AI cybersecurity risks have taken centre stage at ETHOCON 2026 in Accra, where technology experts, policymakers and government representatives are examining how Ghana can protect its digital systems as artificial intelligence spreads across workplaces and public services.
Speaking to Sweet FM Online, Ethosec founder and conference lead organiser Ashraf Saaka said AI has become useful for accelerating everyday tasks, but its expanding reach has also created fresh openings for cybercriminals.
“With every emerging technology, there is always a vulnerability that is inherent or bound to happen,” he said.
Guardrails needed around AI adoption
Saaka said malicious actors can use the same AI tools that support legitimate work, turning ordinary digital assistance into a potential security threat for users.
“Bad threat actors and bad people also use that to their advantage,” he said.
His concern is not AI itself but weak safeguards around deployment. Organisations, he argued, must retain protective controls, monitor model behaviour and prevent systems from operating outside approved environments.
Saaka also referred to the danger of removing guardrails during testing, warning that models may behave unpredictably when boundaries are loosened.
Ghana urged to close security gap
The Ethical Hacking and Offensive Cybersecurity Conference has drawn stakeholders from Ghana’s digital and cybersecurity sector to discuss stronger protections for the country’s growing technology ecosystem.
Saaka said adoption is moving faster than public understanding of the security demands behind it, leaving users and institutions exposed.
As AI enters finance, communication, public administration and critical infrastructure, he wants security planning to happen before damage occurs, not after systems are compromised.
That message sits at the heart of ETHOCON 2026: Ghana can embrace AI without sleepwalking into avoidable risks, but only if developers, regulators, businesses and users share responsibility for safety.
For Saaka, the country’s digital future will depend as much on disciplined protection and public awareness as it does on rapid technological adoption.
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