The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has
alerted the licensed operators and subscribers in the country of the recent
outbreak of a Ransomware virus also known as “WannaCry” across the world,
reports ITRealms.
This alert, NCC officials
told ITRealms was in fulfilment of
its statutory mandate to assure the security and integrity of the national
telecommunications network in the country.
The Ransomware, ITRealms gathered, is capable of
infecting and encrypting all files on a system or any smart device until an
amount is paid for a decryption key, or other means of retrieval which may lead
to data loss are used to recover the system as an alternative.
This
situation, NCC said, demands that proactive measures be taken by all players in
the telecommunication eco-system to forestall the hazards of critical data
loss, financial losses and ultimately network/business disruption. ITRealms also reports that the NCC in a
public service notice, therefore advisd that the following protective measures be
taken, amongst others to obtain software patch released by Microsoft in March 2017
to fix the Ransomware Virus; to plan scheduled penetration tests on the
networks and systems to ensure protection and availability at all times.
And for subscribers who use their smartphones
as substitutes to computers for internet access, NCC said, they should protect themselves
and their devices by “Not opening e-mail attachments/links from unknown sources;
Not clicking pop-ups and applets on unknown websites; and installing effective
antivirus software for their mobile devices.”
Furthermore,
the NCC said it has taken proactive measures in fulfilling its statutory
mandate including advising Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to initiate regular
assessment and audit of their cybersecurity readiness.
“All
operators should continue to ensure that their backup/ disaster recovery
strategies are in place and up to date,” NCC stated.
In
addition, the Commission noted it has further advised all operators to ensure
continued deployment of effective firewalls, login passwords and antivirus
management regime.
The
Commission also stated, its working towards creating a link with the
Cybersecurity Alert System on its website so that current information on global
cyber threats/incidents could be immediately communicated to stakeholders.
NCC
emphasized that the Commission will continue to provide more cybersecurity
training for its staff.
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