CYBER SCAPE AFRICA | Q2
2019
Establishment of a Cyber Intelligence Unit
As internet penetration in Kenya continues to
grow and al Shabaab loses more territory in
Somalia the threat of cyber terrorism will only
increase. Consequently, Kenya needs to invest
heavily in cyber security personnel and latest
artificial intelligence surveillance software. No
African country has a branch of its military solely
dedicated to cyber security, yet as a leader in
internet penetration and innovation hub, Kenya
should consider this a priority. The cyberspace has
removed whatever barriers between nations and
individuals that globalization might have missed
making international cooperation in countering
cyber terrorism paramount. In the past Kenya has
worked closely with other countries to prevent
cyber terrorist operations and exchange
information on persons of interest that pose
security threats. This is a laudable step in the right
direction whose importance cannot be stated
enough as it provides opportunities for sharing
best practices with more developed national
security partners/ allies.
Public-Private Partnerships
Unlike in traditional warfare where warring parties
can easily distinguish between combatants and
non-combatants, in the cyberwarfare, anyone can
be an attacker. Therefore, to win, we need all
hands on deck as each player in the fight brings
new ideas and expertise. Internet and tech
companies need to work closely with law
enforcement agencies to circumvent the challenge
posed by encryption which can only happen
through goodwill on the part of the corporations.
Doing so gives them a good standing with their
clients who need a safe environment to enjoy their
goods and services. Tough legislation can
circumvent encryption as corporations will be
forced to cooperate with law enforcement
agencies for intelligence and prosecution
evidence collection.
Propaganda War
Counter messaging is an effective tool of
delegitimizing terrorist organizations by exposing
loopholes in their propaganda. This must be done
carefully to not legitimize wannabe leaders who
crave attention and fame that comes with being
considered a threat against the government.
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The National Counter Terrorism Center and Epuka
Ugaidi have been at the forefront of counter
messaging the hateful ideology that al Shabaab
ascribes to. Individuals engaged in counter
messaging must be careful with the narrative they
want to propagate and must be versed in the
enemy’s ideology and changing tactics lest they
make the same mistakes countries such as the
United States made with counter messaging.
Artificial Intelligence and Human Surveillance
Employment of artificial intelligence to identify
and map terrorist-related content on social media
platforms alongside human beings to decipher the
context of content that might be missed by
automation. Sharing of new methods like “hash
sharing” that enables a corporation which
discovers terrorist content on its platform to
create a digital fingerprint of that content and
sharing it with other companies is an effective way
of removing terrorist-related content fast across
multiple platforms. Social media giants such as
Twitter and Facebook need to create a database of
key terms, phrases and images that are affiliated
with al Shabaab and other extremist movements.
This database will then be fed into their artificial
intelligence mechanisms and people fluent in
Swahili, English, Arabic and popularly used
vernacular to prevent their use for hate speech
and harmful speech online which can have
devastating consequences both online and offline.
The internet presents great opportunities for
terrorist organizations and white power groups as
it amplifies their message, is cost effective, allows
tailoring of messages to suit different audiences,
encrypted communication channels among others
so they will not stop using it any time soon. Law
enforcement officials must keep themselves
abreast with the different trends of internet and
social media use by terrorist organizations. Victory
on the cyberspace against terrorist organizations
and white supremacy groups will greatly impact
the physical fight against these groups. Given how
fast terrorist organizations evolve in their
operations, Kenya is doing well in combating cyber
terrorism. Just as with more powerful countries,
there will be tough challenges ahead and mistakes
from which we will learn, but as a country we are
headed in the right direction.
Tabitha Mwangi
Head of Security Program,
Center for International & Security Affairs (CISA).