Kenya pushes ahead with anti-counterfeit phone plan; activists fear surveillance

A woman speaks on her cellphone as she walks past a mobile phone service center operated by Kenyan's telecom operator Airtel Kenya in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, July 15, 2021.[Reuters]

The Kenyan government announced this month that it intends to go forward with a plan that it says will help address the problem of counterfeit phones, but digital rights activists say it poses a risk to privacy.

Earlier this month, Kenyan Minister of Information, Communication and Digital Economy Eliud Owalo said the government is set to push ahead with the Device Management System program, or DMS, Reuters reported this week.