How We Verify Contact Details

Every contact detail on ContactDetails.co.za is meant to send you to an organisation’s own official channel. This page explains where our details come from, what we will and will not publish, and what to do if you find something wrong.

Where our details come from

We only list contact routes that an organisation has published for the public to use. Our sources are, in order of preference:

• The organisation’s own website and its contact, complaints or legal pages
• Its official mobile app
• Published customer charters, regulatory filings and official notices
• Its verified social media accounts, where the organisation itself uses them for support

Directory sites, social media comments, adverts and search-result snippets are not sources. A number that appears only in places like these is not listed, however often it is repeated.

How a page is checked

• We read the official source directly and record the date we read it. Pages say, for example, “Every detail below was read from the official website on” a given date.
• We match each route to its purpose. Where an organisation publishes different numbers for sales, claims, complaints or fraud, the page says which one fits which situation.
• We flag conflicts. If an organisation’s own pages disagree, for example a number shown on screen that differs from the number behind its tap-to-call link, we say so rather than guessing which one is right.
• We say when we could not verify something. If no official website or number exists, the page states that plainly and points you to a safe alternative, such as your bank for an unknown debit order or the relevant regulator.

What we will not publish

• Personal numbers of private individuals. A cellphone number belonging to a person, rather than a business line they publish for the public, is personal information. We leave it out, whatever is circulating elsewhere.
• Numbers we cannot trace to an official source. Unverified numbers are how many contact-detail scams work, so we would rather publish nothing than publish a guess.
• Private booking lines for public figures unless the person or their official representative publishes one. For television personalities, we point to the broadcaster’s official channel instead.

When we remove or change a page

We take a page down, or redirect it to a safer page, when its details can no longer be trusted. Typical reasons are an official website that has lapsed or been taken over by someone else, signs that a listed number is being used in a scam, or an organisation that has merged into another. When a company is acquired or renamed, we point its page to the new organisation’s official channels.

Details change: check before you act

Organisations retire numbers, move to shared call centres and replace phone lines with web forms. Every page shows when it was last updated, but always confirm a route on the organisation’s live official website or app before you share personal information or make a payment. Never pay a “fee” to someone who contacts you claiming to represent an organisation, and never share a PIN, password or OTP.

Found something wrong?

If a number is out of date, a page points you somewhere unhelpful, or you think a listed number is being used in a scam, please tell us through our contact page. Include the page address and what you found, and we will review it. Our contact form reaches this directory only; we cannot pass messages to the organisations we list.

ContactDetails.co.za is independent. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or acting on behalf of any organisation listed on this site. Read more about us.