Kenya hit by record 860m cyber-attacks in a year

Kenya has witnessed an alarming surge in cyberattacks, with a staggering 860 million incidents recorded in the past year, according to the country's communications regulator.

The regulator has expressed concerns over the escalating frequency, sophistication, and scale of these cyber threats, particularly targeting Kenya's critical information infrastructure.

To put this into perspective, back in 2017, Kenya faced 7.7 million cyberattacks, highlighting the significant increase over the past four years.

One notable incident in July saw a high-profile cyberattack attributed to the pro-Russian hacking group Anonymous Sudan. 

This attack disrupted access to more than 5,000 online government services in Kenya, affecting crucial functions such as visa, passport, and driver's license applications and renewals. The assault also crippled online train booking systems and mobile money transactions.

The Communications Authority of Kenya revealed that a substantial 79% of these cyberattacks were a result of criminals infiltrating the computer systems of various organizations. 

Meanwhile, 14% involved the use of malicious software, 6.5% featured cybercriminals overwhelming servers with traffic to overload their infrastructure, and the rest targeted web applications.

Regrettably, Kenya now ranks as the third most targeted country for cybercriminals in Africa, trailing behind Nigeria and South Africa. This worrying trend underscores the need for heightened cybersecurity measures to safeguard the nation's critical digital assets.