The Minister of National Security Marvin Dames says last year there were eight leading cyber security threats which encompassed both fraud and ransom. He said cybercrime includes damage and destruction of data and stolen money. It is estimated that cybercrime costs approximately $600 billion worldwide in a year.”
“In 2017 nearly 90 per cent of companies were targeted by businesses email compromise, and in turn American businesses lost half a billion dollars a year as a result of this,” says Dames.
The Minister said, “so sophisticated are some of the viruses used, that law enforcement officials told victims that they were better off just paying the criminals. Believe it or not, cyber hacking has become such a way of life, that those who commit this crime live comfortably from this lifestyle.
“Since 2013, cybersecurity and associated threats were the leading strategic charges outpacing terrorism for the first time since 9/11,” said Dames.
The Minister spoke at a Cybersecurity Forum held at the Island House, Lyford Cay.
Chief Executive Officer of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce- Edison Sumner gave details of the implementation plan for 2018-2020. He says, “member countries will provide support as appropriate to encourage commonwealth countries to undertake a national cybersecurity review.”
Ken Wong stressed that there more to cybercrime than spamming and
hacking. “There has been a major intrusion of tactics on the social Media front. We as Bahamians should be more aware of this issue and take necessary precautions while using different social media handles.
The cyber security forum is said to be the chamber’s attempt to provide cyber security information to businesses and individuals and to assist with combatting cybercrime. Members of CQURE technology along with the BCCEC provided information on the future of cybersecurity, protecting company assets and building the cybersecurity skillset of an organization.
As the year goes on, more Bahamian are being asked take advantage of the knowledge provided by the BCCEC on cybercrime and the measures that are been taken to decrease and prevent such a prominent issue as it is beneficial to the youth, and business owners alike.
The event was termed successful, with a tremendous turnout. There were business owners and those that were just intrigued by the nature of the event. There were also a number of networking opportunities, and a multitude of people to connect with in the technology field.
