Hackers and Cybersecurity criminals have garnered a safety corner in Africa by hunting down big companies and Government authorities for some good amounts of money. A few years back, hackers were not as popular as they seem to be to date. To this core point, Kenyan banks and telcos are now filing new cyber security rules in a battle against online fraud.
The central bank which has so far suffered a massive loss of over $210 million in hacking attempts against banks and telecoms has now directed all payment services to develop new cybersecurity policies to be reviewed this month.
Deemed as a plan to tighten financial security amidst increased cyber attacks, Kenyan banks could be on the right track to save huge chunks of money lost to online criminals.
History of Cyber attacks in the East African region
In 2009, Uganda created the National Information Technology authority (NIRA) to oversee and regulation information technology services. However much, Kenya and Tanzania have just woke up from the deep sleep, Hackers robbed a total of $394 million in 2017 alone.
While Kenya lost at least $210 million, Tanzania by $99 million and least followed by Uganda at $89 million. Hackers reaped big from fresh grounds to a sense that Kenya’s central bank now wants fresh new cybersecurity rules implemented.
In the same fashion, the Kenyan national computer emergency response team & co-ordination center has been created to tackle all cyber-related incidents. To clarify the creation of a new cyber body and pull up of new rules, the central bank of Kenya released this statement in support of new measures.
The purpose of this is to create a safer and more secure cyberspace that underpins information system security priorities, to promote stability of the Kenyan payments system sub-sector; establish a co-ordinated approach to the prevention and combating of cybercrime
The progress of Kenya’s protection of critical data
Kenya hopes to improve the identification and protection of critical information in order to maintain public trust in the national payments system according to CBK. However, with new Cybersecurity rules to be implemented, the officials claimed this is an extra step in tackling all cyber-related crime with financial institutions developing new modules for this.
The board of directors and senior management of payments service providing institutions are expected to formulate and implement cybersecurity strategies, policies, procedures, guidelines and set minimum standards set for the institution. All these must be documented and made available for review by external auditors and CBK
As Cyber attacks continue to evolve in East Africa & Africa generally. A cross-country conference will be held in Kampala next month to tackle all cyber-related issues concerning the region. Although Kenya is now applauding its official steps towards the hard to locate hackers, the conference will be a common ground to tackle all cyber loopholes.
It’s to be noted that earlier last month Uganda pulled off a suicidal move on social media. Even though many users bypass it with multiple VPNs, OTT tax is a gradual move to eliminate hackers in the overall equation in relation to Kenya’s move. Nevertheless, Banks and Telecoms like Safaricom now have less than a month to conquer their fears with new cyber rules by CBK.