1.25 BILLION CYBERATTACKS: A wake-up call for Tanzania’s digital future

DAR ES SALAAM: IMAGINE waking up one morning to discover that someone had attempted to break into your house hundreds of times during the night.

Even if your doors remained locked, the experience would be frightening. Now imagine this happening to a major telecommunications company, not hundreds, but billions of times.

This is the reality highlighted by Safaricom, Kenya’s leading telecommunications operator, in its 2026 Sustainable Business Report, launched in Nairobi on October 27, 2026.

According to the report, Safaricom detected and monitored approximately 1.25 billion intrusion attempts during its 2026 financial year and investigated more than 130,000 security events.

These figures provide an important warning for Tanzania as its economy becomes increasingly dependent on mobile phones, digital payments, internet services and online platforms.

Understanding the 1.25 billion figure To appreciate the magnitude of the reported figure, 1.25 billion intrusion attempts over a year translates into approximately 3.4 million attempts daily, 143,000 hourly or nearly 40 every second. Safaricom’s reported cybersecurity figures:

– 1.25 billion intrusion attempts detected and monitored.

– More than 130,000 security events investigated.

– Approximately 3.4 million average intrusion attempts daily.

– Nearly 40 average attempts every second.

However, an intrusion attempt does not necessarily mean a successful cyberattacks. Many attempts are automatically detected and blocked by security systems, while others may originate from automated software continuously searching for vulnerabilities in computer networks.

Nevertheless, the figures demonstrate the enormous pressure facing organisations responsible for providing essential digital services.

For Tanzania, the message is clear: cybersecurity threats are no longer occasional incidents but continuous challenges requiring investment, preparedness and constant attention.

Why Tanzania should pay attention

Tanzania has experienced remarkable growth in digital services over the past two decades. Mobile money has transformed how people send, receive and store money, while banks increasingly provide services through mobile applications. Government institutions are also expanding the use of electronic platforms.

Today, a farmer in Mbeya can receive payments through a mobile wallet, a trader in Kariakoo can pay suppliers electronically and a student in Dodoma can access educational materials online.

These developments have created enormous economic opportunities. However, they have also increased dependence on secure digital systems.

Imagine a mobile money platform becoming unavailable during a busy trading day. Thousands of merchants could struggle to receive payments, transport operators could experience disruptions and families might be unable to send emergency funds.

Although Safaricom’s statistics do not establish the scale of cyberattacks in Tanzania, they illustrate the magnitude of threats that telecommunications operators, banks and other digital service providers must prepare to manage.

Cybersecurity is now a leadership responsibility

One important message from Safaricom’s report concerns the responsibility of business leaders.

Speaking during the report’s launch, Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa emphasised that digital trust is not merely an information technology concern but also a leadership, customer and sustainability issue.

This message is particularly relevant to Tanzanian organisations, where cybersecurity has traditionally been viewed largely as the responsibility of IT departments.

However, cybersecurity failures can affect an organisation’s reputation, financial performance, customer confidence and ability to operate.

A bank experiencing a serious cyber incident may face financial losses and customer complaints, while a hospital losing access to patient records could experience delays in delivering essential services.

Company directors, chief executives and senior managers must therefore understand cybersecurity risks and ensure that adequate resources are allocated to managing them.

Cybersecurity should become a regular boardroom agenda item, just like financial performance, operational risks and regulatory compliance.

Customer trust is becoming a valuable asset

Another interesting finding concerns customer confidence in data privacy.

According to the report, privacy COLUMNS DAILY NEWS MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2026 11 p,trust scores recovered to 70 per cent for M-PESA and 61 per cent for Safaricom during the financial year.

These figures highlight the importance of customer confidence in digital services. However, they should not be interpreted as measures of cybersecurity effectiveness or the proportion of customers protected from attacks.

In Tanzania, trust plays a major role in encouraging people to use mobile banking, electronic payments and other digital platforms.

Consider a small business owner who receives a fraudulent message claiming that their mobile money account requires urgent verification. If the owner loses money, the experience may discourage future use of digital financial services.

Similarly, repeated incidents involving stolen personal information can weaken public confidence.

For digital transformation to succeed, customers must believe that their money, personal information and transactions are adequately protected.

Building this confidence requires transparency, reliable services, effective security controls and prompt communication when incidents occur.

Artificial intelligence brings new challenges

The report also identifies artificial intelligence, data protection and responsible technology use as important priorities.

Artificial intelligence offers significant opportunities for improving cybersecurity. It can help organisations analyse large volumes of information, identify unusual transactions and detect suspicious activities more quickly.

For example, a bank can use intelligent monitoring systems to identify transactions that differ significantly from a customer’s normal behaviour.

However, criminals can also misuse artificial intelligence. Fraudsters may create convincing messages, imitate familiar voices or produce misleading information designed to deceive unsuspecting individuals.

Imagine receiving a telephone call that appears to come from someone you know, urgently requesting money. With increasingly sophisticated technology, recognising deception may become more difficult.

For Tanzania, this means cybersecurity awareness programmes must evolve alongside technological developments. Citizens should verify unexpected financial requests through trusted channels, even when messages or calls appear genuine.

Cybersecurity and sustainable development

An important aspect of Safaricom’s reporting is the connection between cybersecurity and business sustainability.

The company has adopted a double materiality framework, examining both how business activities affect society and how external risks affect business performance.

This approach carries an important lesson for Tanzania. A telecommunications company cannot claim to support sustainable development simply by expanding network coverage or introducing innovative products. It must also protect customer information, maintain reliable services and strengthen public confidence.

The same principle applies to banks, hospitals, schools, government institutions and other businesses.

Digital infrastructure must not only be accessible and affordable; it must also be secure and dependable.

What Tanzanians can do

Cybersecurity begins with simple daily habits. Individuals should protect their passwords and mobile money PINs, avoid suspicious links, update their devices and verify requests involving money or personal information.

Businesses should train employees, regularly back up important information, introduce stronger account protection and establish procedures for responding to cyber incidents.

Government institutions and regulators also have important responsibilities in promoting cybersecurity awareness, protecting personal data and strengthening cooperation across sectors.

Most importantly, cybersecurity must be treated as a shared responsibility involving citizens, businesses, technology providers and public institutions.

A warning Tanzania should not ignore

The 1.25 billion intrusion attempts reported by Safaricom should not create panic. Instead, they should encourage preparedness.

As Tanzania continues expanding its digital economy, cybersecurity will become increasingly important for economic growth, financial inclusion and public confidence.

The lesson from Kenya is not that digital technology is unsafe. Rather, it is that the benefits of digital transformation must be supported by continuous investment in security, responsible leadership and public awareness.

Tanzania’s digital future will depend not only on how many people are connected, but also on how safely and confidently they can use those connections.