• Tunisia’s National Cybersecurity Agency published a guide on data encryption for the public.
• The initiative comes amid rising cyber threats, with online fraud up 31% between 2023 and 2024.
• Tunisia ranked among Africa’s top 20 countries hit by ransomware in 2024, with 1,232 cases.

Tunisia’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANCS) released last week an online guide to help internet users secure their personal data through encryption. The document is designed to raise public awareness of digital safety and encourage people to protect their computers and smartphones as cyber threats rise.

The guide explains how encryption works, turning plain messages into unreadable code using mathematical algorithms that require a key or password to decode. It illustrates this process with concrete examples, showing how encryption secures communications, transactions, and data privacy.

The effort is part of Tunisia’s national cybersecurity strategy. By equipping internet users with practical tools to protect themselves, the authorities aim to reduce overall vulnerability across the country’s digital networks.

Interpol’s Africa Cyberthreat Assessment Report (May 2025) notes that North African countries — including Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya — face increasingly sophisticated cyber risks driven by global crime trends and regional geopolitical tensions.

Kaspersky data cited in the report shows that online fraud cases in Tunisia rose by 31% between 2023 and 2024. Trend Micro also ranked Tunisia among the 20 African countries most affected by ransomware, with 1,232 cases in 2024.

By promoting technical tools like encryption, Tunisia hopes to foster a culture of cybersecurity, build safer digital environments, and support the growth of its digital economy.