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Suffer a Data Breach; Lose up to One Third of Your Customers

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Astonishing findings from RSA’s recent survey in the UK showed that 28 percent of customers have elected to boycott companies that have been shown to mishandle personal data.

 

RSA is a global cybersecurity leader with consulting and technology solutions that empower firms by providing a holistic view of cybersecurity needs in order to reduce risk and rapidly respond to incidents.

 

“South African businesses should be prepared for similar consumer trends in the near future,” believed Anton Jacobsz, managing director at value-added distributor, Networks Unlimited Africa, which delivers the full range of RSA solutions to the local market.

 

“Consumers are becoming increasingly aware and sensitive about how their service providers use their personal data, and for those organisations that suffer high-profile data breaches, there is a very real possibility that customers will ‘vote with their feet’.”

The RSA survey goes on to reveal that the majority of consumers (57 percent) have no idea how many times their personal data may have been placed at risk, given the flood of headline-grabbing cyber-security breaches over recent months.

 

GDPR and PoPI

While analysts estimate that only about a tenth of all breaches are reported to the public, this is about to change, as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) finally kicked in on 25 May.

 

“For businesses operating in the EU, or even for local businesses that provide services to EU citizens, the new laws will ensure that any and all data breaches are disclosed within a 72-hour period,” explained Jacobsz.

 

GDPR is enshrined in European Union law, giving it automatic credence among all member states. It seeks to harmonise data protection regulations throughout the region, placing stringent rules on how organisations gather and use individuals’ personal data, increasing levels of transparency, giving individuals greater control over how their data is used, and ensuring mandatory disclosure of any breaches.

 

Under GDPR, companies could face fines of up to 20 million euros, or four percent of annual turnover, which shows the gravity of the issue for large businesses in particular. In South Africa, the pending arrival of our own incoming legislation, the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), expresses a very similar intent to GDPR. Many legal experts believe that achieving compliance with GDPR should essentially imply compliance with PoPIA, once it is enacted.

 

Staying on the right side of the law

 

So just how can organisations set about ensuring compliance with both PoPI and GDPR?

 

“As a global company, RSA has completed a considerable effort to ensure that it prepares organisations for GDPR – identifying gaps, improving readiness, evaluating risk, meeting compliance and rapidly respond to incidents,” said Jacobsz.

 

“To cater for such broad-reaching compliance requirements, organisations must address cyber-security and data protection at an overall enterprise level,” he adds.

 

“RSA’s approach incorporates both advisory and technology services, addressing the entire lifecycle of solution fulfilment – from strategy and design, to deployment and operations management.”

 

While organisations must comply with new legislation, they also cannot halt progress on key digital programmes and transformation projects. To ensure that their digitisation journeys can proceed safely, RSA takes a business-focused approach to one’s cyber-security strategy, ensuring it is aligned with the company’s strategic objectives.

 

Seven practices to ensure comprehensive defences

 

In a recent white paper, RSA details the seven key practice areas that it has established to provide comprehensive threat mitigation and ensure regulatory compliance:

 

Risk management… Tailoring global best-practices to the unique elements required for the foundation of a firm’s holistic risk management programme, including various assessments and stakeholder mapping exercises.

 

Identity assurance… With identity management at the core of all security programmes (and representing the biggest threat vector), it’s critical to design iron-clad identity management policies and technologies.

 

Advanced cyber-defence practice… Identifying gaps, prioritising risks and designing programmes to improve defences, integrate solutions, provide deep visibility, detect advanced threats and reduce mitigation time.

 

Incident response practice… By combining early detection and rapid response, organisations can close the gap between an initial breach and an attacker being able to carry out their objectives.

 

Professional services… The technology deployment expertise to ensure that organisations gain maximum value from their investments in RSA technology sets.

 

Research… With a heavy emphasis on R&D, the security solutions from RSA continually adapt to the ever-changing threat landscape and keep pace with new legislation (such as GDPR), while training services help customers to enhance overall awareness and optimise their cybersecurity capabilities.

 

Enterprise-wide security programme management… to pull it all together, teams of cybersecurity experts analyse an organisation’s overall threat posture, continually making recommendations to further strengthen one’s security practice.

 

“The risks of data breaches – for both local and international companies – are enormous,” summarised Jacobsz, “ruining an organisation’s reputation, destroying customer trust, and exposing them to heavy regulatory penalties.”


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E-Business

Galaxy Backbone Celebrates the Federal Government’s Paperless Civil Service Milestone

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Galaxy Backbone (GBB) aligns with and celebrates the successful announcement by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation on the achievement of a Paperless Civil Service, a significant milestone in Nigeria’s public sector reform and digital transformation agenda.

The milestone was formally highlighted at a press briefing led by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, who commended Galaxy Backbone for its sustained support and contribution throughout the implementation of the programme.

GBB has played a critical role in enabling this transition by providing secure, scalable, and shared digital infrastructure that supports the digitisation of government processes across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). Through the 1Government Cloud, MDAs have been empowered to migrate from paper-based workflows to digital platforms, improving efficiency, collaboration, data security, and service delivery across the Federal Civil Service.

In addition, GovMail, GBB’s secure government email platform, has strengthened official communication, enhanced records management, and reinforced cybersecurity standards—key pillars in sustaining a paperless operating environment.

Galaxy Backbone acknowledges the collective efforts of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Permanent Secretaries, Directors of ICT, consultants, partners, and dedicated public servants whose commitment and collaboration ensured the smooth delivery of this initiative.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Galaxy Backbone, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, was represented at the press briefing by Akintayo Bamisaye, Acting Group Head, Research, Digital Innovation and Skills Department (RDIS).

GBB describes the achievement as a strong close to 2025 and reaffirms its commitment to supporting the Federal Government in building a modern, efficient, and digitally enabled public service.


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Jumia CEO says Black Friday Signals Nigeria’s E-Commerce Maturity

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At the close of 2025, Temidayo Ojo, the CEO of Jumia Nigeria, reflected on a year-end shopping season that points to the growing maturity of the country’s e-commerce market. “Black Friday is no longer a single, short-lived spike in activity,” he said.

“It has become a familiar, anticipated moment in the retail calendar, where consumers shop deliberately and with confidence.”

Preliminary KPIs for the two months ended November 30, 2025, show strong year-on-year growth in both orders and Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), with GMV growth outpacing order growth. This indicates that customers are placing fuller, more considered baskets rather than shopping in fragmented transactions. Nigeria ranked among Jumia Group’s better-performing markets, with engagement remaining steady throughout the Black Friday period rather than spiking briefly and tapering off.

A key factor behind this performance is the growing familiarity of consumers with online shopping. Customers are increasingly leveraging platform features such as saved carts, brand stores, and price comparison tools to plan purchases in advance. This trend suggests that digital commerce is becoming embedded in everyday habits rather than being viewed as a one-off event.

Ojo also highlighted the role of Jumia’s JForce network in connecting digital commerce to local communities. “Our agents are critical to ensuring that customers across Nigeria, including secondary cities and smaller communities, have access to variety, consistent pricing, and reliable delivery,” he said. “During peak periods like Black Friday, JForce agents can respond faster, serve more customers efficiently, and build stronger local relationships. This isn’t just a distribution channel—it’s a pathway to sustainable income and inclusion.”

Reflecting on the overall performance, the CEO concluded: “What we’re seeing this year-end is steady engagement across categories, stronger consumer confidence, and partners like our JForce agents benefiting from increased activity.

“It confirms that Nigeria’s e-commerce ecosystem is maturing, growing in a more structured and resilient way. As the December Holiday Sale continues, we expect these patterns of familiarity, trust, and participation to sustain momentum and drive both commerce and community impact across the country.”


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Galaxy Backbone Tops FG’s Website Performance Ranking

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Galaxy Backbone Limited (GBB) has been ranked first overall in the 2025 Federal Government Website Performance Scorecard.

Galaxy Backbone Tops FG's Website Performance Ranking

This is a landmark achievement for Nigeria’s digital economy.

The ranking, conducted by the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), is the definitive benchmark for digital excellence and transparency across all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).

Professor Ibrahim Adepoju Adeyanju, managing director and CEO of Galaxy Backbone, received the award during a ceremony in Abuja.

He described the feat as a validation of the agency’s“Nigeria First”data sovereignty strategy and its relentless pursuit of service excellence.

This recognition comes as the Federal Government intensifies its push to achieve a fully paperless civil service by December 31, 2025.

GBB has been the primary architect of this transition through its 1Gov Enterprise Content Management (ECM) platform, which now hosts the operations of almost all federal MDAs.

The award adds to a growing list of accolades for Galaxy Backbone in 2025, following its recent win of the “International Standard Excellence Award for Best IT Service Provider.”

As the central hub for government shared services, GBB’s performance serves as a blueprint for other agencies currently undergoing digital transformation.

With its expanded fiber-optic backbone now covering over 13 states and its secure cloud solutions, Galaxy Backbone remains the cornerstone of Nigeria’s vision to become a leading digital nation by the end of the decade.

 


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