A highly viral piece of information has been circulating via WhatsApp since Wednesday, June 5, 2024. It claims that former customers who have been using an Orange SIM card for several years can benefit from free internet packages.
Here is the content of the circulating post: “Orange offers free data to all old SIM cards:
• 6 months SIM – 5 GB,
• 1 year and above – 10 GB,
• 5 years and above – 50 GB,
• 10 years and above – unlimited.
However, this information is completely false according to Orange Centrafrique’s management.
Verification:
According to Sylver Mataragba, Community Manager at the commercial department of Orange Centrafrique, interviewed by Centrafrique Check: “We have debunked this information through several posts on our social media platforms. We realized that these ill-intentioned individuals are using social media to reach more people, as it is a sharing tool that connects people. That’s why they use this channel to scam our subscribers by using Orange’s image. So, this information circulating on social media is not from us.”
“Orange is a commercial company, so it cannot give away free internet packages to its customers,” said Franklin Vincent Dépoliambélé, an agent in the commercial section, in an interview with Centrafrique Check.
It Is a Scam Orchestrated to Target Customers, Says Orange Centrafrique
Furthermore, as part of the fact-checking process, Orange Centrafrique published a denial on its official Facebook page. In this post, the company warned its customers to be cautious and suspicious of such publications.
The denial, which Centrafrique Check was able to consult, is available through this link: “Don’t be fooled, this is not a message from Orange Centrafrique; this is a scam,” reads the Facebook post.
If There’s an Announcement from Orange, It Is Usually Done via SMS, Says a Subscriber
Roseline Benamae, an Orange SIM card user, interviewed by Centrafrique Check, commented on the misinformation: “In my opinion, it’s a lie because Orange is a company that engages in commerce. If they were to grant free data to their subscribers, as usual, they would first send messages in advance to inform everyone, but we haven’t received any SMS from this entity; this is false information,” she concluded.
For several months, dubious posts and misleading links have been resurfacing on social media in the Central African Republic, aiming to manipulate public opinion.
Conclusion:
The information circulating in WhatsApp groups claiming that the mobile telephony company Orange Centrafrique has offered free internet data to its former customers is false, as verified by Centrafrique Check.
This article was edited by Esdras Michael Ndamoyen.
