AI Fuelling Cybercrime Surge in Nigeria, Africa — Interpol Report

Artificial intelligence is accelerating cybercrime across Africa, with Nigeria emerging as one of the continent’s major hotspots for digital fraud, ransomware attacks and business email compromise, according to Interpol’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026.

The report, released on Monday, found that artificial intelligence now enables 55 per cent of reported cybercrimes across Africa, allowing criminals to launch attacks that are faster, more sophisticated and increasingly difficult for victims and security systems to detect.

Compiled from survey data covering 36 African countries, the report examined cyber incidents recorded between January 2024 and September 2025.

Nigeria was listed among countries with the highest number of data breaches, alongside South Sudan, South Africa and Namibia.

Interpol also identified Nigeria as one of the countries heavily affected by ransomware attacks, alongside South Africa, Namibia, Senegal and Zambia, with cybercriminals increasingly targeting healthcare facilities, utility companies and public institutions to maximise disruption and extort victims.

The report highlighted Business Email Compromise (BEC) as one of the most lucrative forms of cybercrime in Africa.

According to Interpol, West Africa remains the region with the highest BEC activity, while Nigeria accounted for 29 per cent of detections in 2025, compared to 70 per cent recorded in South Africa.

The organisation said artificial intelligence has significantly increased the sophistication of these attacks by enabling criminals to generate convincing emails that imitate executives, trusted partners and corporate communication styles.

Interpol further noted that cybercrime groups operating from Nigeria have become key players in international money laundering networks, using cryptocurrency exchanges, shell companies and mobile payment platforms to move illicit proceeds across borders.

The report also revealed that Africa’s cryptocurrency market recorded transactions worth 205 billion dollars between July 2024 and July 2025, with Nigeria accounting for approximately 92 billion dollars, making it the continent’s largest crypto market.

While acknowledging the National Identity Management Commission’s policy requiring SIM cards to be linked to National Identification Numbers, Interpol warned that cybercriminals have adapted by exploiting weaknesses in Know Your Customer procedures and using artificial intelligence to register SIM cards with false identities.

The organisation urged governments, financial institutions and technology companies to strengthen cybersecurity systems, improve identity verification processes and enhance regional cooperation to combat the growing threat of AI-powered cybercrime.