Cybersecurity training for judges key, says Chief Justice
Chief Justice Torkornoo was speaking when a delegation from the JCC and the Cybersecurity Authority paid a courtesy call on her at her office
The Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo, has expressed concern about the lack of adequate skills and resources for judges to handle cybercrime cases and called for the adoption of relevant digital laws to assist in building the judiciary’s capacity in this regard.
Justice Torkornoo was speaking when a delegation from the Joint Cybersecurity Committee (JCC) and the Cyber Security Authority (CSA) paid a courtesy call on her in the conference room of the Supreme Court administration block.
The delegation, led by the director general of the CSA, Albert Antwi-Boasiako, was to discuss with the new Chief Justice pertinent issues affecting the Judicial Service as a member of the Joint Cybersecurity Committee.
The visit was part of the JCC’s plan to touch base with members as well as other institutions to explain its activities.
Technology in motion
The JCC, established pursuant to Section 13 of the Cybersecurity Act 2020 (Act 1038), comprises 18 institutions mandated to collaborate with the CSA and the private sector for the implementation of appropriate cybersecurity measures in Ghana.
The judiciary are represented on the JCC by Her Ladyship Justice Afia Serwaa Asare Botwe, a justice of the Appeal Court.
Welcoming the delegation, Her Ladyship Justice Torkornoo commended the judiciary for the role they play in interpreting and enforcing the laws governing cyberspace, despite the challenges they face from the ever-changing nature of the cybersecurity industry.
Touching on the state of the Judicial Service’s own IT infrastructure, Justice Torkornoo expressed concerns about the lack of standardisation and interoperability of IT systems and said potential cyberattacks that could undermine the integrity and availability of the Judicial Service infrastructure.
In his remarks, Dr Antwi-Boasiako, who also chairs the JCC, emphasised the need to institutionalise cybercrime and cybersecurity knowledge in the curriculum for the training of the judiciary at the Judicial Training Institute, in particular, and legal education in Ghana in general.
In this regard, Dr Antwi-Boasiako said, the JCC has resolved to support the Chief Justice to integrate cybercrime and digital evidence training into the curriculum of legal professionals in Ghana as a whole. Such an intervention will help improve the cybersecurity knowledge base of legal professionals as a new branch of emerging law in the country, he said.
The CSA director general also expressed concern about the state of cybersecurity of the Judicial Service and the cyber threats targeting critical information infrastructure in the country.
He urged the Chief Justice to consider improving the cybersecurity posture of the Judicial Service as a key priority, in view of the Chief Justice’s vision to adopt IT systems to improve the administration of justice in Ghana.
The judiciary’s representative on the JCC, Justice Afia Serwaa Asare Botwe, lauded the Chief Justice for her leadership and vision to expand cybercrime and digital evidence training for the Judiciary.
Reporting by Wilberforce Asare in Accra
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