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Work From Home Increased Internet Fraud Cases — Communications Authority of Kenya

January 6, 2021

The Communications Authority of Kenya is hinting that the work from home policy adopted by most companies in Kenya in the heat of the coronavirus pandemic might have brought about increase in the number of internet scam. According to the quarterly sector statistics report covering July-September 2020 released by authority, a sharp increase in cyber threats during the period was experienced, with 35.1 million incidents detected, representing a 152.9 percent jump.

Internet fraud

‘‘This increase in cyber threat attacks detected was attributed to the move to working remotely and increased uptake of e-commerce in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,’’ notes the report in part.

Online Bullies Had A Field Day

According to the authority, of the 354 requests received by the National Computer Incident Response Team/Coordination Centre (National KE-CIRT/CC) from investigative agencies, 36.2 percent being attributed to online abuse, 27.4 percent linked to online fraud while 1.7 percent was related to child online abuse.

‘‘Cyberbullying and Internet trolling cases were also on the rise, with these being used for malicious intent across Kenyan domains and social media platforms,’’ reads the report.

The Authority said, in response to the incidences, it issued 21,785 advisories to various stakeholders.

“The period witnessed a decrease in impersonation cases, which is attributed to increased awareness campaigns to the public across the print media, television, and social media platforms, geared towards protecting digital footprints, as well as the operationalization of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, which is a deterrent measure,’’ it noted in the report. 

Work from Home Kenya

Read also: Telecom Operator Moov Benin Becomes Moov Africa

$6.7 Billion In Mobile Money Transfers In Just Three Months

According to the authority, the total value of KSh. 735 billion ($6.7 Billion) were transacted in the three months to September 2020.

The value of customer-to-business transfers during the period was an increase of 64.8 percent compared to the preceding quarter.

‘‘As was the case last quarter, the values transacted on mobile money platforms continued to increase with the adoption of cashless payments aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19,’’ notes the report.

In the same period, there was a 41.7 percent increase in the payments for Government services with KSh. 12.3 billion transacted up from KSh. 8.7 billion in the previous quarter.

Read also:Seven Online Banking Security Tips for Africans

The total value of deposits also went up by 40.1 percent to stand at KSh.888 billion up from KSh. 634 billion registered in the April-June period.

The period also saw 713.9 million person-to-person transfers valued at KSh.896 billion.

The number of mobile money agents and mobile money subscription agents also went up by 9.8 and 4.2 percent to stand at 245,124 and 31.8 million subscriptions respectively.

Mobile And Internet Subscriptions At An All-time High

The increased demand for ICT services during the COVID period also saw the number of active mobile subscriptions increase to 59.8 million up from 57 million, pushing the mobile (SIM) penetration to 125.8 percent.

Total data/Internet subscriptions increased by 4.8 percent to stand at 43.4 million with mobile data subscriptions accounting for 98.5 percent of the total subscriptions. The positive growth of data/Internet is attributed to increased dependence on digital platforms for work, learning, healthcare, shopping, and entertainment.

During the same period, the total used international bandwidth went up by 14.2 percent to stand at 3,697.62 Gbps up from 3,238.21 Gbps in the previous quarter.

The ICT sector is expected to continue evolving rapidly with tech innovation, digital transformation, and enhanced connectivity in the country.

‘‘As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage the world, the importance of a robust and inclusive digital economy, together with reliable broadband services is imperative,’’ notes the report.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Internet Fraud Hits Kenya Hard – $300 Million Stolen

May 20, 2019

Internet fraud is hitting Kenyan businesses hard. The case was worst in 2018, according to a new report by cybersecurity firm Serianu.
Over Sh29.5 billion was lost to cybercrime and related activities last year as criminals stepped up attacks on banks, Saccos and government agencies.

Key Breakdown Of Facts And Figures

  • The funds were lost through direct theft or indirect expenses linked to cybercrime. 

  • Financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies, and micro-finance institutions were the most affected group.

  • Government agencies also topped the list of targeted institutions as criminals sought out critical personal data to exploit.

Also See: Kenyan Loan Guarantors May Soon Be Hard To Be Sued

  • KSh230 million was lost through personal computer fraud

  • KSh100 million through business emails — an attempt to trick someone into giving information over the Internet or by email that would allow someone else to take money from them.

  • KSh70 million through fake cheques, and;

  •  KSh66 million in identity theft.

  • Sh97 million and Sh72 million was lost through hacking of transaction channels and identity theft respectively.

“From our survey, we estimated the cost of cybercrime in Kenya at Sh29.5 billion for 2018, which is 40 per cent increase from the Sh21 billion reported over a similar period in 2017,” explained Serianu Chief Executive Wiliam Makatiani.

Internet Frauds

While it seems a field day for the internet fraudsters, one important point to note here is that it appears that instruments of law, policies and regulations are proving less effective in the efforts to check online frauds in Kenya.

Just in 2017, the Central Bank of Kenya issued a guidance note on Cyber Security to public institutions. 

Among other things, the guidelines provide for the minimum requirements for businesses to prevent cybercrime, one of which is interestingly, that the members of the board of a company should understand cybersecurity matters and possible threats to the business.

Boards of companies are also expected to establish or review cybersecurity risk ownership and management accountability and assign ownership and accountability to relevant stakeholders; the coverage should include relevant business lines and not just the IT function. 

The Central Bank of Kenya also demands that companies perform regular checks to ensure they are safe from cyber theft.

And it doesn’t seem the institutions in Kenya have failed to comply.

In fact, the report said that financial players, including banks, insurance companies and Saccos, spent Sh6.4 billion on protective measures.

Government agencies and private service providers, including telcos and sports betting companies, on the other hand, spent Sh5.9 billion and 4.8 billion respectively. According to Serianu, while more companies are reporting cybercrime attempts and even losses, many cite the lack of adequate personnel as the biggest challenge to complying with industry standards.

Graph of Nationality of Victims
(c) ResearchGate

Earlier in 2019, Kenya’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) released the names and faces of more than 100 individuals linked to the theft of millions of shillings from several commercial banks in Kenya.

Communications Authority of Kenya (CA)’s data shows that cases of online theft aimed at both individuals and institutions over the last quarter of last year increased by 168 per cent.

Malware attacks recorded a 400 per cent increase from 1.8 million between July and September last year to nine million recorded between October and December, with a majority of cases targeting smartphone users.

“The quarter saw an exponential increase in the number of malware attacks as well as the number of misconfigured systems,” said the CA in the latest sector statistics report.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh, a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organisations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

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