The Communications Authority of Kenya has said that the country experienced a record 860 million cyber-attacks in the last 12 months.
The regulator said that “the frequency, sophistication and scale of cyber-threats” targeted at critical information infrastructure had increased dramatically.
It adds that 79% of the attacks recorded in the last 12 months were caused by cyber criminals infiltrating the computer systems of organizations.
In July, a high-profile cyber attack attributed to the pro-Russian hacking group Anonymous Sudan cut off access to more than 5,000 online government services in the country, including visa, passport and driving license applications and renewals.
The attack downplayed by ICT CS Eliud Owalo as an attempt to hack into systems also disabled online train booking systems and mobile money transactions.
This is the highest ever recorded attack compared to 2017 where Kenya experienced 7.7 million cyber attacks.
According to the regulator, Kenya is now the third most-targeted country by cyber criminals in Africa, after Nigeria and South Africa.