The government is set to spend Rwf5.7 billion on national cyber security to cushion the country against threats from rising levels of cybercrime, officials at the Ministry of Youth and ICT have said.

The money, according to officials, will be useful in increasing the level of cyber security awareness and protecting key ICT assets against attacks through building local capabilities to respond to attacks, foster international co-operation on cyber security and create a legal and regulatory environment to mitigate cyber vulnerabilities.

Some economists, however, do not find it essential to spend that money, yet there are no cyber threats. They have suggested that the money be invested in other areas.

High exposure to hacking

Patrick Ntwali, the IT manager at Fina Bank, said that there is high exposure to hacking threats, although developing countries are not direct targets.

“So far, the real hackers are not there, let alone those targeting Rwanda, but the more we build our IT infrastructure the closer we get to being the target,” he said.

With Rwanda seeking to create a knowledge-based economy with plans to become the ICT hub of the region, authorities maintain that it is essential to secure confidential information and exchange of communication.

According to Jean Philbert Nsengimana, the minister in charge of Youth and ICT, Rwanda faces no specific threats of cybercrime although it is not exempt from global Internet threats, hence the need to remain on guard.

“It is to protect investments already done, to protect private and confidential information about the citizens and so many sectors that need high levels of protection,” he said.

He added that cyber threats need to be reduced since they have been global in nature.

“The moment information goes into digital format, the nature of threats change completely, if you are not protected you are exposed to various cybercrimes from all corners of the world,” Mr Nsengimana said.

Confidential data

The minister added that threats come in different forms, including computer viruses, spam and attacks that can bring down entire systems.

“Servers or computers that store confidential data are normally not isolated from the network and the ingenuity of attackers is to find those secured systems and break into them,” he added.

In the National Information and Communication Infrastructure Plan (NICIP) that seeks to emphasise service delivery in different areas, the government of Rwanda will see a number of projects including the set-up of a national cyber security research centre and other related projects.

“To fully realise ICT benefits, there must be full confidence that information and communications systems are secure and dependable. The Internet exposes Rwandans to global networks which are prone to advanced and repeated cyber-attacks,” states the national strategic plan on ICT.

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