Telecom
The 5G Coronavirus Conspiracy Theory Takes a Dark Turn
New data seen by Wired UK has revealed that dozens of mobile phone masts are still being attacked by arsonists on a daily basis because of a conspiracy theory linking 5G to the spread of coronavirus.
Though social networks have pledged to take more concerted action against it, the theory has continued to spread, inspiring a surge of attacks.
According to Wired UK, conspiracy theorists are targeting both infrastructure and key workers in the misguided belief that they are somehow spreading coronavirus.
In one incident, a broadband engineer was spat at in the face by an enraged member of the public. The engineer is now ill with suspected coronavirus.
Since March 30, there have been 77 arson attacks on mobile phone masts across the UK, with staff working on mobile infrastructure also reporting 180 incidents of abuse.
There have been 13 additional incidents of sabotage reported, ranging from failed arson attacks to attempts to damage mobile network infrastructure in other ways.
From April 20 through May 5, more than a week after the supposed peak of attacks in early April, there were 16 arson or sabotage attacks on mobile phone masts. When failed or attempted attacks are added to the tally, that number increases to 74.
The figures from the mobile phone sector are mirrored by Openreach, which is responsible for maintaining much of the UK’s broadband infrastructure.
The company has recorded 63 incidents of abuse directed towards its staff while out working since April 1, with conspiracy theorists often filming such encounters while shouting and swearing at terrified key workers.
Footage of these confrontations is then shared on social media. In the last two weeks of April, Openreach recorded 20 incidents of this nature.
The conspiracy theory linking 5G to coronavirus has spread rapidly through Facebook and YouTube in recent weeks.
It was given further prominence when a number of celebrities—including TV star Amanda Holden, Hollywood actor Woody Harrelson, and boxer Amir Khan—shared it on social media.
The online spread of the conspiracy theory is still having dangerous real-world consequences. Openreach engineers, none of whom are even involved in installing 5G infrastructure, have been exposed to a barrage of abuse.
One person threatened to throw a brick at an Openreach engineer’s head, returning several minutes later shouting and wielding a bottle. In another incident, an engineer was told they would be in “fucking trouble” if it turned out they were installing 5G, with the abuser then punching their van door and walking off.
Elsewhere, a woman shouted that 5G was “more dangerous than Covid-19,” called an Openreach engineer “fucking mental” and said she would get her brother and six friends over to “do him in.”
While angry shouting and threats typify many of these incidents, some have resulted in physical acts of violence.
Michael, an apprentice network engineer working for Openreach in London, was spat at in the face by an angry member of the public. Michael has since had to self-isolate after becoming ill with suspected coronavirus.
He was too unwell to be interviewed for this story. Another Openreach engineer has been stabbed and put in hospital.
Dylan, an engineer working for Openreach in Leicester, who was verbally abused while driving his van, describes the incident as “quite intimidating.”
In Dylan’s case, a man got out of his car while at a red light on a dual carriageway and started shouting abuse and banging on his van.
“He put his head against my window, he’s saying, ‘Don’t you ignore me, stop trying to cover up what you’re doing, 5G is killing us all, you’ve got no morals,’” Dylan says.
“You’ve got someone right there and you’re on your own. You wonder if he’s going to smash the window, what’s he going to do if he does get in, is he going to attack me? I seized up and just waited for the light to go green.” While this was happening, another individual remained in the parked car and filmed everything. Dylan says the incident has left him shaken.
“When I’m on my own I feel a bit cautious, a bit on edge. And I can’t fully focus on the task at hand because I’m always keeping an eye on what’s happening.”
Tiffany, another Openreach engineer, experienced similar intimidation from a member of the public who went on a “power trip,” lecturing her about the apparent dangers of 5G while she was trying to fix broadband infrastructure on a residential street.
He was saying, ‘I’m a reporter, I’m going to be putting this everywhere.’ He was going to put out this thing saying I was spreading coronavirus when I was just doing my job. I felt really vulnerable while it was happening and really intimidated by him. I was shaking all day after.” Tiffany later found the video on Facebook and YouTube, though it has since been removed.
The continued abuse of key workers and attacks on critical infrastructure hint at how widely this conspiracy theory continues to circulate online. In the last seven days alone, more than 54,000 posts referencing 5G and coronavirus have appeared on Facebook, generating over two million interactions. The most popular of these posts, featuring an image of Bill Gates with devil horns, has received more than 4,600 shares, comments and interactions. Two posts protesting the removal of conspiracy theorist David Icke’s Facebook page have together generated more than 7,000 shares, comments and other interactions.
The response from social networks has been spasmodic at best. While figures such as Icke have been banned, other Facebook groups with huge followings that peddle similar conspiracy theories are still active. Earlier this week, Twitter introduced a feature that prompts people posting about the conspiracy theory to read fact-checked advice. At the same time, David Icke’s Twitter profile is still active. On YouTube, conspiracy theory videos revealing “the truth” about 5G and coronavirus are still getting tens of thousands of views.
The worry for industry figures is that despite a widespread and concerted effort to debunk the dangerous 5G coronavirus conspiracy theory, it continues to thrive both online and in the real world. “It’s deeply frustrating and saddening that our engineers are facing abuse of this kind,” says Catherine Colloms, managing director of corporate affairs and brand at Openreach. “We’ve seen a worrying surge in incidents where our engineers are being subjected to mindless verbal abuse or intimidation linked to the bogus 5G theory. It really needs to stop.”
This story originally appeared on WIRED UK.
Telecom
COUCH 2025 Grand Finale Highlights Student Breakthroughs, Secures Government Pledge for University Research Commercialization
Coderina Education and Technology Foundation, in partnership with the National Universities Commission (NUC), successfully hosted the Grand Finale of the Coderina University Challenge (COUCH) 2025 at the NUC Auditorium, Abuja.
A cross section of attendees
The event gathered top government officials, university leaders, industry partners, and the ten finalist teams selected from over sixty-two initial entries nationwide.
This year’s challenge, themed “Circular Economy Through Technology” spotlighted the potential of Nigerian university students to develop scalable, tech-enabled solutions that address pressing national issues in sustainability, waste management, energy transition, and the circular economy.
The Grand Finale reaffirmed a consistent message shared across all keynote addresses: Nigeria must accelerate the movement of university research from shelves into practical innovation, commercialization, and industry adoption, a key driver of national development and economic growth.
In his opening address, Mr. Olufemi Niyi, chairman, Coderina Board of Directors, emphasized that university projects must not remain buried in archives.
He highlighted COUCH as a platform proving that research can become functional innovation.
Mr. Niyi called on donors, development partners, and private sector stakeholders to support COUCH as a sustainable national innovation pipeline and encouraged investors to channel resources into skills development and technology innovation among youth.
In his keynote address, Dr. Kingsley Tochukwu, the minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, commended the COUCH programme for its role in moving research “from the shelves to the marketplace,” a key priority under the ministry’s national innovation agenda.
He noted that the initiative exemplifies the type of collaboration and commercialization pipeline needed to unlock Nigeria’s scientific and technological potential.
He highlighted several priority areas critical to advancing the country’s innovation landscape:
“Strengthening Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem through coordinated national frameworks and partnerships; expanding digital innovation pathways to accelerate the adoption of emerging technologies, and building a tech-driven economy that delivers measurable value and global competitiveness”.
The Minister added that “Creating new opportunities for youth innovators, ensuring they are empowered to participate in and drive the innovation economy, are part of the key focus areas of the Ministry
He also expressed the Ministry’s readiness to partner with COUCH, Coderina, and the NUC to incubate and scale these student-led innovations.
Mallam Abdullahi Yusuf Ribadu, the executive secretary of NUC acknowledged the twelve universities nominated for the pilot edition by the commission.
He urged the finalists to use their prize money to advance entrepreneurship and technical skill development, reinforcing the NUC’s commitment to fostering innovation-driven learning across tertiary institutions.
In a remarkable commitment, the Minister donated five million naira to ‘Waste2Light’ from FUT Minna and announced an intention to collaborate with all ten finalist universities to support commercialization.
Dr. Tope Kolade Fasua, special address to the President on Economic Affairs, stated that technology remains the largest driver of global economic growth, stressing that Nigeria’s economic transformation is intertwined with youth innovation.
He commended Coderina and advised for greater visibility and national media outreach; creation of an innovation “museum or archive” for brilliant ideas, and the establishment of centers where theories and research can be turned into products.
He concluded that the future of Nigeria’s economy lies in the hands of today’s young innovators.
Professor Sa’adatu Hassan Liman, special guest at the programme and vice-chancellor, Nasarawa State University, delivering her address on “Sustainable National Transformation,” emphasized the need for stronger industry–university collaborations.
She also emphasized need for entrepreneurial university culture; digital literacy in emerging technologies such as AI, blockchain, IoT; adoption of virtual learning and remote laboratories, and inclusive innovation for underserved communities.
She highlighted AI as a catalyst for reimagining teaching and learning, including teacher retraining and curriculum enhancement.
The competition had two categories of prizes recognizing both technical excellence and public engagement.
Winners of the first category, The Challenge, based on pitch and prototype presentation was Team IMSU – Imo State University , taking home the star prize of ₦5,000,000; 2nd Place winners: Team Neuronaut Nile University Prize, ₦2,500,000, and 3rd Place – Team Waste2light from the Federal University of Technology, Minna: ₦1,500,000.
The People’s Choice Awards winners, based on social media engagement and public voting, are Team ADSU Innovators – Adamawa State Uni.: ₦250,000; 2nd Place -Team Scraplink, Lagos State University: ₦150,000, and 3rd place – Team Circle from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, took home ₦100,000.
Giving COUCH overview, Ms. Christiana Anthony, the Project Lead, reaffirmed that COUCH is not merely a competition but a structured innovation development program.
She highlighted the strong collaboration between Coderina and the NUC, noting that the program has created a national pathway for students to design, build, test, and pitch solutions with real potential for commercialization.
The COUCH 2025 grand finale demonstrated Nigeria’s readiness to harness university-driven innovation as a catalyst for economic growth, job creation, and sustainable development.
Google.org has announced a $2.1 million (₦3 billion) investment to support Nigeria’s artificial intelligence sector, targeting the creation of one million digital jobs and strengthening the country’s growing tech economy.
The initiative is aligned with Nigeria’s National AI Strategy and is expected to contribute significantly to the nation’s digital transformation, with AI projected to add $15 billion to the economy by 2030.
The funding will support partnerships with local organizations focused on skills development and cybersecurity.
FATE Foundation and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) will collaborate with universities to integrate AI curriculum into classroom teaching, creating a sustainable pipeline of AI-ready graduates.
Similarly, the African Technology Forum (ATF) will run an AI innovation challenge, guiding developers from bootcamp training through product development and pitching stages.
Google also emphasized digital safety. Junior Achievement Africa will scale the “Be Internet Awesome” curriculum to teach online safety to youth, parents, and teachers nationwide, while the CyberSafe Foundation will provide cybersecurity training and technical support to public institutions to strengthen digital infrastructure defenses.
Highlighting the human impact of its digital skills programs, Google cited the case of Joel Kiate, a digital marketer in Abuja, who secured employment after completing Google’s training despite failing university entrance exams five times.
A Google spokesperson said: “When we connect people with the right tools and opportunities, they don’t just find jobs—they build careers and become part of Nigeria’s growing digital economy.”
The investment reflects growing confidence in Nigeria’s tech sector, which continues to position itself as a major hub for digital innovation in Africa.
As Team OneGrid Energies walked away with the grand prize of three million naira and an HP laptop each at the MTN 2025 PachiPanda Challenge, the strongest message from the closing ceremony held on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, was not just about winning ideas, but about building ideas that pay.
OneGrid Energies
Tobechukwu Okigbo, Chief Corporate Services & Sustainability Officer at MTN Nigeria, delivered a powerful charge to the next generation of African climate innovators. He said, “Too often we celebrate innovation only for its brilliance. Today I challenge you to go further and create bankable innovation. Look around you, find the problems that need solutions, and solve them with boldness. The future belongs to you, and Africa is counting on you all to rise and deliver the change we have been waiting for.”
Okigbo reminded the finalists that Africa’s greatest asset is its youth, and that digital tools, from AI to the internet, have levelled the global playing field. “The future is yours,” he declared. “You are the leaders of tomorrow and with the necessary tools and boldness, you have the platform to rise and rewrite Africa’s story.”
The winning solution by OneGrid Energies, a scalable platform providing smallholder farmers with hyper-localised climate data and optimised planting advice, was hailed as a perfect example of innovation that can both save livelihoods and create viable business models.
Joshua Ndaman secured second place with his innovative solution, BuyScrap, a tech-driven platform that streamlines the collection and recycling of electronic waste. By ensuring that discarded electronics are ethically reused and repurposed, BuyScrap supports a circular economy and provides a reliable link between households and processors in the e-waste value chain.
Representing Dr. Joseph Daniel Onaja, Director General, Nigerian Conservative Foundation, Uchenna Achunine, Director, Business Development and Communications, Nigerian Conservation Foundation, congratulated the winners and commended their efforts in the two-day, intense pitch hosted by MTN Nigeria in partnership with WWF, the three-day PachiPanda Challenge held from 24–26 November 2025, transformed the MTN Rooftop in Lagos into a launchpad for climate-tech startups, proving that African youth are not waiting for permission to solve the continent’s biggest challenges; they are already building the profitable, impactful solutions the world needs.
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