Engineer Lanre Ajayi is the president, Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) and former president, Nigerian Internet Group (NIG).
He is also the managing director of Pinet Informatics. Ajayi started his career with Nitel where he worked for 11 years before starting Pinet Informatics as part of his contribution to the development of the sector. Today, Ajayi wears many caps at both national and international IT bodies.
Ajayi spoke to peter ugwu on the sidelines of threats to internet usage in Nigeria and the potentials when well guarded.    

Potentials of the Internet
Some people would say ‘The Internet is everything’, and that is why my company’s slogan has been ‘Internet for everyone’.
Truly, the internet is everything and for everyone. In the contemporary society, it is linked with virtually our daily activities; therefore, we perform things better, faster and more efficiently today because of the enablement of the internet.
There is obviously, nothing one cannot do online. The experiences of what the internet can do are evident in e-governance, e-health, e-commerce, e-banking/e-payment, e-learning, in fact, anything you can think of, today.
Due to the efficiency of online business, it benefits both the service provider and the agent or client. They both benefit from cost efficiency, time management in delivery of services, so I cannot imagine a limit to what can be done with and through the internet. The potentials are almost unlimited.

The Content Issue
Yes, for the fact that we have not utilized opportunities provided by the internet though content development, then it has formed a tool in the hands of fraudsters.
Originally, the internet was not meant for defrauding people; just like the guns that were meant for hunters to kill animals, but currently, guns kill more human beings than animals.
Likewise, the internet is being hijacked by cyber traitors and they will continue to threaten the system until we begin to develop the appropriate content that will channel people’s minds away from the antics of the fraudsters.
Finding solution to the impasse is educating people; internet users, drawing their attentions to the appropriate opportunities that lie in the internet.
Most fraudsters on the internet, primarily, want to make ends meet. Their focus gets diverted to making money through illegal means. But if they are shown the positive ways of making, even, greater amount of money via the internet, we will be doing ourselves much favour.
I am sure they would want to go in the right direction, the onus is on us as stakeholders in the information and communication technology sector to lead the crusade; to show our youths the right path to follow, and that is my providing them with the tools to write applications or develop acceptable contents for the internet.
When the opportunities are there and bottlenecks are removed the system-administrative, financial, political, regulations, and others, then the coast will be clear for them to sail.

Cyber Security Bill
Some people may argue that the rate of cyber threats in Nigeria does not in any way equate the number of attacks in the United States or Europe.
To me, there are enough cyber attacks that should make government that is the National Assemble, rise up to the challenge, especially by giving the cyber security bill an accelerated hearing.
The ‘419’ messages, or scam mails, physic mails aimed at intercepting innocent internet users information, bank account, personal details, credit card personal information numbers (PIN), etc., are top cyber threats we see today.
Companies’ websites and data banks are been compromised on daily basis. These require urgent and adequate attention. 
Today the ‘419ers’ are known world over as perpetuating ‘Nigerian mails’, which is a huge dent on Nigeria’s image in all areas. If that is not contained, it will rubbish Nigeria’s yarning for foreign investors.
Presently, it threatens the relationships between Nigeria and other business community. That in no man way constitutes a clog on the wheel of the nation’s development.
The increase constitutes a lowered standard of living because it will affect the economy and no nation will progress without a progressing economy.
So, government has a role to play likewise industry players to round up these criminals among us; they are sabotaging our efforts as a nation.
We should not just assume there is no cyber attack in Nigeria or that it is minimal. There are enough reasons for us to be worried.
We need to be proactive in preventing other attacks from happening and react quickly to the existing incidents…

Delayed Cyber Security Bill
Actually, that is not enough. We need the cyber security bill to come on stream. However, I will not premise required actions expected from the government, on the Bill.
We have other laws that can be used at the interim to punish offenders and serve as deterrent to others.
Once caught, the person is a criminal, the medium of committing the crime does not count much hence the crime has been established. It is a criminal offence.
So, we do not have to necessarily wait for the Bill to start fight against cyber crimes. The Bill may help, but not a pre-requisite to combating the crimes.
How about the technological know-how, software, skilled manpower needed to fight the criminals, are they been engaged?
The present criminal laws in Nigeria I do not believe excluded internet frauds; let us enforce the existing laws while expecting the new ones.

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Solutions, Aside Laws
The basic way to tackle this challenge is through public education. The way the National Orientation Agency (NOA), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other agencies spread information about voter education, fight against HIV/AIDS, and other health related challenges, we can adopt such measure in educating the layman on the importance of shunning cyber laws.
On the other hand, ICT experts have the role of showcasing the expertise that will attract the mind of the youths off the route.
A lot of people are into the fraudulent act for the sheer lack of awareness on the alternate (good) use of the internet.
And the crime fighting government agencies should hype news on how criminals were nabbed, prosecuted and jailed or punished.
If people know they can be rounded up and prosecuted, no matter where they may hide to perpetuate the act, the fear of maximum punishment awaiting them can discourage the person form continuing.
But in a situation whereby one is caught and give a slap on the wrist as punishment how will you discourage others?
The few successful prosecutions we have should be stressed on to showcase event to the international community that we are serious about the fight against internet fraud. More importantly, public education on the good use of the internet should be looked at.

Place of the Government on Internet Content Development
Well, government has rolled out several measures to redirect and refocus to the youths and the industry towards harnessing those potentials we are talking about, but I have not actually felt the impact.
May be we should wait a little while to see how the programmes, roadmaps and policies unleashed, especially the present administration, impact on the system.
Presently, we have programmes for software developers, which is a sub-sector that will pull some youths off the street.
So, the lauded programmes should be transformed to productivity. And I believe if we conduct the impact analysis of those measures it could lead to revisiting the policies or drafts that constituted them for better strategies and results.

The Internet and Entrepreneurial Opportunities
Most millionaires today are people who tapped into the openings available on the internet. They are into software development, online trading, researching, and other services.
The entrepreneurial opportunities available there are huge but Nigerians are yet to harness them in full.
We can point at companies like Konga.com, Jumia.com and few others that are offering online services, but there are areas that are lying fallow.
However, with the environment become favourable companies will definitely come into that.

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