By: Juliana Vandy
Strategic Communication Unit –MIC
The National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NC3) has embarked on a four-day practical on digital forensics for ten law enforcement officers involved in acquiring, processing, and preserving digital evidence at the Home Suite Hotel, Aberdeen, Freetown, from Tuesday 21st to Friday 24th February, 2023.
The Cybersecurity Coordination Centre is a statutory body created by the Cybersecurity and Crime Act of 2021 to address cybersecurity issues, including supporting law enforcement agencies in the fight against cybercrimes in Sierra Leone.
The training particularly focuses on building the capacity of the Police in combatting cybercrimes.
According to the National Coordinator, Mariama Yormah, ten police officers working in the Computer Lab at the Criminal Investigations Department will benefit from the training, after which they will receive three laptops containing various proprietary forensic software to enhance the fight against cybercrime and minimize the number of cases thrown out of court.
She furthered that the training came as result of a conducted scoping visit made by NC3 in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), to key institutions involved in the fight against cybercrimes for them to understand the landscape and identify existing gaps hindering the effective implementation of the Act.
Mrs. Yormah highlighted the lack of procedures and requisite tools for handling and preserving electronic evidence in the Computer Lab at the Criminal Investigations Department as part of the findings made during the visit.
In a similar development, the NC3 in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), will be organising a two-day cybersecurity symposium on the topic “Safeguarding our Digital World: Fostering a Common Understanding of Sierra Leone’s Cybersecurity and Crime Act” from the 27th to 28th of February 2023 at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Aberdeen.
The conference aims to bring all actors involved in the implementation of the Cybersecurity and Crime Act of 2021 for a common understanding of the legislation, identify challenges hindering its enforcement and suggest concrete recommendations
