30 000 mobile malware attacks blocked by Kaspersky in Nigeria, Kenya, SA this year

Kaspersky’s latest research shows that when looking at the top ten countries by share of users attacked by mobile malware Nigeria was placed eighth (at 11.76 percent). File photo.

Kaspersky’s latest research shows that when looking at the top ten countries by share of users attacked by mobile malware Nigeria was placed eighth (at 11.76 percent). File photo.

Published Oct 14, 2021

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OUT of the more than 206 000 mobile malware attacks blocked by Kaspersky solutions for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa region measured between January to June this year, more than 30 000 of these attacks combined originated from Nigeria (14 071), Kenya (10 697) and South Africa (5 499).

For African countries monitored, Nigeria only trails Egypt (19 466) by the number of attacks blocked, pointing to the prevalence of mobile threats in this highly connected country. Kaspersky’s latest research shows that when looking at the top ten countries by share of users attacked by mobile malware Nigeria was placed eighth (at 11.76 percent).

Even though Kenya and South Africa might not feature as prominently, the mobile malware threat was still a concern, along with the shift to more targeted based attacks these countries were seeing, Kaspersky said.

The top three most prevalent malware behaviours that Kaspersky had seen in Kenya and Nigeria were Trojans, Trojan-Downloaders and Trojan-Droppers.

In South Africa, these were Trojans, Trojan-Proxy and Trojan-Downloaders. A Trojan is a type of malware that is often disguised as legitimate software which attackers can use to try and gain access to user systems.

Kaspersky in Africa Enterprise Sales Manager Bethwel Opil said mobile malware remained a significant threat for corporate and personal users across Africa.

“These attacks are usually very diverse, with hackers leveraging a range of methodologies and technologies to compromise the victim's devices. Trojan-Downloaders and Trojan-Droppers are especially dangerous given their potential to contain significantly damaging payloads,” Opil said. –

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