Eleven Rwandans and four Nigerians are on trial for hacking into a local bank’s account in the Central Bank, and helping  themselves to over a billion francs. Also, just a  few days ago, a 21-year old school dropout was arrested after fleecing some local celebrities and a foreigner of their  money using their social media accounts.

Cybercrime is a growing threat in today’s world and although sometimes cyber criminals’ luck runs out, they are here to stay, which calls for all internet users to keep a keen eye. Sharon Kantengwa asks: How can Rwandans protect themselves from cyber crime?

People should always remember to log out their social media accounts on both office computers and personal gadgets, to avoid hacking just in case they are stolen. Also remove your home address, phone number, date of birth and any other information that could be used to fake your identity.

Amy Sugira, IT specialist

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My advice to Rwandans is to, first of, all know that cyber crimes exist and they can be affected in one way or another. Then another thing is to know how to use the online information and content wisely. For example, how do we protect our social media? How do we protect our email and if we are to buy things online, how do we make sure we are buying through well known e-commerce websites. For the case of public and government institutions,  my advice to them is to hire cyber-security experts to support them in their system maintenance. 

Innocent Mbanda, founder Igire Rwanda 

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Apparently not all of the cyber threats are so destructive and due to this many companies do not see smoke at all. However, the reality is that a hacker is already on the network,  typically using the credentials and accounts of a trusted insider and the secret to their hacking activities is to remain hidden.  It is therefore wise to delete or edit your "likes” and "groups”  because the more hackers know about you, the more convincing a phishing email they can spam you with. Change your privacy settings to "friends” from "friends of friends”. 

Norman Kagabo, IT specialist

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Educating employees on what to look for will increase the company’s ability to recognise cyber crime early and in many cases prevent cyber crime.  Also, employers should employ cyber security personnel to assist in the detection and incident response for potential cyber security threats and risks. This helps expand the efficiency of any IT security team while ensuring that there is someone in the organisation who is responsible for implementing and maintaining cyber security measures.

Ann Uwase, banker