Telecom

How Meta is Preparing for Nigeria’s 2023 General Elections

Published

3 years ago

February 3, 2023

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In a bid to help ensure a safe and secured general election in Nigeria, Meta had earlier today, through Adaora Ikenze, Head of Public Policy for Anglophone West Africa, shared another update ahead of the general elections. Find Excerpts below.

Today, we are sharing an update on our work to prepare for and help preserve the integrity of the general elections taking place in Nigeria on 25 February 2023.

This work will continue in the lead-up to, during and after the vote. It is grounded in long-running investments we have made in people, technology and partnerships to help reduce the spread of misinformation, detect and remove hate speech, improve digital literacy, help make political advertising more transparent and ensure the safety of people using our platforms.

Removing Harmful Content to Keep People Safe

We want people to be able to talk openly on our apps about the issues that matter to them, whilst still feeling safe. Our Community Standards (also available in Hausa) publicly explain what content is and isn’t allowed on Facebook and Instagram, and cover a number of areas relevant to elections. These include policies on harassment and incitement to violence, as well as detailed hate speech policies that ban attacks on people based on characteristics like ethnicity or religion. When we become aware of content that violates these rules, we remove it.

Since 2016, we’ve quadrupled the size of our global team working on safety and security to 40,000 people. This includes over 15,000 content reviewers who review content across Facebook and Instagram in more than 70 languages — including Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa.

As Election Day approaches, we will activate a Nigeria-specific Elections Operations Center focused on identifying potential threats across our apps and technologies in real time, accelerating our response time. This initiative will bring together experts from across our company on our intelligence, data science, engineering, research, operations, public policy and legal teams.

Combating Misinformation and False News

We remove the most serious kinds of misinformation from Facebook and Instagram, such as content that could contribute to imminent violence or physical harm, or that is intended to suppress voting. This includes false news related to voting dates, locations, time and methods. For the Nigerian elections, based on guidance from local partners, this will specifically include photos and videos shared out of context that falsely depict ballot-stuffing, acts of violence or weapons.

For content that doesn’t violate these particular policies, we work with independent fact-checking organisations in Nigeria — AFP, Africa Check, Dubawa and Reuters — who review and rate content in English, Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. When content is rated “false” or “partly false” by these fact checkers, we attach warning labels to the content and reduce its distribution in Facebook Feed so people are less likely to see it.

To help Nigerians spot and take action against false news online, we’ve partnered with local radio stations to create “#NoFalseNewsZone” radio dramas in English and Pidgin, and run ads on Facebook and radio in Yoruba, Pidgin, Hausa and Igbo.

Addressing Virality on WhatsApp

WhatsApp will continue to limit peoples’ ability to forward messages and announced last year that any message that has been forwarded once can only be forwarded to one group at a time, rather than the previous limit of five. When we introduced the same feature for highly forwarded messages in 2020, we reduced the number of these messages sent on WhatsApp by more than 70%.

WhatsApp’s Search the Web function also lets people double-check the text content of messages that have been forwarded many times. This means that they can find other sources of information about content they’ve received.

People can also control who can add them to group chats and have options to block and report unknown contacts, giving them even more control over their privacy.

Making Political Advertising More Transparent

Advertisers seeking to run ads related to social issues, elections or politics on our apps in Nigeria must undergo a verification process to prove who they are and that they live in the country. Their ads will also be labelled with a “Paid for by” disclaimer to show who’s behind it.

We’ve also introduced new controls so people can choose to see fewer ads about social issues, elections and politics. When people use these controls they’ll no longer see ads that are labelled with the “Paid for by” disclaimer.

All political and electoral ads are added to our Ads Library for seven years, so that everyone can see what ads are running, see information about targeting and find out how much was spent on them.

Fighting Election Interference

We’ve built specialised global teams to stop election interference, focusing on coordinated inauthentic behaviour (CIB) — when groups of people use sophisticated networks of Pages, Groups and accounts to try and manipulate public debate.

Since 2017, we have removed more than 150 networks globally for coordinated inauthentic behaviour including ahead of major elections, and we remain vigilant to this behaviour. We will remove and publicly share details of any networks of CIB that we identify across our technologies related to the election.

Working With Local Organisations

We are working closely with election authorities, including The Independent National Electoral Commission, and other local partners in Nigeria to ensure we’re preparing appropriately for the specific challenges an election brings.

We have engaged with women safety organisations such as TechHer, ElectHer, Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund, and WIMBIZ to support a range of initiatives that encourage civic engagement. We’ve also provided digital security and safety training for vulnerable groups including female public figures and human rights defenders.

We have also provided training for grassroots civil society organisations that are working to prevent and counter violent extremism in Nigeria, organised in partnership with Search for Common Ground, and conducted a roundtable with experts, academics and think tanks that are working on counterterrorism efforts in the country.

Encouraging Civic Engagement

When it comes to elections, people should have easy access to accurate information from credible sources. That’s why we’ve supported Yiaga Africa, a non-partisan voter education non-profit, through a donation to develop a voter education chatbot on WhatsApp.

Launched on February 1st, 2023, the chatbot helps provide Nigerian voters with secure information on voting rules, positions up for election, what to expect on voting day and the tools they need to exercise their vote. Anyone can access the chatbot by messaging +234 (0) 906 283 0860 on WhatsApp or click wa.me/+2349062830860.

We’ll also have an “I Voted” sticker on Instagram. And on Election Day, we’ll remind people in the country that it’s time to vote with a notification on top of their Facebook Feed as well.

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Ugo Onwuaso

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Telecom

Court Bans Kenyan Telcos from Recycling SIM Cards

Published

18 hours ago

March 21, 2026

Ebere Melum-Nwogbo

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Kenya’s High Court has ruled that mobile phone numbers are not disposable assets, but constitutionally protected digital identifiers, striking at the core of a long-standing industry practice of arbitrarily reassigning inactive SIM cards without the owners’ consent.

Court Bans Kenyan Telcos from Recycling SIM Cards

In a landmark decision that could reshape telecom regulation and digital identity frameworks across Africa, sitting at Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi, Justice Lawrence Mugambi declared that reassigning a phone number without the original owner’s consent violates the right to privacy.

The ruling effectively elevates a SIM card into the same legal category as personal data tied to an individual’s private life.

At the heart of the ruling is Article 31 of the Constitution, which safeguards citizens from unnecessary disclosure of private information and interference with communications.

The court found that in today’s digital economy, a registered mobile number functions as a critical gateway to sensitive personal data, linking users to mobile money platforms like M-PESA, banking systems, email accounts, and social media profiles.

“When mobile digital identity is lost through reallocation or recycling without interrogating the reasons behind inactivity, it creates an avenue for unauthorised disclosure of delicate information,” the judgment stated.

The case, brought by Erastus Ngura Odhiambo, petitioner and former prisoner, challenged the routine telecoms practice of deactivating SIM cards after prolonged inactivity and reassigning them to new users.

Odhiambo lost access to his mobile phone number due to inactivity while serving his lengthy sentence.

He argued that the practice exposes individuals to serious risks, including misdirected financial transactions, intercepted one-time passwords, and unintended access to private communications.

The court agreed, highlighting how recycled numbers can result in strangers receiving confidential messages, authentication codes, and even being added to private messaging groups, effectively inheriting fragments of another person’s digital life.

Justice Mugambi also criticised the rigidity of SIM deactivation policies, calling them “arbitrary” for failing to consider legitimate reasons for inactivity such as incarceration, studying in restricted environments, or living abroad.

“Incarceration does not strip an individual of their constitutional rights to privacy and identity,” he noted.

For telecom operators, including Safaricom, the ruling introduces a significant compliance burden. The court outlined three strict conditions before any number can be reassigned.

Telcos must obtain informed and verifiable consent from the original owner, issue a public notice and conduct traceability efforts over a reasonable period.

More importantly, the court further directed that telecoms firms must implement technical safeguards to prevent data exposure to the new user.

The Office of the Attorney General has been given six months to translate these directives into enforceable regulations.

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Telecom

Binance Earn: Simple Way to Earn Rewards on Idle Crypto Holdings

Published

18 hours ago

March 21, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

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Binance Earn offers cryptocurrency users an accessible way to generate rewards on idle digital assets without active trading or constant market monitoring.

Binance Earn

As the crypto market matures, more holders seek productive uses for their assets rather than leaving them dormant in wallets. Binance addresses this through Binance Earn, where users allocate supported cryptocurrencies to various reward products for automatic yield generation.

The platform emphasises simplicity with a “set-and-forget” model: users select assets, pick a product, and rewards accrue passively in the background. This appeals especially to long-term holders aiming to enhance portfolio value over time without day-to-day involvement.

Binance Earn provides flexible options for instant liquidity access alongside fixed-term products for defined commitments, catering to diverse strategies and risk appetites.

“We’re seeing growing interest across Africa in ways to make crypto holdings more productive without active trading,” said Larry Cooke, Africa Head of Legal at Binance. “Simple, ‘set-and-forget’ solutions are becoming increasingly relevant as more users take a longer-term approach to digital assets.”

The feature reflects shifting user behaviour towards holding and gradual growth amid volatile markets, where reward rates fluctuate based on conditions, liquidity, and structures.

Users must assess risks and alignment with personal goals, as crypto remains volatile. Binance Earn positions itself as a key tool in Africa’s rising digital asset adoption, enabling hands-off participation in the ecosystem.

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Telecom

New Gmail Scam Mimics Security Alerts to Steal User Data

Published

2 days ago

March 20, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

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Cybersecurity researchers at Malwarebytes Labs have exposed a sophisticated new Gmail scam where fraudsters send fake Google security alerts via phishing emails, texts, and pop-ups, tricking users into a deceptive four-step verification process that harvests login credentials, GPS locations, contacts, and other sensitive data for account takeovers.

Gmail

Disguised as routine checkups, these alerts mimic Google’s official pages to create urgency, prompting victims to install malicious “security tools” that grant hackers real-time access to Gmail and linked services—Corey Donovan, president of Alta Technologies, warns legitimate checks never come unsolicited or demand downloads, urging users to close suspicious prompts immediately and verify via official Google account pages instead.

The scam’s rise amplifies risks during travel, where public Wi-Fi hotspots—especially “evil twin” fakes like slight misspellings of “Airport_Free_WiFi”—enable interception of banking details, emails, and malware installs; Donovan advises disabling auto-connect, using VPNs for HTTPS sites only, avoiding logins altogether, and crafting strong passwords with mixed characters plus two-factor authentication.

Shoulder surfing on public transport and outdated devices compound threats, as fraudsters glimpse screens or exploit unpatched vulnerabilities—keeping phones updated with post-update privacy reviews limits app access to location or commutes, while skipping work emails in view maintains confidentiality on the go.

Nigeria’s heavy reliance on digital banking and crypto heightens vulnerability, as scammers exploit rushed travellers; Donovan stresses: “Cybercriminals target busy airports and stations knowing guards drop—stay cautious, update devices, lock privacy, and never rush links to protect against these advanced breaches.”

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