The federal government is working on a draft executive bill to strengthen Nigeria’s legal framework for tackling emerging cyber threats.

The attorney-general of the federation, Lateef Fagbemi, said this in a message delivered on his behalf by the director of public prosecutions of the federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, at the second International Cybersecurity Conference held in Abuja on Tuesday.

Mr Fagbemi said the federal government is committed to overhauling Nigeria’s cybercrime legislation to address emerging threats from artificial intelligence, including sophisticated online fraud, digital surveillance and attacks on critical national infrastructure.

“The Federal Ministry of Justice has advanced work on a draft executive bill to strengthen our legal framework,” he said.

Mr Fagbemi said technological advances had transformed cybercrime into a threat to financial systems, national security, personal dignity and public trust.

“Our objective is clear: we support laws that respond to emerging technologies, facilitate the preservation and exchange of electronic evidence, support effective investigation and prosecution, and uphold human rights and the rule of law. Security must protect liberty, not become an excuse to undermine it. The office of the attorney general of the federation remains committed to a whole-of-government and a whole-of-society approach,” he said.

The director-general of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Inuwa, said cybersecurity focuses on preventing attacks, while cyber resilience involves the ability to recover after an attack.

He added that NITDA was working with the Office of the National Security Adviser and the National Assembly to review the Cybercrimes Act and strengthen the cybersecurity policy framework.

Shuiabu Salisu, chairman of the Senate Committee on ICT and Cybersecurity, called for greater collaboration among government institutions and stakeholders to address challenges affecting Nigeria’s digital ecosystem.

Mr Salisu proposed a retreat involving relevant ministries, regulatory agencies, security institutions and other stakeholders to identify shared priorities and develop coordinated strategies.

He also advocated developing a national cyber resilience index to assess organisations’ security capabilities and provide a framework for measuring and improving their preparedness against cyber threats.

Vincent Olatunji, the national commissioner of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, restated the importance of building trust through data protection and privacy in the age of AI.

In his presentation, ‘Trust by Design: Data Protection and Privacy in the Age of Artificial Intelligence’, Mr Olatunji said that AI-enabled data breaches cost an average of $6 million, about $1 million above the global average.

According to him, one in four malicious data breaches was AI-enabled, representing a 56 per cent year-on-year increase, while 43 per cent of breaches involved unapproved or unsecured AI tools.

He said trust should be embedded in the design and deployment of AI systems, not treated as an afterthought.

(NAN)