The owner of a vehicle has raised the red flag over the safety of the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA's) Transport Integrated Management System (TIMS) platform after his account was allegedly hacked by fraudsters.
In a letter served by his lawyer Sylvester Mbithi of Javier Georgiadis and Sylvester Law LLP, the motorist revealed that the scammers, who gained access to his account, illegally transferred his motor vehicle, Toyota NZE, without his knowledge and approval.
The driver explained that he was in the process of selling the vehicle to a prospective buyer who was finalising a Ksh500,000 balance to complete the purchase.
Due to this delay, the car remained registered under the driver's name.
In the letter, he asserted that investigations indicated that a transfer had been initiated and was pending the issuance of the logbook.
Suspecting foul play, the vehicle owner, without substantiating, accused NTSA officials of colluding with the fraudsters to carry out the crime.
"Attempts by our client to log in to his account on the platform shows that a different mobile number older than his is the one to receive log in codes yet he has never applied to change the mobile number and neither is he aware of the said number appearing on his dashboard," read part of the statement.
Lawyer Mbithi argued that his client was unable to access his account on the portal for services including; the intended application for registration of a new motor vehicle.
The motorist promptly issued a three-day ultimatum to NTSA, demanding the restoration of the TIMS account from the fraudsters, the cancellation of the purported illegal transfer of the vehicle, and assurance that the client's account would be safeguarded against future risks.
"Take Notice that unless our demands are met within the next three days from the date of this letter, we have firm and irrevocable instructions to move to court and secure our client's rights including holding you liable for any losses incurred as a result of your transgressions without any further reference to you whatsoever," the motorist said.
NTSA's TIMS platform offers several services including; vehicle registration, inspection, driving license application, renewal, vehicle ownership transfer, payment of fines among others.
After opening an account, all codes and passwords are sent to the account holder. NTSA maintains that such information relating to the account should not be disclosed to any other party.
