Cyber crimes: Phasing out a stubborn ‘epidemic’ in Nigeria

World over, one of the burning issues commanding attention and causing apprehension today, is the escalating rate at which cybercrime reigns supreme. In Nigeria lately, activities of cyber criminals and hackers have posed serious threats, and efforts to nip it in the bud has proven somewhat tasking. In this report, KEHINDE OSASONA looks at the scenario
War against Cybercrime Recent prediction by Cyber security has it that global community will lose more than $6trillion annually by 2021 to cyber criminals.
Forbes projects also estimates that cybercrime costs will reach $2trillion by 2019. Similarly, Centre for Strategic and International Studies, United Kingdom, says the annual cost of cybercrime to Nigeria stands at 0.08 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP. Also, report from ‘The Conversation’ between 2009 to 2016, reveals that a cybercrime network called Avalanche grew into one of the world’s most sophisticated conglomerates of criminal syndicates staffed by corporate executives, advertising salespeople and customer service representatives. Consequently, global leaders have deployed necessary mechanism and strategies capable of ridding the globe of cybercrime menace. The question to ask at this juncture is; can this stubborn ‘epidemic’ that has plagued the world be phased out?
At the Second Annual Conference on ‘Combating Financial Fraud, Cybercrime, and Cross-Border Crimes’, the US Ambassador, Stuart Symington, was quoted in a statement issued by the U.S. Embassy, that “there is not a country in the world that is kept secure day and night, year after year by anything other than the people of that country.
“They are to national security what every user of a computer is to internet security,” saying they are the critical link. Rescuing the situation In curtailing the scourge therefore, the Nigerian government, through its National Security Adviser, NSA, MajorGeneral Babagana Monguno (retd), inaugurated a 31-man Cybercrime Advisory Council, in Abuja. Decrying the situation, the NSA, who is also the committee chair, describes the scourge as a serious challenge which members of the newly inaugurated council must confront.
Quoting Section 42 of the Cybercrime Act 2015 which provides for the establishment of the Cybercrime Advisory Council, the NSA disclosed that members of the council were drawn from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent and Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, Directorate of State Security Service, Office of the National Security Adviser, Ministries of Trade and Investments, Foreign Affairs, Finance, and Justice.
The rest are; Nigeria Stock Exchange, Nigerian Prison Service, Nigerian Police Force, Galaxy Backbone, among others.
According to him, “the protection of activities in our cyberspace has become increasingly important to the security of our great nation. You will agree with me that activities of hackers and cyber criminals in recent times have threatened government presence, economic activities, security of Nigerians and vital infrastructure connected to the internet.
“Experts have shown that the cost of cybercrime to the nation is quite signifi cant. The 2014 annual report of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, NDIC, shows that between 2013 and 2014, fraud on e-payment platform of Nigeria’s banking sector increased by 183 per cent.
“Also, a report published in 2014 by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, United Kingdom, estimated the annual cost of cybercrime to Nigeria at about 0.08 per cent of our GDP, representing about N127 billion.” Legislation as an option Against this backdrop, the Senate, in 2014, proposed a seven-year jail term for anyone found guilty of cyber crimes or off enders of computer-related fraud. The bill was sponsored by Senator Ifeanyichukwu Mbadiwe.
The upper legislative chamber also approved the new law to curb the online and related Internet crimes in Nigeria. The passage of the bill was sequel to the presentation of Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters’ Report through its then Chairman, Senator Umaru Dahiru, on the Cyber Crime Bill referred to it for further legislative work. However, in 2017, a call for the review of the bill was made when the Senate Committee on ICT and Cybercrime, observed that the current law on cybercrime in Nigeria needs to be reviewed to meet the standard in developed countries.
Chairman of the committee, Abdulfatai Buhari, Oyo-APC, gave the indication while addressing the press shortly after a plenary. The briefing according to him, was to invite journalists and members of the public to a three-day conference on ICT and cyber-crime. The conference is important to effect a review of the Cyber-crime Act which he described as “scanty. Buhari explained further that the cybercrime bill should be reviewed in order to prepare the country for impending dangers.
“If you remember, in March 2015, the former President signed a bill on cybercrime but when you look at the bill, it is very scanty. So, we came up with a bill which has passed through first reading. “Our intention is that if you take the bill for second reading without the input of experts, you are just wasting your time. We need to study how other countries are implementing their cybercrime law. Most people don’t even know that we have a cybercrime law in this country.
That’s one of the reasons for this conference,” the lawmaker explained. FG on a rescue mission Meanwhile, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, (SAN), told newsmen recently that the federal government has taken several steps through domestic policies and legislation as well as multilateral cooperation and collaboration, to fight cybercrime Malami made the assertion in Abuja at a meeting with the delegation of the Council of Europe on an Initial Assessment Visit to Nigeria and inauguration of the Global Action on Cyber Crime Plus, (GLACY+), National Coordinating Team. Represented by Mr Umar Mohammed, Director, Public Prosecutions, Malami disclosed that the Nigeria’s Cybercrime Act, of 2015 had outlined the legal and institutional framework needed to drive the country preparedness to fight cybercrime.
He said: “It is in this light that we welcome this initial assessment visit to identify the priorities that criminal justice authorities in Nigeria have to face, to pinpoint which areas to cover through the capacity building action of the GLACY+ Project.
“This is through direct consultations with stakeholders and to formally inaugurate the requisite GLACY+ National Coordinating Team that will support the Council of Europe in the multi-sector coordination and implementation of the GLACY+ programme in Nigeria.”
On his part, Mr Matteo Lucchetti, the Project Manager, Cybercrime Programme Office, said the delegation was in Nigeria to among other things, establish the national team. “We are here to basically establish the national team in Nigeria to be the entry point for all activities to be developed in Nigeria and to assess the current criminal justice capacity in matters related to cybercrime,” Lucchetti stressed. Lucchetti, who said that the project was co-funded by the European Commission and the Council of Europe, added that it currently has 12 countries and would last until 2021.