Kenya has invested heavily in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) not only to improve service delivery but also to cut on transaction costs and safeguard Government revenue.
For instance, KSh.6.1 billion has been allocated for the Single Window Support Project, Research Development Fund, Roll out of IFMIS, Development at Konza Techno-polis, Digital Migration (KBC), and for the Presidential Digital Talent Programme this 2016/2017 Financial Year.
Further, Kenya leads in the use of digital technology services globally according to the Brookings Institution’s 2016 Financial and Digital Inclusion Project which ranked the country with overall score of 84 percent attributed to the country’s vibrant mobile money ecosystem, which features exceptionally high adoption rates.
Data from the Communications Authority of Kenya estimated that in 2014, approximately 64 percent of the country’s total population had access to the internet. The same is projected to increase with the onset of fibre cabling and by 2017, it is estimated that mobile broadband subscriptions will approach 80 percent of the country’s population.
However, this has come with challenges. Crimes such as bank fraud, money laundering, and hate speech, theft of identity and child pornography are increasingly being committed online due to cybercrime.
The 2015 Cyber Security Report noted that the public sector lost more than Sh5 billion from the attacks, followed by the financial services sector at Sh4 billion. According to the report done by the Serianu Cyber Threat Intelligence Team, PKF Consulting and United States International University-Africa’s Centre for Informatics Research and Innovation conducted between July 2014 and September 2014, Kenya is still ill-equipped in successfully fighting cybercrime.
Currently, there is a draft Computer and Cybercrimes Bill 2016 that seeks to align the law to advanced forensic procedures when investigating rising cases of cybercrime.
As the menace continues the Nairobi Law Institute (NLI) in partnership with the Kenya Cyber Security and Forensics Association are set to hold a two days annual national conference ( 3rd and 4th November 2016) on cybercrime in Nairobi.
The event is premised on the theme ‘Rethinking Cyber Crime in a Dynamic Economy in Achieving Vision 2030.’ The theme embodies the contemporary economic and security threats industries are facing with the raise of cyber-crime in today’s dynamic economy. According to NLI as the country is gearing to achieve the goals set out in Vision 2030, the cyber security risks should be identified and mitigated.
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“It is a fact that cybercrime rates continue to increase in line with internet adoption: mobile internet access and the continuing deployment of broadband internet infrastructure throughout the world and indeed in Kenya.”
“This, therefore introduces new levels of vulnerability, with potential victims spending longer periods of time online and with new capabilities of transmitting much more data than ever before,” according to the concept of the conference.
This forum will not only seek to identify the problems but offer solutions as they review the current Cybercrime bill and other supporting laws of Kenya. It will be an opportunity for the various industry players to interact and learn from each other’s experiences as well as gain insights from the industry regulators and the law enforcement agencies on current trends, policies and laws in the detection, prevention, investigation and prosecution of cyber criminals.
Industry key players and stakeholders can play a part in sponsoring the event under different categories: platinum, gold, silver, exhibition among others not only for brand exposure, promotion of products and services but also for networking with new and existing clients. For more information about the sponsorship details email cybercrime-sponsorship@nbilawinstitute.ac.ke