African Union unveils new cyber security guidelines

NAIROBI – THE historic Internet Infrastructure Security Guidelines the Internet Society and African Union Commission have unveiled in Kenya are set to create a more secure internet infrastructure and change the way member countries approach cyber security preparedness.
A multi-stakeholder group of African and global internet infrastructure security experts has developed the guidelines.
Dawit Bekele, Africa Regional Bureau Director for the Internet Society, said the continent had achieved major strides in developing its internet infrastructure in the past decade but the internet would not provide the aspired benefits unless users felt secure.
“We have seen from recent experiences that Africa is not immune from cyber-attacks and other security threats. These guidelines, developed in collaboration with the AU Commission, will help African countries put in place the necessary measures to increase the security of their Internet infrastructure,” explained. Bekele.
Africa’s cyber security environment faces a combination of challenges, including a lack of awareness of the risks involved in using technology.
Moctar Yeday, Head, Information Society Division at AU, said this was thus a timely milestone achievement given the new security challenges in cyberspace.
“The Commission of the AU will continue its partnership with the Internet Society on a second set of guidelines addressing personal data protection in Africa,” Yeda added.
The guidelines are launched amid the growing cyber threat to the global digital economy.
Host country Kenya lost $171 million to cybercrime in 2016.
– Technoafrica