The Government has launched the Rapid Reference Guide on Investigating and Prosecuting Offences under the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, Cap. 79C, as it intensifies efforts to secure Kenya’s rapidly expanding digital environment.
The launch follows a nationwide passive cyber-exposure assessment that identified more than 2,000 critical vulnerabilities and over 4.8 million leaked credentials.
The findings underscore the growing risks confronting citizens, public institutions, businesses and the country’s critical digital infrastructure.
Speaking during the launch, Principal Secretary for Internal Security and National Administration Dr. Raymond Omollo said Kenya’s security threats were no longer confined to streets, borders and physical institutions but increasingly extended into the digital space.
“The changing threat landscape demands a corresponding evolution in how we prevent, investigate and prosecute crime. Our investigators and prosecutors must be equipped to understand the law, follow and preserve digital evidence, and build cases that can withstand the scrutiny of our courts,” Dr. Omollo said.
He described the guide as a practical tool that will standardise the investigation and prosecution of cybercrime, strengthen the handling of electronic evidence and improve coordination among institutions within the criminal justice and national security sectors.
“This reference guide is more than a publication. It is a practical tool for strengthening investigations, supporting prosecutions and helping to keep our cyberspace safe and secure,” he said.
Dr. Omollo noted that the digital environment had changed significantly since the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act was enacted in 2018. The rise of artificial intelligence, virtual assets, cryptocurrencies and other emerging technologies has transformed how people communicate, access services and conduct business, but has also increased the scale and sophistication of cybercrime.
He cited mobile-money fraud as one of the areas in which criminal methods had become increasingly complex, with stolen funds capable of being moved rapidly from platforms such as M-Pesa into virtual assets and across different jurisdictions.
The guide addresses critical areas including mutual legal assistance, international cooperation, electronic evidence, offensive communication, the removal of unlawful online content, institutional coordination and the standardisation of investigative and prosecutorial procedures.
Kenya has committed to sharing cybercrime information with 76 countries and has initiated the process of acceding to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. The required parliamentary and public-participation processes are underway.
Accession to the Convention will strengthen Kenya’s ability to exchange intelligence, obtain electronic evidence from foreign jurisdictions and cooperate with international partners in investigating and prosecuting crimes that cross national borders.
Dr. Omollo, however, emphasised that participation in international cybercrime networks must be matched by stronger domestic capabilities.
“International cooperation is only as effective as our ability to handle the information and evidence that we receive. We must strengthen our capabilities at home so that these international networks and partnerships deliver meaningful results,” he said.
He commended the National Computer and Cybercrimes Coordination Committee, the participating criminal justice and security institutions, and the inter-agency technical committee for combining their respective expertise in developing the guide.
The Principal Secretary encouraged the wider criminal justice and national security community to regard the guide as part of the continuing development of Kenya’s capacity to govern and secure its digital environment.
He said technology and criminal methods would continue to evolve, requiring institutions to regularly review their capabilities, strengthen cooperation and ensure that the country’s legal and policy frameworks remain responsive to emerging risks.
Dr. Omollo also called on security agencies and institutions involved in fighting cybercrime to strengthen public awareness and communicate their interventions in language that ordinary citizens can understand.
He observed that limited public understanding of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act had contributed to misconceptions about its purpose and implementation.
“Citizens have a right to know what the Government is doing to protect them, the progress being made, the threats they face and the steps they can take to protect themselves,” he said.
“The fight against cybercrime cannot be won by Government alone. An informed and vigilant public is one of our strongest lines of defence. Wananchi must not be mere recipients of security but active partners in protecting our digital space.”
The Principal Secretary further called for a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, noting that no single institution or security agency could address cybercrime independently.
He said lessons emerging during the implementation of the guide should inform its continuous review and improvement, as well as the development of similar tools to respond to emerging technologies and criminal methods.
Dr. Omollo reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to expanding digital services through initiatives such as e-Citizen and technology-supported services within the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, while ensuring that the systems remain secure, reliable and accessible.
“The Administration recognises the important role of technology in improving efficiency and access to public services. We are already benefiting from these innovations, but we must ensure that the systems and the people using them are protected,” he said.
The launch aligns with the Kenya Kwanza Administration’s digitisation programme under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda and the emerging Beyond 2030 Vision, which seeks to position Kenya as a high-income, technologically advanced economy.
The event brought together representatives from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the National Police Service, the Communications Authority of Kenya, the National Computer and Cybercrimes Coordination Committee, investigative agencies and other institutions involved in cybersecurity and the administration of justice.
