The High Court of Kenya has issued a landmark ruling restricting the reassignment of inactive mobile phone numbers, declaring them part of an individual’s protected digital identity.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, March 19, Justice Lawrence Mugambi ruled that registered mobile numbers are closely tied to personal data and private affairs, and must be protected under Article 31 (c) and (d) of the Constitution.
The case arose from a petition arguing that recycling mobile numbers without safeguards exposes users to privacy breaches, as such numbers are often linked to sensitive personal information.
“A mandatory order is hereby issued, directing the Attorney General, within six months… to take all necessary and appropriate measures to safeguard digital identity associated with the registered mobile telephone number against unfettered deactivation, and subsequent arbitrary reassignment or recycling,” the ruling stated in part.
The court directed the Office of the Attorney General to work with agencies including the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner and the Communications Authority of Kenya to develop measures protecting users from unauthorized reassignment of their numbers.
Under the ruling, mobile numbers can only be reassigned under strict conditions.
This includes obtaining informed and verifiable consent from the previous owner, issuing public notice, and conducting thorough verification to confirm the original user cannot be reached or has relinquished the number.
The court also ordered the introduction of technical safeguards to prevent exposure or transfer of personal data linked to previous users.
The issue of prisoners was also addressed, with the court noting that inmates often lose access to their mobile numbers due to long periods of inactivity during incarceration. This, the petitioners argued, exposes them to privacy violations when the numbers are reassigned.
Justice Mugambi directed the Attorney General, in collaboration with the Kenya Prisons Service, to develop regulations within six months to protect prisoners’ digital identities. The measures are expected to ensure that numbers registered before incarceration are preserved for use after release.
Where preservation is not possible, the court ordered that systems be put in place to allow prisoners supervised access to maintain or update their mobile registrations in line with the law.
The court further warned that if the directives are not implemented by September 19, 2026, all reassignment or recycling of inactive mobile numbers will automatically be suspended to protect constitutional privacy rights.