Alternative Africa

Top Menu

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Us

Main Menu

  • Home
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business
  • Environment
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Reports
    • Africa-Observers
      • Read Reports
      • Submit a story
  • MORE
    • Health
    • News Now
    • World
    • Technology
Sign in / Join

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account
Lost your password?

Lost Password

Back to login
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Us

logo

Alternative Africa

  • Home
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business
  • Environment
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Reports
    • Africa-Observers
      • Read Reports
      • Submit a story
  • MORE
    • Health
    • News Now
    • World
    • Technology
  • 33 year old Nigerian, Michael Nzube dies under police custody in India

  • Trial to begin for US policeman charged with George Floyd death

  • France to counter rising Chinese influence in Africa with generous, efficient aids

  • Zimbabwe reports impressive growth in production in 2020 despite Covid-19

  • Covax delivers 12 million vaccines doses to 17 African countries for vaccination

BusinessNews NowTechnology
Home›Business›Nigeria loses N127bn to cyber crime

Nigeria loses N127bn to cyber crime

By alternativeafrica
November 6, 2017
714
0
Share:

Cyber attack. Pic NAN

London, Nov. 6, 2017 (AltAfrika)-The President of Nigerian Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, says Nigeria has lost about N127 billion to cyber-crime.

He made this known at Nigeria’s first Legislative Stakeholders Conference on ICT and Cyber security on Monday in Abuja.

Saraki, who was represented by Senate Minority Whip Sen. Philip Aduda Saraki did not, however, specify the period within which the nation lost such an amount to cyber-crime.

He said the loss was indicative of the hole created in the economy by cyber-crime amounting to 0.08 per cent of the Gross Domestic product (GDP.

“It is indeed ironic that while internet penetration in Nigeria is tentative at best, hovering at just over the 90 million people mark, a percentage of 47.7 per cent, internet-facilitated crime seems to be growing. “Our cyber borders are very porous, indeed,” Saraki said.

He said efforts to revive the economy must necessarily include counter-measures to minimise the losses and shore up the country’s cyber security architecture to better repel attacks.

Saraki further said that cyber-attacks had in 2016 reached unprecedented level, globally with no sign of a downward trend.

“In recent times, we have seen the virulent use to which criminals and other shadowy agents have put the cyber space.

“The cyber ecosystem has been weaponised and manipulated to devastating effect to undermine democratic processes, influence voting in elections and whip up tension and divisions between societal groups.

“Over 200,000 cyber-attacks were recorded in one single day earlier this year all over the world.

“Major international financial institutions have had their systems crippled for up to 48 hours after being targeted by criminals using Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), among other methods.”

He said such attacks threatened economic activities, adding that personal data of millions of people were compromised by cyber criminals, who demanded the payment of ransom before hijacked data could be released.

“Kidnapping, already a scourge in the Nigerian physical space, is also becoming a problem in the virtual realm as ‘cyber-kidnapping’ of encrypted data poses a clear and present danger to our economic viability.

The Senate President described cybercrime as an ever-mutating monster, constantly growing new tentacles and taking on new formations.

“Not so long ago, one web-based Ponzi scheme succeeded in entrapping thousands of Nigerians with promises of quick gains.

“Investors were left counting the costs when the bubble burst, while those responsible moved on to new pastures. There was no accountability anywhere.”

He said that it was in light of all these challenges that the Senate sounded the alarm with a motion in May and resolved to, amongst other things, convene a national conference.

“It is essential that we come up with effective cyber-security management strategies based on existing legislative frameworks, while building on the work already being done by bodies like the Cybercrime Advisory Council.

He noted that “The ‘Stop. Think. Connect’ campaign initiative of the United States Mission was aimed at reducing cybercrime in Nigeria.

According to him, the effort also points to the need to share ideas and collaborate with international partners to reduce the impact of the borderless crimes of cyber-space.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on ICT and Cybercrime, Sen. AbdulFatai Buhari, said the advancement in Information and Communication Technology had accelerated the growth and penetration of mobile telephony and its associated multimedia services.

“It has led to increasing access to the internet and broadband services providing opportunities for finding detailed answers to millions of questions every day.

Buhari said it was estimated that cybercrime would cost businesses in the world over $2 trillion by 2019.

In his address, the Minister of Communication, Adebayo Shittu, said globally, ICT had become a veritable tool for advancing growth and economic diversification.

He said that a World Bank study carried out in 2014 showed that every 10 per cent in ICT investment generated a corresponding 1.38 per cent increase in GDP.”

Represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Abdulaziz Abdullahi, the minister said government had put in place new ICT strategic road map to improve the communication sector.

 I found this interesting

SHARE ON:
Previous Article

Nigeria Elected Vice Chair of the Conference ...

Next Article

Paradise Papers: Emefiele, Jim Ovia in £11m ...

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

alternativeafrica

Related articles More from author

  • News Now

    Nigeria: PTAD uncovers 24,021 ghost retirees from FG’s pension payroll

    May 27, 2018
    By alternativeafrica
  • AfricaHealthNews NowWorld

    We will support scientifically-proven traditional medicine for coronavirus cure-WHO

    May 6, 2020
    By alternativeafrica
  • HealthNews NowWorld

    France trains dogs to detect coronavirus in people

    May 3, 2020
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    S.African authorities ordered to pay $15 million over death of 144 patients

    March 19, 2018
    By alternativeafrica
  • AfricaHealthNews Now

    South Africa closes land borders as medics struggle to contain covid infections

    January 12, 2021
    By alternativeafrica
  • AfricaNews Now

    Egypt: Government commends decisive and brave actions by Saudi King over Khashoggi case

    October 21, 2018
    By VJ Africa

Leave a reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You might be interested

  • News NowPolitics

    Uganda: Gov’t struggles to contain pressure to free detained MP

  • BusinessNews Now

    Inclusiveness and community-level engagement crucial for AfCFTA’s success-ECA

  • AfricaBusinessNews Now

    Nigeria to receive 10 more coaches by November for rail revolution-Minister

Timeline

  • March 7, 2021

    33 year old Nigerian, Michael Nzube dies under police custody in India

  • March 7, 2021

    Trial to begin for US policeman charged with George Floyd death

  • March 7, 2021

    France to counter rising Chinese influence in Africa with generous, efficient aids

  • March 7, 2021

    Zimbabwe reports impressive growth in production in 2020 despite Covid-19

  • March 7, 2021

    Covax delivers 12 million vaccines doses to 17 African countries for vaccination

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • Lagos govt confirms first case of deadly coronavirus infection in Nigeria

    By alternativeafrica
    February 28, 2020
  • Keynote Address of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at 2018 Oxford Africa Conference

    By PSJ Africa
    May 14, 2018
  • Morocco begins regional integration by connecting Casablanca Airport with High Speed Train

    By alternativeafrica
    January 4, 2020
  • Kenyan govt pressure Facebook for data on Kenyan users

    By alternativeafrica
    November 20, 2019
  • Nigeria: 32,000 capacity Lagos rice mill to start production in 2020

    By alternativeafrica
    December 23, 2019
  • Ado zagi
    on
    January 12, 2021

    Nigeria: EFCC Academy to begin award of degree

    Diploma leave areply from
  • Ethiopia joins Africa's Artificial Intelligence revolution | Alternative Africa
    on
    October 2, 2020

    Spending on Artificial Intelligence Systems in Africa, Middle East to top $374 million in 2020

    […] Many African countries ...
  • The 5 most popular Africans 2020
    on
    September 25, 2020

    Celebrating Congolese doctor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the man behind breakthrough of Ebola cure

    […] Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two | taktik(z) GDI (Government Defense ...
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack fol­lowed a January ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack followed a ...
AlternativeAfrica.com is an independent Pan African News Website dedicated primarily to influencing the negative narratives about Africa. We hope to do this by focusing and showcasing the many developmental strides sweeping across the continent.

Read more >>>

Contact Info

  • info@alternativeafrica.com
  • Recent

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • 33 year old Nigerian, Michael Nzube dies under police custody in India

    By alternativeafrica
    March 7, 2021
  • Trial to begin for US policeman charged with George Floyd death

    By alternativeafrica
    March 7, 2021
  • France to counter rising Chinese influence in Africa with generous, efficient aids

    By alternativeafrica
    March 7, 2021
  • Zimbabwe reports impressive growth in production in 2020 despite Covid-19

    By alternativeafrica
    March 7, 2021
  • Lagos govt confirms first case of deadly coronavirus infection in Nigeria

    By alternativeafrica
    February 28, 2020
  • Keynote Address of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at 2018 Oxford Africa Conference

    By PSJ Africa
    May 14, 2018
  • Macron in Ivory Coast to launch anti-terrorism academy

    By alternativeafrica
    December 21, 2019
  • Kenyan govt pressure Facebook for data on Kenyan users

    By alternativeafrica
    November 20, 2019
  • Ado zagi
    on
    January 12, 2021

    Nigeria: EFCC Academy to begin award of degree

    Diploma leave areply from
  • Ethiopia joins Africa's Artificial Intelligence revolution | Alternative Africa
    on
    October 2, 2020

    Spending on Artificial Intelligence Systems in Africa, Middle East to top $374 million in 2020

    […] Many African countries ...
  • The 5 most popular Africans 2020
    on
    September 25, 2020

    Celebrating Congolese doctor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the man behind breakthrough of Ebola cure

    […] Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two | taktik(z) GDI (Government Defense ...
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack fol­lowed a January ...

Photostream

    Follow us

    • Home
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Contact Us
    © Copyright Alternative Africa 2019. All rights reserved.