As hackers in the United States steal businesses’ trade secrets, which
is more sophisticated cyber crime, in Uganda it is more about siphoning a few
million shillings off unsuspecting bank account holders through bank fraud, and
lately mobile money fraud.
In America, Facebook, Microsoft, banks, media companies have reportedly been
hit with cyber attacks. In fact, in February this year Virginia-based Mandiant
published a 60-page report alleging that the Chinese government was sponsoring
cyber-espionage to attack top US companies.
Therefore, in the US or other advanced economies cyber crime is much
more serious crime compared to the situation in East Africa. In Uganda, cyber
attacks are mundane but growing at a rapid rate.
It is feared that continuing technological expansion and accelerated
globalization will lead to a dramatic increase of cyber attacks.
Apparently, banks in Ugandan have turned to be the biggest hubs for such
crime making the banking business so vulnerable yet they remain conspicuously quiet.
The fact the cyber crimes become sophisticated with increased
technological innovations and the bankers can barely match the rate of
innovations in technology, the fraudsters take advantage of loopholes created
with the laxity in taking up new innovations hence hacking into systems with
ease.
Moses Walubiri, a journalist with New Vision was shocked when in March
this year got a message while at work that he had withdrawn 1 million shillings.
“I went to the bank and was unable to convince them that the person who
took the money didn’t have my instructions because the details were the same.
Everyone holding an ATM is not same,” Walubiri said.
In January 2005, a multi-million dollar scam involving a fraudulent
intranet bank transfer between Standard Charted Bank, Nairobi and Barclays
Bank, Kampala was unveiled.
A prominent Ugandan businessman and construction magnet, Andrew Zzimwe
Kasagga (deceased) together with two Congolese nationals were wanted by
Interpol (Kenya) over accusations of masterminding the bank fraud that saw
Kenyan Standard Chartered Bank staff wiring to them $5 million in three installments
to separate bank accounts and recipients in Kampala.
Suspected conmen got the Nairobi based bank to wire one million dollars
to Zzimwe’s Barclays Bank account in Kampala and another $2 million from Kenya
was intercepted at Crane Bank.
It had allegedly been sent to another suspect, Kampala lawyer, Paul
Kalemera. Further investigations and trial are being conducted. Another $3
million being swindled from Kenya was detected before it was sent to forex
bureaux via the DFCU bank in Kampala.
In some cases innocent bank customers have found huge amounts of cash
unknowingly deposited on their accounts.
In 2006, police chiefs in East Africa said computer-related crime is the
single toughest challenge facing them this millennium. As more and more Kenyans
get connected to the internet, the number of cybercrime is expected to rise.
According to the 2012-police report, a total of 62 cases were reported
and investigated in which about 1.5 billion shillings were lost through hacking
victims mails among other means. The report shows between August and November
2012, at least 207 million shillings were lost through mobile money fraud.
In the same year, 700 victims lost over 1.2 billion shillings by use of
scheming devices from ATM bank locations in Kampala and other areas.
In one prominent case, four Bulgarians attempted to defraud Stanbic Bank
using fake ATMs. They were found with 38 ATM cards, a list of 45 ATM pin
numbers, a charger for their improvised ATM and other gadgets.
The suspects were prosecuted; three were convicted 20 yrs each and one
to 10 yrs. The same men had ever been arrested in Kenya over similar offences
but jumped bail.
However, most financial institutions remain silent though in difficult
circumstances. MTN Uganda, Warid Telecom, Standard Chartered and Stanbic banks have
all been affected. But cyber attacks have also taken another notorious form:
hacking into internet networks of especially importers of goods from places
like Dubai, China and Japan.
The unsuspecting business people usually get to discover when either their
money has been stolen or the goods they ordered have been diverted to somewhere
else. Others use internet to push through forged travellers’ cheques, which
they use to purchase goods from unsuspecting business people overseas.
It is hard to convict
cyber criminals because of two major reasons. Firstly, few countries have
enacted e-laws and the existing ones are not sufficient in convicting culprits because
of jurisdiction anomalies especially when the investigation transcends
international borders. Secondly, obtaining evidence of computer crime that
would stand in courts of law is lacking in many countries since the field of computer
forensics is still relatively new and lacks sufficient literature and expertise.
How equipped is Uganda against cyber crimes? Late 2010, Parliament
passed into law three cyber bills to provide legal regulations for security of
electronic transactions. The Cyber Acts provide the legal framework to govern
such transactions and to address cyber crime and terrorism.
The laws protect critical national information infrastructure, encourage
safe online business and increase competitiveness to attract foreign investment
such as in the Business Process Outsourcing Industry.
“We were able to
prosecute the Bulgarians because of these laws,” says Hon Nyombi Tendo, the
State Minister for ICT, adding that IT systems have to be made secure so that
they are not abused by fraudsters.
Police capacity has also been enhanced. Police now boosts of full
directorate of Information Technology and IT laboratory with the help of
development partners they still encounter challenges including; limited skills
to handle cyber related crimes, unreported complainants and lack of equipment to
deal with the nature of the crime.
Haguma Jimmy, the Acting
commissioner in charge of Electronic Counter, said over 50 police officers in
E- security, E forensic and E- technical. “A lot needs to be done to have the
requisite personnel capacity to respond to this growing electronic crime/cybercrime,”
said Haguma.
The Ugandan Government
has rolled out registration of mobile phone sim cards as a response measure to
fight electronic crimes.
The Uganda Communications Commission has also set up a Computer
Emergency Response Team to improve and secure communication services in the
country. The facility will reduce the infiltration of malicious
content such as malware, viruses and spam, as well as enhance security of
online access in the country.
The communication companies and internet service providers in the
country will constitute the computer emergency response team which was inaugurated
on June 6 this year.
The unit prowls the internet to monitor and report high-tech crimes
including cyber-based terrorism, computer intrusions, online sexual
exploitation, and major cyber frauds.
However, at the national level, there is an urgent need for a cyber
defense and weaponry system. Ideally, this project is a 10-30 year strategy,
whereby an elite special team of cyber experts must be identified at a young
age (15 – 20 years) trained and financed to develop custom solutions for
national security.
This is because national security cannot be trusted in the
hands of another country.
