The Director-General of the Cyber Security Authority (CSA), Divine Selase Agbeti, has warned that cybersecurity must move beyond compliance to become a duty owed to every customer whose money and data is held by financial institutions.
Speaking at the launch of the 2026 National Cyber Security Awareness Month at CalBank’s head office in Accra, Mr Agbeti said the theme “Securing Ghana’s Digital Finance Ecosystem: Building Trust Through Collaboration and Cyber Resilience” reflects the growing cyber risks accompanying the rapid expansion of digital financial services.
“Cybersecurity cannot remain a compliance exercise done solely for the regulator, a technology project dedicated solely to the IT department, or an expense deferred until after an incident. It is a duty owed to every customer whose money and data you hold,” he said.
Citing the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 Fraud Report, Mr Agbeti said fraud cases recorded across banks, specialised deposit-taking institutions and payment service providers increased by 48 percent, from 16,733 in 2024 to 24,778 in 2025. Electronic fraud incidents in the payment service provider segment rose by 54 percent.
The CSA recorded 3,876 cybersecurity incidents between January and July 2026, with online fraud accounting for approximately 47 percent.
He urged banks, fintechs, payment service providers, insurers and merchants to procure cybersecurity services only from providers licensed or accredited by the CSA, in line with Ghana’s cybersecurity regulatory framework.
“The Authority will exercise the powers available to it when institutions or service providers disregard applicable cybersecurity obligations and put the public at risk,” he cautioned.
The month-long campaign, running from October 1 to 31, 2026, marks a renewed commitment by regulators, law enforcement, financial institutions and other stakeholders to strengthen cybersecurity, combat cyber-enabled fraud and build public confidence in digital financial services.
The launch also featured remarks from Director-General of the CID, COP Lydia Yaako Donkor, who highlighted recent law-enforcement successes, including a joint CID and CSA operation in the Tema area that resulted in 39 arrests, and a joint Interpol-coordinated operation that led to 68 arrests, the seizure of 835 devices, the identification of 108 victims and the tracing of more than US$450,000 in losses.
“Cybercrime may be borderless, but criminals are not beyond reach,” she said.
The Ghana Association of Banks Chief Executive Officer, John Awuah, said banks see themselves as frontline partners in combating financial fraud, stressing the importance of trust and coordinated intelligence-sharing.
“Trust is the name of the game. And as banks, our foundation is trust,” he said.
Delivering the keynote address on behalf of the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Deputy Minister Mohammed Adams Sukparu outlined five strategic pillars for the campaign: securing Ghana’s digital finance ecosystem, cybercrime prevention and response, cyber resilience and critical infrastructure protection, cyber hygiene and digital safety, and capacity building, research and multi-stakeholder collaboration.
“Let us build a Ghana where a citizen can make a digital payment with confidence, where a business can innovate without unnecessary fear, and where investors can have confidence in the resilience of our digital economy,” he said.
