Women cautioned against ‘sextortion’, cyber fraud

The Koforidua District Police Crime Officer, DSP Charity Cyrilta kudjawu has cautioned young women against sending of nude pictures and videos to their partners.

She observed a worrying trend which young women in particular are blackmailed with sexually explicit pictures and videos they send to their partners.

She said this at a public forum held to empower women in the Eastern region on “Digital Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality and Equity” Organized by the National Association of Local Authorities of Ghana (NALAG) in partnership with Federation of Canadian Municipalities as part of International Women’s Day celebration.

Many women are increasingly becoming victims of these cybercrimes, particularly sextortion.

Cybercrime is estimated to cost Africa $4 billion a year a figure that hits $450bn worldwide.

Ghana lost at least $9.8 million in 2019 to cybercrime 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, according to cyber security Authority.

Mrs. Regina Bempong, Eastern Regional Secretary for NALAG said in spite of the setbacks in the digital space women must leverage on it for economic empowerment.

She said women are very critical stakeholders and stimulants of economics development therefore cannot be left out in the digital economy.

For Mrs. Valeria Bedjaben, Assembly Member for Residential Electoral Area in New Juaben South, also Eastern Regional Coordinator for NALAG, said the passage of affirmative action bill will encourage women into critical governance positions.

She lamented that “name calling and disparaging comments about women in politics discourage many women from contesting elected positions in governance, so that phenomenon must stop”.