The campaign to sensitise the Nigerian public on the need to be cyber security conscious has been intensified with the launch of the ‘NoGoFallMaga, Confam Am Again’ campaign by Cybersafe Foundation, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Committee of Chief Information Security Officers of Nigerian Financial Industry (CCISONFI).
The campaign, which is aimed at promoting general public awareness of cybersecurity to drastically reduce cybercrimes and financial fraud in the country, will be carried out in all the major languages in Nigeria, including pidgin.
Speaking at the launch event, Chairman, Committee of Chief Information Security Officers of Nigeria Financial Industry (CCISONFI), Mr. Festus Amede, while noting that the financial industry has witnessed increased adoption of digital technology in response to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s financial inclusion initiatives and post Covid-19 pandemic crisis, said the rise in cybercrimes and financial frauds is making customers lose trust and confidence in the financial system.
“This increased innovation and use of digital platforms has greatly transformed the cyber and technology landscape thereby giving rise to new risks, especially with sustaining trust and confidence in customers’ ability to communicate and transact securely within the financial ecosystem.”
A loss of such trust and confidence, Mr. Festus argued could undermine the benefits of the CBN’s financial inclusion &cashless economy or the ability to continually leverage technology as an enabler of social and economic development. Hence there is a need to constantly address the related challenges of ensuring continuous cybersecurity and data privacy.
“We have also come to the realisation that only through concerted efforts and collaboration by financial industry stakeholders to ensure that our customers remain cyber-aware, can we then reduce, and eliminate the menace. Collectively, we will continue to ensure adequate measures are taken to combat some of the cybersecurity challenges including preventing customer financial losses unscrupulous elements tagged cybercriminals” he assured.
Also speaking at the event, the Chairman of Cybersafe Foundation, Dr. Peter Obadare, said the essence of the initiative is to build a human firewall in addition to the security firewall being built by the financial institutions to prevent fraud.
He maintained that there is no amount of investment put into people that will be too much. “We have built processes, and we have spent on technologies, but we also need to build the human firewall.
“When we talk about cybersecurity, most of the time, we know it’s about technology, it’s about the process, and then of course, it’s about the people and I usually say that there is no amount of investment that you put in the people side that can ever go wrong. What we’re doing today, is about increasing the cybersecurity intelligence quotient of the populace, which is very important. It’s about building the human firewall.
“Yes, we spend so much money building the technology. Yes, we standardize our processes but most of the time we find that the evil elements still find their way, especially from the customer side, hence the need to build a human firewall.
He opined that cybercriminals are succeeding because they leverage the ignorance of the populace, and believes that the ‘NoGoFallMaga’ initiative will go a long way to build that human firewall within Nigerian cyberspace.
Also speaking, former Chairman, CCISONFI, and Chief Information Security Officer of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr. Abumere Igboa noted that the campaign is to guide Nigerians so as not to fall victims by trying to capture the different tactics and different ways fraudsters may come at them, and present them with how to respond.
He pointed out that the “last man standing” is actually the target of the fraudsters, since he, the customer is the final authorizer. “A lot has been done at the back-end, and banks are still doing more, but the ultimate security lies with the customer, who is the last firewall.”
In designing the campaign, Managing Director of The Hook creative agency, Mr. Sam Ochonma believes that the use of Broda Shaggi and other identifiable PR maneuvers is to capture the attention of Nigerians and pass the message of the campaign as smoothly and easily as possible.
The ‘NoGoFallMaga’ campaign was launched in July 2021 and aimed at tackling cybercrime that poses threats to bank customers and Nigerians from conducting reliable and safe financial transactions.
Executive Director of Cybersafe Foundation, and Initiator of the campaign, Confidence Staveley had noted that the campaign is meant to reach the over 40 million Nigerians who currently have access to financial services in the country.
In furtherance of the campaign, Cybersafe Foundation had launched the NoGoFallMaga (NGFM) Community. The Community is a group of online security experts who are set to help people protect their money, assets, and identities online. The cybersecurity community is an initiative of CyberSafe Foundation, an NGO strategically positioned, and on a mission, to ensure inclusive and safe digital access in Africa. NGFM has 142 active Volunteers and has uncovered and exposed over 20 Ponzi Schemes in Nigeria alone. Also they’ve help SMEs, the aged and people at large by bringing awareness about these schemes.
CyberSafe Foundation has several other initiatives which include the ‘ShineYourEye Cybersecurity Community’ for the elderly, ‘CyberGirls Fellowship’, and the ‘DigiGirls Fellowship’. The organisation has also helped SMEs with the Cybersecurity SME toolkit, launch last year.
