Vodacom ramps up fight against base station battery theft and vandalism as incidents increase due to looming Festive Season

JOHANNESBURG – As we get closer to the Festive Season period, Vodacom has noticed an increase in the number of battery theft and vandalism incidents on its base stations in certain parts of the country. As a result, we are renewing our appeal to all stakeholders, from law enforcement to communities, to play a part in curbing these offences and to ensure that uninterrupted access to connectivity benefits everyone.

"Battery theft and vandalism at our base stations continues to be a huge challenge for the telco sector. Although incidents of battery theft and vandalism have been stable in some regions with no significant increase in the amount of incidents being experienced, in September alone our operations in KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Northern Gauteng regions recorded the highest number of attempted thefts, each accounting for 40% or more of such incidents. These criminal activities cause disruptions to network services, resulting in frequent downtime for customers. The consequences go beyond the costs of repairing and restoring infrastructure. They have a significant impact on communities that depend on connectivity as a vital lifeline," says Johan van Graan, Chief Risk Officer at Vodacom Group.

Cellular base stations often serve as the only form of connectivity for many communities, especially in remote areas of the country. When these sites are vandalised or batteries are stolen, hundreds of thousands of residents are left without connectivity. This not only affects individuals and small businesses but also has serious consequences in emergency situations when making a call can be a matter of life and death. As a result, Vodacom loses circa R100 million to vandalism and battery theft each year. For instance, the cost of restoring connectivity after such incidents can cost up to R100 000 per site, depending on the extent of the damage and location. This is money that could otherwise be invested in network upgrades and rural expansion.

"Incidents of battery theft have been stable with no significant increase in this financial year. We attribute this to multiple factors which include, but are not limited to, the increase of site hardening where sites become more of a security vault to protect the infrastructure from thieves, cementing the batteries in vaults and installing concrete cubes to house batteries, to the use of hi-tech security technologies deployed on sites to detect and deter the criminal elements. Our community engagement initiative, where we have partnered local communities and work with police to serve as monitoring personnel to help safeguard our sites, has yielded positive results. Critically, our partnership with private security companies and law enforcement agencies has been a major contributor in preventing break ins and led to successful arrests of criminals and prosecution," adds Van Graan.

Critically, as the prices of copper has increased substantially, a wave of copper theft is sweeping South Africa, dragging the country into a crisis that has affected the electricity grid, and critical services such as hospitals, railways and telco services in parts of the country. As a result of this, the telco industry is experiencing increased incidents of cable theft, leaving thousands unconnected for days.

"With the world experiencing a shortage of copper, a key component in many electrical products, cable theft is now having a major impact on local telco operations. It doesn’t help that scrap metal dealers have suddenly cropped up everywhere and with little intervention and regulation around cables, making this crime easy cash for criminals," adds Van Graan.

Vodacom has intensified its defences on all its sites including by investing on new cutting-edge technology and has adopted the use Artificial Intelligence to support the security layers for early detection which have accelerated the apprehension of criminal syndicates with no regard for the law. Crucially for Vodacom, the number one line of defence against site vandalism is the local community. Therefore, we urge anyone who sees suspicious activity around our base stations to report it to the police by calling our toll-free number: 0822419952 or SAPS on 10111.

"While we have invested significantly in boosting our security measures at our base station sites, we acknowledge that the fight against vandalism and theft is ongoing with crime syndicates finding new ways to carry out their illegal operations. That is why we are appealing to all stakeholders, from law enforcement to communities, to play a part in curbing these offences. As part of these efforts, we are collaborating with residents, community policing forums and encouraging community members to report criminal activity. Putting a stop to vandalism and theft is in the interest of everyone, ensuring uninterrupted access to the benefits of connectivity," concludes van Graan.

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