Babagana Monguno, National Security Adviser (NSA), said social media was a tool used to foment violence during the #EndSARS protest, and is still used to incite cyber terrorism across the country.
Munguno said this today at the National Cybersecurity Strategy 2020 workshop in Abuja, Wednesday 28 October.
Introduced by Aliya Mohammed in the cabinet of the Secretary of State of the Federation (SGF), Monguno said social media is an increasingly serious problem for cyber terrorism.
“We are seeing the use of social media to distribute subversive content to fuel violence and heighten tensions, causing unrest and looting and destruction across the country.”
Also speaking at the forum, Chief of Defense Staff Abayomi Olonisakin said cyber terrorism is the most unpredictable problem facing Nigeria right now. According to Olonisakin, he is represented by Charles Ogonwen, Deputy Air Marshal of the Defense Staff.
“Cyberspace was a major war after land, sea, air and space had no boundaries and therefore did not obey the conventional rules of war. It remains open to exploitation for the purchase of state actors, organized trade unions, sects, criminals and terrorists. Cyber terrorism has become the most dangerous problem we face as a nation today.
By using cyberspace to facilitate various terrorist activities such as recruitment, training, propaganda, information gathering and fundraising, cyber terrorism is now recognized worldwide as a fundamental threat to global security. ” …
Their comments come just 24 hours after Nigeria’s minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed, called for social media regulation, saying fake news poses a threat to Nigeria at the moment.