Kome Mohamad, a cybersecurity expert, has said Cameroonians need to foster a cultural shift towards proactive verification as Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to advance. He made the statement in an exclusive interview with The Post recently. He noted that as voice cloning, deepfakes, and AI-written scams become cheap and widely accessible, the gap between what looks or sounds real and what is actually real will continue to shrink. The defense, he said, will not be merely technical but cultural—building a national habit of verification, such as calling back, checking sources, and slowing down before paying. To secure their digital lives, Cameroonians must enable a PIN or fingerprint lock on their phones, turn on two-factor authentication, and pause before clicking or paying. Read the excerpts:
Excerpts:
If you were explaining ‘cybersecurity’ to a street vendor in Douala or a student in Yaoundé who just bought their first smartphone, how would you describe it—and why should they care?
Kome Mohamad: Explaining cybersecurity in environments like a bustling market in Douala or a university campus in Yaoundé requires grounding technical concepts in everyday realities. Cybersecurity is simply the act of locking your digital shop. Just as a vendor would never leave their physical shop door wide open at night or hand a stranger the key to their cash box simply because they smiled, digital security is about ensuring that your phone, your mobile money PIN, your WhatsApp, and your photographs are not things a stranger can just walk into and take. This protection matters deeply, even for individuals who mistakenly believe they have nothing to hide. A smartphone today holds much more than personal data; it houses mobile money accounts, business contacts, family communication channels, and sensitive documents like school fee receipts. If an unauthorized person gains control of a device, the consequences extend far beyond compromised data to include stolen funds, damaged reputations, and shattered peace of mind. For instance, a local vendor who loses access to a mobile money account for just two days due to a SIM swap is not facing an abstract technical issue, but rather an immediate, painful loss of real income.
With Mobile Money, WhatsApp, and social media now central to daily life in Cameroon, what are the most common traps everyday people fall into online?
Common online traps frequently target these vulnerabilities across the country. Fraudsters routinely deploy fake promotional messages via SMS or WhatsApp claiming victims have won airtime, phones, or cash from telecommunications operators or banks, while demanding a PIN or code to confirm the prize, even though real promotions never require a PIN. Another prevalent tactic involves scammers impersonating customer support agents to claim there is an urgent account problem, tricking victims into reading out incoming one-time passwords, known as OTPs, which grant immediate access to funds. Account hijackers also compromise messaging applications like WhatsApp to impersonate trusted friends or family members in distress, soliciting urgent financial assistance for fabricated emergencies. Additional schemes include fraudulent job postings and investment advertisements demanding upfront processing fees, sophisticated SIM swap operations that intercept verification codes through manipulated telecom procedures, and cloned social media pages mimicking banks or utility providers. The common thread across all these deceptive practices is the deliberate creation of artificial urgency and fear, forcing targets to act quickly before they have time to think critically.
Many people log onto free Wi-Fi in cafes, hotels, or public spaces. What actually happens when we use public Wi-Fi, and how can we stay safe on open networks?
Public connectivity environments introduce distinct risks that demand caution. Connecting to free Wi-Fi networks in cafés, hotels, or airports means sharing a network infrastructure with numerous strangers, including potential bad actors. On unsecured networks, attackers can engage in eavesdropping to intercept unencrypted traffic and login credentials, deploy malicious evil twin hotspots disguised as legitimate venue networks, or quietly redirect users to fake login portals. To mitigate these risks, individuals should avoid accessing sensitive banking or mobile money services on public networks, rely instead on secure cellular data for sensitive transactions, ensure websites feature secure HTTPS encryption, utilize reputable virtual private networks when open networks are unavoidable, and disable automatic network connection settings on their devices.
If a regular citizen can only do three simple, practical things today to secure their phone and accounts, what should those be?
For everyday citizens looking to secure their digital lives efficiently, three practical habits make an immediate difference. First, users should activate strong device locks using a PIN or fingerprint, and maintain absolute secrecy regarding mobile money PINs and OTP codes, knowing that no genuine operator or bank will ever request them. Second, enabling two-factor authentication on messaging applications, email accounts, and social media profiles effectively halts the vast majority of account takeovers. Third, cultivating the habit of pausing before reacting to urgent demands allows individuals to spot manufactured crises and verify claims through official channels before taking action.
Agencies like ANTIC (National Agency for Information and Communication Technologies) frequently warn against identity theft and fake social media accounts targeting public figures and businesses. How serious is this issue in Cameroon, and why is identity theft so profitable here?
Institutional vulnerabilities mirror these individual challenges, particularly regarding identity theft and public impersonation. Agencies like the National Agency for Information and Communication Technologies, ANTIC have repeatedly flagged the rise of fake social media accounts targeting public figures and commercial entities. This illicit activity thrives because trust functions as a powerful currency. When a fraudulent profile impersonates a respected business owner, religious leader, or politician, followers readily dispatch funds for fake giveaways or emergency appeals simply because they trust the name associated with the profile. Furthermore, the low cost and minimal risk of creating fake profiles, combined with the complexities of cross-border digital enforcement, make these crimes highly lucrative. Businesses frequently suffer financial losses and brand damage through fake pages collecting payments for non-existent goods. Addressing this challenge requires a dual approach combining individual vigilance with proactive monitoring, rapid reporting, and clear public education from institutions and public figures.
Many small businesses and fintech startups across the country are moving their operations online, but many operate without dedicated IT security teams. What are the biggest security oversights local business owners are making right now?
Small businesses and fintech startups migrating online often face severe operational oversights by operating without dedicated IT security teams. Common missteps include failing to separate personal and business accounts by housing critical operations on a single personal device, utilizing weak or shared administrative passwords distributed casually among staff, omitting two-factor authentication on commercial pages, neglecting regular data backups, and failing to provide basic security awareness training for employees who serve as the primary entry point for social engineering attacks. Many organizations mistakenly treat security as an afterthought to be addressed later, rather than embedding protective habits from inception.
Cameroon—and Africa as a whole—faces a growing deficit in certified cybersecurity talent. How can we encourage and train young Cameroonians to build careers in cybersecurity to bridge this gap?
Overcoming the broader deficit of certified cybersecurity talent across Africa requires targeted strategies. Entry barriers can be lowered by promoting affordable, practical, and bilingual training programs focused on local scenarios like mobile money fraud and small business protection, which resonate far more effectively than abstract theories. Creating visible career pathways through structured internships and industry partnerships bridges the gap between training and employment, while community-driven peer learning initiatives such as mentorship cohorts and hackathons sustain long-term engagement. Introducing foundational digital safety concepts early within secondary and tertiary education further normalizes security awareness as a core life skill.
Artificial Intelligence is making scams look much more convincing. How is AI changing the threat landscape, and how can everyday citizens stay one step ahead?
Looking toward the future, artificial intelligence is radically transforming the threat landscape by lowering the technical and financial barriers for malicious actors. Threat actors now leverage advanced writing tools to craft fluent, grammatically correct phishing messages in multiple languages, employ sophisticated voice cloning technology to deceive family members through audio impersonation, deploy deepfake imagery to endorse fraudulent investment schemes, and execute automated, large-scale targeting. To stay ahead of these evolving threats, foundational defenses must adapt.
Looking ahead over the next few years, as AI tools become accessible to both bad actors and defenders, what is the single biggest digital threat Cameroonians should prepare for?
The single most critical preparation for Cameroonians is fostering a cultural shift toward proactive verification. As voice cloning, deepfakes, and AI-written scams become cheap and widely accessible, the gap between what looks or sounds real and what is actually real will continue to shrink. The defense will not just be technical, but cultural—building a national habit of verification, such as calling back, checking sources, and slowing down before paying. Just as generations learned to carefully inspect physical currency notes for counterfeits, society must develop an ingrained national habit of slowing down, verifying sources through independent channels, and questioning urgent financial requests, thereby building collective resilience against sophisticated digital manipulation.
Interviewed by Etienne Mainimo Mengnjo (First published in The Post Edition number 02595 of October 16, 2026)
