Be Wary of What You Post Online—Security Expert Warns

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

A cyber security expert, Mr Alhassan Haru, has advised Nigerians to be wary of what they post online as criminals could use such content to wreak havoc.

Speaking at a consumer advocacy initiative in Benin City, Edo State tagged Shine Your Eyes, No Fall Mugu, Mr Haru advised participants to eschew certain practices if they want to safeguard unauthorised access to their financial and other sensitive information online.

At the event facilitated by the Consumer Affairs Bureau (CAB) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Mr Haru, who is the Director of New Media and Information Security (DNMIS), NCC, stated that, “It is better to be thoughtful. So, stop, think before you act. The Internet does not forget.”

“It is improper to give other people your Personal Identification Numbers (PIN) to help you do online transactions because the identity of the real card owner and the security of financial assets may be compromised in the process,” he further said.

Other practices Mr Haru advised against include sharing phones and other devices with other persons who may use them for criminal purposes; and the use of birth dates or other easy-to-guess figures as passwords for phones and devices, which can be decoded easily by close friends that may invade the privacy of others for criminal purposes.

At the event, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Mr Umar Garba Danbatta, who was represented at the forum by the Director, CAB, Efosa Idehen, said one of the central mandates of the agency is to promote and protect the interests of the telecom consumers.

According to him, the commission demonstrated its seriousness in protecting consumer interests with the creation in 2001 of CAB as a full-fledged department to oversee the fulfilment of that mandate.

Mr Danbatta stated that the agency had been able to actualise the mandate through strategic collaboration with consumer advocacy groups and relevant stakeholders.

He said the NCC is determined to heighten existing collaborations with all stakeholders to mitigate and ultimately stop the risk factor widely associated with the use of electronic payment systems.

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