MTN confirmed that thousands of customers were affected in a cyber breach in Ghana
The telecom giant says it is taking the issue seriously and is working closely with cybersecurity experts and law enforcement.
When Techloy reported MTN’s cyber breach last week, the picture was still blurry and the level of damage uncertain. But now that the smoke is clearing, the numbers are starting to roll in.
MTN Ghana has confirmed that around 5,700 customers were affected in the attack. While it is less than 0.01% of MTN's customers, it's no small figure, especially for an incident that, at first, seemed to spare customer accounts and wallets.
At the time, MTN said its systems were still fully operational, and there was no evidence of compromised financial data. That part, thankfully, remains true. But now we know the attackers didn’t just slip in and leave quietly, they came with demands. MTN hasn’t disclosed what those demands were or how they were delivered, but the company’s acknowledgement confirms this wasn’t just a random exploit.
Most of the compromised data appears to be what many might consider “basic” information—names, surnames, and mobile numbers. But experts warn that even this kind of data, in the wrong hands, can be dangerous. It’s the kind of information that opens the door to phishing scams, social engineering, and identity theft.
Oyinebiladou Omemu
South Africa’s Information Regulator was also notified, and while no evidence yet, this suggests that MTN users in the group’s home country may have been impacted as well. Even though the company hasn’t confirmed a full list of affected regions, Ghana’s Data Protection Commission has already launched an investigation. MTN says affected users will be notified individually in line with legal requirements.
But this isn’t just MTN’s problem; it’s a pattern we’ve been seeing across the continent, from Cell C falling victim to a ransomware attack, Telecom Namibia reportedly losing over 600GB of customer data, to South African telecom operators facing over 1,000 cyberattacks weekly, according to security firm Check Point.
MTN says it’s taking this seriously and is working closely with cybersecurity experts and law enforcement to understand exactly what happened and how to prevent it from happening again.
In the meantime, MTN is urging that you update your apps, use stronger passwords, turn on multi-factor authentication, and ignore shady-looking links or messages. These may sound like textbook tips, but right now, they’re your best defense.
