The Committee of Chief Information Security Officers of Nigerian Financial Industry (CCISONFI) in collaboration with Cybersafe Foundation, The Hook Creative Agency and the Central Bank Of Nigeria, CBN, have officially inaugurated a campaign targeted at reducing the menace of cybercrime in the country through awareness creation.
Tagged ‘#NoGoFallMaga Confam Am Again Campaign’’, the campaign which was inaugurated in Lagos was aimed at promoting awareness of the general public on cybersecurity which ultimately would curtail the high incidence of cybercrimes and financial fraud in the country.
Speaking at the launch of the programme, the Chairman, Committee of Chief Information Security Officers of Nigeria Financial Industry (CCISONFI), Mr. Festus Amede, said that the campaign, which would be carried out in all the major languages in Nigeria, including pidgin, would go a long way in tackling cybercrime that poses a huge threat to bank customers and the citizenry in having reliable and safe financial transactions/ services as the objective was aimed at reaching more than 40 million customers in the first two years of the launch of the campaign.
“We look forward to a rewarding partnership and successful achievement of our targeted objectives which include reaching more than 40 million customers in the first two years of this launch and finally delivering awareness contents and messages in major Nigerian Languages including Pidgin English,” he said.
Mr Amede who explained that the financial industry has witnessed increased adoption of digital technology platforms in response to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s financial inclusion initiatives and post Covid-19 pandemic crisis which gave a push to digital innovation globally added that the increased innovation and use of digital platforms has greatly transformed the cyber 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.
Pointing out that loss of such confidence, could undermine the benefits of the CBN’s financial inclusion and cashless economy as well as the ability to continually leverage technology as an enabler of social and economic development , hence the need to constantly address the related challenges of ensuring continuous cybersecurity and data privacy.
“We have also come to the realization that only through concerted efforts/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” Mr Amede said.
In a remark the Chairman of Cybersafe Foundation,, Dr. Peter Obadare, said that the human element in the cybercrime process must be addressed to avoid people falling victim to cybercrimes pointing out that the human element is important in the fight against cybercrime and the need to build human firewalls to reduce the number of victims.
He argued while the cybersecurity awareness is a key element in mitigating cyber risk, educating staff of financial institutions and customers on fraud information and cybersecurity hygiene practices must be sustained for the effort to get desired results.
The “NoGoFallMaga Confam Am Again Campaign’ will serve as an aggressive cybersecurity awareness campaign to complement other proactive and reactive measures being taken to curb cyber fraud…Obadare said’
The former Chairman of CCISONFI, Mr. Igboa Abumere, highlighted the need to capture and combat various tactics employed by cybercriminals, thus empowering individuals to protect themselves against cyber threats.
For Mrs. Favour Femi-Oyewole, Group CISO at Access Bank Plc, the goal of reaching the unbanked and underserved areas remained a top priority and stressed the importance of collective efforts in the fight against cybercrime.
She said many people are still falling victim every day, divulging their sensitive information that were used to defraud them mostly based on ignorance hence the need to put in collective efforts in addressing the monster that is hindering digital transactions.
The “NoGoFallMaga, Confam Am Again” campaign seeks to reach over 40 million customers in its first two years, transcending language barriers with its content available in major Nigerian languages, including Pidgin English.
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