Swish Payment Platform in Zambia

 

Photo by David Dvořáček on Unsplash

Swish is Zambia’s fastest-growing mobile payment platform that can be accessed through mobile application software (Apps) or quick mobile phone codes commonly referred to as Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD). The platform connects consumers to merchants through innovative payment services that make cashless payments possible and accessible. This platform caters to a wide array of merchants ranging from street-side vendors to large retailers. Swish Pay is not a wallet but a platform that offers one the flexibility to securely pay from one's available sources of funds. Such sources may include mobile money wallets, bank accounts, Visa, or Master cards.    

What led to the Innovation of Swish?

The idea of a Swish Mobile Payment Platform came into being due to the desire to close gaps and mitigate discrepancies that were observed in the market. Among the issues identified was the poor service extended to micro-merchants mostly due to high setup costs compounded with low demand from target customers and high transaction costs, when it came to point of sale (POS) markets. Other challenges which were identified included low motivation on the part of customers to use digital forms of payment. Clients saw no need of using such payment methods when cash continued to be regarded as a more convenient and acceptable alternative.  

 

Swish, as a mobile payment service was originally developed and popularised in Sweden.

Swish … is a mobile payment system in Sweden. The service was launched in 2012 by six large Swedish banks, in cooperation with Bankgirot and the Central Bank of Sweden. It had 6.5 million users as of September 2018 (total Swedish population: 10.2 million). Swish is a member of the European Mobile Payment Systems Association.

 

How many versions of the app are there?

There are consumer and merchant versions with either USSD or mobile app platforms.

Consumer version

The Consumer version allows consumers to make payments using their mobile phones. Both the mobile and USSD versions support a number of  (linked) fund-source options including bank account, e-wallet, mobile money wallet, debit, and credit card.  This service provides a smart, convenient, secure, and seamless mode of mobile payment in that you can access literally any wallet, card, or account from a single gadget as long as it is Swish-enabled and make transactions.

Merchant version

The Merchant App is separate and different from the Consumer App. Its payments platform supports receipts through the Android App, or via the USSD platform, which can be set up on both mobile phones and Android points of sale (POS).

Swish for consumers

 For the consumer version, consumers who use Android phones have to download the SWISH Mobile App from Google Play Store and install it on their gadgets. Moreover, both  Android users and non-Android users can access the USSD version by dialing *767#. Once the app has been activated, sources of funds can be linked to it, and then payments can be made to merchants from any linked source.

How does Swish for Consumers work?

Consumers may utilize a Smart App or the USSD version to pay their merchants using a QR code or phone shortcode. Upon completing registration, consumers can link their various sources of funds to the app. The app then serves as a payment facilitation platform to initiate or accept payment.

App users can view different products and services available and utilize a separate feature on the app to access payment options.

What steps should one follow to start using the Swish App?

1. Registration

i. Download the App from Google Play Store and install it on your phone

ii. Enter requested details to receive a one-time-password (OTP)

iii. Enter OTP when prompted

iv. Generate your MPIN

v. Registration is completed 

2. Linking payment methods  

To link a payment method to the Swish App,  navigate to the menu on the left-hand side of the home screen and select the Add Payment Method option. When prompted, enter your MPIN and tap the Add Account button.

If you are linking a Master card or Visa card:

i. Select the Add Card option and fill in required details from your card

ii. Using the OTP sent to your phone through SMS, verify your card

iii. Enter your OTP and tap submit

iv. Your card is successfully linked

If you are linking a mobile money wallet:

i. Select the Add Mobile Wallet option

ii. Select mobile money  service operator

iii. Enter your mobile phone number and tap the Confirm button

iv. Your mobile money wallet is successfully linked

3. Paying for products or services

i. Begin by entering merchant till number or scanning merchant QR code

ii. Enter amount to be paid

iii. Type in your Swish MPIN

iv. Select payment method or fund source

v. Enter OTP sent to your mobile if using card or wallet pin if using mobile money

vi. Approve the transaction

 

Swish for merchants

Merchants are provided with a Merchant App that allows them to transact with their consumers and  receive payment. The merchants are required to assign one settlement account with their preferred financial institution.

How does Swish for merchants work?

This platform is meant for merchants and is used specifically for collections. This App has a feature that allows it to generate a dynamic or static QR code. The code is linked to a collections account which may be a bank account, mobile money wallet, or any other e-wallet.

The USSD Merchant Platform also supports the receipt of funds from consumers. As such, merchants can use either a QR Code or USSD platform linked to their account to demand payment.

How can you become a Swish Merchant? 

To become a Swish Merchant, follow the following four easy steps:

           1.  Submit your application

Begin by filling an application blank and attaching the required documents 

2. Set up and training

Upon completing the first step our team will brand your business and start training your staff. 

3. Account activation

Using account details sent to your email address, access your Swish Merchant Account 

4. Support and monitoring

Dial 767 for on going support and assistance to access our 24/7/365 Swish customer support centre

Are merchants supposed to pay for Swish payment services?

 Yes, merchants are required to pay for promotions that they drive on the Swish platform, in addition to paying transaction fees.

Promotions include loyalty promotions and various incentives meant to increase customer retention and increase customer footfall. Moreover, statistics of customer behavior and participation will be made available by the Swish platform.

Transaction fees charged are very low, they range from 1.6% to 2% of annual sales turnover. These fees are charged according to merchant type.

First-tier merchants

These are merchants that have an annual turnover of over K20 000 000. These merchants are charged 1.6% of their turnover.

Second-tier merchants

These merchants have a turnover ranging between K2 000 000 and K19 999 999. Merchants in this bracket are charged 1.8%.

Third-tier merchants

Merchants in this tier have an annual turnover of less than  K2 000 000. Third-tier merchants are charged 2% of their annual turnover.

 Concerning the costs of integration, activation, support, and management for participating financial services providers, these will all be borne by Swish Pay. Moreover, financial services providers receive up to 30% of the revenue from merchants.

  

What are the benefits of being a Swish subscriber?

i. There are no monthly fees that need to be paid for using the service

ii. Low transaction costs

iii. Increase visibility of your showcased business offers and promotions

iv. Access to customer analytics and insights that avail you with more information about your customers

v. Access to transaction history and reports

vi. Quicker fund settlement facility

vii. Boost your online presence with our free listing service

viii. Receive instant notifications every time your customers pay for goods or services

ix. Use only one platform for payments

x. Customers can easily locate your business using the Merchant Locator

xi. Costs of handling cash and other related risks are reduced

xii. Take advantage of our embedded customer loyalty and rewards program

xiii. Gives your customers a digital experience

xiv. Makes reconciliation of your customer payments easier

xv. Consumers have the choice to use the payment method they prefer

Conclusion

Swish has a number of pros compared to other money transfer and payment services currently available on the Zambian market, as can be seen from the above discussion. Making or receiving payments can never be easier and more convenient than they are on the Swish platform. As if this were not enough, there are a number of incentives that come with the Swish subscription. It makes a lot of business sense to jump on the Swish bandwagon, especially when we take into account the fact that quite a number of countries including China have either developed or are contemplating developing cashless payment systems.

 

How to Track Someone with Google Maps Without Their Knowledge

 

 

There are many instances when one may need to identify the location of other people without them knowing using Google Maps and other similar apps. Many things may happen that may necessitate the need to use this technology. For instance, you may need to know the location of a cheating partner. You may have lost your phone and want to know its precise location. Your phone may have been stolen and you want to locate and subsequently recover it.  These are some of the scenarios which will make someone use tracking features or apps on the phone to identify locations. Google  Maps is the major tracking feature that is incorporated in mobile phone devices intended to serve this purpose. In some instances, this feature is used in connection with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology.

While there are tracking methods that solely rely on GPS  or the use of this technology in connection with tracking apps to pinpoint the location of people, this write-up will discuss the use of Google Maps to identify a location. Moreover, as already implied in the opening line and the main heading, our focus is on the use of Google Maps without our targets actually knowing that they are being tracked. It is important to note that, though Google Maps is an app, it can double as an inbuilt tracking feature in almost all cell phones. Whatever the case what matters is that the devices in question are using Google Maps as a tracking tool.

Using Google Maps as cellphone tracking tool

This method requires having access to the target’s cellphone to make the required settings before tracking them. Tracking can also be done by viewing the location history of someone using Google Maps.

 

Tracking by making Google Maps settings

You should do the following to enable tracking on the device using this method

1. Start by opening Google Maps on the cellphone you want to track
2. Click on the menu and select “Share Location”
3. Set or select the time period for which the target cellphone will be under surveillance
4. Click on people and choose your target contact to enable location sharing. Take note that location can also be shared through any messaging app.

Pros of using settings method

1.   It is free of charge
2. It is very precise and gives accurate location details
3. The method is simple to use
4. Target phone can be tracked once settings have been enabled on your phone 

Cons of using settings method

1. Notification pop-ups may alert the targets that someone is tracking them
2. Passcode and direct access are needed to get the real-time location of a phone  

 

Tracking by viewing location history

To view the location history of a gadget, follow the steps outlined below:

1.  Launch Google Maps on the gadget whose owner you want to follow
2. Select “Your Timeline” from the menu
3. On the right side of the phone screen tap on the calendar icon
4. Select a date whose location history you want to view by swiping right and left
5. Select and tap on the date you want to check

Pros of using history method

1.  The method is free of charge too
2. It is very precise and gives accurate location details
3. The method is simple to use

Cons of using history method

1.  Notification pop-ups may alert the targets that someone is tracking them
2. You need a passcode and direct access to get the real-time location of the phone  
3. You need to have regular access to the phone

11 Reasons Why We Fall for Scams

 

Source: Unsplash

When referring to victims of scams or fraud,  many people have a tendency of using demeaning labels such as naive, gullible, greedy and other similar appellations. However, such labels just show a lack of understanding on the part of such people. These labels hardly take into account the fact that anybody can,  at one time or another,  find themselves vulnerable to a persuasive approach. Sometimes even seemingly rational and shrewd consumers tend to be irrational when subjected to persuasion. Moreover, few people if any, consistently make sound decisions under all circumstances.

 

Studies that have been conducted offer a lot of insights into this phenomenon. There are both motivational and cognitive factors behind victims’ responses to scam messages. These factors spell out the psychological reasons why people fall victim to scams.

 

There are similarities in content and persuasive techniques used by perpetrators of mass marketing fraud. Among the persuasion and influencing techniques used by scammers to woo unsuspecting potential victims are those given by Whitty (2013) and the Office of Fair Trading in their publications.

 

1. Appeals to trust and authority

Unless you are an anarchist, you always have respect for authority and give due consideration to documents that look authentic, genuine and official- purportedly from higher authorities.  Tricksters know this and use it to their advantage. Scams often come wrapped in official-looking mail. Fraudsters may even go to an extent of registering their companies, use fake names or use names of genuine established businesses to give their communications an air of authority and authenticity. They may even use images of famous and well-respected personalities in their promotional materials.

 

2. Scarcity

To elicit a quick response from ‘clients’, scam perpetrators often put them under time pressure and often want their messages to be treated as an emergency. They sort of limit the availability of their offer so that the targeted people do not have enough time to reflect on their offers. This is intended to prevent prospects from recognizing the crime for what it is. Terms like ‘limited offers’, ‘limited number of people needed’, ‘on promotion and therefore the price is slashed’, or ‘ last offer’ and so forth; are often used to coerce victims to take quick action.

 

3. Liking and similarity

Have you ever come across promotional messages that seem to say exactly what you are going through? These messages are employed many times in fraudulent businesses to win the attention of the intended audience. As a prospect, you feel like you are going through the same situation as a scammer. Like attracts like!

 

4. Reciprocation

Fraudsters sometimes make small concessions so that their victims can give back something in response to their generous gesture. ‘Clients’ often give up more in exchange for these small concessions. For instance, they may design their compensation plans in such a way that you get small and negligible ‘pay backs’ after some time. Before one realizes the profits which they have been promised, the business could have crumbled.

 

4. Commitment and consistency

Scammers may sometimes ask you to take small and insignificant steps for a start just to test the waters. They don’t often ask for money when initiating a business deal- they just put their foot in the door. Once a victim becomes settled and comfortable, the time comes for the perpetrators to harvest. Victims often follow through with this later stage and rarely back out. A precedence has been set and everybody falls in line. That is why initial offers may involve free membership. Vultures are patient birds indeed!

 

5. Social proof

‘Birds of the same feather flock together,' they say. This is as much true among humans as it is among birds. Once scam patrons realize that more and more people are buying into a ‘deal’, it is inevitable that others will follow suit. Humans have some kind of herd instinct that makes them comfortable in a group. There is a feeling that a deal is genuine when other people are connected with it. All people need is this social proof and they are in!

 

6. Mood regulation and phantom fixation

Most scams are centred around certain promised rewards.  Fraudsters will often dangle a ‘solution’ to prospects’ needs. This is intended to attract the attention of victims and focus it on the promised solution to their needs or problems, though the reward may only be there on paper and not in reality. This technique invariably involves dangling the promise of reward or wealth before a prospect. Scammers have a queer tendency of raising the hopes of their victims.

 

7. Visceral triggers

 Visceral influences are more related to your feelings than to your intellect and mostly arise from impulse or sudden emotion. Triggers used are targeted at human needs, desires, and emotions such as fear, pain, greed, and the need for love and acceptance. These triggers have a tendency of reducing the motivation of prospects to process information contained in scam messages.

 There is a lot of emphasis on these influences in scam messages whose main purpose is to block sound decision-making and elicit a quick response from victims. They may, for instance, refer to your financial or job insecurity to startle you and prompt a quick reaction from you.

 

8. Norm activation

Norms spell out the standards of acceptable behaviour in society. They ‘imply that people should manifest prescribed behaviour’ but not ‘proscribed behaviour’

They refer to ‘guiding behaviour in specific contexts and need to be activated many times. once a norm has been activated, people continue following it. Messages sent by scammers are mostly intended to activate norms such as the norm to help each other. These messages will often emphasize the need to share and help one another to better our lives. While these norms are good in themselves, they are often misplaced and only serve as vehicles to rip off masses.

 

9. Alter casting

To push their agenda of defrauding innocent consumers, fraudsters sometimes take certain roles in their dealings with victims to disguise their real intentions. They may take the role of a dependent or a vulnerable person who needs help thus making their targets take the role of a provider or protector, or that of leaders thus making their victims take a subordinate role. This is the case with pyramid schemes in high-yield investment programs (HYIPs), especially in the cryptocurrency niche.  

 

10. Sensation seeking

Some people engage in scams due to emotional highs they experience that are induced by the process of waiting for the promised ‘reward’. This class enjoy the suspense and false expectation which are a direct result of elicited arousal and excitement. Motivation for feelings of this kind often induces people to engage in risky and irresponsible behaviour just for the sake of experiencing these emotional highs.

 

11. The disproportionate relation between the size of the alleged reward and the cost of trying to obtain it

Some scams will require victims to pay minimum fees upfront before they can get their final promised reward. In most instances what people pay to get their promised package is way too low that they don’t hesitate to hand over their cash. This is the case with advance fee scams.

 

 I hope the reasons given above will give us an insight into the complex world of scams and why even seemingly smart and rational people fall prey to them. 

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Frauds, Scams and Economic Prosperity

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The Ever-Present Risk of Being Scammed

The Ever Present Risk of Being Scammed

 

Source: Unsplash- Bench accounting

 

We are living in a world that teams with all sorts of illicit activities. This trend has been so unrelenting that sometimes we take it as a normal part of our lives, if not acceptable. Fraudulent activities and outright scams are on the rise and are increasingly being perpetrated right before our eyes. The recent unparalleled developments in information and communication technologies have greatly compounded and exacerbated the proliferation of crimes of all sorts and descriptions.

 Prevalence of fraud

Frauds and scams are so commonplace nowadays that victims of such crimes may sometimes question the efficacy of deterrent measures that have been put in place. A day hardly passes without news of fresh victims of one scam or another. It’s quite surprising just how gullible we people can be at times.   

The Overseas Security Advisory Council (O.S.A.C) website reports that,

Cyber-crime is an increasing problem in Zambia, according to various media reports. Although the rate of personal computer ownership is about 50%, many Zambians have smartphones and regularly access social media, where online scams are prevalent.

… Sometimes scammers convince victims to provide bank account data, credit card information, and financial authorization they then use to drain their accounts; as a result, they incur large debts against their credit and lose their savings.

 

Common marketing strategies used

What makes scams so subtle is the fact that they often employ the same marketing strategies employed by legitimate businesses. All the elements of the marketing mix are utilized when perpetrating scams. These elements of the marketing mix or the "four Ps" as they are sometimes called include place, product, price, and promotion.

Scammers go to lengths to make sure that their ‘businesses’ look as genuine as possible. They make sure that they give you their physical address or location. This information you can readily find on their websites or in their publications. They will have a product or service that they are promoting or pretend to be selling at a particular price. Most scammers have a good working knowledge of online and network marketing.

Part that the internet plays

It goes without saying that the internet provides a new space for the perpetration of scams against a much larger pool of potential victims. At the click of a button so many people, from various backgrounds and locations, could be scammed if unwary.

Computer-mediated communication

Computer-mediated communication has played a very big role in the escalation of online fraud in that perpetrators have the technology at hand that they can exploit to further their clandestine agenda. Scammers have a means of presenting themselves in such a way as to appear socially desirable and acceptable to would-be fraud victims.

The environment created by computer-mediated communication has a tendency of shutting out the outside world leaving scam targets to focus all their cognitive resources on online communication. This is more pronounced in online dating scams.

Due to the nature of the environment and the kinds of interaction that prevail under such circumstances, fraud victims develop hyper-personal relationships with scammers. There is even a tendency to idealize ‘partners’ due to the messages that victims receive.

Final thought

There are certain attributes in would-be victims that give them away. These are exploited by scammers and they predispose victims to fall prey to scams. As such, it is cardinal to watch out for the tell-tale signs of a scam and minimize chances of being caught out!

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Network marketing in Zambia, scam or legit 

Frauds, scams, and economic prosperity