The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Wednesday
issued arrest warrants for 130 people in connection with electronic
fraud by hacking into commercial bank systems.
Police
sought the suspects a day after the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) urged
lenders to brace for risks technology poses to their operations,
heightening fears about the rising cases of cybercrime in financial
institutions.
The DCI’s Economic Crimes Unit said in a
notice in local dailies the suspects had engaged in banking fraud
between last June and January this year and sought public help for their
immediate arrest.
“The suspects are wanted in
connection with electronic fraud by hacking into banks systems. Any
person with information on their whereabouts should contact the DCI
headquarters or the nearest police station,” said the DCI.
A
detective, who spoke anonymously so as not to interfere with
investigations, said the rise in cyber fraud targeting financial
institutions had been on a significant rise prompting security agencies
to ramp up investigations and arrests to address the menace.
“The amounts involved are staggering,” said the DCI officer referring to massive losses banks incur every year.
Financial institutions in Kenya have recently become a soft
target for cybercriminals, with police records showing that they lost
about Sh17 billion to the fraudsters in 2016, up from Sh14 billion in
2015.
On Tuesday, CBK governor Patrick Njoroge
reiterated warnings to financial institutions saying local lenders are
exposed to cyber attacks and fraud.
Dr Njoroge urged banks to increase resilience to IT failures and cyber security incidents including organised fraud.
On
Wednesday, Godfrey Simiyu Katiambo, a former Chase Bank client, whose
account was frozen last year in June for receiving Sh150,000 from an
anonymous source was among those DCI listed as suspects.
“I co-operated with them before and I will even now,” he said.
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