Combating Cybercrime and Fraud in Tanzania: A Critical Assessment of the Legal Framework and Enforcement Challenges

Abstract

The expansion of Information and Communication Technology in Tanzania has transformed banking, commerce and public administration, but has also generated a marked rise in computer-related offending, particularly fraud perpetrated through mobile money and other digital financial services. This paper critically assesses Tanzania’s legal and institutional response to this phenomenon, centred on the Cybercrimes Act 2015 and reinforced by the Electronic and Postal Communications Act 2010, the Personal Data Protection Act 2022 and related financial-sector legislation. Adopting a doctrinal research design and drawing on statutory analysis and the leading precedent, Jamii Media Company Ltd v Attorney General and Another, the paper argues that while Tanzania’s statutory architecture is formally comprehensive and comparable to international benchmarks, its practical effectiveness is undermined by constrained investigative capacity, unresolved jurisdictional limitations, an unresolved tension between investigative power and constitutional privacy protections, and the distinctive difficulties posed by mobile money fraud. The paper concludes with targeted recommendations for strengthening enforcement, judicial capacity and cross-border cooperation.