Businesses Asked To Invest In Cyber Security


Board Chairman of the National Information Technology Authority (NITA), Professor Nii Narku Quaynor, has urged businesses in Ghana and their counterparts across the world to make significant investment to tackle cyber crimes.

The Internet Hall of Fame pioneer made the call in a presentation on the state of cyber crime and cyber security in Ghana last Friday in Accra at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC).

‘Many organizations may not be investing in cyber security issues but they must begin to do so now,’ he said.

According to him, statistics by the E-Crime Bureau on cyber crimes in Ghana in 2014 indicated that about 217 cases of cyber crimes were recorded in the period under review.

He said cases such as email impersonations, email hackings, among others, were reported by individuals and private and public firms.

‘75% of the attacks had financial interest,’ he disclosed, adding that ‘there were also cases of sabotage or interest of damaging images.’

He indicated that homes and small businesses, large companies ‘are under great attack’ from criminals on the cyber space.

According to him, some businesses have fallen victim to cyber criminals partly due to their failure to constantly update their security softwares.

He said apart from investing in software update, businesses must at all times endeavor to conduct risk assessment to ensure that when they loss vital documents to hackers, the impact would not be huge on their operations moving forward.

Collaboration
He also called for effective collaboration between state agencies and private entities in tracking cyber fraudsters and/or criminals.

Prof. Narku Quaynor also called for the creation of cyber security awareness amongst internet users.

‘We have to build cyber security awareness among internet users,’ he urged, noting that ‘cyber security has become a collaborative initiative.’

Minister of Communications, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, reiterated government’s commitment to fighting cyber crimes in the country and reaffirmed the call for global effort in battling the menace.

He admitted that it has been a difficult task for government to crack down on cyber criminals, saying ‘the experience of fighting e-crimes in the country has not been an easy one.’

He hinted that the National Data Center would be completed by September, this year.

Meanwhile, the Founder of the E-crime Bureau, a cyber security specialist firm, Albert Antwi-Boasiako, has indicated that his outfit is at the forefront of addressing the challenges related to cyber crimes in Ghana and across the sub-region.

BY Melvin Tarlue
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