LTA Defends LoneStar Cell-MTN

Following reports of alleged service providers tapping on consumers’ wires to monitor their conversations, the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA) has denied such claims which appeared in a local daily, linking the Lone Star Communication Corporation.

In a statement issued Thursday, the LTA noted that it was not aware of any such act, adding that any service providers caught tapping on private communication lines will be dealt with under the laws of Liberia.

The LTA said a communication company could only be authorized by a court of law to monitor the conversation of individuals in connection with high profile state offenses, among others. But recent reports have levied that journalists and others’ communication lines have been tapped by the Lone Star Cell Communication which has since been denied.

LTA at the same time has warned against any such practice, as it is against the Liberian Communication Act of 2007. However, the LTA did not include whether it has launched a prior investigation into the allegation and what were the findings.

The Lone Star Cell which is one of the strong competitors in the communication corporation here has in recent times been accused of monitoring customers’ lines.