IGF 2021 WS #39
Threat Intelligence and Cyber Cracks in African Banking

Businesses of all types, sizes and in all locations are at real risk of a cyberattack at any given moment. The World Economic Forum approximates that from 2019-2023, at least USD 5.2 trillion in global value be at risk and therefore imperative to defend business. This estimation has been exacerbated by a mass online exodus as a result of Covid-19 global public health measures such seen in widespread lockdowns even within Africa.

Africa which has mostly been a consumer and market of foreign technologies dominating and running industries such as the telecoms with companies such as Airtel from India, Orange from France, Vodafone from the UK among others has started to face similar challenges of cybersecurity.

In Africa, the functionality of telecoms stretches to mobile financial services which integrate with banks and the fast emerging Fintechs. Financial inclusion is a far-reaching challenge in developing countries. The 2017–2018 After Access survey conducted in 10 African countries indicates that while bank account ownership is almost universal in developed countries, less than a third (29%) of Africans living in the surveyed countries own a bank account. Majority of African emerging economies, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, are said to be the fastest-growing digital payments market in the world. In fact, the development of mobile technology has paved the way for Africa’s fintech revolution where South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya account for 65.2 per cent of Africa’s fintech startups with Uganda closely emerging in influence.

The dynamics and requirements for telecoms to leverage their focus on the expanded scope of risks in Africa is quite higher than in other regions; thus, proactive defense and cybersecurity response plans have to be top priority given the broadened surface for risks in this industry.

Subsaharan Africa has a well interconnected telecom backed infrastructure i.e mobile money giant Mpesa which has boosted financial inclusion to underserved groups and the instant access of finance resources at a domestic level consolidating development of communities, These innovations are locally operated and not owned, the translucent nature of it’s governing structure has left cracks in it’s efficacy security wise, Reports of data breaches, Privacy deterioration and increasing fees to fully utilize the system has raise new questions that need fast answers as the demographic matures and is underserved we aim to analyze what’s available and critically build a virtuous secure circle of safer, equally distributed affordable payment infrastructures.