People lost about $75,000 to online fraudsters between January and June this year , according to the reports from Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) obtained Thursday in Kigali.The  Secretary General of RIB, Col. Jeannot Ruhunga explained that between  January and March 22 when the country went into a total lockdown,  Rwf25.9 million had been stolen by cybercriminals in 39 cases that RIB  investigated. (1 USD = 950 Rwandan Francs).

According to him, the  lost amount increased to Rwf44.6 million, representing a 72 per cent  rise while the number of cases more than doubled to 89. over the  following three months between April and June.

In Rwanda, according to the police, social engineering is described as the most common trick the criminals use.

This  is the art of manipulating people so they give up confidential  information, which includes passwords, bank information, or access to  your computer or mobile phone.

Following the increase in  cyber-crime, the telecom and RIB rolled out a joint campaign to raise  public awareness on cyber safety and security, especially targeting  mobile money wallets which more than half of Rwandans own.

While  available information shows amounts of defrauded money, cybercriminals  are oftentimes after data such as personal or patient data, and banking  information.

In the past few years, reports indicate scammers are using aggressive techniques both over the phone and onlin

Currently,  official reports show that between 20 and 50 per cent of attacks are  detected every day as hackers attempt to enter different systems.

But  Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIF) chief says that some common crimes  prevalent in urban areas include impersonation, with conmen masquerading  as officials and steal money from unsuspicious victims with promise to  get them jobs.