No evidence over 2 million Kenyan and Ugandan M-Kopa customers have flashed their phones or face arrest
IN SHORT: Viral social media posts claim M-Kopa and Kenyan authorities are preparing to arrest more than 2.3 million customers for "flashing" financed smartphones. But while this practice is illegal, there is no evidence for the claim of mass arrests.
Dozens of posts circulating on Facebook, TikTok and X claim that fintech company M-Kopa, together with Kenya's Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), are preparing to arrest "2,342,007" customers accused of "flashing" or modifying financed smartphones to bypass payment locks without completing their instalments.
Most posts repeat that exact figure, while others cite similarly precise numbers, including 342,007, 1,935,003, 8,142,007 and 11,342,008. Variations of the claim have also circulated on Ugandan social media, where the company also operates.
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The posts began circulating in mid June 2026. They have collectively attracted more than 1.15 million views, 64,000 likes and 2,100 comments.
Background to illegally unlocking cellphones
M-Kopa is a fintech company that allows customers to buy smartphones and other products through a "buy now, pay later" (BNPL) model, with repayments made in instalments.
If payments are missed, financed devices can be remotely locked until repayments resume. The company started operations in Kenya but has grown to operate in Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa, financing millions of devices.
Like many BNPL providers, M-Kopa has faced criticism over the overall cost of financed phones and occasional complaints about delays in unlocking devices after customers complete their payments.
In both Kenya and Uganda, police have repeatedly arrested people accused of running businesses that illegally unlock or "flash" financed phones to bypass payment restrictions.
In June, Kenyan police announced the arrest of suspects linked to a syndicate accused of illegally unlocking phones. It is against this background that the viral claims appear to have emerged. But are they true? We checked.
No evidence for claims
There is no evidence that M-Kopa or the DCI has announced plans to arrest 2,342,007 customers, or any similarly large number of people, for flashing financed phones. Neither organisation has issued any statement supporting the claim.
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Illegally modifying a financed phone to bypass its payment controls may expose those involved to legal action, and M-Kopa's customer terms prohibit tampering with a device's software.
The figures in the viral posts are also implausible.
According to M-Kopa's 2025 impact report, the company had about 3 million active customers across the five countries where it operates and had served 7 million customers in total since launch.
The claim that more than 2.3 million customers have illegally flashed their phones would imply that the overwhelming majority of M-Kopa's active customer base had committed the offence. Other versions claiming 8 million or 11 million affected customers exceed the total number of customers M-Kopa has reportedly served since it was founded.
Another red flag is the use of highly specific figures such as 2,342,007, without citing any source or explaining how the numbers were obtained.
No credible source supports either the figures or the alleged plan for mass arrests.
