Safaricom has clarified how the Social Health Authority (SHA) is able to deduct funds from a customer’s M-PESA account without requiring a PIN, following concerns raised by users on social media.
In a statement, Safaricom explained that such deductions only occur when a customer has activated M-PESA Ratiba, a standing order service on M-PESA, and explicitly authorised SHA to make automatic payments.
“If you have activated M-PESA Ratiba, which is a standing order service on M-PESA, and enabled SHA to auto-deduct, this can happen without prompting for the PIN,” Safaricom said.
According to the telco, once a customer gives consent during the setup process, SHA payments are processed automatically without the need to enter a PIN each time. The arrangement functions like a bank standing order, where approval is granted once and remains valid for subsequent scheduled transactions.
Safaricom added that customers remain in full control and can review, modify or cancel the standing order at any time through the M-PESA platform.
M-PESA Ratiba was launched in October 2024 to help users manage recurring payments more conveniently. The service allows customers to schedule automatic transfers on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis to individuals or registered service providers.
