MTN denies stealing customers’ data, explains rapid consumption

MTN Nigeria has denied stealing customers’ data, attributing the rapid depletion of subscribers’ data bundles to increased internet usage, sophisticated mobile devices and data-consuming applications.

The Chief Customer Relations and Experience Officer of MTN Nigeria, Mrs Ugonwa Nwoye, stated this during a customer engagement programme tagged “Data on Trial”, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Nwoye said the programme was organised to provide customers with an opportunity to interact directly with the telecommunications company and seek explanations on how their data was consumed, why they were charged for certain services and why their data bundles sometimes got exhausted overnight.

She maintained that MTN did not steal customers’ data, stressing that such a practice was inconsistent with the company’s values and operations as a publicly listed company.

“MTN does not steal. Aside from the fact that we are a public company, it is not within any of our values to steal. What is important to us is a common understanding,” she said.

She explained that the increasing sophistication of mobile phones and faster internet networks had significantly changed the way subscribers accessed the internet, resulting in higher data consumption.

According to her, unlike the earlier generation of mobile phones, which had limited capabilities, modern smartphones support high-definition photographs, videos and other applications that consume substantial amounts of data.

She noted that activities such as participating in online prayer sessions, attending virtual classes, watching videos and using social media applications required internet connectivity and contributed to data consumption.

Nwoye said many subscribers were unaware of the volume of data consumed by applications running on their phones, adding that the engagement was designed to educate them on how to monitor and manage their data usage.

She disclosed that MTN had developed tools and platforms through which customers could track their data consumption and regulate the amount of data used by different applications on their devices.

The MTN official said the telecommunications industry had been addressing customers’ concerns about data depletion for about two years under the guidance of the industry regulator.

She added that MTN had also embarked on online campaigns to educate subscribers on how to control data consumption on applications such as WhatsApp and YouTube.

According to her, the company decided to take the sensitisation campaign further by organising face-to-face engagements where customers could directly ask questions and receive explanations from its officials.

Explaining the structure of MTN’s data plans, Nwoye said subscribers needed to understand the difference between data volume and validity period, noting that a monthly data subscription did not necessarily mean the data would last for one month.

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“Our plans are structured as internet plus validity. So, when we say something is monthly, what we mean is that it is valid for one month, not that you can use it anyhow and it will last for one month,” she explained.

She said the engagement, organised in a courtroom format, allowed customers to select representatives to act as prosecutors and judges, while MTN officials served as the defence team to respond to complaints and clarify issues surrounding data consumption.

Nwoye expressed hope that the interaction would improve customers’ understanding of how their data was used and equip them with the knowledge and tools to manage their internet subscriptions more effectively.