Kenya is among the African countries with the highest number of online account breaches, recording 5.8 million violations over the past 20 years leading up to March 2023, according to new data.

This accounts for 0.03 percent of global online breaches. The data, compiled by Netherlands-based VPN provider Surfshark, reveals a worrying trend in the rise of cyber incidents in Kenya.

In just the past year, online breaches in Kenya surged more than six-fold, increasing from 4,701 in the first quarter of last year to 78,663 in the first three months of this year.

A breach occurs when an online account is accessed without the owner’s consent, often due to weak passwords, phishing attacks, public data leaks, or malware installed on the user’s device.

In the last decade alone, Kenya experienced 2.2 million breaches, with around 4,035 incidents for every 100,000 people.

One of the most significant breaches in recent years occurred in June 2020 when the popular platform Wattpad, which hosts user-generated stories, was hacked.

This incident led to the compromise of 727,218 accounts, highlighting the growing risk of cyber threats in the country.

Although breaches in Kenya are significant, the problem extends beyond the country. Across Africa, the number of online breaches is growing.

Surfshark’s data shows that South Sudan tops the list of African countries with the most breaches, totaling 89.4 million over the 20-year period. South Africa follows with 34.6 million breaches, while Egypt, Nigeria, Morocco, and Algeria also recorded high numbers at 22.6 million, 19.3 million, 16 million, and 10.4 million respectively.

Tunisia, like Kenya, also saw 5.8 million breaches, while Ghana and the Democratic Republic of Congo reported 4 million and 3.5 million respectively.

While Africa’s overall share of global online breaches is relatively small, Surfshark’s report warns of the serious privacy, financial, and national security risks posed by these incidents. The rising number of breaches calls for more stringent data protection measures across the continent to safeguard against future cyber threats.