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Mr Stanley Jacob, the manager of LittleAnt Limited, which is the parent company of Alend App, a digital lending company, says sending spam messages to potential customers is legal.
Jacob, in a telephone interview last Saturday, says such is normal for different agencies in Nigeria, and they are called promotional or marketing messages, which are legal.
Asked how Alend gets contact details of Nigerians to spam them for a loan offer, which they don’t request, Jacob diverts the question to answer that the people might have put down their KYC details, somehow. Further citing our report, the LittleAnt Limited Manager says, “I don’t know what you have, and I don’t care, but all I know is it is legal.”
PIJAlance published on Friday that the Alend Loan App sends spam messages to Nigerians not registered on its database. The report added that the LittleAnt Limited product, as well, makes calls to numbers not registered on its database. PIJAlance independently confirmed this through a victim, Ms Caroline (not her real name), who confided in the outlet in early August.
Jacob, in the interview, is unable to reveal how Alend gets contact details of Nigerians not registered on its database to send them a loan offer. PIJAlance has been able to independently verify what could make Alend illegally get the personal details of Nigerians, easily.
Data Breach
In June 2024, Paradigm Initiative uncovered a website that sells personal data such as National Identity Number (NIN), Bank Verification Number (BVN), Driving Licence, International Passport, Tax Identification Number (TIN), Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC), and phone numbers, among others for as low as N100.Â
In March same year, the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) uncovered XpressVerify, a private website that accesses data of Nigerians for personal gains.
FIJ found that the website has access to the National Identification Number (NIN) and personal details of every registered Nigerian for as little as N200. The report added that anyone could access details such as phone numbers, NIN, address and even photographs.
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Another report found that even Minister Bosun Tijani’s NIN slip was gotten for as low as N100. Tijani happens to be the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy in Nigeria.
Loan apps such as Alend might be patronizing these websites for the personal details of Nigerians to lure them into taking a loan. This attempt, the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, has demonstrated a show of antagonism at it.Â
In Part V, Sections 26 and 27 of the Data Protection Act, priorities were placed on any organisations, including financial institutions, regarded as “data controllers” to state their purposes clearly and legibly and ask for “consent” before obtaining any information from any Nigerians, thereafter regarded as “data subjects.”
Failure to do this while obtaining the data is illegal and is a breach of the provisions of the law. If illegally obtained through this route, using the data for marketing purposes like sending bulk messages and calls, is called spamming, according to the Cybercrime Act, 2015 (amended).
Part IV, Section 37, Sub-sections 1,2 and 3 of the Cybercrime Act specifically instructs financial institutions to obtain consent to access customers’ data. The section prohibits any financial institutions that fail to obtain the proper identity of a customer before executing “Customer Electronic Instructions in any way.” Such financial institutions are liable, as stated in the section, to pay a fine of N5,000,000 on conviction. Alend contravenes the provisions of this Law, according to Ms Caroline’s submission in our previous report.
Read Also:Â ALERT: Alend Loan App that Spams Nigerians, Operates Under Pseudonym
Credence of Alend
Alend App is the product of LittleAnt Limited, which has Dalmeida Thelma Ifeoma, a Lagos Chef, as its sole Person with Significant Control (PSC) with 99 per cent ownership.
LittleAnt Limited, a little known financial institution, registered in 2022 has its registration number as 1984105 with the Corporate Affairs Commission.Â
LittleAnt Limited has secured the full approval of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to upload its product, Alend App, as a digital money lender in Nigeria. This report continues to question the credibility of Alend App and the assessment process of FCCPC. This is because the Commission’s Act treats spamming and abuse of Nigerian consumers’ data as beneath contempt.Â
LittleAnt had formerly released its app on Google Play store in January, 2024, but was removed for reasons unknown. This makes Alend allow its app available for download on its website. However, while filing this report, the Alend Loan App has been back on the Google Play Store since August 21.
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Enoch Oyedibu
Neck-deep Investigative Journalist, Fact-checker and writer-I provide support for marginalised communities through strategic investigative reporting, holding power to account and airing the underrepresented communities' concerns. I firmly believe in giving voices to the underreported communities in Nigeria and Africa. This has, however, made me contribute to multiple publications and projects that exposed corruption, injustice, and human rights violations. I am passionate about journalism and its role in creating positive change in the world. I lead a group of professional investigators at the PIJAlance Magazine Research and Investigations Desk (RID). If you have a story, check 'contact us' to hit me.