Telecom experts have called for the digitisation of registration of mobile money transactions in order to safeguard customer information and curb fraud.

Currently, mobile money agents record every transaction on a physical ledger book. Users surrender their ID numbers and phone numbers to these agents and how these agents use this information is unknown. This opens up for data breach.

According to Business Daily, Safaricom is already planning to introduce a platform that will host digital identification for customers.

The publication reported that, "Safaricom said it has distributed about 25,000 pre-programmed smartphones to its mobile money agents to be used in registration of new SIM cards."

The telecom is working on a database that will host the customer information. M-Pesa users will no longer need to provide IDs or sign on physical books as requirement for transaction.

Leonard Kore, a senior research analyst, Telecom and Networking, at International Data Corporation (IDC) East Africa supports this move.

"The technology around securing the personal data of the M-Pesa users is very much achievable from the telco perspective. This would cover features such as encrypting the M-Pesa ID - mostly MSISDN and the M-Pesa customer names," Kore told ITWeb Africa.

He added that, "The problem arises during execution as due to the access channels through which the M-Pesa agents can use to access the platform. Solutions do exist to help agents manage transaction records but existing pen and paper methods are more common and easier to use for most agents."

The potential increase in resources needed might hinder mobile money agents from using new technologies.

"Affordability of always on internet connectivity plus additional cost in using smart devices for example, smart phones or laptops for web based portals/interfaces are other challenges that inhibit M-Pesa agents using systems to manage the service records," Kore said.

Kore said that modernising new agent processes or introducing new systems is not necessarily the issue, but rather enabling increased adoption of new technologies by agents.

Telecom companies are required by law to keep the transaction book details for 7 years, increasing the costs of storage for the millions of books being turned in by M-Pesa agents.