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Top officials of Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the Cyber Security Authority (CSA) and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) have cautioned social media users in Ghana to be mindful of the activities of cyber fraudsters who ply their trade on the internet through the use of “loan app” and other internet-based applications.
The officials who issued the caution included Dr Albert Antwi-Boasiako, the director general of the Cyber Security Authority, Commandant Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah, the executive director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), and the first deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Maxwell Opoku-Afari.
They gave the warning on Wednesday (12 July 2023) as they addressed a joint press conference at the offices of the Cyber Security Authority to inform the public about a swoop on cyber fraudsters in three different locations in the Greater Accra Region on Monday which led to the arrest of 422 suspects.
The three institutions, together with other agencies, have constituted a Joint Cyber-Security Committee (JCC) with the aim of investigating complaints about cyber fraudsters.
The JCC has been set up to ensure cybercriminals are arrested and their activities brought to an end.
Cautious internet use
In a brief statement at the press conference, the executive director of EOCO, Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah, warned the general public to note that in spite of the successful apprehension of the huge number of digital fraudsters, there is a need for them to be mindful of many more of such criminal enterprises and elements who may still be preying online for victims.
“Anything that appears to be too good might not be too good so if you are not too sure, ask. If you are not too sure, you can contact any of the law enforcement institutions.
“If you have any doubt, if there is anything that is suspicious, even if you have not lost anything, let any of the law-enforcement institutions be aware and we will take it from there” COP Tiwaa Addo-Danquah said.
“It does not matter how small it is, probably, it is something big. Once we get to know, we will investigate that and we will make sure that it is ended so that other people who are very vulnerable will not fall for it,” Addo-Danquah said.
Arrests made
The EOCO boss also disclosed that during the swoop under focus, a total of 419 Ghanaians, one Chinese, one Indian and one Pakistani were arrested, bringing the total number of suspects apprehended to 422.
She also disclosed that during the swoop, the task force with the support of the Ghana Police Service, retrieved 654 mobile phones, 22 laptop computers and about 800 sim cards.
EOCO, she said, has begun analysing the content of the equipment recovered in order to build a strong case against the suspects for purposes of prosecuting them.
Collaborative effort
Albert Antwi-Boasiako, the director general of the Cyber Security Authority, said that the successful arrest of the suspected cyber fraudsters was made possible by the uncompromising commitment of the three institutions and their partner agencies who participated in the exercise.
“Today’s accomplishment is achieved by the collaborative efforts of the Joint Cybersecurity Committee (JCC) established pursuant to Section 13 of the Cybersecurity Act 2020 (Act 1038).
“It is therefore imperative to commend the able leadership of the JCC institutions, namely: the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation; the Ministry of the Interior; the Ministry of National Security; the Ministry of Defence; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration; the Ministry of Justice and Office of the Attorney General; the Ministry of Finance; and the Judicial Service,” Dr Antwi-Boasiako said.
“The Government of Ghana, through the Cyber Security Authority and the agencies represented on the Joint Cybersecurity Committee, have a shared responsibility of addressing cybersecurity matters and are committed to fighting cybercrime and maintaining the public safety of citizens online.
“The CSA extends its appreciation to the Bank of Ghana, the Ghana Police Service, the National Communications Authority, and the Economic and Organised Crime Office for their collaboration to deal with cybercrime,” the Cyber Security Authority boss added.
Strong sector regulation
In a speech read on his behalf by Dr Joseph France, who is the director for financial stability at the Bank of Ghana, the first deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana, Maxwell Opoku-Afari, said that the Bank of Ghana issued two notices on the activities of internet fraudsters.
The first was in October 2022 and the second in June 2023, essentially alerting the general public about the risk of patronising credit products of the unlicensed online credit service providers and further warned financial institutions not to provide services to the entities in furtherance of their illegal activities.
“The Bank of Ghana remains resolute in building a robust, resilient and safe digital financial service industry trusted by both local and international stakeholders.
“Together with EOCO, the Cyber Security Authority, the Police Service and all other relevant state actors, the Bank of Ghana is determined to rid the space of all illegal service providers,” Dr Opoku-Afari said.
Reporting by Wilberforce Asare in Accra
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