Loan Apps are Charging Up to 1800% Interest Rates and Accessing Your Gallery and Contacts

Man, these online loan apps were straight-up wildin’. Charging people, what, 1,800% interest? That’s cartoon villain stuff. And then snooping through people’s photos and contacts like some nosy ex? Gross. Apparently, folks were just trying to borrow like five thousand rupees—probably just to grab groceries or whatever—and boom, suddenly they’re drowning in debt. One of the NCCIA guys basically said people just wanted to eat and ended up getting trapped instead. Classic.

Anyway, the SECP—those are the finance watchdogs in Pakistan—kind of dropped the ball at first. Back in 2020, they let these companies in without even basic rules. No strings attached. Wild. But now they’ve finally woken up, slapped a 100% cap on interest rates (still feels high, honestly), and told the apps to keep their grubby hands off people’s private data. Oh, and apparently, they’ve nuked over 90 percent of the scammy apps. Took ‘em long enough, but hey, better late than never, right?

Man, these loan scams are everywhere—not just lurking in sketchy mobile apps, but popping up all over social media too. You’ve probably seen those cheesy “interest-free loan!” ads on Facebook or Insta, right? Earlier this year, the SECP actually had to tell people to watch out because scammers were out here slapping big, trusted company names on their fake ads, just to sucker folks in.

Here’s how they get you: after you bite, they’ll hit you with all these “fees”—processing, registration, insurance, whatever nonsense they can think of—or they’ll beg for your personal info. And then poof, as soon as you pay up or spill your details? Ghosted. No loan, no nothing. Just your wallet a little lighter and your trust in humanity a little shakier.