Cyber security: Nigeria ranks 50 out of 180 globally — NCS boss

Nigeria ranks 50 out over 180 countries globally in cyberspace security, Prof. Adesina Sodiya, President, Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), said on Wednesday in Lagos.

Speaking at the Information Technology Systems Security Professionals (ITSSP) conference, Sodiya that Nigeria was not doing badly in the cyber security space could do better because the nation was endowed with experts in the information security.

He said that the nation might not be developing technology as a nation but possess the knowhow to use technology to meet the nations needs.

Our correspondent reports that the theme of 2021 ITSSP is ‘Stakeholders Engagement and Coordination issue’.

According to him, ITSSP will continue to come up with such programmes so as to develop strategies for ensuring that the nation got its cyber space safer than what it used to be.

“The ITSSP was creating awareness and sensitising the cyber security stakeholders on the importance of cyber security.”

“We need to continue to develop our human capital so that people will have the required skill requiste knowledge that are needed to manage our cyber space.”

“We are not doing badly as a nation and this type of programme helps to refresh ones memory and note the things to do.”

“The issue of cyber security is not the business of ITSSP alone; it is the business of everybody because the attackers are doing research just as we from academics are doing our research,” he said.

According to him, the hackers are doing their research so that they will continue to have their way so there is the need to have conversation around how to enhance cyber security in Nigeria.

The NCS president said that ITSSP would continue the conversation and become the number one recognised information hub for security experts in the country.

Speaking at the conference, ITSSP President, Sunday Arogundade, said that the objective of the conference was advocacy, professional development and awareness and monitoring.

Arogundade said that the focus of the group mainly was information technology security popularly understood as cyber security, meant for advocacy, learning and development, awareness and monitoring effectiveness of efforts towards securing electronic platforms in the cyber space.

The ITSSP president said that the conference would address members professional development programme which wass a compulsory assignment of organisations for continuous improvement on members skills and competency acquisition.

He said the roundtable conference is to examine internet protocol version 6 (ipv6) desirability, digital financial inclusion to aid cashless penetration to rural communities and security concern.

According to him, also of serious concern is product development to insure and ensure the security and confidence of public that can be provided by insurance companies towards cash loses by individual and corporate organizations that are being encouraged to use this services.

Also, ITSSP executive secretary, Adeoye Aderogba, said that danger of cyber security was glaring because of the financial activities being carried out on the electronic platform.

Aderogba said that both the big and the low were at risk of cyber criminals and cyber misbehaviour.

He said that not all cyber crimes were cyber misbehaviour as the cyber criminals are those that want to steal your money or bomb the cyber centres.

Aderogba said that cyber misbehaviour might not be intended but as a result of disruptive technology shutting down the cyber space and affecting everyone such as the issue with MTN some time back

According to him, the Information Technology is evolving Technology of which we have one today, tomorrow another is taking over.

The executive secretary said that what this means was that there was need for education.

It was reported that ITSSP is one the seven interest groups under the umbrella body of NCS.