Africa is rapidly going digital, with over 1.1 billion mobile subscriptions recorded across the continent in 2025, according to INTERPOL. This transformation has opened up new opportunities, but it has also created a crime scene that can exist everywhere at once. Cybercrime can no longer be treated as a problem for "IT people" alone, as it has significant implications for public safety and security. The threat environment is increasingly organised, borderless, and technology-enabled, with artificial intelligence enabling 55 per cent of reported cybercrimes across Africa.
Dunstan Guba, the Cyber Intelligence Lead of the Criminal Investigation Department, Ghana Police Service, is one practitioner working at the intersection of technology and public service. He has extensive experience in cybercrime investigations, digital forensics, cyber intelligence, training, and international cooperation. Guba also lectures at the Wisconsin International University, teaching Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing, and hosts Cybercrime Alert on Ghana Police TV, a programme focused on digital safety and cyber resilience. His work highlights the importance of education and awareness in building a cyber-resilient Africa.
The crime scene has changed significantly, with investigators now required to protect not only physical crime scenes but also digital ones. A modern investigator must recognise that a fraud investigation may depend on mobile-money records, a threat may begin on social media, and a kidnapping case may involve location and messaging data. Evidence may be deleted, remotely wiped, or moved across jurisdictions within minutes. INTERPOL reported that cybercrime represented more than 30 per cent of reported crime in Western and Eastern Africa in 2025.
Ghana offers a useful case study in the challenges and opportunities presented by digital growth. The Cyber Security Authority recorded 2,751 actual cybersecurity incidents in 2024, with reported losses of GH¢23.33 million, and online fraud representing 44 per cent of reported incidents. By the first seven months of 2026, the Authority had recorded 3,876 cybersecurity incidents, with online fraud accounting for about 47 per cent. Ghana's Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) created the Cyber Security Authority and established a national regulatory framework, but legislation alone cannot reconstruct an intrusion or preserve volatile evidence.
Guba's public interventions have focused heavily on building investigative capability, including digital forensics, darknet investigation, and cryptocurrency analysis. He has participated in international forums, including the Council of Europe Africa Forum on ransomware, and has secured a silver medal at the 2025 INTERPOL Digital Security Challenge in Kuala Lumpur. His work has highlighted the importance of understanding attacker behaviour, rather than just focusing on encrypted files.
The need for international cooperation in cybercrime investigations cannot be overstated. A victim may be in Ghana, the offender in another country, and the platform holding evidence somewhere else. INTERPOL reported that 86 per cent of African countries surveyed in 2025 believed their international-cooperation capacity needed improvement. However, coordinated operations, such as Operation Serengeti 2.0, which resulted in 1,209 arrests, demonstrate what can be achieved through cooperation.
As Africa continues to go digital, the importance of practitioners like Dunstan Guba in shaping the future of cybercrime investigation will only continue to grow. Through his work in education, awareness, and investigation, Guba is helping to build a cyber-resilient Africa, where digital risk is understood, and institutions are equipped to preserve evidence and follow the digital trail. The future of cybercrime investigation will depend on the ability of practitioners to stay ahead of the threats and to work together to prevent and investigate cybercrime.
Key points
- Artificial intelligence is enabling 55 per cent of reported cybercrimes across Africa, making attacks faster, easier to scale, and harder to detect.
- Ghana recorded 3,876 cybersecurity incidents in the first seven months of 2026, with online fraud accounting for about 47 per cent.
- 86 per cent of African countries surveyed in 2025 believed their international-cooperation capacity needed improvement in cybercrime investigations.
