Data protection: ANCy equips Togolese media to face new cybersecurity challenges

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Extract from the article: The National Cybersecurity Agency (ANCy) brought together the media on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, in Lomé for its annual session. This meeting provided an opportunity to take stock of the actions carried out in 2025, while warning of ...

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Faced with the recrudescence of cyber attacks, online fraud and disinformation phenomena, the National Cybersecurity Agency (ANCy) organized on Tuesday, December 16 in Lomé, its annual awareness session for the national media. This meeting brought together more than a hundred professionals from the print, audiovisual and online media, in the presence of the Director General of ANCy, Commander Gbota Gwaliba.

The meeting is part of the implementation of pillar 1 of the national cybersecurity strategy 2024-2025. It aims to make the media partners through this session for the dissemination of good practices and good cybersecurity information. It is also about reporting to the media on cybersecurity activities in Togo. It also aims to train them on good cybersecurity practices, in order to help them protect the information assets that are today’s work tools.

Securing the writing: Survival reflexes

To protect the work environment, Geraldo Malik Arnold, Director of ANCy training, insisted on technical rigor: "Use complex password managers and avoid inserting your sensitive professional data into AI tools. Cybercriminals use AI to simulate the voice of your directors, so be cyber activists for your own security.” Journalists need to enable two-factor authentication and separate private uses from professional tools.

State of the scene of the cyberattack

We are currently witnessing a worrying rise in cybercrime, notably via judicial ransoms, an attack consisting of encrypting the files of a victim to demand payment in exchange for the decryption key.

In 2025, digital scams caused an estimated loss of nearly 500 million CFA francs in Togo. Scams on Mix By Yas and Flooz now account for 80% of threats to citizens and businesses. More than 1,000 people have been made aware, but the reports to CERT.tg, the national computer incident response center, continue unabated. «We can’t win this fight without involving the media. The only effective remedy remains to increase vigilance because it is naivety that exposes the victims. It is imperative to relay good practices to break the storytelling of cybercriminals." argues Commander Gbota Gwaliba, CEO of ANCy.

The implementation of the national strategy has made it possible to train 250 public administration computer scientists thanks to an investment of several hundred million CFA francs. This reinforcement is vital to protect state assets from threats facilitated by Artificial Intelligence. Togo also relies on international cooperation to track cross-border criminal networks.

A necessary psychological support

Beyond the financial losses, the human cost becomes alarming, pushing some sextortion victims to the brink of suicide. On the psychological front, the ANCy now plans to collaborate with specialized structures to support victims in distress. «Psychological care has become one of our battlehorses, because our analysts are now psychologists by force of circumstances. One must have the courage to report attacks without fear of reprimands in order to prevent any escalation," explains Anissa Kpakpabia, manager at CyberDéfense Africa.

In case of a scam or attack, it is advisable to contact +228 70 44 93 25 or 22 53 59 80. If the financial loss is significant, you must report the incident to the gendarmerie or declare it on the CERT.tg portal. This collective vigilance will be at the heart of the training planned by the ANCy in 2026.

Esther KOLANI