A renowned cybersecurity expert, Dr. David Isiavwe, said the progress made by Nigeria’s cashless policy is being hindered by insufficient critical infrastructure to support electronic payment systems, particularly in rural areas.
Dr. Isiavwe, who serves as the President of the Information Security Society of Africa, Nigeria (ISSAN), as well as the General Manager and Chief Compliance Officer at Ecobank Nigeria Ltd, acknowledged the undeniable advantages brought about by the surge in online financial transactions, including convenience, speed, and accessibility.
However, he emphasizes that it is crucial not to overlook the substantial cybersecurity risks associated with these advancements.
He stressed the need to address these cybersecurity concerns, despite the significant benefits that the cashless policy has delivered so far.
“The consequences of a successful cyberattack can be severe. The cashless policy has made it easier, faster, and more convenient for people to make payments, transfer money and generally engage in commerce across the globe; however, this technological advancement has also led to an increase in cyber threats, such as ransomware attacks, identity theft, data breaches, and phishing attacks.
Stakeholders, including financial institutions, technology providers, regulators, and users must invest more in infrastructure and also adopt best practices, such as strong authentication mechanisms, encryption, regular system updates, user education and awareness, robust security protocols, compliance with regulatory standards, regular security assessments, and incident response plans, to help enhance cybersecurity in online financial transactions.” He stated.
During the 1st colloquium of the Faculty of Management Sciences at the University of Benin, Dr. Isiavwe, the Speaker, emphasized the significance of cybersecurity as an ongoing process.
He highlighted the importance of continuous monitoring and improvement, urging stakeholders to maintain vigilance and proactivity.
Dr. Isiavwe emphasized the adoption of best practices and encouraged collaboration with industry stakeholders to mitigate risks and establish a secure and trustworthy financial ecosystem accessible to all.
In her keynote address, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, Prof. Lilian Salami, explained that the colloquium served as a platform for engaging in town and gown interaction, aligned with the institution’s objective of meeting the needs of the host community.
Prof. Salami noted the timeliness of the topic due to Nigeria’s current experience with currency swap and cashless policies, which have brought about consequences such as currency crunch and scarcity.
She acknowledged the benefits of online financial transactions in terms of ease of doing business, convenience, and timeliness. However, she also highlighted the challenges associated with this system.
Prof. Salami further said “Today, we have the privilege of having one of our proudly Uniben alumni in person of Dr. David Isiavwe as our Guest Lecturer.
“I have no doubt that he would be able to do justice to this colloquium topic and educate the audience as well as the members of the public as to the precautions to take so that we do not become vulnerable to diverse series of cyber-attacks as we engage in diverse online financial transactions in this period of cashless policy and beyond.”