Quoting Cybersecurity Ventures, one of the world’s leading researcher and publisher covering the global cyber economy, which predicted that cybercrime will cost over $6trillion annually by 2021, United State Consul General, Mr. John Bray has called for a concerted effort towards taming the menace globally.
Mr. Bray made the call while giving a remark in commemorating October as National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, as part of an ongoing cybersecurity awareness campaign tagged Stop.Think.Connect, an annual event organized by the Department of Homeland Security.
According to him, the Stop.Think.Connect campaign is a national public awareness effort designed to raise awareness of cybersecurity and to be more vigilant about practicing safe online habits.
He believes the growing dependence on technology, is largely responsible for cybercrimes. “People are spending more time online – at home and at work — than ever before. Our growing dependence on technology, coupled with the increasing threat of cyber-attacks and risks to our privacy, demands greater security in our online world,” he argued.
Every year, billions of dollars are lost through cybercrimes globally. In fact, cybercrime, according to several reports constitutes biggest problem with mankind and represents the greatest transfer of economic wealth in history.
The damage cost of cybercrime risks the incentives for innovation and investment, and appears profitable than trafficking and illicit drugs combined.
Cybercrime costs include damage and destruction of data, stolen money, lost productivity, theft of intellectual property, theft of personal and financial data, embezzlement, fraud, post-attack disruption to the normal course of business, forensic investigation, restoration and deletion of hacked data and systems, and reputational harm.