MTN Suffers Cybersecurity Breach, Assures Customers Of Data Protection.
Telecommunications giant MTN has confirmed a cybersecurity breach that resulted in unauthorised access to personal information belonging to customers in selected markets. The incident, which occurred late on Thursday, has prompted swift action from the company.
In a statement, MTN clarified that the breach did not affect its core network, billing systems, or financial services infrastructure, all of which remain secure and fully operational. The company noted that the breach involved a third party gaining access to certain parts of its systems, raising concerns over possible data exposure.
“At this stage, we do not have any information to suggest that customers’ accounts and wallets have been directly compromised,” the statement read.
Upon discovering the breach, MTN immediately activated its cybersecurity response protocols. It reported the incident to law enforcement agencies in South Africa, including the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the Hawks, and also notified regulatory bodies in the affected countries.
The company said it is cooperating closely with authorities as investigations progress and is working to notify affected customers in accordance with local regulatory requirements.
In the meantime, MTN has advised its customers to stay alert and adopt best practices for cybersecurity. These include placing fraud alerts on credit reports, keeping MTN, MoMo, and banking apps up to date, using strong and unique passwords, avoiding suspicious messages or links, never disclosing sensitive information such as PINs or OTPs via phone or email, and enabling multi-factor authentication where possible.
Reassuring its customers, MTN emphasised that the privacy and security of personal information remain a top priority.
“We remain committed to safeguarding the integrity of our systems and the trust placed in us by our customers and other stakeholders,” the company stated.
MTN has promised to manage the situation carefully and provide timely updates as further information becomes available.
