Fraudsters find easy cash in mobile banking
CYBERCRIME | FBI wants Kenya to help nab a group of Nigerians said to have stolen Sh215 billion around the world
Kenyans who have subscribedto mobile banking servicesrun the risk of expsoing theirmoney to fraudsters, according to anew report.The Kenya Cyber Security Report, 2014 says most local banks have notsufficiently protected their mobilebanking services against fraud.The report, which lays open thethreats posed by the adoption ofinformation communication andtechnology (ICT), says organisationsmust equally protect their systemsagainst cyber criminals.
“A study of 33 banks showed thatonly two have adequately taken safetymeasures to secure their customers’money from fraudsters,” said thereport that is likely to attract thecuriosity of many Kenyans.“Majority of the web applicationsreviewed lack strong encryption andare susceptible to phishing attacks,”the report further says.Encryption refers to the process ofpresenting information in symbolssuch that only authorised people areable to read it.
This means even ifthe information reached auauthorisedpersons, they will not use it since theycannot understand codes.Fraudsters normally use a methodcalled phishing to obtain sensitive clientinformation such as usernames,passwords and credit card details.Phishing is the practice of trying totrick someone into giving their secretbank information by sending them anemail that looks as if it comes fromtheir bank and that asks them to givetheir account number or password.According to the survey, out ofthe 33 applications sampled, onlytwo banking portals had adequateonline security deployed on theirweb application.Mobile and online banking are fastgaining popularity among financial institutionsand consequently emergingas soft targets for fraudsters.“In the last couple of years, ourICT infrastructure has undergone adramatic transformation.
The growthin the use of systems and networksto connect various organisationshas made it relatively easy to obtaininformation, to communicate, and tocontrol these systems across great distances,”according to the report.“The ICT transformation has comewith a new genre of criminals, who targetcomputers and information storedin networks,” the report says.“In the past one year, we have witnesseda huge rise in cyber-criminalactivity targeting both public and privateorganisations in Kenya. Criminalsare not just targeting our computers,they are also after the information thenetworks store and transmit.”The report further states:
“Whetherthe source of an attack is an insiderjob, a hacker, or a terrorist, the consequencesare often the same—loss ofrevenue, loss of sensitive information,erosion of consumer and constituentconfidence, interruption or denial ofbusiness operations.”The report, by Serianu, an ITservices and business consulting firmbased in Nairobi, comes after a requestby the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) asking the government tohelp arrest a ring of international bankhackers and cyber criminals based inKenya. The group of Nigerians, targetbanks and has stolen $2.5 billion(Sh215 billion) from banks and otherinstitutions around the world.
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Kenyans who have subscribedto mobile banking servicesrun the risk of expsoing theirmoney to fraudsters, according to anew report.The Kenya Cyber Security Report, 2014 says most local banks have notsufficiently protected their mobilebanking services against fraud.The report, which lays open thethreats posed by the adoption ofinformation communication andtechnology (ICT), says organisationsmust equally protect their systemsagainst cyber criminals.
“A study of 33 banks showed thatonly two have adequately taken safetymeasures to secure their customers’money from fraudsters,” said thereport that is likely to attract thecuriosity of many Kenyans.“Majority of the web applicationsreviewed lack strong encryption andare susceptible to phishing attacks,”the report further says.Encryption refers to the process ofpresenting information in symbolssuch that only authorised people areable to read it.
This means even ifthe information reached auauthorisedpersons, they will not use it since theycannot understand codes.Fraudsters normally use a methodcalled phishing to obtain sensitive clientinformation such as usernames,passwords and credit card details.Phishing is the practice of trying totrick someone into giving their secretbank information by sending them anemail that looks as if it comes fromtheir bank and that asks them to givetheir account number or password.According to the survey, out ofthe 33 applications sampled, onlytwo banking portals had adequateonline security deployed on theirweb application.Mobile and online banking are fastgaining popularity among financial institutionsand consequently emergingas soft targets for fraudsters.“In the last couple of years, ourICT infrastructure has undergone adramatic transformation.
The growthin the use of systems and networksto connect various organisationshas made it relatively easy to obtaininformation, to communicate, and tocontrol these systems across great distances,”according to the report.“The ICT transformation has comewith a new genre of criminals, who targetcomputers and information storedin networks,” the report says.“In the past one year, we have witnesseda huge rise in cyber-criminalactivity targeting both public and privateorganisations in Kenya. Criminalsare not just targeting our computers,they are also after the information thenetworks store and transmit.”The report further states:
“Whetherthe source of an attack is an insiderjob, a hacker, or a terrorist, the consequencesare often the same—loss ofrevenue, loss of sensitive information,erosion of consumer and constituentconfidence, interruption or denial ofbusiness operations.”The report, by Serianu, an ITservices and business consulting firmbased in Nairobi, comes after a requestby the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) asking the government tohelp arrest a ring of international bankhackers and cyber criminals based inKenya. The group of Nigerians, targetbanks and has stolen $2.5 billion(Sh215 billion) from banks and otherinstitutions around the world.
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