Businesses to Lose $100 Billion to Cybercrime in 2019.

The President of the Accra Chapter of the Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), Mr. Carl Sackey, has disclosed that the world is estimated to lose $100 billion in cyber fraud in 2019, if nothing is done as a matter of urgency to control the global canker.

He hinted further that, before 2017, Africa alone was losing an estimated $1.078 billion a year, and expressed worry that the figure could be much higher next year.

He has, therefore, charged businesses, organizations and financial institutions in the country to explicitly come out and divulge information, share experiences and report on any form of attack(s), breaches or threats they might have suffered as a result of activities of cyber-criminals so others too can take steps to forestall any future occurrence.

The ISACA boss averred that in order for businesses and institutions to be protected, it behooves on stakeholders, including government and the media, to be committed towards vigorous public education and awareness creation in a bid to help improve knowledge.

Mr. Sackey made this known in an interview with THE PUBLISHER on the sidelines of the just-ended 6th IT Governance Summit (ISACA Accra chapter) at Ada.

“Technology actually brings efficiency and helps us to focus on the core businesses that we want to achieve as humans. It is fast changing and seemed to be driving everything that we do; therefore, there’s the need to increase awareness on its knowledge. But it has to be a shared responsibility of all stakeholders, including the government and the media as well”.

Delivering his keynote address on the topic: “Strengthening the Cyber Resilience of the Financial Banking Sector”, Mr. Sackey charged businesses, organizations and financial institutions in the country to be proactive rather than being reactive to malicious threats.

He suggested that, in case of any eventuality, organizations should ensure that they can recover from such attacks within reasonable time through effective Incident Response, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity plans to protect the interests of end-users and customers.

The two-day summit, which was under the theme: “Value Delivery in the Changing Cyber Security Landscape”, drew over 100 participants from both the private and public sectors, including the GRA, ECG, COCOBOD, GWCL, Telcos, Banks and the Land Commission.

It was aimed at highlighting the importance of technology through open conversation, and also eliminating the threats that can arise out of the use of technology as a tool.

Observers believe the recent hack on Facebook, which affected nearly 50 million users, confirms the claim that cybercrime is really on the ascendancy.

By: Daniel Akpaloo Nyorngmor, Ada