Creating a secure cyberspace is a must action

Ghana this week is hosting over 800 cyber experts, politi­cians and other stakeholders in global cyberspace to deliber­ate and build capacity on cyber resilience.

The two-day Global Confer­ence on Cyber Capacity Building (GC3B) is organised to raise awareness of the importance that every nation has the expertise to invest in their digital future, and to encourage countries to work together to ensure a free, open and secure digital world.

The cyber situation in Ghana like any other country around the globe appears to be creating con­cerns for governments, organisa­tions and individuals.

The world has definitely reached a momentous digital era which invariably touches every aspect of our lives. It enables us to connect, work, learn and trav­el, and plays an important role in safeguarding life essentials such as food, water, and healthcare.

These huge opportunities also come with digital risks that we need to be aware of. All of us. Governments. Businesses. Aca­demia. Society at large.

According to research findings by the Internet Crime Complaint Centre’s Internet Crime Report in the United States of America conducted in 2018 Ghana has one of the highest rates of cy­bercrime in the world, ranking seventh.

The most popular form of cybercrime in Ghana was identified as cyber fraud which was typically achieved via credit card fraud.

The proliferation of cyber­crime in Ghana really began in the early 21st century when the Information and Communica­tions Technology (ICT) sector became liberalised via a 5-year accelerated development pro­gramme, helping to expand and improve telecommunications infrastructure.

This led to a five percentage point increase in internet users from 2000 to 2011, with home internet subscribers reaching three million nationwide.

This growth in internet usage, along with technological devices made available via e-waste, led to a significant increase in cyber­crime due to the relative ease of access to the cyber web. Initial­ly, credit card fraud was by far the most common cybercrime. However, since 2004, other types of cyber fraud and other cybercrimes have become more popular.

In recent years, Africa including Ghana has seen a rapid prolif­eration of digital technologies, especially in the areas of financial technology and e-commerce. The COVID-19 pandemic, for example, played a role in this, creating the need to provide the possibility of remote working for many employees. In 2021, 43 per cent of Africa’s population of 612 million people had internet access.

There were 23.05 million in­ternet users in Ghana in January 2023 Ghana’s internet penetra­tion rate stood at 68.2 per cent of the total population at the start of 2023.

What’s more, there is huge potential in the African continent regarding technology, especial­ly due to its young population: about 60 per cent of Africa’s population in 2020 was under 25 years old. This factor encourages the use of new technologies. Ac­cording to the 2021 study by the

2021 study by the Global Sys­tem for Mobile Communications, the number of unique mobile subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa will reach 615 million by 2025.

Furthermore, estimates for the entire region indicate that the number of Internet users will exceed 1 billion people by 2023. The Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa aims to ensure that by 2030 every inhabitant of the region will have stable access to the Internet.

Key sectors of the economy, including finance, education, agriculture, government, security, and manufacturing, are actively adopting digital technologies and transitioning their operations to online platforms. In accordance with the Digital Transformation Strategy for the country.

Despite that significant success, the Bank of Ghana estimates that cyber fraud cost Ghanaians more than $4 million in direct financial losses in the first half of 2023. In 2021, cybercrime cost Ghanaians $9.4 million, according to a Bank of Ghana report

Globally, the cybercrime dam­age costs predicted in 2023 is eight trillion USD a Year which is 667 billion a month.

Cyberattacks can lead to events that are intolerable for businesses and governments, such as halting of business operations, large-scale theft of funds, and leaks of confidential data.

It has been established by cyber experts that the financial sector attracts the most criminals, with 18% of all attacks targeting organisations within it. This is firstly because criminals are pri­marily interested in financial gain, which, coupled with the relatively low level of security of these companies, makes them attrac­tive targets. Moreover, financial organisations store large amounts of customer data, including payment information, allowing attackers to use stolen informa­tion for further attacks on users.

Identified cybercrime in Ghana is said to include many criminal activities, such as ransomware attacks, email and internet fraud, and identity fraud, as well as at­tempts to steal financial accounts, credit cards or other payment card information.

The effectiveness of adopted cybersecurity measures should be regularly tested to assess the performance of the strategy and defences.

The government of Ghana in its quest to ensure a secured cyberspace established the Cyber Security Authority (CSA) by the Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) to regulate cybersecurity activities in Ghana.

It is also worth considering participating in bug bounty pro­grammes so that external security researchers can find new vulner­abilities. This will help detect and eliminate vulnerabilities before attackers can exploit them.

It is against this backdrop that the hosting of the first Global Conference on Cyber Capacity Building dubbed “GC3B” by Ghana is most welcome.

This is viewed as a momentous one for the international com­munity because cyber security has become an important global concern, and this conference will help foster collaboration among 800 global leaders and organisa­tions.

This is because in today’s global cyberspace, no nation is an island, and it is through these collective efforts that the world can build resilience against current and emerging cyber threats.

The urgent need for global leaders, experts and organisations to share knowledge, experienc­es, insights and solutions to the global cyber threats that tran­scend all borders.

A Cyber Awareness pro­gramme is needed to influence behaviour by focusing on actions that authorised users can engage in to mitigate threats and vulnera­bilities to information systems. A conscious effort must be made to reinforce best practices to protect classified, controlled unclassified information.

To ensure a free, open, and se­cure digital world, every country should have the resources, knowl­edge, and skills they need to invest in their digital future. Na­tions should work together and support each other with these capabilities so that no country is left behind in their digital evolu­tion. After all, a chain is only as strong as the weakest link.

It is fascinating that Ghana is hosting this important confer­ence that is expected to lay the foundation for a more secure and cyber-resilient future.

BY NANA SIFA TWUM (PHD)

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