Tech company partners ISSAN to raise awareness on cybersecurity

folarin okunola

October 25, 2016 4:57 PM

Panelists at the event concluded that to successfully reduce cyber threats and its effect, organisations have to deploy trusted technology.

L-R: Deputy Director, Banking and Payments System Department, Central Bank of Nigeria, Musa Jimoh; President of Information Security Society of African Nigeria, Dr. David Isiavwe; CEO, Digital Jewels, Adedoyin Odunfa; Director, Enterprise Partner Group, Microsoft Nigeria, Wale Olokodana and Cybersecurity Architect, Microsoft Middle East and Africa, Erdal Ozkaya during Microsoft Cybersecurity Summit 2016 held at the Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos recently.

Microsoft has called on individuals and organizations to pay needed attention to ensuring cyber security in the face of global cyber threats.

This call was made at a Cyber Security Summit organised by Microsoft in conjunction with the Information Security Society of Africa Nigeria (ISAAN) at Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos.

Dr David Isiavwe, President of Information Security Society of Africa Nigeria (ISAAN) noted that October has been declared as cyber security month all over the world, to engage with consumers in order to raise cyber security awareness.

Isiavwe hinted that cyber attackers are getting more sophisticated such that the number of days it takes to detect an attack has increased from about fifty-eight days three years ago to two hundred days.

He said, “There has been an increase in cyber-attacks over the last couple of years even as cyber attackers have devised new ways to successfully attack individuals and organisations. Statistics shows that Nigeria loses N128bn annually to cybercrime while about $500bn is lost globally.”

In his comment, Erdal Ozkaya, Cyber Security Architect, Microsoft Middle East and Africa stated that cybercrime is no longer a hobby, adding that it has grown into a big business and organisations cannot continue to leave their cyber-security to chance.

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“Addressing today’s threats requires a new approach. If you look at how security threats have evolved over time, you will find some disturbing trends. Enterprises that are used to attacks from individuals and small groups that were out for mischief or personal notoriety have been replaced by well-funded criminal organisations seeking profit,” Ozkaya said.

Ozkaya speaking how Microsoft is improving security in its products, said, “In Windows 10, we have made significant architectural changes many of which address tactics used in the attacks that you have been reading about or have personally experienced. These changes are not just defensive measures that present steeper walls for attackers to climb; they are improvements that take critical tactics off the table, in some cases entirely. To achieve this goal, Windows 10 takes full advantage of state-of-the-art hardware technologies to help protect user identities, information, and devices against hacking and malware threats.”

The Director, Banking and Payments System, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Dipo Fatokun represented by Mr Musa Jimoh stated that Cybercrime has become the most discussed topic in homes, offices and nations because technology has increased the risk of criminal intrusion into systems and technology infrastructure in the financial sector since cyber-attacks are mostly done for financial gains.

Panelists at the event concluded that to successfully reduce cyber threats and its effect, organisations have to deploy trusted technology, put the right people in charge and develop relevant process.

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