By Rarzack Olaegbe
Menace to society is a 1993 American teenhood drama film. It was directed by Allen and Albert Hughes in their directorial debut. It starred Tyrin Turner, Jada Pinkett, Larenz Tate, and Samuel L. Jackson. It is set in Watts. It follows the life of Kaydee Caine Lawson and his close friends.
The movie gained notoriety for its violence, profanity and drug-related content. It also received positive reviews for its gritty portrayal of urban violence. And its powerful underlying messages. Caine is a drug dealer. And a car thief. He is kicked out of his grandparents’ house due to his life of crime. His troubles did not end there. He is also wanted by the police. Why? He killed a Korean grocer.
On the one hand
Cybercriminals who skimmed innocent victims of their funds have also gained notoriety for their cyber violence. And pain-inducing activities. That is why cybercriminals are a menace to society. They are borderless. They are bothersome. They are faceless. They are ruthless. The security firm, Sitelock, reported that 18.5 million websites are infected daily. Cybercriminals are with you. They are watching your moves.
Don’t think you are immune to cybercrime. Don’t think only the banks are exposed to the nefarious activities of these rogues. No. Hackers do not go after the banks anymore. They are going after the bank customers. As a bank customer, if you are careless with your personal financial information such as your ATM card and password, you will be skimmed.
If this happens, do not blame your banks. You need to understand how these criminals operate. The banks will always protect themselves. Banks are robust in terms of security measures. They are constantly reviewing what is going on because of their reputation. But, according to the CEO of the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), Kalyani Pillay, “the risks posed by organised crime do not just live with the banks. They lay with the individuals as well”.
So, why do you need to be protected from the menace of cyber-attackers? Because you bank online. Because your information resides online. As such, do not stick to the same password. If you do, you are empowering the cybercriminals to attack you. The banks do not have this challenge. The challenge is with you. Do not give cybercriminals access to your private information. Deny them access. Alter your ATM password.
On the other hand
You are not alone. Nigerian banks are also worried about the menace of these criminals. As such, the banks are building firewalls to prevent them from gaining access to your funds. Reports explained that about N200 billion was spent to counter cyber-attacks in 2019. The Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) made this revelation recently. The group is also making a concerted effort to curb the growing menace of cyber-attacks.
Its president, Professor Adesina Sodiya explained that the financial sector experienced the Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) and Social Engineering cyber-attacks in 2019. DDoS is a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network. The attackers overwhelm the target infrastructure with a flood of internet traffic. Meanwhile, social engineering is used to deceive individuals into divulging personal information, which may be used for fraudulent purposes. When you receive such an email, delete it.
Kaspersky Lab said the number of DDoS attacks has increased by 84 per cent in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. Individuals, governments and corporate organisations in Israel, Ukraine, USA, France, Switzerland and Nigeria et al are losing huge funds because of cyber-attacks. Aside from the financial loss, individuals have lost their identities through social media hacking. Beware.
The threats of cyber-attacks are increasing daily. Cybersecurity experts have warned that the trend will continue in the near future. Be certain of its source before you open an email. Change your password periodically. Some banks are building firewalls against external cyber-attacks. But not all the banks will conquer insider threats. And dependency on the legacy banking system. The challenges are real. It is good for you to know. But knowing is not enough. That is why the NCS is building a website to offer a solution to cyber-attacks.
On this side
Why is the NCS building a website?
Bigmummy, it is a Computer Emergency Response System. It is an intelligence box. You can report cyber-attacks and you will get solutions.
I would think the federal government should have done this. Or what do you think?
Big mummy, if it takes an individual to keep the cybercriminal at bay, it is a win for society.
So, will the gesture be tax deductible?
Big mummy, it is one of the ways to give you succour. And curtail the menace of cybercriminals.
