Negligent Consultant Incorrectly Locks ****** Sim - Results in ***** of R200,000!

****** Cellphone and sim card incorrectly locked?

If anyone has experienced something similar to what happened to my fiancé, Cara, please contact me privately. Cara and I are in the process of taking my matter further and would like similar victims to share their experiences with me. Here is a summary of the incident:

Cara’s cellphone was ****** on the 9th of August 2020. Within half an hour she had the sim blocked and the phone blacklisted.

We have a voice recording where the consultant at Vodacom assures Cara that the phone is not accessible. Unfortunately, the consultant only did a “soft lock” on the sim, meaning that SMS and calls could still be received. At no time was Cara informed that this was what had done, or that this is standard procedure for Vodacom.

The result of this is that ********** were able to bypass the security on the phone as well as the banking app, access the Standard Bank App on my phone, and transfer over R200,000 out of my account. All this without one alert, email, or phone call from Standard Bank ***** Department. They were able to do this because the sim card could still receive OTPs. If a proper lock was carried out, this would have been impossible.

If it is indeed Vodacom policy to only do a soft lock, then surely the customer would need to be informed of this? If Cara had been informed, then she would have insisted on a hard lock, or alternatively, been forewarned and been able to block her banking profile. As per Standard Bank, Vodacom refuses to take any responsibility for their lack of transparency and action in dealing with the reported cellphone theft.

Cara has tried to contact Vodacom for explanations around their lack of responsibility and accountability in this matter but has been totally ignored and fobbed off. She has tried to lodge a complaint with ICASA without success.

Cara has been treated badly by both Standard Bank and Vodacom, becoming a victim of corporate dominance and bullying. She has been pushed from pillar to post and not been given the opportunity to sit across the table from a vital decision-maker in either company to hear her case and offer their “proof” and explanation as to why she has been rejected. Neither company is willing to take responsibility for any part in this, and they are both, in my opinion, far from blame-free.

I know Cara has a very strong case and I would like to invite anyone with a similar story to share it with us and help us take on these corporate bullies.

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