Impact of cyber threat to the security of Rwanda

Abstract

This study scrutinizes how cyber threat is affecting Rwanda’s national security. Cyber threat is defined as dangerous activities that are carried out by means of computers using the internet (cyberspace). Globalization of cyberspace has enabled the proliferation of the ICT to the entire world for profits/benefits making possibilities of losses being among the consequences of cyberthreat. Cyber threat is gradually becoming universal in a sophisticated manner, with serious economic consequences than most convectional threat. Cyber threat is completely different from convectional just because of the technologies used, skills and extra concentrated on international attention. The Cyberspace has been so penetrated by hackers and cyber attackers who expand the effects of cybercrime to society. This is through robbery of personal identities, selling contraband, locating private bank accounts and data. Rwanda has not been invulnerable to their charge since through impersonation has been bringing individuals, organizations, and companies to lose money and properties. This situation has affected the mane societies’ development and commercial affluence through accumulation. Cyber threat has brought worries and discussions worldwide, regional wise and nationwide. The national measures to encounter this threat include the creation of anti-cyber threat laws and task forces to prevent or mitigate the threat. The intertwined incidence of cyber threat makes it harder to trace the criminals since they typically use the third party to commit the crimes. Furthermore, there is disproportionality among cyberspace usage which is ever cumulative, security control mechanisms which are inversely lagging behind and security institutions. This is a complex issue ever since cyber threat uses sophisticated and self-sufficient digital subversive economy in which data creates the illegal commodity with a monetary price. The study covered 58 respondents who were selected from the Ministry of Defense and Data IT section from other security institutions. It used both quantitative and qualitative approaches. It collected data using questionnaires, interviews, and documentary review. It found that to a big extent, the cyber threat did not cause a threat to Rwanda’s national security. Though, some incidences of cyberthreats like frauds, thefts, and harmful contents, destruction of websites, abandonment of service were likely to create a national security problem, and these demands for the state to be implicated by hindering or minimalizing the effects of such threat.