Illegal access and threats: Quick loan apps in Ghana violate privacy laws and borrower's rights

Quick loan apps in Ghana are popular, but many have been found to illegally
access people's phone books and send threatening messages to loan defaulters.

This violates privacy laws and borrower's rights, leading to a cycle of indebtedness and fear. The government has taken steps to regulate loan apps, but borrowers must also be aware of these illegal practices and report harassment to the authorities.

Quick loans apps have become increasingly popular in Ghana due to the ease and speed of obtaining funds. These apps are designed to provide short-term loans to individuals who are in need of emergency cash. However, the ease of access to these loans has come at a cost as many quick loan apps have been found to be illegally accessing people's phone books and sending threatening messages to loan defaulters.

The problem of illegal access to phone books and the sending of threatening messages to loan defaulters has become widespread in Ghana. It is reported that many quick loan apps obtain access to the phone books of their customers when they download the app. This access is often disguised as a necessary requirement to grant loans.

However, the real intention of the app developers is to use this access to extract phone numbers of friends, family members, and colleagues of their customers.

Once these phone numbers have been extracted, quick loan apps use them to send threatening messages to loan defaulters. These messages often contain threats of legal action, harassment, and public shaming. Some loan apps have even gone as far as using fake caller IDs to pose as law enforcement officials or debt collectors in an attempt to intimidate borrowers into paying back their loans.

This illegal practice is not only unethical but also a violation of privacy laws. The phone book of an individual is considered private information, and no app or service should be able to access it without explicit consent. The sending of threatening messages is also a violation of the borrower's rights and is a form of harassment.

The impact of these illegal practices is severe, as it has led to many borrowers falling into a cycle of debt and fear. The fear of being publicly shamed or harassed has led many borrowers to take out additional loans to pay off previous ones, leading to a cycle of indebtedness that is difficult to break.

The government of Ghana has taken steps to address this issue by cracking down on loan apps that engage in these practices. In 2019, the Bank of Ghana issued a directive to all mobile money operators and financial institutions to obtain prior approval from the central bank before launching any new digital financial product.

The directive was aimed at regulating the operations of loan apps and other digital financial products to ensure that they comply with regulatory
requirements and respect the privacy of their customers.

The Bank of Ghana also introduced the Payment Systems and Services Act in 2019, which provides a legal framework for the regulation and oversight of payment systems and services in Ghana. The act requires all digital financial services providers, including loan apps, to be licensed and regulated by the Bank of Ghana.

This regulation is aimed at ensuring that loan apps comply with privacy laws and ethical practices in their operations.

In conclusion, the illegal access of phone books and the sending of threatening messages to loan defaulters by quick loan apps in Ghana is a violation of privacy laws and borrower's rights.

It has led to a cycle of indebtedness and fear among borrowers. The government of Ghana has taken steps to address this issue by regulating the operations of loan apps and ensuring that they comply with regulatory requirements. It is important for borrowers to be aware of these illegal practices and report any instances of harassment to the appropriate authorities.