A recent research by Positive Technologies, a leader in result-driven cybersecurity, has revealed that over half of cyber attacks in Nigeria target the government sector and financial companies.

This was contained in the firm’s analysis of the current cyber threats on the African continent for 2023–2024.

According to the experts, these attacks are often carried out by organised hacker groups aiming for financial gain and espionage, as well as by hacktivists.

In Africa, government and financial institutions make up 29 cent and 22 cent of all successful attacks on organisations, respectively.

The analysis of messages on the dark web forums confirmed that these sectors attract cybercriminals the most: they account for 19 per cent and 13 percent of all the darknet listings.

Anastasia Bezborodko, an analyst from the International Analytics Group at Positive Technologies, noted: “The share of attacks against the government sector among all attacks on organisations in Africa is twice as much as was found in our previous research. “Most often, government institutions are targeted by APT groups (46 percent) aiming to collect data and perform cyberespionage, as well as by hacktivists (18 percent ).

” Cybercriminals primarily target government institutions in Nigeria (27 percent ), Algeria (17 percent ), Ethiopia (12 percent ), and South Africa (12 percent), according to dark web data.
“Attacks on the financial sector also increased, rising from 18 percent to 22 percent of all successful attacks.

“On the dark web, posts related to Africa’s government sector typically mention free distribution of information (66 percent), while those related to financial institutions focus on selling data and access (64 percent).”

According to Positive Technologies, more than half of the databases related to African countries are distributed for free on the dark web, while access to corporate networks can be bought for an average of $2,970.

One in 10 successful cyberattacks on organisations in the region targeted the industrial sector.
The main goal of these attacks was to disrupt production processes and steal confidential information.

Another 10 percent of attacks targeted telecommunications: cybercriminals are drawn to vast amounts of personal data and customer payment information. In attacks on organisations, criminals most often targeted computers, servers, and network equipment (65 cent).
This points to weak infrastructure protection, such as vulnerabilities.

The report covered the period from Q1 2023 to Q3 2024. network perimeters and poorly configured services that are accessible externally.

Attacks targeting web resources surged from 15 per cent to 27 percent with DDoS attacks accounting for half. Malware was the most common method used in cyberattacks, accounting for 43 percent of attacks on organisations and 53 percent of attacks on individuals. In almost one-third of successful attacks on companies, cybercriminals used ransomware, and in one out of every four attacks, they deployed spyware.

In 18 percent of attacks on organisations, hackers exploited vulnerabilities. The most common result of cyberattacks on organisations (61 percent ) and individuals (53 percent) was hackers accessing confidential information.

Another common issue was disruption of core business operations, which occurred in 18 percent of successful attacks.

According to open-source data, a significant share of cyberattacks happened in South Africa (22 percent ) and Egypt (13 percent). Meanwhile, analysis of posts on the dark web forums revealed that these messages primarily targeted South Africa (25 percent ), Nigeria (18 percent), and Algeria (13 percent ).

Most often, dark web listings feature databases (61 percent), and more than half of these databases (64 percent) are given away for free. Criminals also sell data for accessing the networks of major African companies (38 percent of all analysed dark web messages). Most of these posts (74 per cent) are about selling access, with an average price of $2,970.
In recent years, digital technologies have been implemented across various sectors in Africa, opening up new opportunities for cybercriminals.

To increase the region’s cybersecurity and thwart future cybercrimes, experts at Positive Technologies recommend adopting protective measures, such as developing and timely updating cybersecurity strategies and identifying critical information infrastructure, the disruption of which could cause non-tolerable events at industry and national levels.

To ensure cyber resilience, experts recommend that organisations conduct risk analysis, put together a list of events that could cause irreparable damage, regularly update systems and applications, and continuously check the effectiveness and relevance of security mechanisms and tools in place. Organisations should also host educational events to teach employees basic security rules and allocate budgets for training cybersecurity specialists. To improve cybersecurity, experts recommend forging strong partnerships between the government and private sectors.

Strengthening international collaboration, sharing knowledge, and exchanging experiences on current cyberthreats and protective measures are also crucial.

Positive Technologies is an industry leader in result-driven cybersecurity and a major global provider of information security solutions.

Our mission is to safeguard businesses and entire industries against cyberattacks and non-tolerable damage. Over 4,000 organisations worldwide use technologies and services developed by our company.

Positive Technologies is the first and only cybersecurity company in Russia publicly available on the Moscow Exchange (MOEX: POSI), with 205,000 shareholders and counting.

The federal government has urged a joint effort to regulate genetically modified organisms (GMO) foods within the country.

This comes as experts caution about the potential risks of consuming genetically modified foods, highlighting their possible health effects on consumers.

During a public hearing in Abuja on Tuesday, organized by the House of Representatives Committee on Agricultural Production, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, assured that the Federal Government would take all necessary measures to protect the well-being of Nigerians.

Kyari emphasized that while the government, under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, is dedicated to ensuring food safety and security, efforts will be made to find a balanced approach between those who support and those who oppose the use of GMOs.

He said, “The government will not deliberately bring what is poisonous to the people. This forum is meant for sharing ideas from GMO experts to find a level playing field for food security.

“There are seed councils and regulatory bodies in charge of checkmating seedlings used by farmers hence the need for a collaborative effort.”

During the public hearing, anti-GMO advocates, organized under the GMO-Free Nigeria Alliance, which includes approximately 200 individuals and organizations, voiced their concerns about the potential health and environmental risks associated with consuming genetically modified foods.

The group also called on the National Assembly to impose a total ban on GMOs, emphasizing that foreign entities determined to introduce GMOs into the country play a role in the ongoing insecurity challenges in Nigeria.

Inibehe Effiong, the group’s consultant, presented their memorandum to the Committee, urging the Federal Government to adopt a policy of  ‘No to GMO and GMO distribution and circulation in Nigeria.’

He said,”We would like to see in the interim, while the argument is even going on, a national moratorium declared that even if they are not convinced that the adverse effects which majority of the experts have spoken eloquently to are obvious, even if they still want to go ahead with the investigation, pending when they conclude; GMO distribution and circulation in Nigeria should be halted.

“There is a perception that you can do to Nigerians whatever you want to do and nothing will happen. And that explains some of the institutional arrogance that we witness today. To the point that someone was so audacious as to say it is better to eat and die than not to eat and die.

“While we recognise the government’s efforts at improving food security in Nigeria, the adoption of GMOs as a silver bullet to agricultural challenges is an error. Continuing this path holds serious implications on Nigeria’s food sovereignty, on our biodiversity/environmental sustainability, and our health.”

Also speaking, a stakeholder, John Ekpere noted that in September 2024, the National Cotton Association of Nigeria reported that they “Did not record any significant increase in their yields compared to the local seed varieties. They added that instead, since the introduction of GM cotton seeds during the 2020/2021 farming season, yield per hectare remained almost the same.

“They also reported that no other plant has been able to germinate on the farmlands where the GM seeds were planted, even after four years.

“While some GMOs are designed to have increased levels of some nutrients, studies have revealed that other essential nutrients or functions can be reduced in the process. An in-depth scientific comparison of GM crops and their non-GM varieties shows that the assumption of substantial equivalence is false, as unexpected differences have been found.

Speaking to the press after the hearing, Mr. Qrisstuberg Amua, the Executive Director of the Centre for Food Safety and Agriculture Research, attributed Nigeria’s security issues to external influences.

He said: “In Benue State, the supposed food basket is becoming empty, not because Benue people are not producing food, not because they don’t have GMOs. It is because ethnic and foreign interests are taking over. GMOs are biological weapons and agents of mass destruction.

“They are pushing insecurity on our nation, sponsoring it clandestinely, and I challenge the national security apparatus to look deeply into this, investigating why our farmers can’t go to farms. But these people are ready to create a scenario of hunger to advertise genetically modified poisons.”

The Ogun State Security Network, also known as the Amotekun Corps, has uncovered a self-kidnapping plot allegedly orchestrated by 41-year-old resident Enitan Awoyemi, who sought to escape a debt of approximately N1 million.

A statement issued on Wednesday by Brigadier General Alade Adedigba (retd.), the state’s Amotekun Commander, revealed that Awoyemi, from Irolu-Remo in Ikenne Local Government Area, allegedly staged his own abduction to avoid settling a significant gambling debt.

The scheme came to light when Awoyemi’s wife, Mrs. Tope Awoyemi, reported on November 10 that her husband had contacted her, claiming he was kidnapped the previous day by unidentified captors who were demanding a ransom of N5 million for his release.

“Upon receiving the report, the Amotekun Intelligence team launched an investigation into the alleged abduction. Findings revealed that Enitan Awoyemi had accrued significant debts from gambling in a lotto game, amounting to a staggering N1 million,” the statement read.

The statement further revealed that Awoyemi, known for his regular gambling habits, had once won N6 million, using a portion of the amount to buy a Toyota Corolla Sport and a Bajaj Boxer motorcycle for business use.
However, when unable to settle his debts, he reportedly staged his own kidnapping.

Amotekun personnel, in collaboration with the Vigilante Group of Nigeria and other local partners, traced the suspect first to Ijagba town and then to Ota in the Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area.

Officers detected a strong odour of insecticide on Awoyemi, indicating a potential suicide attempt. He was promptly taken to Rufina Private Hospital in Iperu for treatment.

Brigadier General Adedigba reassured the public that Awoyemi would undergo the appropriate legal procedures.

“Once he is discharged from the hospital, he will be handed over to the police for further proceedings,” he stated.

The Amotekun Commander commended the teamwork that resulted in the arrest of the suspect and encouraged the public to stay alert and report any suspicious behaviour.

“This incident underscores the importance of community cooperation in ensuring safety and security,” Adedigba said.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) sounded the alarm on Tuesday about a scheme to undermine the welfare of public universities in Nigeria.

At an event in Abuja celebrating ASUU’s Heroes Day in 2024, ASUU National President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, claimed that the World Bank and International Monetary Fund are persistently working to dismantle Nigeria’s public education system.

The union expressed frustration over the stalled renegotiation of its 2009 agreement with the Federal Government, pointing out that, despite multiple Memoranda of Understanding and Action, the ASUU-FGN 2009 Agreement remains unresolved and unfinalized.

Prof. Osodeke also lamented that the situation has worsened due to the continued enforcement of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System in public universities, despite the Federal Executive Council’s previous announcement to remove the system from higher education institutions.

Osodeke also voiced concern that the Federal Government continued to unfairly withhold the union’s salaries for three and a half months, along with unpaid wage arrears, overdue promotions, and the unresolved Earned Academic Allowance.

Speaking further at the event, where ASUU honoured what it described as its “past and living heroes,” Osodeke commended the union’s members nationwide for their “courageous comradeship and sacrifices to the cause of our union, which forever resonate with the emancipation of Nigerian public university education and the suffering Nigerian people.”

He stated that the union plans to provide PhD scholarships to select members from different public universities nationwide. Each grant, worth N500,000, will be awarded following a thorough evaluation of proposals conducted by specialists in the relevant fields.

“Comrades, like in the past, this year’s celebration of our heroes also takes place as we continue the struggle to rescue Nigeria’s public universities from the suffocating clutches of the World Bank and the IMF, whose determination to destroy and bury our public university system has not abated.

“It is rather lamentable that we are still struggling to compel the renegotiation of our 2009 Agreement with the federal government, twelve years after it should have been concluded, and after four rounds of failed negotiations.

“It is most disheartening and egregious that despite the several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and Memoranda of Action (MoAs), the ASUU-FGN 2009 Agreement is yet to be renegotiated and finalised,” he said.

Osodeke alleged that at the state level, ASUU members “are still being punished for fighting for the interests of members and the university system.”

He added, “Let me re-emphasise that we stand with our members at Kogi State University, Lagos State University, Ebonyi State University, and Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University in their persecution for their principled support and solidarity in the struggle to defend the soul of public university education in Nigeria.

“As part of our Heroes Day celebration, this year, and in line with the NDC decision, the union will be offering PhD grants to some of our members across various public universities in the country.

“The grants, valued at five hundred thousand naira per recipient, will be based on the rigorous assessment of their proposals by experts in their respective disciplines.”

The event honored distinguished individuals, including Prof. T. Uzodinma Nwala, Prof. Bright Ekuerhare, Prof. Oye Oyediran, Mallam Bashir Kurfi, Prof. The Name Ikiddeh, Mr. S.A. Fadipe, and Prof. Sola Olukunle.

Additional honorees included Nasir Hussain, Tunde Oduleye, Prof. Rasheed Abubakar, Akin Oyebode, Mustapha A. Danesi, A.T. Wins, and Dr. Peter Ozo-Son.

The PUNCH

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has set up a dedicated three-member panel to address political cases originating from Rivers State, with hearings set to start on Thursday, November 14.

This decision comes in response to the rising number of legal conflicts linked to the ongoing dispute between Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

The clash has triggered a wave of lawsuits from the state, causing divisions among political figures and resulting in inconsistent rulings from courts of equal authority—an issue that has faced scrutiny from judicial stakeholders and the public alike.

To streamline the handling of these cases, Court of Appeal President Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem appointed a special panel to manage all appeals connected to the political tensions in Rivers.

The panel, led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi and joined by Justices Misitura Bokaji-Yusuf and James Abundaga, is set to handle cases involving prominent political figures and factions within the state.

Among the appeals scheduled for review is one submitted by Governor Fubara and the Rivers State House of Assembly, along with cases featuring both the Peoples Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress. These cases concern the alleged defection of 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike from the PDP to the APC.

On Monday, a court panel postponed three appeals, including one brought by the Rivers State Government against the Rivers State House of Assembly and others, which will now be addressed by the newly appointed special panel.

The presiding Justice Hamma Barka noted, “The appeal, marked CA/ABJ/PRE/ROA/CV/1211m1/2024, is among the Rivers matters for which a special panel was constituted.”

Senior lawyer Chief Paul Erokoro, representing the appellant, notified the court about plans to ensure that all respondents who had not yet been served would receive the required documents by Thursday.

He added that he had just obtained some filings from the respondents and would need time to prepare his reply.

Counsel for the first and second respondents, Ferdinand Orbih (SAN) and Dr. Joshua Musa (SAN), who also represented other respondents, concurred with the request to postpone the hearing until November 14.

Two other cases—a suit by the Accountant General of Rivers State against the Rivers State House of Assembly and one by the Action Peoples Party against the Independent National Electoral Commission and others—were also postponed to Thursday for a hearing by the special panel led by Justice Otisi.

This panel was set up to ensure a swift and decisive resolution to the political disputes, marking an essential move toward restoring stability amid Rivers State’s ongoing political challenges.

The Deputy Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has requested comprehensive data on internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Nigeria and neighbouring countries who have lost their homes due to natural disasters.

Kalu made this request on Wednesday during a courtesy visit by the Federal Commissioner of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and IDPs, Tijani Ahmed, in Abuja.

In a statement released on Thursday, Levinus Nwabughiogu, Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Speaker, noted that Kalu attributed some of these displacements to natural disasters like flooding and erosion.

“We are charging your commission to give us the total report on the plight of Nigerians currently all across the country.

“So, let the commission have an intervention fund dedicated to doing the proper needs analysis so that as we do the budget, we look into it. This is part of the oversight function. So, get us a report on that.

“Your mandate includes refugees and the IDPs. You can’t be internally displaced only through war or crisis. You can be internally displaced through climate-induced displacement and that’s what we are experiencing now.

“The climate is at war with us. So, the issue of mitigation and adaptation is something that, as a government, we must take seriously but in doing that, agencies like you which manage the consequences of these climate impacts need to be aware that it’s beyond what we are seeing currently.

“We heard of what happened in Maiduguri. I mentioned it even before the African Union. Beyond Maiduguri, a lot more is happening around the country,” Kalu said.

The statement also highlighted the importance of raising the annual budget allocation for the commission to support it in fulfilling its responsibilities.

“How prepared are you? I checked your budget last year and was wondering if a budget of N1.6bn or thereabout will be able to handle that across the country.

“And I have not heard your agency bring it to the fore, both in the parliament and also to Nigerians, maybe through a documentary to show us the volume of the needs analysis, showcasing the plight of Nigerians.

“There are so many people suffering due to climate change. The parliament needs to hear from you on the total national needs analysis of internally displaced persons. And the impact of climate-induced displacement. We need to get a document on that.

“We are giving you two weeks to bring the report because we want it to guide us as we make our budget.

“Also a copy of that will be sent to the Budget Office of the Federation so they will understand the enormous nature of your mandate,” he added.

Ahmed conveyed his appreciation to the Deputy Speaker and committed to submitting the report to the parliament by the deadline, while also requesting additional funding from the commission.

“We thank you for giving us this audience today and I have listened carefully. We will ensure that these individuals who are our own are returned.

“We will put the reports together, both the refugees and displaced persons, to show the parliament and for you to also see the plight of the commission in the area of funding,” he said.