FX volatility, AI attacks raise Africa’s cybersecurity costs

Foreign exchange volatility, advanced cyberattacks, and stricter data protection rules are driving up cybersecurity costs for African businesses as they deal with expanding digital operations and limited resources. This pressure is forcing companies to rethink their security infrastructure procurement and management, especially since many depend on foreign software platforms priced in dollars and euros, exposing their budgets to currency fluctuations.

A report by Heirs Technologies, titled 'Africa’s Cybersecurity Landscape 2026,' found that over 55% of observed cybercrime cases in Africa now involve artificial intelligence (AI). Attackers use AI to automate phishing scams, create deepfakes to impersonate individuals, and steal digital authentication credentials. The report, examining cybersecurity in Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa, states that AI's growing use makes cyberattacks more sophisticated and harder to detect, increasing financial and operational risks for African businesses.

Global research shows that AI-generated phishing messages have click-through rates of up to 54%, compared to 12% for manually crafted attacks, highlighting how automation and personalization can make fraudulent messages more effective. This threat comes amid widespread exposure to cyber-enabled fraud. According to cited research, 82% of Sub-Saharan Africans reported being affected by cyber-enabled fraud in the last year.

Currency instability is creating another challenge, as foreign-priced security software, cloud infrastructure, and other tools become more expensive when local currencies depreciate. The report notes that organizations may reduce security deployments or underutilize purchased tools, leaving gaps in threat detection and response.

Heirs Technologies CEO Obong Idiong emphasized the need for stronger security foundations to support Africa's digital growth. "At Heirs Technologies, we believe Africa’s digital expansion must be built on an unshakeable foundation of trust and resilience. As cyberthreats become increasingly sophisticated, protecting this growth is essential to sustaining the continent’s digital transformation," he said.

Governments are strengthening data protection regulations, which adds data sovereignty considerations for financial institutions. In Nigeria, the enforcement of the Nigeria Data Protection Act and the Central Bank's directive on local hosting of payment data by January 1, 2027, is impacting technology and security decisions. Businesses are reassessing their cloud infrastructure, considering hybrid architectures to balance flexibility with local data-hosting obligations.