E-Business
Why Employee Collaboration is Key for Cybersecurity
By Emmanuel Asika
Many will hate to admit it, but it seems that, perhaps, it has become quite lucrative these days to be a cybercriminal. Firstly, it is a thriving business. For instance, according to the FBI, there was a 207% increase in in reported case of cybercrime reports between 2008 and 2021, and almost $7 billion (₦3,223,080,000,000) in losses last year.
In Nigeria, the peril of cybercrimes recorded a massive rise in the first six months of 2022, “with phishing and scams hitting 174%”.
According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) well over 2,800 persons were convicted of cybercrimes in the country last year, and the Consumer Awareness and Financial Enlightenment Initiative (CAFEI) has projected a $6 trillion loss by 2030 to cybercrime within and outside Nigeria.
Secondly, it has no entry requirement – yes, it is that easy and, quite cheap. Imagine this – the typical cost of compromised remote access credentials costs about ₦2,302 and can simply be bought on the dark web.
Cyber crooks use these passes to access their prey’s enterprise networks. A report, The Evolution of Cybercrime, showed that 75% of advertisements for malware and 91% for exploits costs less than ₦4,604.40. Some years ago, it was much more expensive. For instance, as of 2009, cybercriminals paid well over ₦3.6 million for a standard malware kit.
Worse still, it has become increasingly easier than ever before for these hackers to work together in a specialized and concerted secretive supply chain.
They have built fortes, proposing unique services like hiring of huge botnets to convey a customer’s preferred malware to thousands of targets, or hackers-for-hire who take full advantage of the destruction caused by ransomware – spreading an invasion of weak points in a network.
The result of all these is that workers in scattered workplaces around the globe are now in more danger than ever before. The unclear distinction between private and work devices means that hybrid staff are not always shielded by enterprise defenses, thus the risk of attacks is always there.
But there is a way out, and it lies with the employees who are usually the first line of defense, and they must work together. With computer crime now a part of how we do business, and growing, the only way to beat criminals is collaborating with one another to defend ourselves.
Knowing your enemies’ strategy
Hackers the world over betray trust in daily interfaces and exchanges online, mostly via emails, to gain access to systems. It is a known fact that email remains the most common means for hackers to secure illegal access to networks, and once they are in, they try to monetize their access—deactivating the group’s backups, stealing delicate information, and installing ransomware.
The effect of such violation can be grievous, leading to operational interruption, repairs, affect an organisation’s name, and lead to exposure of trade secrets and loss of intellectual property.
As a result, corporate groups and their employees must work together to fortify their lines in this highly increasing risky atmosphere.
Setting up your protective line
First, all employees must be conscious of the methods of hackers and promptly report any suspicious behaviour. They must also understand their respective roles in the defense of their organisation’s cyber systems.
The employers, on their part, must back these endeavors by inspiring a positive security culture where employees are given clear instructions to be watchful for phishing and IP protection, ask for help, collaborate on ways to advance cyber safety, and teach coworkers and family members.
As a group, companies and organisations should place emphasis on understanding the basics, constantly working on their resilience, and acting as a team to lessen their risk of exposure. Quality security begins with IT asset detection – you can only protect the devices, software and systems being used by your workers.
The next thing is to adhere to best practices in susceptibility management and multidimensional authentication, while putting in place the personnel, procedures, and know-how to spot, thwart, and recover from likely attacks. This entails anticipating and planning for the most unpleasant of scenarios, executing procedures to reduce supply chain and insider risks, and rehearsing your response.
Such rehearsal drills are not only important in getting you ready for the real attacks when they come, but also helps to expose hitherto unknown problems and inspire process improvements.
An organisation can also exploit the advantages of its security investments by closing known common attack routes, especially malware sent via email and the web, which can be nullified using prevention technologies like the hardware-enforced isolation of HP Sure Click Enterprise.
Such solutions help protect systems not by detecting malicious activity, but by allowing staffs to undertake normal daily routines, including risky undertakings like opening of email attachments safely and shielding IT departments against unidentified threats.
Collaborating with industry peers
Cyber security is a collaborative endeavor. Organisations can confidently strengthen the kind of actions and habits they will like their staff to adopt by vigorous and regular awareness sessions and exercises tailored to their needs.
A good example is HP’s recently released noir–inspired cybersecurity training film for its employees. This will help the organisation build a security culture, with staff encouraged to individually manage risks.
It must be pointed out too that these collaborations should not only be internal (within organisations), but also with other players in the industry. Such external cooperation, including sharing of threat intel, will help the organisation to gauge its cyber security strength and performance, equip it with current information on cybercrime trends and risks, and how best to stay ahead of cybercriminals in the current year, and in years to come.
Emmanuel Asika is Country Head, HP Nigeria
Meta, a multinational technology company, has informed advertisers that it will begin applying new location-based fees to certain advertisements delivered in six selected jurisdictions starting July 1, 2026, as the company moves to offset costs linked to digital services taxes and other regulatory charges.
In an email sent to advertisers, the company explained that the new charges will apply to ad impressions delivered to audiences in specific countries, regardless of where the advertiser’s business is based.
“Meta will soon apply new location fees to ads delivered in specific jurisdictions to cover digital service taxes (DST) and other location-based fees imposed on Meta in those jurisdictions,” the company said in the mail.
According to the notice, the fees will be applied to ads delivered in Austria (5%), France (3%), Italy (3%), Spain (3%), Türkiye (5%), and the United Kingdom (2%).
The company added that these rates and jurisdictions could change over time.
Meta described location fees as additional charges tied to where ads are delivered rather than where the advertiser operates.
“Location fees are additional charges that may apply to ads delivered in selected jurisdictions to cover part of the costs associated with doing business in those jurisdictions,” the company said.
The company noted that the charges will be calculated after ads are delivered and will not be deducted from campaign budgets.
Meta gave an example in the email: if an advertiser spends $100 on ads delivered in Italy, where the location fee is 3%, the final cost would be $103, excluding any applicable value-added tax.
Explaining the reason for the change, the company pointed to regulatory developments affecting technology platforms.
“The cost of delivering ads in specific jurisdictions is changing due to the evolving regulatory landscape, including digital services tax legislation. Until now, Meta has covered these additional costs,” the company said.
The company added that the move aligns with broader industry practices, noting that other digital platforms may introduce similar charges linked to digital service taxes.
Meta said the location fees will apply to all ad formats, including image and video ads, as well as campaigns such as WhatsApp click-to-message ads that are billed together with advertising.
The fees will appear on invoices with clear descriptions by jurisdiction, such as “Italy digital services,” the company said, adding that taxes like VAT will still be applied on top of the total amount.
Advertisers were advised to review the affected ad accounts and share the update with their finance, procurement and marketing teams to prepare for the changes.
Tizeti Network Limited, West African broadband provider, has launched an advertising-supported internet platform across its hotspot network in Nigeria and Ghana, allowing users to watch short video adverts in exchange for data access.
The system converts advertising engagement into internet connectivity, offering users the option to view a short video advertisement to unlock data without paying upfront.
Tizeti said the platform is now active across all its hotspot locations in the two countries, covering residential areas, campuses, commercial districts and other high-traffic urban locations.
The service runs on Google Ad Manager’s rewarded web advertising technology, which allows users to voluntarily watch advertisements and receive data rewards once the video is completed.
At a hotspot location, users connect to the network as usual but are given the option to watch a short advert in exchange for a defined amount of data. Those who choose to participate can repeat the process to earn additional internet access.
The company said the approach creates a value exchange between users, advertisers and network providers.
Users gain internet access without immediate payment, while advertisers reach audiences who have actively chosen to view their messages.
“Internet access is a fundamental driver of opportunity,” said Nsikak Asuquo, West Africa manager at Tizeti Network Limited.
“By rolling out reward-based internet access across Nigeria and Ghana, we are expanding connectivity without financial barriers while offering brands a high-engagement platform to reach more than 2.5 million active users,” he added.
Tizeti said participation in the advertising programme is voluntary and operates under its privacy policies, with data handled in compliance with the Nigeria Data Protection Act and Ghana’s Data Protection Act.
The launch comes as Africa’s digital advertising market expands rapidly. Industry projections suggest programmatic advertising spending could exceed $5 billion on the continent by 2028 as brands increasingly shift marketing budgets online.
By integrating Google’s advertising infrastructure directly into its hotspot network, Tizeti aims to turn public Wi-Fi locations into scalable digital advertising channels while widening access to the internet.
Advertisers will be able to buy ad placements through Google Ad Manager’s ecosystem, including open auctions, private deals and programmatic guaranteed campaigns.
Tizeti said its hotspot network serves more than 2.5 million active users across Nigeria and Ghana.
The company provides broadband services using a mix of fibre infrastructure and public Wi-Fi networks, targeting communities, schools and businesses across the region.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is partnering with Nkenne AI, a local artificial intelligence (AI) company, to develop language translation technologies tailored to the country’s diverse linguistic landscape.
There are more than 500 languages spoken nationwide, however many digital systems in Nigeria still operate primarily in English, leaving millions underserved.
NITDA and Nkenne AI have partnered with the ambition to improve accessibility and inclusion across Nigeria’s digital economy.
Nkenne AI’s chief executive, Michael Odokara-Okigbo, said the company is building localised AI translation tools designed for critical sectors, including healthcare, financial services and public administration.
According to him, these tools should enable users to interact with digital platforms in indigenous languages, thus improving accessibility and trust.
It’s not just a Nigerian challenge however, language barriers remain one of the biggest obstacles to technology adoption across Africa.
Beyond translation, the partnership between NITDA and Nkenne AI also seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s startup ecosystem by promoting responsible data practices and supporting emerging AI ventures.
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