E-Business
KnowBe4 Warns Africa about Phishing, Social Engineering

A new report is forewarning Africa of phishing attacks and social engineering scams, saying one in three corporate employees on the continent is vulnerable to the crimes.
This is according to KnowBe4’s 2023 Phishing by Industry Benchmarking Report for Africa, which measures organizations’ “phish-prone percentage” (PPP).
Phish-prone percentage indicates the number of employees in an organization that are likely to fall for phishing or a social engineering scam.
KnowBe4’s report is based on data from over 12.5 million users across 35,681 organizations in 19 industries.
The results of over 32.1 million simulated phishing security tests are included.
This year’s report details international phishing benchmarks from North America, the United Kingdom and Ireland, Europe, Africa, South America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
In Africa, 412 organisations from South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Botswana participated in the phishing simulation tests, with a total of 337,937 emails sent.
The majority of these organisations (58%) were small (1-249 employees), followed by medium (26%, 250-999 employees) and large (16%, 1000+ employees) ones.
KnowBe4 – a security awareness training firm – says African business users had a lower baseline PPP than many other regions, meaning they were less likely to fall for phishing attacks before training.
However, their improvement after 90 days of training was also lower than in other regions.
After a year of ongoing training, African users achieved a 79.8% improvement in their PPP, showing the effectiveness of consistent security awareness education, says the company.
Anna Collard, senior vice president of content strategy and evangelist for KnowBe4 Africa, comments: “The report underscores the fact that while technology plays an important role in preventing and recovering from an attack, organisations cannot afford to ignore the human factor. The root cause of most data breaches can be traced to the human factor.”
The report shows that without security training 33.2% of employees across all regions and industries are likely to fall for phishing attacks or fraudulent requests.
Africa’s average was 32.8%, slightly better than the global average and much better than South America, where the average was 41.1%. Asia had the lowest rate of phishing – 30%.
Collard notes: “Africa’s baseline phishing security test results show that one out of three employees are likely to click on a suspicious link or email or comply with a fraudulent request before receiving training. This is very concerning considering that Africa has seen the fastest growth in cyber crimes in recent years, especially among small and medium-sized organisations.”
She adds: “These findings highlight the importance of ongoing, consistent cybersecurity awareness training and testing to achieve significant risk reduction. Simply warning users or having a once-off training session is not enough. Cybersecurity needs to be ingrained into the company culture.”
E-Business
South Korea Joins List of Countries Banning DeepSeek over Security Concerns

South Korean authorities have temporarily blocked new downloads of the DeepSeek artificial intelligence (AI) app, citing concerns over the company’s handling of user data.
The country’s Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) announced the decision on Monday, saying that the Chinese AI startup had failed to fully comply with South Korea’s data protection laws.
According to PIPC, DeepSeek recently appointed legal representatives in South Korea and admitted to partially neglecting regulatory considerations regarding user privacy.
“The Chinese startup appointed legal representatives last week in South Korea and had acknowledged partially neglecting considerations of the country’s data protection law,” the PIPC said.
The commission added that the app’s service would resume once the company implements improvements in accordance with national privacy laws.
According to Reuters, when asked about South Korea’s move, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry said the Chinese government prioritises data privacy and security, ensuring compliance with legal standards.
The spokesperson also said China does not require companies or individuals to collect or store data in violation of laws.
The ban follows similar actions by other governments.
On February 4, Australia prohibited the use of DeepSeek on government devices due to security concerns.
Italy’s privacy regulator recently blocked the AI service, citing the company’s failure to address data policy issues.
Taiwan has also warned about potential risks related to cross-border data transmission and information leaks.
Also, regulators in Ireland and France have launched investigations into DeepSeek’s data-handling practices.
DeepSeek gained global adoption for its advanced human-like reasoning capabilities and open-source model.
In January, it surpassed OpenAI’s Chatgpt as the most downloaded free app on the Apple store.
E-Business
AU Endorses Nigeria as AfCFTA Digital Trade Champion

The African Union (AU) has officially designated Nigeria as the Digital Trade Champion under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Digital Trade Protocol, citing the country’s leadership in digital enterprise and innovation.
The endorsement came at the 38th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, which concluded on Sunday in Addis Ababa.
Nigeria’s proactive role in advancing the digital trade protocol, adopted in February 2024, was a key factor in the decision.
The AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol encompasses eight annexes covering crucial areas such as rules of origin, digital identities, cross-border data transfers, online safety, and financial technology. The protocol is expected to provide a robust framework for Africa’s digital economy.
According to a statement issued on Monday by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, former President of Niger Republic and AU AfCFTA Champion, Mahamadou Issoufou, praised Nigeria’s leadership, particularly for convening the Digital Economy Roundtable in January.
“No organization, region, or continent has negotiated or adopted such a comprehensive legal instrument on digital trade, positioning the African continent to benefit from the digital economy for innovation and job creation,” Issoufou said in his progress report to the AU Assembly.
He also highlighted Africa’s growing influence in digital innovation, particularly in mobile banking and financial technology, and noted that the protocol would create an enabling environment for young African entrepreneurs.
“The AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade will establish a conducive environment for these young people to fully participate in Africa’s digital economy,” Issoufou added.
Reflecting on the roundtable in Abuja, he commended President Bola Tinubu and his administration for facilitating discussions with key stakeholders.
“The Roundtable was attended by young pioneers in Fintech, mobile banking and other areas of the digital economy. It was evident from the discussions that young people are eager to take advantage of Africa’s digital economy through the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade”, he said.
Speaking at the AU summit, Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, described the AU’s endorsement as a milestone in Africa’s economic development.
“Africa has demonstrated global leadership by pioneering the first-of-its-kind AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade—establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework,” Dr. Oduwole stated.
She emphasized that the protocol is a “game changer” for the continent, predicting that it would generate millions of jobs, contribute billions to Africa’s GDP, and attract significant investments in digital infrastructure.
E-Business
Schmidt, Ex Google Chief Says AI Risky in Terrorist Hands

Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO has expressed concerns about the extreme risks posed by artificial intelligence (AI) falling into the hands of terrorists or rogue states.

Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO
He warned that nations such as North Korea, Iran, and Russia could adopt AI technologies to develop weapons capable of causing significant harm, including biological weapons.
Schmidt urged governments to oversee private tech companies, emphasising, “The real fears I have are not the ones most people discuss about AI, I talk about extreme risk.”
“I’m always worried about an ‘Osama Bin Laden’ scenario, where truly evil individuals take control of some aspect of modern life to harm innocent people,” he added.
With private companies driving AI advancements, he stressed the need for careful government monitoring and regulation. “It’s really important that governments understand what we’re doing and keep their eye on us,” he said.
His remarks followed a two-day AI summit in Paris, where the UK and the U.S. declined to sign a communiqué outlining the future direction of AI. The declaration on “inclusive and sustainable artificial intelligence for people and the planet” was endorsed by 57 countries, including India, China, the Vatican, the EU, and the African Union Commission.
The UK justified its decision, stating that the agreement lacked “practical clarity” on global AI governance and national security concerns.
Schmidt supports U.S. export controls restricting the sale of advanced AI microchips to certain countries, aiming to slow adversaries’ progress in AI research.
He also highlights the importance of international collaboration on AI safety, suggesting that cooperation with nations like China is essential to addressing global AI challenges.
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