The last two decades have witnessed increased technology adoption in Africa. According to
Forbes, there are more than 600 million total internet users in Africa. Analysis by the IFC and
Google finds that Africa's internet economy has the potential to reach US$180bn by 2025,
accounting for 5.2% of the continent's GDP. By 2050, the projected potential contribution could
reach US$712bn, 8.5% of the continent's GDP. But the rise of the internet also has a dark side,
with the growing risk of private citizens, businesses, and governments falling victim to cybercrime.
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has identified cybercrime and emerging technologies as
growing threats to South Africa's banking sector. In its report, the reserve bank said threats
including internet and mobile banking platforms, may be exploited to facilitate money-laundering
and fund terrorism. South Africa is ranked among the top ten countries in the world in terms of
cybercrime. The country is also ranked seventh out of sixteen countries polled for the highest cost
of a cyber breach. The report notes over 90% of the banking sector offers online banking services,
and mobile application banking, except for one mutual bank.
"Although online banking offers faster transactions and more convenient options for banking,
these features are also attractive to criminals. Online features can hide the true identity of clients
(which in-branch visits would have detected), and these features can also hide the true
destination and beneficiaries of funds," says the SARB report. Southern African Fraud Prevention
Service (SAFPS) CEO, Manie van Schalkwyk says consumers must try by all means to make sure
that their data is always secured. According to SABC News, Phishing remains one of the most
prevalent scam techniques. The South African Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) estimates
that SA businesses suffer a total of about R250 million in losses each year due to phishing attacks
and internet fraud.
However, according to an article by African Business published on August 8, 2022, Kaspersky, a
Russian firm that provides anti-virus software, in their analysis revealed that attacks related to
data loss threats including phishing, scams, and social engineering increased significantly in Africa
in Q2 2022 in comparison with the previous quarter.
The company detected 10,722,886 phishing attacks in Africa in Q2. Kenyan users were influenced
the most by this type of threat: there were 5,098,534 phishing attacks detected in 3 months - a
growth of 438% when compared with the previous quarter. Kenya was followed by South Africa
(4,578,216 detections and a growth of 144%) and Nigeria (1,046,136 detections and a growth of
174%).
The Guardian in an article published August 3, 2022, reported Kaspersky saying social engineering,
"human hacking" scams, are used in many ways, and for different purposes, to lure unwary users
to the site and trick them into entering personal information. It stressed that the latter often
includes financial credentials such as bank account passwords or payment card details, or login
details for social media accounts.
According to the security firm, phishing is a strong attack method because it is done on a large
scale. It stressed that by sending massive waves of emails under the name of legitimate
institutions or promoting fake pages, malicious users increase their chances of success in their
hunt for innocent people's credentials. The article explained that phishers deploy a variety of
tricks to bypass email blocking and lure as many users as possible to their fraudulent sites, adding
that a common technique is HTML attachments with partially or fully obfuscated code. It stressed
that HTML files allow attackers to use scripts, and obfuscate malicious content to make it harder
to detect and send phishing pages as attachments instead of links.
According to a recent Interpol report, about 90% of African businesses are operating without the
necessary cybersecurity protocols and, therefore, are exposed to cyberattacks. The report also
noted that there were more than 700 million threat detections in Africa within one year. Over the
years, there have been efforts from different African countries to address the cybersecurity
challenge. According to an article by Forbes published on August 2, 2022, in South Africa,
President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Cybercrimes and Cybersecurity Act in 2021. This law
mandates electronic communication service providers and financial institutions to act when their
systems suffer a cybersecurity attack or breach. South Africa had previously signed the Protection
of Personal Information Act No. 4 of 2013 Act into law.
At the continental level, the African Union (AU) adopted the Convention on Cyber Security and
Personal Data Protection, also known as the Malabo Convention, in 2014. This was followed by
the release of the Personal Data Protection Guidelines for Africa, a collaborative measure
between the Internet Society and the AU, in 2018. According to the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development (UNCTAD), out of the 54 countries in Africa, only 33 (61%) have a data
protection law in place. Meanwhile, Business Tech in an article dated July 8, 2022, said the
Department of Police gazetted its draft search and seizure rules for cybercrimes committed in
South Africa. The Gazette, which is currently open for public comment, falls under the
Cybercrimes Act which was partly introduced by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the end of 2021.
"The Cybercrimes Act provides a new legal mechanism for addressing cybercrime in South Africa,
as well as creating a range of new cybercrime offences," the department said. "It also provides for
mechanisms to preserve electronic evidence in the cyber domain, to conduct the search, access,
and seizure operations in respect of an article as defined in the CCA, and the gathering of data
connected to both cyber and other crimes that are committed by means of or facilitated through
the use of an article." The draft rules also noted that an individual's right to privacy, as well as
other fundamental rights, must always be respected, and any infringement of these rights may
only be justified in terms of the law. "The right to a fair trial is paramount, and the responsibility
of the investigation and prosecution team in terms of gathering, preserving, and presenting
evidence to a court fairly and objectively, remain of utmost importance." Without serious
cybersecurity efforts, opportunistic criminals around the world stand poised to reap the benefits
of Africa's internet growth story.
There are different methods for classifying the different instances of malware. One
method uses the primary trait that the malware possesses. Classify the different
instances of malware using the primary trait that the malware possesses.
The answer classifies the four traits and provides examples of
malware in each trait.
The different instances of malware can be classified based on their primary traits, which are as follows:
1. Viruses: Viruses are a type of malware that infects files or programs by attaching themselves to them. They can replicate and spread to other files and systems, causing damage and disruptions. Examples of viruses include the Melissa virus, the ILOVEYOU virus, and the Stuxnet virus.
2. Worms: Worms are self-replicating malware that spread across computer networks without user intervention. They can exploit vulnerabilities in operating systems or network protocols to propagate themselves. Examples of worms include the SQL Slammer worm, the Conficker worm, and the WannaCry ransomware worm.
3. Trojans: Trojans, also known as Trojan horses, are malware that masquerade as legitimate software or files. They deceive users into downloading or executing them, allowing the malware to gain unauthorized access to systems, steal data, or perform malicious activities. Examples of Trojans include the Zeus Trojan, the Emotet Trojan, and the SpyEye Trojan.
4. Ransomware: Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts files on a victim's system and demands a ransom in exchange for the decryption key. It can severely impact individuals, businesses, and even critical infrastructure. Examples of ransomware include the WannaCry ransomware, the Ryuk ransomware, and the REvil ransomware.
These are not the only types of malware, as there are many other variants and hybrids that exist. However, these primary traits provide a broad categorization of the different instances of malware.
Malware can be classified based on their primary traits. Here are four different primary traits of malware and examples of malware that fall into each category:
1. Viruses: Viruses are a type of malware that infects files or programs and spreads when the infected files or programs are executed. They can replicate and attach themselves to other files, causing damage to the host system. Examples of viruses include the Melissa virus, ILOVEYOU virus, and Code Red virus.
2. Worms: Worms are self-replicating malware that spread without the need for user interaction. They typically exploit vulnerabilities in computer networks to spread from one system to another. Unlike viruses, worms do not require a host file to infect. Examples of worms include the Conficker worm, SQL Slammer worm, and WannaCry ransomware worm.
3. Trojans: Trojans, also known as Trojan horses, are malware that disguises itself as legitimate software or files to trick users into executing them. Once executed, Trojans can perform various malicious activities, such as stealing sensitive information, creating backdoors for remote access, or damaging the system. Examples of Trojans include the Zeus Trojan, Back Orifice, and SpyEye Trojan.
4. Ransomware: Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim's files or locks their system, making them inaccessible. The attackers then demand a ransom from the victim to restore access to the encrypted files or system. Examples of ransomware include WannaCry, CryptoLocker, and Ryuk.
Please note that this classification is not exhaustive, and there are other types of malware that may possess different primary traits.
One method for classifying malware is by its primary trait or characteristic. Here are four common traits of malware and examples of malware that belong to each trait:
1. Viruses: A virus is a type of malware that infects host files or programs and replicates itself by attaching to other files or programs. It can spread and cause damage when the infected files or programs are executed.
Example of virus: The Melissa virus, which infected Microsoft Word documents and spread through email attachments in 1999.
2. Worms: Worms are self-replicating malware that spread across networks and computer systems without human intervention. Unlike viruses, worms do not require a host file or program to propagate.
Example of worm: The Conficker worm, which spread through network vulnerabilities and infected millions of computers worldwide in the late 2000s.
3. Trojans: Trojans, short for Trojan horses, masquerade as legitimate software or files to deceive users into executing them. Once activated, Trojans can perform various malicious activities, such as stealing sensitive information or providing unauthorized access to a computer system.
Example of Trojan: The Zeus Trojan, which targeted online banking information by recording keystrokes and stealing login credentials.
4. Ransomware: Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim's files or locks their computer, demanding a ransom to restore access. It often spreads through infected email attachments or malicious downloads.
Example of ransomware: WannaCry, a widespread ransomware attack that targeted Windows operating systems in 2017 and affected hundreds of thousands of computers.
These are just a few examples of malware based on their primary traits. It's important to note that malware is constantly evolving, and new variants with different traits emerge regularly.