Kenya records about 3,000 cyber-related crimes per month

A Kenyan cyber security expert is warning of the need to regulate internet use and management, especially because the use of social media to malign people was as much a national security issue.

“Anything good needs to be used in moderation. There is a danger of utilizing these facilities in a manner that will affect national security and malign someone’s name and reputation,” Paul Roy Owino, president of Information Technology, Security and Assurance (ISACA) is reported to have said.

According to him, Kenya records about 3,000 cyber-related incidences on a monthly basis according to tallies by an organization tracking internet security. The infractions ranged from banking fraud, money transfer (M-pesa) and interference with personal data by hackers.

He added that internet banking has also been adversely affected because hackers and fraudsters were able to obtain personal and organization data, the more reason why there was the need to up the ante in respect of protecting digital platforms.

“There is a need to thoroughly protect our digital platform. Data and personal information is getting into the wrong hands. Like in a month, we have received between 2,000-3,000 cases of cybercrime and they range from hacking of personal data, Mpesa transactions and banking fraud,” Owino said.

He further revealed that ISACA had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the sector ministry with the main aim of ‘‘planning to conduct ICT audits, train law enforcement officers and continuously share intelligence and research documents we get from the government and private sector so that we can be able to curb this vice.’‘

“Currently we are in discussions with the ministry to ensure that there is a legislation that will formally recognize ISACA as a regulatory body in the country and we will ensure that those who do IT audits are in good standings and certified by this body,” he added.

A summit held in South Africa in March 2016 discussed issues relevant to cyber security at an industrial as well as the national level. Other issues like IT Security infrastructure, Increase in e-Commerce Platform-specific Malware, cyber security skill development were also discussed with a pool of ressource persons from around the continent.

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— Crises Control (CrisesControl) June 8, 2016