By Business Reporter-Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, once the country’s leading mobile service provider, is under fire for allegedly exposing customer details to the public domain, further eroding public trust amid growing dissatisfaction over deteriorating service quality and exorbitant charges.
Several Econet subscribers have recently reported being contacted by suspicious individuals on WhatsApp, raising concerns that their contact details might have been sourced from an alleged data leak by a threat actor known as Thaihub.
Cybersecurity watchdog FalconFeeds.io reported that over 852,000 customer records had been compromised and were being sold on the dark web.
The leaked data reportedly included full names, addresses, email addresses, Twitter handles, and mobile numbers. FalconFeeds.io posted on X (formerly Twitter):
“A threat actor claims to be selling the database of Econet Wireless Zimbabwe (http://econet.co.zw). The leaked data includes 852,791 customer records containing full names, emails, addresses, Twitter handles, mobile numbers, and more.”
According to TechZim, Thaihub allegedly listed the stolen database for sale at a price of $299.
However, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe has denied the claims, stating that its internal investigations found no evidence of a security breach.
In a statement the company reassured customers that it had activated incident management processes and was working with international cybersecurity experts to monitor its systems.
The statement reads:
“Econet Wireless Zimbabwe is aware of a social media post first made on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday (February 4, 2025) claiming that a threat actor was selling part of Econet’s subscriber list containing 852,791 customer records.
Our internal investigations, which started immediately on the day the allegations were made, have detected no breach on our systems that would lead to unauthorised access to sensitive customer data that is not already in the public domain or accessible through third parties.”
Despite Econet’s assurances, skepticism remains high among customers, many of whom are already frustrated with the company over its declining service quality and increasing costs.
The security breach allegations come at a time when Econet’s reputation is already under scrutiny due to the worsening quality of its services.
Over the past few years, Zimbabweans have increasingly complained about network congestion, frequent dropped calls, slow mobile internet speeds, and poor customer service.
Once considered the best in the country, the company’s internet services have reportedly become unreliable, with erratic data connectivity affecting businesses and individuals alike.
Adding to consumer woes, Econet has implemented a series of steep tariff hikes, making mobile communication unaffordable for many Zimbabweans.
While the company cites rising operational costs due to inflation and foreign currency shortages as justification for these increases, customers argue that the price hikes are unjustified given the subpar service they are receiving.
For instance, the cost of mobile data bundles has risen dramatically, pushing many users to seek alternative providers or reduce their internet usage.
Many businesses, reliant on stable network services, have been forced to invest in alternative communication solutions such as Starlink and VSAT, further eroding Econet’s dominance in the market.
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) has come under pressure to take action against Econet over its service failures and alleged data security lapses.
Consumer rights groups have called for stricter oversight and penalties if Econet is found guilty of negligence in handling customer data.