Here’s how to confirm if your mobile phone is genuine or fake
The Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) has introduced a mobile messaging service for Kenyans to verify if their mobile handsets are genuine of not.
The authority on Tuesday set a new mobile messaging Service to help Kenyans ascertain whether mobile phones they own or wish to purchase are legitimate.
“In furtherance of its consumer protection mandate, the Authority has set up a Mobile Messaging Service to aid users in ascertaining whether the mobile phone handsets they own or are about to purchase are genuine,” Acting Director-General Mercy Wanjau.
It gave four steps which a consumer can follow and tell if their phone is genuine or not.
1. Dial *#06# on the mobile device to display its international mobile equipment identifier number (IMEI).
2. Copy that IMEI number and SMS it to 1555.
3. You will receive a response from CA displaying details about your phone, including the make and model.
4. If the details displayed on the reply SMS match with those of your phone (or the one you want to buy), then it is genuine. If they don’t, it is fake.
MATCHING DETAILS
If the details shown in the SMS match are exactly the same as those of the mobile phone, then it is genuine.
On the other hand, a message displaying details that contradict those of the phone in question clearly suggests that it is counterfeit. The best solution would now be to contact the CA with a detailed report.
The authority said that counterfeit mobile phones provide poor quality of service and experience, and pose a major threat to personal health and national security and advised the public to report such cases.
COUNTERFEITS
Last year, seven people were arrested in a sting operation conducted by Anti-Counterfeit Agency (ACA) after raiding several exhibition stalls on Mfangano Street within Nairobi’s CBD and confiscated counterfeit mobile phones.
The raid that targeted shops selling fake Samsung mobile devices seized mobile phone pieces and accessories worth more than Sh10 million.
The mobile phones which were seized had been rebranded and falsely labelled with names of popular brands including Samsung, HTC, Nokia, Huawei, and Sony.