NCC Set to Release Cybersecurity Framework, Moves against Consumer Data Depletion

Emma Okonji

Worried about the increasing rate of website hacking and the rise in ransomware attacks and spam messages across telecoms networks, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has concluded on a cybersecurity framework for the telecoms industry that would further help in protecting the networks from cyber attacks.

The Executive Vice Chairman /CEO of NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, who disclosed this during a media parley in Lagos, said the cybersecuty framework would be released next month. 

Maida also said the commission has engaged tier one firms like KPMG and PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC)to study the rate of data depletion across networks, with a view to finding a lasting solution to the issue of consumer data depletion that has long become a source of worry to telecoms subscribers.

Giving insight into the challenges in the telecoms industry, Maida said network insecurity remained a major issue, adding that NCC is coming up with a cyber security framework that will address the digital challenges that operators face in today’s digital era.

“Beyond the physical side of security, the digital cyber security is very important.So the cyber security framework, which hopefully should be out sometimes in September this year, is going to mandate a minimum level of standards that need to be complied with from a cyber security perspective. The framework will provide the baseline and the foundation to build a more secure network, which should translate to less number of hack attempts, reduction in spam messages, and reduction in cases of ransomware,” Maida said.

According to him, fast depletion of consumers’ data is another identified challenge that should be addressed, adding that NCC has engaged tier one firms like PWC and KPMG to carry out a study on consumer data depletion. He however said the study revealed that fast data depletion has nothing to do with telecoms operators, but with the digital lifestyle of the telecoms consumers. He therefore stressed the need tosensitise consumers more ondata usage.

“From the study carried out by PWC and KPMG, there were no visual issues, but what was increasingly found was the digital lifestyle of consumers that carry out most of their activities on their mobile phones, including their daily financial transactions.

“When subscribers scroll down on TikTok, they actually consume a lot of data without knowing. Subscribers do not also realise that when they forward messagesby default, and they do not change it to WhatsApp message, it auto downloads and consumes a lot of data. Again, there’s a lot of background backups that run on mobile phones, especially with a high-definition screen, that consumes data, while several unused apps are also running and consuming lots of data. The fast video streaming on YouTube and Netflix that consumers enjoy with clear image resolution, also consumes a lot of data unknown to the consumer. So every time the operators audit the usage of data, the result always points to the fact that consumers actually consumed the data, based on their digital lifestyles,” Maida further said.

He however said the ultimate solution would be to provide consumers with high-speed and affordable internet access, through fibre connectivity, rather than depending on mobile data alone for internet connectivity, as practiced by developed countries of the world.

Maida therefore commended the federal government connectivity project that seeks to lay additional 90,000 kilometresof fibre across the country, to complement the existing 30,000 kilometresof fibre, which he said was built primarily to connect the mobile base stations.
It is expensive to watch YouTube or Netflix or do Zoom calls and financial transactions on a mobile connection that depletes data fast, hence the need for fibre connection to the homes and offices that is a lot more cheaper, Maida further said.

“So as a commission, we’re doing a study, which is going to look at the wholesale pricing for backbone networks. And that is also going to enable the owners of the existing 30,000 kilometres of fiber to be able to open up that backbone on a fair basis, to enable smaller operators have access to the backbone in order to transmit capacity from the shores to the hinterlands, to connect more households and businesses to high speed internet at affordable rates,” Maida added.