Kenya up 24 places in US firm’s ranking of global cyber attacks exposure

Kenya has risen 24 places in the ‘Top malware and threats’ index indicating enhanced readiness to fight cyber attacks even as cases of mobile phone hacks were reported to be on the increase.

The country has been ranked number 69 out of over 127 countries globally in the latest quarterly survey by US cyber security firm Check Point, moving from the 45th position at the end of 2015. The highest rank in the index shows a greater exposure to cyber-attacks and vice versa.

The US firm states in the report that Kenya’s improvement reflects a growing maturity in security awareness.

“This quarter, mobile malware ranked as one of the ten most prevalent attack types affecting corporate networks and devices for the first time ever,” said Rick Rogers, Area Manager for East and West Africa at Check Point Software Technologies.

Kenya has stood out among its peer, Nigeria, which is ranked 16th, moving up two places from 18th position in the preceding quarter.

“Developing and African nations are highly represented in the upper rankings of the index, and Nigeria was surpassed by a handful of other African countries, including Namibia and Malawi in second and fourth spots respectively,” states the report.

Mr Rogers, said that Nigeria’s worsening rank could be due to a dramatic increase in threats targeting mobile devices specifically.

The index reflects a surge in attacks in developing countries in Africa. Kenya is singled out among the most targeted but most resilient country, which has boosted its fight against cyber threats.

READ: Cyber attacks now targeting mobile banking

Further, the survey states that mobile malware ranked among most prevalent types of attacks affecting corporate networks and devices for the first time ever.

The report also warns that since the continent is ‘mobile-first’ and often ‘mobile-only’ continent, the new wave of threats is likely to have a strong impact on the number of attacks evidenced in the region.

“Individuals who run their businesses off mobile devices, as well as organisations who have a bring-your-own-device policy, will need to prepare for this in their security strategy,” said Mr Rogers.

“It is necessary to apply the same level of security to mobile as required by traditional networks and PCs, and security professionals must have a coherent, over-arching threat management approach that addresses this.”