'We are the voice of the people,' Truecaller says amid probe over privacy
Call screening app, Truecaller, has refuted claims that their app harms businesses, saying every individual has an 'inherent fundamental right to know who is calling them and the company enables their users to exercise it'.
This comes after the Information Regulator confirmed it is investigating a complaint against Truecaller by several companies and individuals for violating the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia).
South Africans use the app extensively to identify unknown calls, especially from call centre agents.
However, companies have complained that the Trucaller app harms their businesses because it flags their numbers and charges a fee to whitelist them.
Truecaller responds
However, the company has denied the allegations.
An official Truecaller spokesperson told The Citizen that its mission is to 'empower users and make their communication safe and trustworthy.'
'We uphold the highest standards of data practices, whether it's about putting users in control of the information they share with us, minimising what data is processed through our servers or even the ability to completely remove themselves from Truecaller without any restrictions whatsoever.
'Truecaller is about providing users with safety in communication. The notion about whitelisting is completely false,' Trucaller said.
ALSO READ: SA companies lodge complaint against Truecaller app for violating Popia
Whitelisting
The spokesperson added that businesses cannot pay Truecaller for any sort of whitelisting services.
'Truecaller does not offer any sort of whitelisting service to any person or business, in any region, regardless of any fee.
If a business spams Truecaller users, and users report it as a spammer, it will be marked as a spammer. It is our job to protect people from unwanted communication, and we will always uphold that promise,' the spokesperson said.
Patriotic
While Truecaller is a call screening app, the company emphasised a patriotic stance reminiscent of a political party.
'We are the voice of the people and allow them to choose who is a spammer and who is not. The fee that Truecaller charges is for the 'Truecaller for Business' service, which allows them to verify their correct business name and include a logo with their Truecaller profile.'
'Upon validating their ownership of the given number with Truecaller, they also receive a verified business badge, the spokesperson said.
ALSO READ: South Africa's Information Regulator acts against FT Rams over privacy law breach
The spokesperson said this ensures users know that the number has been validated by Truecaller, and it belongs to the business to which it is attributed. This, it says, helps avoid scams and impersonation-type fraud.
Trucaller offers three paid packages for its services, Premium, Family and Gold with subscriptions starting at R199 per year for Premium to R1 490 per year for the Gold package.
Lawyers weigh in
Werksmans Attorneys director Ahmore Burger-Smidt said the call screening app was at odds with several Popia provisions.
However, law firm Norton Rose Fulbright's Rosalind Lake told The Citizen the Information Regulator would need to show a direct link that businesses have been affected by the Truecaller app.
ALSO READ: Information regulator slaps DoJ with R5m fine for contravening privacy act
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