shortly to gather the specific details of the calls you have received. From there, we can trace the number to the relevant reseller and follow the necessary legal channels to identify the user. While we do not have direct access to private end-user information, we will work through the appropriate procedures and take necessary action if we confirm our network is being misused.
Thank you again for bringing this to our attention. We look forward to working with you to address this matter.
Centracom's reply16 Jul 2026, 14:44
Official
Dear Jonathon,
Thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns with us. We completely understand how frustrating unsolicited calls can be, and we certainly share your view that they are a nuisance.
We would like to clarify our position to help explain how these situations occur. As a Tier 1 telecommunications operator, Centracom provides voice infrastructure to businesses and wholesale resellers. Often, while a number displayed on your phone may be connected to our network, the party actually placing the call is not Centracom itself. It is frequently a customer of one of our resellers, and until we investigate a specific report, we do not have visibility into who that end user is.
To put this into perspective, think of it like public infrastructure: if someone uses a road to commit an offence, the responsibility lies with that individual, not with the authority that built or maintains the road. Similarly, while we provide the technology that carries these calls, we do not control how every end user chooses to utilise our services. However, please rest assured that when misuse is brought to our attention, we take it very seriously and investigate every single case.
Regarding your concerns about POPIA: Centracom does not sell, distribute, or provide customer information to third parties for marketing purposes. Furthermore, we have no knowledge of how an organisation may have obtained your contact details. Under POPIA, the responsibility for lawful direct marketing rests solely with the organisation deciding to process your personal information, not the network provider carrying the call.
For context, this is the same standard applied across the industry. South Africa has several Tier 1 operators such as MTN, Vodacom, and Telkom, and if an unsolicited call is carried over their networks, the same principle applies: the network provider is the carrier, not the initiator of the call.
That said, we are committed to helping you resolve this. Our support team will reach out to you shortly to gather the specific details of the calls you have received. From there, we can trace the number to the relevant reseller and follow the necessary legal channels to identify the user. While we do not have direct access to private end-user information, we will work through the appropriate procedures and take necessary action if we confirm our network is being misused.
Thank you again for bringing this to our attention. We look forward to working with you to address this matter.
Thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns with us. We completely understand how frustrating unsolicited calls can be, and we certainly share your view that they are a nuisance.
We would like to clarify our position to help explain how these situations occur. As a Tier 1 telecommunications operator, Centracom provides voice infrastructure to businesses and wholesale resellers. Often, while a number displayed on your phone may be connected to our network, the party actually placing the call is not Centracom itself. It is frequently a customer of one of our resellers, and until we investigate a specific report, we do not have visibility into who that end user is.
To put this into perspective, think of it like public infrastructure: if someone uses a road to commit an offence, the responsibility lies with that individual, not with the authority that built or maintains the road. Similarly, while we provide the technology that carries these calls, we do not control how every end user chooses to utilise our services. However, please rest assured that when misuse is brought to our attention, we take it very seriously and investigate every single case.
Regarding your concerns about POPIA: Centracom does not sell, distribute, or provide customer information to third parties for marketing purposes. Furthermore, we have no knowledge of how an organisation may have obtained your contact details. Under POPIA, the responsibility for lawful direct marketing rests solely with the organisation deciding to process your personal information, not the network provider carrying the call.
For context, this is the same standard applied across the industry. South Africa has several Tier 1 operators such as MTN, Vodacom, and Telkom, and if an unsolicited call is carried over their networks, the same principle applies: the network provider is the carrier, not the initiator of the call.
That said, we are committed to helping you resolve this. Our support team will reach out to you shortly to gather the specific details of the calls you have received. From there, we can trace the number to the relevant reseller and follow the necessary legal channels to identify the user. While we do not have direct access to private end-user information, we will work through the appropriate procedures and take necessary action if we confirm our network is being misused.
Thank you again for bringing this to our attention. We look forward to working with you to address this matter.