By Olabisi Olaleye
In their efforts to address online security issues, stakeholders are set to converge on Nigeria for the upcoming West African Cyber Security Summit (WACSS), scheduled to hold on March 21, 2018, alongside Securex West Africa, at the Landmark Centre in Lagos.
The summit would see the participation of 150 senior cybersecurity representatives from the private and public sector.
A statement signed by senior marketing executive at Angus Montgomery, Abby Cairns, reported that six of the world’s fastest growing cybersecurity economies were in Africa, including Nigeria.
“Cybercrime is a rapidly growing problem affecting Africa, fuelled by the high levels of poverty as it is relatively easy to carry out and the lack of legal policies to prevent and prosecute perpetrators if, and when, they are caught makes it all the more attractive to criminals.
“This increase has driven the market demand for cybersecurity solutions in recent years, with Nigeria at the epicentre of it all,” the statement said.
Recently, the federal government predicted the annual cost of cybercrime in Nigeria to be around 0.08 per cent of the country’s overall GDP, which is an estimated N127 billion. To best tackle this wave of criminality, government officials and businesses alike need to be educated as to sophisticated solutions and how to implement them.
The WACSS is the ultimate platform to learn about essential market developments, key trends, cutting-edge technology and to discuss strategies to address the latest risks and threats facing the industry.
Themes for the conference include ransomware, regulating crypto currency, cloud-based attached, re-evaluating tools and processes, growth of Internet of Things devices in Nigeria; the threat and cyber security framework.
The inaugural edition of WACSS in 2017 brought together key individuals from leading organisations and government agencies, including KPMG, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ernst & Young, G3, CSEAN, Interpol and many more.