E-Business
ISACA Endorses Hackess Security Conference
As the first ever ICT Security Conference in sub Saharan Africa tagged ‘Hackcess 2014’ holds tomorrow in Lagos, the Abuja chapter of the global ICT security body ISACA said it endorsed the Conference for the impact it would have on the Country’s IT space.
ISACA previously known as the Information Systems Audit and control association is a global body of professionals in the information systems security arena.
ISACA provides guidance and sets benchmarks for the effective use of information systems.
One of the association’s key focus is in its definition of the roles of information systems governance, audit, security and assurance of its professionals worldwide.
In Nigeria, ISACA is the accepted body for all professionals aiming to build effective careers in Information Systems Security.
In line with the Hackcess security conference, the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, the organizers have decided to focus on the theme “IT Security and the different shades of the (Hack) – the emerging Africa challenge”.
According to organizers of the event, ISACA Abuja Chapter’s support and endorsement of this conference confirms some of the goals and objectives of the conference.
These objectives are to bring together top Information security experts in one room to discuss the burning issues and challenges across the network that affects individuals, corporate bodies and government parastatals.
Nigeria and by extension the African continent is indeed going digital in every way.
There is a lot of data that moves across the internet at every second.
How safe is the technology behind these applications, what are the human errors that need to be mitigated upon to ensure that this growth in technology in sub Saharan Africa creates the right development and growth for the economy?
Hackcess shall seek to address these issues and more at this conference.
All IT professionals in both private and public establishments are invited to participate at this conference to take place at the Eko hotels and Towers on Thursday June 5 2014.
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has launched an investigation into allegations that the confidentiality and integrity of candidates’ personal data may have been compromised by hackers.
The Commission initiated the inquiry following concerns over possible data breaches during examinations.
Preliminary findings indicate that several examination centres may not have implemented adequate technical and organizational measures to safeguard candidates’ personal information, as required under data protection regulations.
Although the incident reportedly affected 379, 997 candidates, the NDPC’s investigation is poised to cover a systemic audit of data processing and third parties.
It will be recalled that JAMB recently admitted that a technical error on its platform affected a total of 379,997 candidates in 157 examination centres across Lagos and the South-East.
Further investigation led to the arrest of at least 20 suspects who are currently in the custody of the Department of State Services and the Nigerian Police Force.
Cyber security firm, Kaspersky, has once again warned that sophisticated cybercriminals increasingly target Africa as ransomware and advanced persistent threats (APTs) escalate across the region.
Speaking at the company’s annual Cyber Security Weekend for the Middle East, Turkiye and Africa (META) region, the cybersecurity firm’s Global Research and Analysis Team highlighted growing digital threats affecting African nations.
Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa emerged as hotspots, with Kenya recording one of the highest web threat incident rates at 20.1% in first quarter 2025.
“While ransomware is less prevalent in Africa due to lower levels of digitisation and economic constraints, countries like South Africa and Nigeria are seeing a sharp rise in attacks,” said Sergey Lozhkin, head of META and APAC regions at Kaspersky.
Kaspersky noted a 0.01 percentage point increase in African ransomware cases year-on-year, reaching 0.41%, still below global and Middle Eastern averages, but a troubling sign for the continent’s emerging digital infrastructure.
Experts warned that attackers are refining their tactics, shifting focus to unconventional entry points like IoT devices, smart appliances, and misconfigured hardware.
“As these economies expand digitally, sectors such as manufacturing, finance and government are becoming key targets,” said Lozhkin
The cyber-crime landscape is evolving quickly, fuelled by AI tools and dark web access to large language models, which enable less skilled actors to launch convincing phishing and malware campaigns.
Groups like FunkSec, which uses AI-generated code and a low-cost ransom model, are redefining ransomware operations.
“African organisations face the dual challenge of expanding digital footprints and limited cybersecurity awareness. This makes layered defense strategies, including network segmentation, real-time monitoring and regular staff training, essential,” stated Lozhkin
Kaspersky continues to monitor 25 active APT groups in the META region, including SideWinder and MuddyWater, some of which are known to target African institutions.
To bolster defenses, the firm recommends using tools such as its free Anti-Ransomware Tool for Business and the Kaspersky Next suite for threat visibility and response.
Nigeria recently launched a new joint case team to step up its response to cybercrimes that affect people and businesses at home and abroad.
The ‘Joint Case Team on Cybercrime’ brings together Nigeria’s key justice and security agencies to work as one, making it easier to detect, investigate, and prosecute digital offences.
It is supported by the UK National Crime Agency, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Commonwealth Secretariat, as part of a wider effort to promote international cooperation on cybercrime.
Speaking at the launch in Abuja, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN, minister of justice and attorney general of the federation described the initiative as “a bold and transformative stride in Nigeria’s justice system.”
He said that although Nigeria has a national legal framework to address cyber offences, laws alone are not enough.
Nigeria is among the countries most affected by cybercrime around the world, with increasing financial losses.
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