CA-Bureau of Statistics survey: Most Kenyan companies lack IT security policies

The Communications Authority and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics have released their first-ever survey about ICT use and policies among enterprises and public institutions.

Barely one-third of enterprises in Kenya have IT security policies, according to information released Wednesday in a first-of-its kind report.

The Communications Authority of Kenya and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics have conducted the first ICT enterprise survey to review access to and use of ICT and e-commerce by companies and private institutions. Officials discussed the findings, which included a broad range of information about computer and internet use among public- and private-sector organisations.

Among companies surveyed, 35.7 reported that they have a IT-security policy and 37 percent reported that they have an IT management policy

The survey noted some general differences between the two types of organisations, noting that “a higher proportion of enterprises had internet connectivity and intranet, compared to public institutions.

“Local Area Networks and cloud computing and presence of website was more prevalent in the public institutions than in enterprises.

“A higher proportion of public institutions had ICT management policies in place,” officials related via slides at the event.

The survey found that while 90.2 percent of enterprises have internet access, just 50.3 percent have websites, compared to 80.2 percent and 57.5 percent, respectively, for institutions.

Among enterprises, 60.9 percent of the companies’ websites are locally hosted, the survey found.