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Tag: cybercrime

  • Kenya cyberattacks intensify as online crimes rise to 3.5 billion

    Kenya cyberattacks intensify as online crimes rise to 3.5 billion

    Criminals in the cyberspace sustained their attacks on Kenyan systems as official data shows the attacks more than doubled to reach 3.5 billion last year.

    Data by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows a 100pc increase in cybercrimes reported last year from 1.7 billion reported over the same period in 2023.

    “During the review period, two new categories of online crimes were reported. These were Brute force attacks which involve automated, systematic attempts to crack passwords or encryption by trying every possible combination until the correct one is found and mobile application attacks which target vulnerabilities in mobile apps to compromise user data or disrupt services,” says KNBS in its 2025 Economic Survey.

    The bureau noted that in the twelve month period to December 2024, 127.8 million Brute force attacks and 526,362 mobile application attacks were reported.

    System vulnerabilities reported the largest increase in attacks rising from 1.7 billion in the previous year to reach 3.3 billion further highlighting the ever rising challenge by firms to combat threats.

    According to cybersecurity strategist Dr Bright Gameli lack proper investments is one of the biggest challenges which has encouraged the rise of threats targeting Kenyan systems.

    “Firms are stretched thin because of the fact that they do not invest in people, tools or even training of their people to be cyber resilient,” he said.

    Earlier estimates by the Communications Authority (CA) showed that Kenya lost at least 11 billion to cybercriminals activities in 2023 with the figure expected to rise as firms seek new ways to combat the crime.

    “There needs to be conversations from the senior management so that they dont always be reactive but rather proactive,” added Dr Gameli.

    According to the bureau, the total cybersecurity advisories increased by 48pc cent to reach 39 last year from 26.4 million. The increase was mainly driven by website attacks where advisories issued increased by more than 10 million to reach 13.6 million.

    Malware advisories more than doubled from 1.1 million in 2023 to 2.5 million in 2024, while website application attack advisories more than tripled from about 3.9 million in 2023 to 13.6 million in 2024.

    KNBS says advisories related to system vulnerabilities declined by 11.3pc while those for botnet/DDoS attacks dropped by 28pc in 2024 to 542,620.

  • US charges Chinese hackers who targeted dissidents

    US charges Chinese hackers who targeted dissidents

    US prosecutors have charged 12 Chinese nationals for being part of an alleged hacking scheme, which sold data of US-based dissidents to the Chinese government.

    The “state-sponsored” operation also targeted government agencies including the Treasury, according to the Justice Department (DOJ).

    Hackers also allegedly targeted an American religious organisation, and a newspaper in Hong Kong, the statement added.

    China has not responded to these specific allegations, but have strongly denied other accusations in the past.

    In December, the Treasury Department reported a “major” breach by Chinese -sponsored hackers, saying they were able to access employee workstations and some unclassified documents.

    At that time, China denied any involvement, calling the accusation “baseless” and saying it “consistently opposes all forms of hacking”.

    It is unclear when the latest DOJ charges were issued – but they were unsealed in a federal court in Manhattan on Wednesday.

     

    Who is being charged?
    Among the individuals charged were two officers of China’s Ministry of Public Security.

    The DOJ said that hackers, which appeared to represent a private company, i-Soon, charged Chinese agencies between $10,000 and $75,000 for each “exploited” email inbox.

    They allegedly “conducted computer intrusions” under the direction of Chinese ministries and on their own initiative, and were “paid handsomely for stolen data”.

    “Today, we are exposing the Chinese government agents directing and fostering indiscriminate and reckless attacks against computers and networks worldwide,” said Sue J Bai, who heads the DOJ’s National Security Division.

    “We will continue to fight to dismantle this ecosystem of cyber mercenaries and protect our national security,” she added.

     

    Who was targeted?
    No further details on the targeted US-based dissidents were provided.

    The religious organisation hit by hackers was described as one which “previously sent missionaries to China and was openly critical of the PRC government”. PRC is short for the People’s Republic of China.

    A Hong Kong newspaper was also on the list. While it was not named, the statement said that it was “considered as being opposed to the PRC government”.

    Besides US agencies, hackers were said to have targeted the foreign ministries of Taiwan, India, South Korea and Indonesia.

    Last October, the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said hacks targeting two major US presidential campaigns were carried out by “actors affiliated with the People’s Republic of China”.

    Earlier last year, seven Chinese nationals were charged with running a hacking operation that lasted at least 14 years and targeted foreign critics of China.

    Operations linked by Western governments to China have also targeted the UK’s Electoral Commission, and the UK and New Zealand parliaments.

  • Kenya reports 8pc drop in cyberthreats

    Kenya reports 8pc drop in cyberthreats

    Kenya registered 8pc overall decline in cyberthreats last year according the latest analysis by Kaspersky.

    Ransomware attacks increased by 68pc, backdoors by 47pc, exploits by 22pc and phishing by 19pc

    “As the cyber security landscape evolves, cyber threats continue to become diverse and sophisticated,” said Amin Hasbini, Director of META Research Center Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT), Kaspersky.

    The firm said Kenya came in second after Turkiye with 39.2pc of users affected by online threats which are caused by vulnerabilities on web pages in emails or web services since Kenya has the highest internet penetration in Africa.

    “This trend is evident due to the emergence of advanced technologies like AI and the escalating geopolitical and economic turbulence within the Middle East, Turkiye, Africa (META) region. These factors collectively contribute to the surge in cybercrime and the heightened complexity of cyber attacks,” he added.

    Kaspersky, through their Cyber Immunity Approach, has created solutions that are impossible to compromise and minimize potential vulnerabilities.

    Victims have been advised to backup data, apply multi-layered security defenses that scan suspicious email attachment and keeping the software up-to-date to minimize entry points of ransomware.

  • Suspect allegedly linked to cybercrime detained for 7 more days

    Suspect allegedly linked to cybercrime detained for 7 more days

    The Directorate of Criminal Investigations has been granted only seven days to complete investigations on a suspect allegedly linked to cybercrime and terrorism.

    This is after the Investigating Officer presented a miscellaneous application at a Milimani court to have the suspect detained for fourteen days because of the bulkiness of the data to be presented as evidence.

    The investigating officer told the court they are seeking custodial orders to continue holding the suspect Shadrack Omondi alias Omosh Jakababa.

    He told the court that they believe the suspect is a member of a syndicate inciting people online and if released on cash bail he will interfere with the digital evidence.

    However the defense lawyer objected to the request.

    Senior Principal Magistrate Martha Nanzushi directed the matter be mentioned on 17th July 2023.

    Elsewhere the High Court has upheld the decision of an Anti-Corruption Magistrate rejecting nine exhibits in former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko’s corruption case.

    Justice Professor Dickson Sifuna while dismissing the application for review by the Director of Public Prosecutions directed parties to take a hearing date.

    And, the high court has dismissed a case by the chairman of the board of elections for Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry Benjamin Onkoba blocking his prosecution for defying a court order.

    Justice Asenath Ongeri allowed the chairman of KNCCI Turkana County Pius Ewoton to proceed with the case he filed challenging illegal elections conducted by Onkoba.

     

  • Kenyan firms paradise for cybercriminals with 90pc reported breach

    Kenyan firms paradise for cybercriminals with 90pc reported breach

    Large companies operating in Kenya have been the worst hit by cybercriminals according to a report by Liquid C2.

    The Evolving Cyber Security Landscape in Africa 2022 report by the pan-African technology group suggests that 90pc of companies operating in Kenya reporting a data breach within the last one year.

    Cybercriminals have intensified their hacks despite heavy investments local companies have deployed to safeguard their systems, suggesting a rapidly changing cyber crime world.

    “The research highlights that over half of all large enterprises in the three countries were victims of a successful cyberattack, with 90pc of them being Kenyan businesses. Increasingly sophisticated methods like Cybercrime-as-a-Service (CaaS) are becoming more popular in Africa, meaning businesses can no longer rely on outdated technologies and processes,” said David Behr, Liquid C2 Chief Executive Officer.

    According to the report, despite 85pc of Kenyan companies investing in advanced endpoint protection such as firewalls to mitigate threats, 82pc of businesses said cyber security threats had increased over the past year compared 62pc in South African, same as Zambia.

    “The biggest concern emerging from this report is that companies are saying that they’ve put a lot more cyber security controls in place. With threats evolving faster than security systems, companies cannot afford to get complacent,” said Behr.

    The firm’s findings indicate that to mitigate cyber threats, 65pc of the business use data backup, 40pc secure VPN and remote access, 38pc use web content filtering and malware while only 28pc us email content filtering and malware.

    Additionally, 82pc of companies in Kenya have been forced to beef up their IT staff by hiring cyber security personnel.

    Liquid C2 says top method of attack used by cybercriminals targeting companies include email through phishing or spam attacks at 61pc, with attacks through compromised passwords following at 48pc and data breaches and attacks at 44pc being the second and third most common.

    “The report highlights that businesses must be consistently vigilant about the ever-evolving cybercrime landscape and the methods malicious actors use to breach cyber security measures. As the report shows, complacency is a luxury no one can afford,” added Behr.

    61pc of the companies included in the research said that the breaches to their operations occurred as a result of remote or hybrid working.

    While the report by Liquid C2 did not highlight the origin of attacks coming into Kenya, the country’s high internet adoption has increased vulnerability to firms and individual internet users.

    Third quarter statistics by the Communications Authority indicate that total cyber threats detected reduced 24.9pc from 249.99 million to 187.76 million while advisories increased 0.9pc to 3.58 million from 3.56 million.

    Leading threats to businesses and users according to CA include malware, DDOS, web application attacks and system vulnerabilities.