E-Business
Cybercrime: Stakeholders at ICT Forum Worry Over N127Bn Annual Losses
Stakeholders who gathered at this year’s edition of the African Digital Awards (ADA) have expressed worry over and seek measures to curb N127 billion annual estimated economic losses to rising wave of cybercrimes in the country.
ADA is a twin programme, which annually features an award ceremony after an intensive workshop tagged Nigeria ICT Impact CEO Forum (NIICF), where critical issues affecting the industries are assessed and solutions proffered by industry regulators and stakeholders from the private sector of the industry.
Discussions at this year’s forum NIICF forum was around “Broadband Access: The Challenges of Cyber Security: Threats and Effect on Social Media Era.
While the issue of cybercrime, in its ramifications is said to be a global phenomenon, the stakeholders, including the Ministry of Communications, Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Nigerian Communication Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), MTN, MainOne, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), among others were on accord that Nigeria needed to develop a strategy backed with thorough implementation of the Cybercrime Act, 2015 towards curbing the economic losses.
According to them, In Nigeria and other countries around the world, the internet has become an integral part of everyday life and has become a key development index, whose measurement is taken by development-oriented organisations and agencies.
While noting that there was no doubt about the positive impact of the internet and its peripheral technologies in enhancing people’s daily lives, they were also on accord that Internet has brought about the advent of cybercrimes, which are now threatening the socio-economic landscape of people across the globe.
Speaking at the forum recently held at the Oriental Hotel in Lekki, Lagos, Mr. Adebayo Shittu, minister of Communications, noted that within a short period of time, Internet had evolved from being a simple tool for accessing information and conducting communication and commerce to becoming a significant venue for social activity and interaction.
He, however, said that whilst this means better and more convenient services and a boost in the economy, it also creates a viable avenue for cyber attacks and criminal activities which could cripple or destabilise the national system. “As the world increasingly depends on technology and the cyberspace, especially increasing access to broadband for daily businesses, it gets more and more insecure.
Yearly, he said thousands of cybersecurity problems are identified in cyber space and technologies from known and unknown global actors leaving Internet users vulnerable.
Shittu said cybersecurity is more than a challenge for government as it poses a huge obstacle to the country’s digital transformation agenda in social and economy desired for the country, stressing, however, that the Federal Government has estimated an annual loss of over N127 billion to cybercrime activities in the nation, the minister said.
According to him, “Nigeria has had its fair share of cybercrimes between 2016 and 2017 alone, stressing that the recession in 2016 brought about numerous attacks targeted at organisations and individuals.” Noting the most recent targets in Nigeria were unsuspecting patronisers of ponzi schemes.
“In the wave of austerity, many people lost money to the said schemes carried out through cyber platforms and others fell victims to malicious and compromising websites.”
Indeed, in the electronic payment space, data from the Nigerian Inter-bank settlement Systems Plc (NIBSS) showed that in the first quarter of this year, over N374 million was lost to different cases of electronic frauds.
Meanwhile, Prof Umar Danbatta, executive vice chairman of NCC, explained while development of regulatory framework for broadband penetration, licensing of infrastructure service providers, issuance of wireless broadband licence and the offering of more wireless broadband frequency and services are part of the Commission’s efforts towards ensuring deepen broadband access, the Commission has been collaborating with necessary stakeholders in order to work together to also tackle rising wave of cybercrimes.
“For instance, the Commission, among others, is partnering with the ITU to establish in Nigeria a Regional Cybersecurity Centre (RCC) for Africa,” Danbatta said. ‘The centre, which will be sited in Abuja, will provide support in the area of technical manpower training, information sharing and other collaborative roles with local Computer Security Incidence Response Team (CESIRT).”
Also Convener of the forum, Mr. Tayo Adewusi, said as individuals get exposed to cyber crimes, “companies are also exposed to the risks in the course of interacting with their supply chain, partners and customers but all said and done, Mr, Olusola Teniola, president of the Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), said there was a need for government to create more enabling environment for service providers and collaborate with them more in order to sanitise the industry.
Mr. Kunle Adegoke, partner, M.A Banire & Associates, stressed the need for effective implementation of the Cyber Crime Act, 2015, saying “what we need is to be religious about the implementation and then not lose the sight of the fact that technology is always ahead of law and ‘so, the law must be subjected to periodic review and amendments in order to make it relevant at all time no matter the advancement in technology space.”
Chief Executive Officer, MainOne, Ms Funke Opeke, who also made a presentation that in capturing the broadband demand in the country, there was a need to encourage last-mile transmission of humongous internet bandwidth seating in the shores of Lagos to the nooks and crannies of the country to ensure wider access to broadband services. “Also, other challenges relating to multiple taxation, multiple regulation, vandalism and denial of right of way (RoW) must be addressed,” she added.
In the same vein, Ms. Abimbola Alale, chief executive officer of NIGCOMSAT, disclosed that while her organisation has been collaborating to deploy satellite facilities and encourage their usage within the country, towards encouraging deeper broadband, “we are also working day and night o ensure that our broadband services are secure for Nigerians and beyond.”
Other stakeholders, who spoke at the event, have emphasized that the fight against cybercrimes is currently beyond socio-political and economic exigencies, adding that as broadband access gets deeper, creating wider and unhindered access to high-speed internet, there is greater need to form strategic partnerships and collaborative alliances with stakeholders, agencies, organisations and jurisdictions with the objective of forming a common front to combat the menace of cybercrime in all its ramification and manifestations in the society.
Meanwhile, awardees at this year’s ADA leg of the event included Most Outstanding Telecoms Company of the Year which went to MTN Nigeria; Regulator of the Year was clinched by Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Most Outstanding Government Agency of the Year grabbed by Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NigComSat Ltd.) and away ICT Woman of the Year won by the due Chief Executive Officers of NIGCOMSAT, Ms Abimbola Alale and Chief Executive Officer of MainOne, Ms Funke Opeke.
Also, the award jury rated Kunle Azeez of New Telegraph as Most Outstanding ICT Editor of the Year; former President of the Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), Engr. Bayo Banjo emerged as Broadcast Personality of the Year; Chief Executive Officer of Teledom Group, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, won Broadband Luminary Award; Mr. Babatunde Mo’ Aguda emerged winner of Youth Innovative Award while Mr. Chris Kehinde Nwandu won Most Outstanding Online Editor of the Year.
President Bola Tinubu has directed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to ensure that every Nigerian is enrolled in the national identity database before the end of 2026, according to Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general and chief executive officer of the agency.
Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general and chief executive officer, NIMC
Coker-Odusote, who appeared on Channels Television, said the directive forms part of the federal government’s efforts to establish a comprehensive national identity system capable of supporting effective governance, planning, and service delivery.
“The President has given us till the end of this year to make sure that we capture every single Nigerian,” she said.
According to her, NIMC is working with partners under the World Bank-supported Identification for Development (ID4D) project to accelerate nationwide enrolment.
“What we have done is we have partnered through the World Bank ID4D project with front-end partners. They are part of the digital identity ecosystem. These are private citizens that we’ve enabled and given jobs to enrol citizens on our behalf,” she explained.
She stressed that the National Identification Number (NIN) remains a unique identifier, ensuring that every individual is registered only once.
“That’s why it’s called a unique identifier, so that you’re only enrolled once,” the NIMC DG added.
Coker-Odusote said Nigeria’s actual population remains uncertain, with estimates ranging from 200 million to 250 million, making a comprehensive identity database essential for national planning.
“It is estimated that we’re 200 million. When we’re done enrolling, we will then know the actual numbers that we have. Some estimates say 230 million, while a few people say 250 million.
“Your identity is basically the foundation for effective governance and service delivery. How can you plan if you don’t know the total number of persons that you have? We have been mandated by Mr President to go down to the community levels to enrol every single Nigerian”, she said.
Responding to concerns about whether an individual could obtain multiple identities by registering in different locations or under different names, the NIMC boss said the commission’s biometric verification system prevents such occurrences.
She explained that while the previous system could accept duplicate enrolments before detecting them later, the current process automatically identifies and invalidates multiple registrations.
“The legacy system had no way of verifying at the front end whether you had already been captured. Once the record comes into the system, it flags it as a duplicate or that the person already exists in the database.
“You would only have one identity generated for you. The other record goes into a deduplication bucket where it is invalidated,” she said.
The NIMC DG added that biometric verification, including fingerprints and facial recognition, makes it virtually impossible for one person to maintain multiple identities.
“Absolutely. One of the things that this Act has done is to cement our role in capturing biometrics. Private and public sector organisations will no longer capture biometrics independently. They will validate identities through API integration with NIMC.
“The telcos are already doing that with us. If you need a SIM card, they capture your facial biometrics, which are matched against our database in real time to confirm that you are who you claim to be. We’re using biometric validation to tighten security around identity confirmation,” she said.
The remarks come weeks after Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026 into law on June 26, repealing the 2007 legislation.
The new law reinforces the “One Person, One Identity” policy by making the NIN the country’s foundational identity credential for accessing government and essential private services, including banking, passport applications, tax administration, pensions, land transactions, and consumer credit.
It also introduces stiffer penalties for identity theft, multiple registrations and unauthorised access to personal identity data, while strengthening data privacy protections and granting NIMC wider powers to investigate identity-related offences.
Cybersecurity and privacy experts are raising concerns around the growing trend of sports fans using generative AI to create World Cup-related images, mock-ups, predictions and social media content.
Whilst offering new ways for supporters to engage with major sporting events, these tools also introduce risks that many users may underestimate. In light of this, Kaspersky has shared the key risks fans should keep in mind when using generative AI tools, so they can continue enjoying the championship with peace of mind.
When fan AI goes rogue. A growing number of AI tools are being used to create World Cup-themed visuals, avatars, memes and other fan content. While these services may seem creative and harmless, not all of them come from trusted providers.
Many are launched quickly to capitalise on interest around major events, increasing the likelihood that users will interact with platforms that offer limited transparency around data handling, lack adequate privacy and security measures, or might even be designed with malicious intent.
Personal data at stake. To create customised World Cup content, users are often asked to upload selfies, sign up with an email address, connect social media accounts or share other personal information. In doing so, they may reveal more information than necessary without fully understanding how that data will be stored, used, or potentially exposed.
“AI-driven fan content may seem harmless, but one of the key privacy risks is that users are often encouraged to share far more personal information than necessary. A simple request to generate a themed avatar can involve the collection of photos, contact details, account data and behavioural insights – information that may later be insufficiently protected.
“Because major global events often create an ideal environment for opportunistic actors, fans should take a closer look at how these tools manage personal data before engaging with them,” says Anna Larkina, web content analysis and privacy expert at Kaspersky.
When fan content becomes a scam. AI-generated World Cup content in some cases can also be used to support fraud. Cybercriminals may use convincing mock-ups, fake giveaways, or official-looking fan pages to attract attention and build trust. Once users engage, they may be redirected to phishing sites, fake stores, fraudulent offers, or betting-related scams. Generative AI makes these campaigns easier to produce, more persuasive and far easier to scale.
The myth of AI predictions. Another area that deserves caution is AI-powered match prediction. However advanced or data-driven these tools may appear, AI cannot reliably predict inherently uncertain sporting outcomes. When used to promote betting, paid subscriptions or “insider communities”, such services can create a false sense of confidence and encourage risky decisions.
Multi-asset global broker JustMarkets has launched its Web Terminal, an advanced browser-based trading terminal now available to all clients in any country supported by the broker.
JustMarkets
The company said the new platform forms part of its ongoing effort to expand and strengthen its trading ecosystem. Before the official launch, the Web Terminal went through a preparation phase during which the team fine-tuned its technical performance and gathered user feedback.
“At JustMarkets, we never stop evolving,” a JustMarkets representative said. “With the Web Terminal, we wanted to remove every barrier between traders and the markets. Now every client can trade directly from their browser, with all the professional tools they need at their fingertips.”
The Web Terminal is fully available for MT5 accounts, allowing traders to access a professional trading environment without downloading or installing any software. The broker said the platform runs entirely in the browser, enabling clients to start trading instantly from any device.
To access the terminal, users are required to choose a trading account, press the “Trade” button, and then select “JustMarkets Terminal” from the window that appears.
The broker said the platform includes advanced charts with technical indicators and graphical tools, flexible volume settings that allow trade volume to be set in lots or in units of the asset, detailed asset descriptions, a market sentiment tool that provides real-time trading sentiment, timely updates on trading schedules and margin changes, and tools for managing multiple trading positions and pending orders.
According to the company, the launch follows the introduction of the JustMarkets mobile app for trading on the go and represents another step in its broader innovation strategy.
JustMarkets said it remains committed to growth and has additional features, tools, and improvements already in development.
Tinubu Orders NIMC to Enrol Every Nigerian by End of this Year – DG
Nigerians Accumulate $59Bn in Cryptocurrency Assets —FDC
Nearpays, Nigerian Fintech Becomes First African Startup to Win UN’s AI for Good Innovation Factory
Nokia’s 14 Years of Mobile-Phone Supremacy Ended in an Afternoon
MTN Nigeria Slashes Cost of Broadband Internet Router, Unwraps New Data Bundles for Low-Budget Users
NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira
Nigeria Launches FreeTV Nationwide
NASENI Moves to Digitize CCB’s 5m Assets Declaration and Operations
Lebara Nigeria Launches Lebara Play, Africa’s First Telecom-Owned Micro-Drama Platform
CANAL+ Partners Samsung to Pre-Load DStv Stream on New Samsung TVs In Nigeria, Other African Countries
News1 day agoXora Finance, Fintech Firm Refuses to Hire Nigerians over Alleged Dishonesty
Telecom1 day agoNCC Advances Dig Once Policy, Engages Stakeholders on Cost-Based Framework for Duct Sharing
Telecom1 day agoNCC to Keynote Telecom Sector Sustainability Forum 7.0
General News1 day agoFG Secures Fresh $208.3m World Bank Loan for Cash Transfer
News1 day agoPalmPay Nigeria Appoints Samuel Oluyemi as Chief Operating Officer
News1 day agoHow Ponzi Scheme Victims can Seek Legal Remedies — Lawyers
General News1 day agoSERAP Sues INEC over Alleged N800Bn 2027 Tinubu Campaign Fund
E-Business1 day agoKaigama,Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Warns against Misuse of AI