South Africa’s Information Regulator has confirmed it is investigating complaints lodged against the call-screening platform Truecaller, according to local tech media MyBroadband.
The investigation follows multiple approaches from companies and individuals in late June 2025, urging the regulator to take action against Truecaller.
Complainants alleged that the platform harmed their businesses by labelling their numbers as spam and charging a monthly fee for whitelisting.
“The Regulator has not received a request to ban Truecaller in South Africa, but we can confirm that we have received a complaint against Truecaller and we are investigating that complaint,” the regulator stated.
The regulator explained that it could only intervene if Truecaller’s handling of personal information breaches the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
Upon concluding its investigation, it will issue a formal pronouncement.
Truecaller Privacy Concerns in Africa
Truecaller has faced multiple data protection complaints in other jurisdictions.
In Kenya, a Nairobi-based data protection lawyer sued the company, alleging violations of the Data Protection Act (2019). The case claims Truecaller failed to register as a data controller or processor with Kenya’s Office of the Data Protection Commissioner. It also accused the platform of collecting and transferring Kenyan users’ contact data to India without adequate consent or safeguards.
In Nigeria, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) launched an investigation into the platform. NITDA alleged that Truecaller’s privacy policy contained “illegitimate provisions” under the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) and that it collects more data than necessary.
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