Need for information on Covid-19 led to spike in Cyberattacks in sub-Saharan Africa – cyber security experts
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The desperate need for information regarding Covid-19 and remote working has left Sub-Saharan African businesses vulnerable to cybercriminals. Cybersecurity expert at Mimecast, Mikey Molfessis, tells the Business hour, “detections of impersonation attacks, known and unknown malware, spam and blocked clicks increased by 41% in sub-Saharan Africa from 2019 to 2020”, and the situation does not appear to be improving. With the implementation of the newly greenlit versions of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) coming in June 2021, Molfessis, stresses the importance of businesses investing in tightening their cybersecurity.
He says when a company is faced with a cyberattack, this results in reputational damage. Clientele realize that handing over their data to an organization that is vulnerable to hackers is problematic to say the least. Furthermore, Molfessis says their studies reveal that it takes, roughly three days for an organization to retrieve hacked data from criminals, resulting in a loss in productivity. He says this ultimately translates to a loss in money as well, because businesses are unable to process certain transactions or access key information during the attack.
He says when a company is faced with a cyberattack, this results in reputational damage. Clientele realize that handing over their data to an organization that is vulnerable to hackers is problematic to say the least. Furthermore, Molfessis says their studies reveal that it takes, roughly three days for an organization to retrieve hacked data from criminals, resulting in a loss in productivity. He says this ultimately translates to a loss in money as well, because businesses are unable to process certain transactions or access key information during the attack.
