African Cybersecurity Research Report

Key Findings

The 2019 KnowBe4 African Report with over 800 respondents across South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt, Morocco, Mauritius and Botswana has found that people living on the continent are not prepared for the cyber threat. 65% of respondents across all eight countries are concerned about cyber crime.

They are vulnerable, as they’re not aware of what they don’t know. From ransomware to phishing to malware and credential theft, users are not protecting themselves adequately because they mistakenly think they’re informed, ready and prepared. Around 55% believe that they would recognise a security incident if they saw one.

Of all the countries surveyed, Kenyans (75%) and South Africans (74%) were the most concerned about the risk of cyber crime and yet respondents were comfortable giving away their personal information as long as they understood what it was being used for (Kenyans 26.59% and South Africans 57%). It’s a worrying trend—many phishing scams will use any means necessary to tease out valuable nuggets of personal information and phone calls or emails from so-called ‘trusted sources’ are among the most common methods used.

The Risk of Not Knowing What I Don’t Know

The problem is that most users are not aware of how cyber criminals operate and the tools that they use. More than half of respondents across all eight countries felt very confident that they would recognise a security incident or issue if they saw one, but a significant percentage have had a PC infection, and more than a quarter had fallen for a scam. In South Africa, 50% of respondents had their PCs infected, while in Kenya, Ghana and Egypt, this number rose to 67%.