When you first open Aware, it asks for permission to read your SMS messages. That’s a big ask. This post explains exactly what happens when you tap Allow — and what doesn’t.
What Aware reads
Aware reads SMS messages from two senders:
- MTN Mobile Money — the official MTN MoMo sender ID
- Airtel Money UG — the official Airtel Money sender ID
Every message from these senders contains a transaction record: an amount, a recipient or sender name, a reference number, and a timestamp. Aware parses those fields and adds the transaction to your on-device ledger.
That’s it. Two sender IDs. Nothing else is read.
What Aware never touches
Your messages to friends and family are never accessed. Messages from your bank, your boss, or anyone else are never read. Aware filters at the SMS inbox level — it only requests messages where the sender ID matches the two MoMo providers.
The code that does this filtering runs entirely on your device. There is no server involved.
Where your data goes
Nowhere. Aware stores your transaction data in an encrypted SQLite database on your phone. It doesn’t upload it, sync it, or share it. We have no servers that hold your financial data. If you delete the app, your data is deleted with it.
Why this matters
In Uganda, mobile money is how most people move money. Your MoMo history is a complete picture of your financial life. We take that seriously. The permission model is designed so that you can trust Aware with the minimum required access — and nothing more.
If you have questions, email us at hello@useaware.app.