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Computer Science and Engineerin g 2012, 2(6): 98-100
DOI: 10.5923/j.computer.20120206.03
Fighting Cybercrime in Africa
He nry Os born Quarshie1,*, A le x an de r Martin- Odoom2
1Lecturer Regent University College of Science & Techno lo gy, Accra,Ghana
2Lecturer School of Allied Health Scienc es,University of Ghana
Abs t ra c t Cyber threat is a big issue in Africa. A lo t of cybercrime emanates fro m the continent, and thr ea ts s pr ead ea s ily
because ma n y servers and computers are not properly protected. Africa , as a continent, is vulnerable to a range of online
criminal ac t iv it ies , including f ina nc ia l fraud, drugs and human trafficking, and terroris m. A De lo it te survey published by
BuddeComm, an independent research and consultancy company , in the year 2011, found that banks in Kenya, Rwanda,
Uganda, Tanzania and Z a mb i a alone had lo s t US$245 mill io n to cyber fraud wh ich is quite a lo t of money for countries
without a highly developed ban king systems. The aim of t h is study was to ass ess the efforts being ma d e by African countries
in fight in g cybercrime. Towards t h is direction, s pe c ific structures put in place by Ea s t and West African countries were
reviewed with Africa's capacity to win the fight against cybercrime as an overriding concern. The research revealed that the
way fo rward is for Africa to learn fro m the expe rience of developed countries in fighting cybercrime. The fight against
cybercrime requ ires coordinated effort among all stake holders such as government bodies, educational in s tit u tio ns , business
organizations and law enforcement authorities.
Ke y wo rd s Cybercrime, A fric a
1. Introduction
According to computer s ecu ri ty e xp e r t s , a lot of cyber
cri me e manates from the African continent, and th es e thre ats
spread e as ily because ma n y computer systems are not
properly protected. The fight against cybercrime requires a
cohesive and coordinated approach, but in Africa, poverty
and underdevelopment are the ma jo r causes for growth of
cybercrime in the region. The potential for internet abuse in
Africa is a ls o high. Th is is due to the lack of security
awareness programmes or specialised train in g for the la w
enforcement agencies. Many watchers are warning that
Africa is becoming a ma j o r source of cyber-crimes; for
example, Niger ia is ranked as the lea ding State in the region
as th e target and sourc e of ma lic io us internet a ct ivit ie s ; and
t his is spreading across the wes t African sub-region[4].
Cybercrimes are crimes co mmitt ed on the internet using
the computer as either a tool or a targeted v ict im[10].
Cybercrimes invo lve both the computer and the p ers on
behind it as victims, depending on which of the t wo is the
ma i n target. Hence, the computer could be looked at as either
a target or a too l[10]. Fo r e xa mp le , hacking in v o lve s
attacking the computer’s information and other resources.
When the individual is the ma in target of cybercrime, the
computer can be considered as the too l rather than the target.
These crimes generally involve les s technical e xp e r t i s e as the
* Corresponding author:
hquarshie@y ahoo.com (Henry Osborn Quarshie)
Published online at http://journal.sapub.org/computer
Copyright © 2012 Scientific & Academic Publishing. All Rights Res erved
damage done ma n ife s ts it s elf in the real world and hu ma n
weakness es are generally e xp loit ed .
The damage caused is large ly psychological and
intangible, making legal action against th e variants mo re
difficu lt . These are the crimes whic h have e xi s t e d for
centuries offline. S ca ms , theft and other fraudulent ac tiv it ies
have existed even b efo re the development of high-tech
equipment. The s a me c ri mina l has s i mp l y been given a tool
which increases h is /her potential pool of victims and makes
him all the harder to trace and apprehend. There are
numerous crimes of th is nature committed da ily using the
computer and the internet.
In achieving the aim of the study, assessing the effo rts
being ma d e by African countries in fighting cybercrime , the
authors interrogated the pervasive nature of the phenomenon
of cybercrime. Factors that contributed to the thriving s t ate
of th is kind of crime was looked at across the African
continent, cit in g the Ea s t and West African b lo ck s . The s tudy
sought to es t ab lis h the need for collaboration with developed
countries t hat achieved better re s ult s in the fight against
cybercrime.
Lac k of legal fra me wor k and the existence of weak
infrastructures for d ealin g wit h cybercrime in the s t ud ied
African countries ju s tif ies the need fo r such a study. The
involvement of top level government of fic ia ls , policy ma ke rs
and implementation groups mu s t be highlighted at all lev e ls
of discussion and coupled wit h cross-border collaboration, is
a ju s tifia b le route for success in fighting cybercrime.
2. Methods
99 Comp ut er Science and Engineerin g 2012, 2(6): 98-100
The paper interrogated the effo rts being ma d e by African
countries in fighting cybercrime. Th is research reviewed the
efforts being ma d e by Eas t and West African countries.
2.1. Efforts In Fighting Cybercrime In Eas t Africa
Ea s t A frican countries have scaled up effo rts to combat
cyber crimes through a mu lt i -stakeholder approach
involving the government, industry and civ il society
organizations. A cyber security management task force
chaired by Kenya has been coordinating a ct iv itie s aimed at
rooting out cyber crimes in the fiv e Eas t African Community
me mb e r countries. Th is taskforce deals with cyber security
at leg al, po lic y and regulatory levels.
A plan for the five East African states of Uganda, Kenya,
Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi to set up Computer
Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) to fight cybercrime is
under way , as countries concerned s eek to involve the
International Telecommunications Union's (ITU) help. The
Ea s t A frican Communications Organisations (EA C O)
Congress, an umbrella body of a ll f ive regulators, wil l pursue
ITU support for the establishment of the national
CERTs.[2][7]
The fiv e regulators wil l a ls o e st ab lis h a collaborative
fra mewo rk fo r the national CERTs at regional and
international lev e ls .
EA C O wi ll work to e s t ab lis h and harmonize Internet
security polic ie s and Internet laws in the Eas t African region.
EA C O has a ls o adopted a proposal fo r
telecommun ications operators to for m and run sectoral
C ERT S and no minate representatives to s it on national
CERTs.
The fiv e me mb e r states are each at different s t a ges of
developing th eir Internet la ws , but the law s will be uniform
across the board, with ju s t a few in-country pe c ulia r itie s
s t ickin g out.
Uganda's In te rnet s e cu rit y legal framework, fo r example,
has three s ets of draft laws -- the Ele ctron ic Transactions Bill,
the Computer Misuse Bill and the Elec tronic Signatures Bill.
All three pieces of leg is lat ion are in Parliament, due to be
acted on before the end of the year.
Uganda's Elect ro n ic Transactions (eTransactions) Bill is
meant to facilitate the development of electronic comme rce
in the country, and the Electronic Signatures (eSignatures)
Bil l will ensure transactions are carried out in a s ec ur e
environment. The Computer Misuse Bill s p ells out computer
misuse offences like unauthorized mod if icat io n of computer
mat er ia l[2].
2.2. Efforts In Fi g hting Cybercrime-Wes t Afr ic a
The firs t West A frican Cyber Cr i me Su mmit was
convened on 30th November, 2011 to 2nd December, 2011
in the Nige r ia capital, Abuja. The Su mmit, organized by the
Economic and F ina nc ia l Cr i me c o m mis s io n ( EFCC) in
collaboration with Unit ed Nat io n on Drugs and Cr ime
(UNODC), the Economic Community of West A frican
States (E COW A S) and M ic ros oft , focused on th e theme,
"The Fight against Cybercrime: Towards Innovative and
Sustainable Economic Development". Participants fro m a ll
over the world considered local and international cybercrime
strategies and p olic ies w it h a v ie w to strengthening
international cooperation and developing a regional road
map that tackles cyber cr i me and fosters economic
growth.[3]
Over 450 people were in attendance from ac ro s s the wo rld
including Togo, Guinea, Gu i n e a Bissau, Ga mb i a , Ghana,
Senegal, Ivo ry Co as t , Niger, Au s t ria , UK, France, USA,
Turkey, South Africa, UAE, Tu n is ia and Niger ia. Various
international and regional organizations we re present,
including Un ited Na tion on Drugs and Crime (UNODC),
Council of Europe (CoE), INTERPOL, US Federal Bureau
of Investigation, US Federal Trade Co mmis s io n , US
Department of Ho me l an d Security, Economic Community of
West African States ( ECOW A S) , European Un ion and
FRA NCOPO L.
The s u mmi t focused on how to:
• Po s itio n the fight against cybercrime as a national
priority to help the economic develop ment in the re g ion .
• Provide a p latf or m to develop capacity b uild in g w it h
scalable and s us t ain a ble resources.
• Strengthen tru st by developing partnerships among
various stakeholders at the national and international leve l;
government, civ i l society, academics, industry and
international organizations.
• Showcase best practices and case s tud ie s of partner
organization in combating cybercrime.[5]
One form of cybercrime that has become especially
associated with the region is the advance fe e fraud,
co llec tiv e ly known as " N ig eria" or "419" scams. Through
schemes s u ch as fake lo tt er ies , bogus inheritances, ro ma n t ic
relationships, investment opportunities or - infamously -
requests for assistance from off ic ia ls , scammers promise an
elu s iv e fortune in exchange for advanced payments.
In N ig eria , the federal government is fighting cyber
crimes in the country with the help of s o me security outfits,
part of which a re the Economic and F ina nc ia l Cr i me
co mm is s ion (EFCC), the National Security Adviser (NSA)
and Nig er ia Po lic e Forc e . Oth er actors in the fight a ls o
include Nige r ian Communications Co mm is s ion (NCC),
Department of State Service (NSS), National Intelligence
Agency (NIA ), Niger ia Computer Society (NCS) and
Niger ia Internet Group.
World Ban k and M ic ro s o ft Corporation had als o enjoined
the National Assembly to pass the Cyber Cr i me Bill in an
effort to reduce the rate of internet fraud in the nation as it is
damaging to the i ma g e of the nation.
Among other actions was the creation of the Directorate
for Cy ber security (D f C) by Niger ian Cybercrime Working
Group (N CW G), as a permanent autonomous body within
the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The recently created computer Cr i me Prosecution Un it
(CCPU) for the O ff ice of the Attorney General by the
presidency is als o another act s et to curb cybercrime .
Henry Osborn Quarshie et al.: Fighting Cy bercrime in Africa 100
The D fC is mandated to i mp le me n t the National
Cyber-security In it iative (NCI). It ’s a ls o charged with the
re s po ns ib ility of dra ft ing a ll relevant laws fo r the protection
of computer systems and networks in the nation; such laws
would be passed by the National Assembly.
There has also b een a legal fra me work w it h the goal of
protecting crit ica l information infrastructure in Nig eria. The
leg is la tio n a ls o seeks to criminalize conducts against ICT
systems and conducts utiliz ing ICT systems to carry out
u nla wful/ i lleg al acts.[9]
In l in e with Ghana's a im of becoming the hub of the
information superhighway on the west coast of Africa, the
government in 20 08 passed the Elect ro nic Transactions Bill
to protect private rights of Internet u s e rs and owners'
websites.[6]
3. Conclusions
In Ea s t Africa, a tas kforce c o mp r is ing government,
industry and civil groups have been s et up to deal with cyber
security at the thre e le v els of legal, policy and regulation.
A ls o Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) have
been set up in five Ea s t African states to fight cybercrime
with other collaborative partners such as ITU and EA C O.
In West African countries, led by ECOW AS, p ol ic ies have
been in itiat ed in capacity- building, p rio r it is in g cybercrime
issues and developing networks across th e borders as a
defin it e way in fighting cybercrime.
The s tudy can confirm that cybercrimes have increased in
s o phis t ic at ion and frequency. Individuals, business
organizations and government bodies are all affected by
cybercrime. Cybercrime a ls o poses threat to the national
security and the co n tinent as a whole. Cyber attacks are a
recurrent phenomenon in A fr ica due to infras tructu ral, legal
and p olicy loopholes. Th ere is no clear leg is lat io n. So me
countries have not mad e the attempt to look at it yet.
The way fo rward is that, Africa should learn fro m the
e xp e r ience of developed countries in fighting cybercrime.
4. Recommendations
There is the need to develop a common platform to
address cyber security s inc e cybercrime c ros s es borders and
cannot be fought by one country. As a region, A f rica mu s t
begin to cooperate to deal wit h cyber threats at national and
regional le ve ls . A fr ica should es t a blis h a body to monitor
and rep ort cybercrimes across borders .
The approach should also involve governments, industry,
civ i l society organizations and to a large e xt e n t security
agencies. The fight against cyb erc rime requ ires coordinated
effort among all s t ake holders such as government bodies,
educational ins t it ut io ns , business organizations and law
enforcement authorities.
Lawmakers mu s t be well trained and sensitised to help
implement leg is lat ion that a d d ress es cyber threats at all
lev e ls ,
Africa needs strong In formation and Computer
Technology ins tit u t ions to train cyber security experts with a
strong e xp e r t i s e in system ad min is t rat io n, security audit,
forens ic investigation, information security and software
development to deal w it h the future challenges of
cybercrime.
REFERENCES
[1] Buddecomm A fri can Resear ch, T he fi ght Against Cy ber
Crime in Africa. www. buddeblog.com.au.2012.
[2] East Africa Seeks Joint Approach to Combat Cy b er Crimes.
www. hallafrica. com. 2012.
[3] Eccuni u, West Africa to Fi ght Cybercrime - Online
Computer Training C an Create IT Security Awareness,
www.Ez ineA rticles.com.2011.
[4] Fighting Cybercrime in Nigeria, www.thorpepodcast.wordpr
ess.com.2011.
[5] First regional event on combating cybercrime held in Niger ia ,
www.waccs.net.2011.
[6] Ghana News Agency, Fightin g cyber crim e in Africa. 2010.
[7] James Gashumba, East Africa region moves to curb cyber
crime, Budd ecomm Africa research. 2012.
[8] Jeff Lule. Africa joins fi ght a ga in st Internet crime,
www.newvision.co.ug. 2010.
[9] Jummai Umar-Ajijola, Citizenship M anager Le ad, Microsoft
Anglophone West Africa. Fighting Cy bercrime in Nigeria.
2011.
[10] The Indian Law Institute. Introduction to the cy ber world and
cyber Law. 2010.
