The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has partnered with some cybersecurity players to launch a new cybersecurity awareness campaign titled “# NoGoFallMaga”.
The Nigerian News Agency (NAN) reports that the initiative was launched in collaboration with the Nigerian Financial Industry Information Security Officers Committee (CCISONFI) and the Cybersafe Foundation (CSF).
Mr. Abumere Igboa, President of CCISONFI, announced the partnership on Monday at a press conference on the cybersecurity awareness campaign held at the Radisson Blu, Victoria Island, Lagos.
“This initiative aims to tackle cybercrime which poses a threat to Nigerian customers and citizens by providing reliable and secure financial services.
“While the use of digital platforms has transformed the cyber and tech landscape, it also comes with its own risk, particularly the enduring confidence in the ability of clients to transact securely within the financial ecosystem. “, did he declare.
Igboa said a loss of that confidence could hurt the benefits of CBN’s cashless economy or the ability to continually leverage the technology.
He added that there was a constant need to address the challenges of ensuring continued cybersecurity and data privacy.
“We have also realized that it is only through the concerted efforts of stakeholders in the financial industry and ensuring that our clients remain cyber-aware that we can then eliminate or take action to reduce the activities of cybercriminals.” Igboa said.
Also speaking, Mr. Confidence Staveley, Executive Director of the Cybersafe Foundation, said the partnership would allow them to join forces to reach the 40 million Nigerians who currently access financial services across the country.
“It will also help to educate the masses about cybersecurity and, therefore, reduce the success rate of cyber fraud attacks among customers.
“There is a clear need to include an aggressive cybersecurity awareness campaign to complement other proactive and reactive measures taken to tackle cyber fraud.
“However, we need to collaborate across the financial ecosystem, consolidate resources, strengths and reach out to sectors such as the media to gain support to raise awareness of cybersecurity for meaningful impact,” Staveley said.
Commenting, CBN’s Director of Banking Supervision, Mr. Haruna Mustafa, said cybersecurity awareness was key to mitigating cyber risks.
Mustafa, who was represented by Dr Adedeji Sikiru, CBN Deputy Director, Banking Supervision, said the bank was ready to partner with industry stakeholders to continue efforts to educate staff and clients on information on fraud and cybersecurity hygiene practices.
“It would also be beneficial to the industry if banks extend their cybersecurity awareness program to their customers using various media in Nigerian languages such as Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa among others for an improved ecosystem.
“Another area of interest is the conduct and integration of an outreach program into the Nigerian education system,” Mustafa said.
He said the current generation of students are practically born with technology in their hands, noting that cybersecurity must be an integral part of their education.
Mustafa said that students, teachers and administrators all need access to the learning tools necessary to understand, detect and avoid cyber threats they might encounter in their daily activities.
“To this end, CBN stands ready to partner with industry stakeholders to develop an outreach program that can be integrated into the education system in Nigeria to create a culture of safety for citizens from childhood. “, did he declare. (NAN)
L-R: Seyi Oni, CISO, Titan Trust Bank/CCISONFI; Favour Femi-Oyewole, group chief information security officer at Access Bank Plc/ CCISONFI; Abumere Igboa, chairman of CCISONFI; Confidence Staveley, executive director of Cybersafe Foundation; Dr. Adedeji Adetona Sikiru from CBN; Dr. Peter Obadare, chairman, Advisory Board of Cybersafe Foundation and Olubunmi Ayodele-Oni, principal Bank Examiner at Central Bank of Nigeria, during the launch of #NoGoFallMaga cybersecurity awareness campaign in Lagos on Monday, July 19, 2021.
