Ghana loses $9.8m to cybercrime, other criminal activities in 2019

Ghana has lost at least $9.8 million to criminal activities last year, as against $105 million dollars the previous year.

Out of the amount, $6.8 million was lost through fraud, $2.7 lost to intrusion and stealing and the rest to sextortion and child pornography.

The Director of the Cyber Crime Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Dr Gustav Herbert Yankson, disclosed these to the Ghanaian Times in Accra yesterday, stating that ten cars, and $58,000 of the $9.8 million were recovered by the police.

He mentioned the reported cases to the unit as forgery, cyber fraud, remittance fraud, sextortion and romance fraud among others.

ACP Dr Yankson stated that cybercrime topped the 192 reported cases reported to the unit, last year, representing 47 per cent.

He said as part of efforts to reduce the menace in the country, the unit would intensify its sensitisation to the public.

ACP Dr Yankson said the unit would also engage Information Technology (IT) professionals to discuss cyber security, because some of them did not have much knowledge on cyber security issues.

He said the unit was making progress due to education on cyber security, stating that last year, students in 40 schools were educated on cybercrime and how to prevent them.



ACP Dr Yankson said the Bank of Ghana has directed financial institutions to adhere to cyber security policy to ensure safety.

He said for the past two years, the Ghana Police Service has trained more than 1,700 investigators to be able to investigate and handle electronic devices effectively.

ACP Yankson urged the public to adopt security measures to protect their cyberspace, and asked institutions to invest more in cyber security.

He said cyber crimes negative effects on businesses and the country’s economy, and appealed to journalists to collaborate with the police in its sensitisation drive.