Check Point Research says organisations across Africa averaged 3,237 cyberattacks a week in July. The global average for the same period was 2,336.
So the average African company is getting hit almost 40% more often than the average company worldwide.
That fits with the Mastercard report we covered this month, which found attacks in Africa grew 421% between 2016 and 2025. INTERPOL’s 2025 Africa Cyberthreat Assessment adds another angle: more than 30% of all reported crimes in Western and Eastern Africa were linked to cyber activity.
Why Africa? Part of it is speed. Businesses have moved online fast, often faster than their security has kept up. Part of it is skills. There aren’t enough trained security staff to go round, and small businesses can’t afford the ones who exist.
The good news is that most attacks aren’t sophisticated. They go after weak passwords, old software and staff who click the wrong link. Turning on two step login for email and banking, keeping your website’s plugins updated, and training staff to spot a fake invoice will stop a large share of what’s coming.
Sources: Brandspur, BusinessDay
