According to the Commission, one of the best ways to be protected is for telecom consumers to get themselves more informed, educated as well as enlightened as possible on the antics of cybercriminals who prowl the cyberspace to defraud legitimate and vulnerable Internet users and expose their victims to all sort of dangers.
Felicia Onwuegbuchulam, Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau, NCC, who maintained this position at the 51st edition of the Consumer Town Hall Meeting (CTM) held in Warri, Delta State on Thursday July 25, 2019 with the theme: Mitigating Effects of Cybercrimes: the Role of Telecom Consumers,” said telecom consumers have been recognized as an important stakeholder in the current cyber space where individuals and corporate users of telecoms devices often use the Internet in the interconnected world.
“It is our belief at the Commission, therefore, that as more people are getting connected to the Internet, the sophistication of cybercrime is also becoming heightened. It is for this reason that the Commission is hosting this Forum to sensitize and enlighten consumers to become more aware of cybercrime trends and to make efforts to improve the safety of users on the Cyberspace. Cybercriminals will continue to make cyberspace unsafe. So, consumers who desire to be protected while online must expose tresses to education and enlightenment to be equipped with measures to be taken for their safety while using the Internet,” she said.
Onwuegbuchulam, who was represented at the forum by Head, Information and reference, NCC, Ismail Adedigba assured participants at the event that NCC, in line with its mandate would continue to educate and enlighten consumers on industry issues, stressing that the effort by the regulator at establishing an Internet Code of Practice for Service providers is to further protect the consumers.
Ifeanyi Okowa, Governor of Delta State, who was represented by Augustina Onokpise, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology in the state, commended NCC for its educating telecom consumers “in this age of everyday Internet and data” on measures they need to take to avoid traps of cybercriminals. Okowa also stressed the need for telecom consumers to play their role in protecting themselves by taking precautions to mitigate the effects of cybercrime attacks.