ESET offers Nigerians IoT security solutions ahead of 5G roll out

As Nigeria draws closer to the commercial launch of fifth-generation (5G) technology, ESET Nigeria has assured individuals, businesses and the government of its readiness to offer solutions to protect their Internet of Things (IoT) devices from cyber threats.

The Managing Director of ESET West Africa (Anglophone), Olufemi Ake, speaking to journalists at the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) International Conference held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, said that the firm thrives on securing IoT devices.

Speaking on the conference theme: ‘Smart, Secure and Sustainable Nation’, he said that it simply implies that for a modern nation to be sustainable, the people have to be intentional about adopting smart and secure systems in every sphere. This cuts across the public and private sectors.

“In other words, we have to make the Internet secure as the bedrock of a smart city. Smart cities and smart homes imply there will be connected devices such as vehicles communicating with each other and humans via the Internet; mobile devices, laptops, and Internet of Things (IoT) communicating without any downtime.

“You would agree that, once the Internet is made available, you are guaranteed a sustainable smart city. Now, how do you make it secure? This is our area of specialisation. ESET thrives excellently in securing IoT devices. This is the future! Would you ever imagine being in a situation where your car navigation system is being hacked and you are misdirected to a strange location where negative actions are perpetrated? Of course, not! ESET comes in to strengthen security and protection of those devices, which further guarantees a safer smart city.”

Speaking on cyber security solutions for 5G launch in Nigeria, Ake added: “First, we have to be intentional with our approach to solutions deployment. We are so quick to adopt the latest technology, which is not a bad idea. However, we seem to be slow in adopting security solutions for these devices (connected technologies).”

“So, if we as a nation are going to adopt 5G, which enhances IoT connectivity then we should be mindful of its security aspects. As we adopt conferences like this, we should preach security as the bedrock of the acceptability of these devices. We have to continue to educate our people. Education is very key. Just as we are complaining about the (physical) security situation in the country, the same thing applies to cyberspace. Cyberspace must be secure for the country to reap the benefits of 5G.”

According to him, while 5G is just being deployed in Nigeria, it is already in place in over 1,500 cities across the world.

“So, it is not new to us as a business and we are futuristic. We think about these things before they are launched. For instance, TVR is categorized under IoT. It is very smart and gives the external world access to your home. So, if it is hacked, you have probably given outsiders access to your living room through smart cameras. When that happens, cyber criminals keep monitoring your activities and can socially engineer attacks against you,” he stressed.