Banks in Ghana are enjoying an extra layer of security with the official launch of the central bank’s new Financial Industry Command Security Operations Centre (FICSOC).

 A joint collaboration between the Bank of Ghana and local data security company Virtual InfoSec Africa, the centre – one of the first funded and owned by a central bank in Africa – will share intelligence on cyber threats, promote industry situational awareness and provide incident response.

ITWeb reports that all Ghana’s regulated banks are now linked to FICSOC, allowing them to receive alerts and warnings from the centre.

Speaking at the official launch in May, Ghana Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia said the commissioning of the centre “is a remarkable feat by the Bank of Ghana. It is without doubt that, very soon, other central banks in the sub-region will visit the Bank of Ghana to study your approach to cybersecurity defence in the financial sector”.

Financial institutions would be better equipped to make informed decisions about their response to cyber threats, he added.

6 June 2023
Image: Freepik