The National Agency for Information and Communication Technologies (ANTIC) recently revealed that some FCFA 4 billion has been lost due to cyber scamming and phishing. The agency further noted that since 2011, some FCFA 3. 5 billion has been lost in skimming with cases of 137 Facebook profiles suffering from spoofing and cyber blackmail in the country.

These criminal acts constituted part of the discussions during a cyber security and e-government conference organised by the United States Embassy in Cameroon and the American-based enterprise ATR. IT experts expressed the need for Cameroon to protect its cyber space so as to ensure survival of the country’s digital economy.

The Deputy Chief of Mission at the USA embassy, Matthew Smith, lauded efforts of the government in ensuring cyber security which is not only important for Cameroonians but the economy as well. Matthew Smith said ATR Cyber is going to help Cameroon assess the ability of its cyber security, set up some kind of test attacks to see where there were vulnerabilities and help the government manage security solutions such as continuous monitoring, penetration testing and cyber security risk management.

He also stated that the existence of ATR Cyber in the country will create jobs for many young Cameroonians.  Present at the event was the Minister of Finance Alamine Osumane Mey and a representative from the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. The Minister of Finance lauded the job of cyber experts while reiterating that cyber security is necessary as government embarks on e-government to promote development.

Cameroon Tribune