News
Nigerian Economy Attracts Investors, Terrorists – Symantec
Nigeria faces new threat from people hiding under the anonymity of the internet to wreck havoc adding to her notoriety as haven for car hijacking, armed robbery and sea piracy, a new report made available to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek revealed.
The report, 2012 global cyber vulnerability index ranked Nigeria 59 indicating that Nigeria’s rising economic profile boosted by global crude oil pricing is attracting not only foreign direct investments (FDIs), but also computer hackers who have subsequently raised the country’s internet security risk profile.
Symantec Corporation, the largest maker of security software for computers, best known for its Norton brand in its 2012 internet security threat report volume 17, ranked Nigeria in 59th position up from the previous 66th position.
The threat also means that Nigeria’s military institutions could be open to malicious malware attack by an adventurous hacker, even a disgruntled employee could breach its security protocol as seen by the recent United States Pentagon (US Defence Headquarters) leaks to wikileaks.com.
A recent case in point is the introduction of Stuxnet and Duqu, which were specifically targeted at (enemy) strategic state apparatus.
The latest of such being Flame, leading to the United Nations warning against global cyber-war.
Sheldon Hand, Symantec Territory manager, West, East, Central Africa and Indian Ocean Islands (IWECA), stated at a one-day global internet security threats workshop held in Lagos that Nigeria has gained more global attention because of its rising economic profile.
Recent World Bank Global Economic prospect report released showed GDP growth rate for Sub-Saharan Africa is projected at over 6 per cent, from a projected 5.3 per cent in 2011.
This is despite the G8 countries experiencing negative balances in their economies. The report specifically noted that Nigeria is expected to surpass the continent’s economic powerhouse, South Africa by 2015.
Boosted by this outlook, internet hackers find the Nigerian territory becoming more lucrative to exploit as investors also continue to find the market quite attractive to plough.
Elsewhere, Nigeria’s rising internet usage profile also attracts spammers to her, resulting in increase in spam activities. Currently, Nigeria has 45 million registered internet users, and with the adoption of mobile devices the figure keeps increasing by the day.
Hand listed four key global spam trends, noting that malware attacks were on the rise as much as 81 per cent, targeted attacks are expanding, mobile threats expose all users and data breaches are on the rise too.
The Symantec Territory manager stated that over 60 per cent of Nigeria’s telecommunications operators are hooked on its security, while 50 per cent of banks are also protected. “With increasing use of IT facilities across the banking and telecommunications ecosystems, more and more corporations are seeking ways to protect data either from being corrupted or stolen,” said Hand.
Worldwide 294 billion emails are sent daily, translating to 2.8 million emails every second. But astonishingly, some 50 per cent of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) lack disaster recovery plan.
According to Hand, the risk of losing critical data is more on the increase as the world get more connected devices on the internet.
There are currently one billion connected devices globally, while 1.3 billion PCs are connected to the internet.
To keep these critical data safe, Hand said Symantec has recently introduced two products: Backup Exec 2012 and NetBackUp 7.5 to take care of security needs of both SMEs and big firms.
The increasing internet data security threat to Nigeria’s economy is underlined in the fact that a single malware attack on institutions like the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) or the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) could throw the entire economy into gloom.
Globally, Hand stated that Symantec blocked a total of over 5.5 billion malware attacks in 2011, an 81 per cent increase over 2010.
Web based attacks increased by 36 per cent with over 4,500 new attacks each day. 403 million new variants of malware were created in 2011, a 41 per cent increase of 2010. Spam volumes dropped by 13 per cent in 2011 over rates in 2010. 39 per cent of malware attacks via email used a link to a web page. Mobile vulnerabilities continued to rise with 315 discovered in 2011.
Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has disclosed that the commission recovered more than N7.2 million stolen from the bank account of a serving judge by suspected internet fraudsters in a midnight cyberattack.
Ola Olukoyede, Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Olukoyede made the disclosure at the public presentation of two books authored by retired High Court judge, Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye.
He said the serving judge, who is from a South-South state, contacted him around 1:00 a.m. after receiving multiple debit alerts indicating that funds had been withdrawn from her account.
According to him, the stolen money represented savings the judge had accumulated over six years to finance her child’s education.
Olukoyede said the EFCC immediately swung into action and successfully recovered the entire sum before 6:00 p.m. on the same day.
He said the incident underscored the increasing sophistication of cybercriminals and the urgent need for stronger collaboration among law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and members of the public in tackling financial crimes.
The EFCC chairman also called for amendments to Nigeria’s legal framework to accommodate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in criminal investigations and prosecutions.
According to him, existing evidence laws should be reviewed to recognise AI-generated evidence as technology continues to reshape crime detection and investigation.
Also speaking at the event, former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged anti-corruption agencies to intensify efforts to trace and recover public funds allegedly stolen and stashed in foreign countries.
Agabi stressed the need for sustained collaboration among relevant institutions to strengthen Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts and improve accountability in public service.
In his remarks, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), called for stricter enforcement of the country’s cybercrime laws to curb the growing menace of internet fraud.
Olanipekun said effective implementation of existing laws, alongside stronger institutional cooperation, would help address the increasing threat posed by cybercriminals to individuals and the nation’s financial system.
Federal Government has cleared nearly N39 billion in outstanding pension liabilities owed to retirees under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), including former employees of the defunct Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL), Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL), the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and other federal government agencies.
The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) disclosed this in a statement, saying the payments were in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises the settlement of inherited pension liabilities and improved welfare for retired public servants.
According to the directorate, the largest component of the payment, amounting to N25 billion, covered about 35 months of outstanding pension arrears owed to nearly 10,000 eligible retirees of the defunct NITEL and MTEL.
PTAD also said it disbursed about N9.5 billion as the first tranche of Back End Computation (BEC) arrears to eligible pensioners of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
The Executive Secretary of PTAD, Mrs Tolulope Odunaiya, described the payments as a significant milestone in the Federal Government’s efforts to clear inherited pension obligations and strengthen confidence in the Defined Benefit Scheme.
Odunaiya said the settlement was made possible following presidential approval granted in 2025 and funding provided under the 2026 Appropriation Act.
She noted that the intervention had enabled the directorate to resolve long-standing pension liabilities affecting thousands of retirees.
“The successful settlement reflects the Federal Government’s commitment to sustaining pension reforms and ensuring that retirees receive their entitlements promptly in line with the objectives of the Renewed Hope Agenda,” she said.
Odunaiya thanked the affected pensioners for their patience while the liabilities remained outstanding and reaffirmed PTAD’s commitment to transparent, efficient and pensioner-focused service delivery.
She added that the directorate would continue to work towards improving pension administration and ensuring timely payment of retirees’ benefits.
A Federal High Court, Lagos has declared Mrs. Ebele Okpala, a female banker with Keystone Bank, wanted over alleged N35 million fraud.
Apart from declaring the banker who is said to be outside the country wanted, Justice deinde Dipeolu, trial judge in the matter, also directed the Department of State Security (DSS), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), to arrest her upon arriving the country.
Justice Dipeolu made the above order while granting a motion ex-parte marked FHC/L/530C/2024, filed and moved by M. Bello, on behalf of the Nigeria Police.
In the motion, Ebele Okpala and one Perpetual Onyeto, also a banker were listed as first and second defendants/respondents in the suit, while DSS, NIS and NCS were listed as cited parties/respondents.
In urging the court to make the above orders, Bello, informed the court that the application was pursuant to several sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, and under the court’s inherent jurisdiction. Adding that the application was supported by an affidavit deposed to by Inspector Tope Akerele of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Ikoyi, Lagos.
In granting the application, Justice Dipeolu held, “After considering the application and the supporting affidavit, the request had merit and granted all the reliefs sought by the prosecution.
“That an order is hereby made that the 1st defendant/despondent be declared wanted and placed on the wanted list of the Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unit, 13, Milverton Road, Ikoyi, Lagos until she is arrested.
“That an order is hereby made compelling cited parties/respondents to assist in apprehending 1st defendant/Respondent once he enters into the country.
“That an order is hereby made permitting the Publication of the name of the 1st defendant/despondent in the National Daily Newspapers and Social Media handles by the Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unity Ikoyi, Lagos for the purpose of fulfilling the requirement of the Order 1 above.”
Recall that both the wanted banker and the second defendant/respondent were previously arraigned before the court by the operatives of the police Special Fraud Unit, PSFU.
Specifically, the two bankers were arraigned before the court sometimes in September 2024, on alleged conspiracy, theft, money laundering, fraudulent lift of lien placed on bank’s customer’s account and obtaining the sum of N35 million by false presence.
World Bank Okays New $1.25Bn Loan for Nigeria
Xenophobia: MTN Nigeria Belongs to Nigerians, Not Only South Africans — Toriola
SEC Grants Approval to Luno, Other Crypto Firms under Regulatory Sandbox
MTN Nigeria Celebrates Volunteers at Y’ello Care Impact Showcase
Listicle: 10 Essential Meta Safety Tools Every Parent and Teen Should Know
Mobile Internet Gender Gap Widest in Africa – GSMA
FG Targets Alleged N3tn Capital Flight, Opens Airtime Credit Market to Nigerian Fintechs
Nigeria Launches FreeTV Nationwide
UK, Nigeria Launch £15m Growth Programme to Accelerate Economic Transformation
NASENI Moves to Digitize CCB’s 5m Assets Declaration and Operations
E-Financial3 days agoIMF Raises Concerns over N8.83 Trillion Unreported Spending in Nigeria’s Budgets
News3 days agoCourt Declares Keystone Bank Staff Wanted over Alleged N35m Fraud
Telecom3 days agoOpenAI in Talks to Offer U.S. Government 5% Stake Amid AI Scrutiny
E-Business3 days agoKaspersky Warns of a Large-scale Campaign using Fake Free Software to Deploy a RAT via ScreenConnect
E-Business3 days agoNOTAP to Commercialise University Research, Expands Patent Drive
E-Business3 days agoFG Unveils Digital Postcode System for MDAs
Broadcasting2 days agoWhy We’re Partnering With NIHOTOUR To Bring Nigerians In South Africa Home – Steve Babaeko
News3 days agoUK Deepens Digital Partnership with Nigeria to Drive Inclusive Growth