…As 2020 Cybersecurity Awareness Month Kicks Off
By Angeline Mgbele, Correspondent Abuja
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer(EVC/CEO) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Danbatta, has said that the need to be cybersecurity-conscious to guarantee online safety for Internet users is all-inclusive and not the preserve of a group of people, a statement from the Director of Public Affairs(DPA) of the Commission, Dr. Ikechukwu says .
Danbatta stated this to herald the commencement of a series of enlightenment and awareness campaign activities being embarked upon by the Commission for this year’s National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM).
October every year is NCSAM globally, aimed at raising awareness about cybersecurity, and to provide the public with general knowledge and tools required for online safety.
Prof. Danbatta said Internet users across mobile networks in Nigeria currently stood at 149.8 million as at August, 2020, noting that more users were expected online as services in different sectors of the economy were becoming digitalised . He stated that the increase in digital financial transactions for e-commence activities called for greater responsibility on the part of individuals and corporate internet users to protect themselves against cybercrimes.
According to him, as the Commission embarked on various policy initiatives to drive pervasive broadband penetration to achieve increased digital inclusiveness, it was not unmindful of those who used Internet to carry out nefarious and dubious activities in the cyber space.
“To keep the genuine individual and corporate Internet users safe, the NCC, as regulator of the telecom sector, annually joins the rest of the world to create a lot of enlightenment around cybercrime in the month of October every year. We ensure that consumers are empowered through awareness and sensitisation campaigns, by providing information on both the positive and negative potentials available online, and measures required to safeguard themselves and their loved ones,” the EVC said.
Danbatta emphasised that “Security is not reserved for a group of people, it is truly everyone’s business; bringing competence and knowledge to help build a safer and more inclusive information society.”
The EVC/CEO at the NCC restated the commitment of the Commission to continually embark on policy initiatives to enhance online security as well as educate and equip the consumers of telecoms services with information they needed to be protected online.
