Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), Mrs. Felicia Onwuegbuchulam has called on telecom consumers across the country to join the crusade in the fight the menace of cyber crimes in the telecommunication economic sub sector.
Speaking at the 52nd edition of consumer town hall meeting at the Kano state Institute for Information Technology in Kura Thursday, Onwuegbuchulam said the NCC being the nation’s telecommunications industry regulator, would strive to ensure it had jointly addressed contemporary issues generating interest in the industry.
She said, cyber space covers everything consumers do online or with computing devices, including mobile phones, tablets and personal computers, adding that businesses and individuals in every country relied on information and communication technology for their day to day activities, where internet plays key role in interconnectivity of devices.
She stated that it is common knowledge that smart phones and other smart devices used by telecom consumers are a store house of data carrying sensitive information about the telecom consumers, his or her family, businesses, associates and daily transactions as well as financial transactions details.
She said: “As the commission embarks on various initiatives to increase access to the internet for Nigerians for positive engagements, we are, nonetheless, conscious of dishonest individuals who are bent on using the internet for illegal activities.
“The hackers and cyber criminals deploy sophisticated systems to intrude into your connected devices as telecom consumers to perpetrate their exploitation schemes. it is our belief at the the Nigerian Communications Commission that one of the most effective ways to protect telecom consumers from the effect of cyber crimes is through continued consumer education and awareness.”
Speaking in the same vein, Deputy Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau, Alhaji Ismail Adedigba said liberalisation in the telecom industry has led to an unprecedented increase in the usage of internet based solutions and services and that the Nigerian Communications Commission has initiated a process to establish Internet Industry Code of Practice for internet services providers in the country.
He said the internet code is a regulatory intervention expected to secure the country’s cyber space against imminent threats from cyber attackers as well as addressing issues such as online child protection, privacy and data protection among others.
