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From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has called for the development of a national cybersecurity architecture with minimum security standards for public and private organisations to tackle growing cyber threats driven by artificial intelligence (AI).
The agency said the increasing use of AI by cybercriminals to manipulate people, generate fake audio and videos, and launch sophisticated attacks had made it necessary for Nigeria to strengthen its digital defences.
The Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Abdullahi, made this known at the second edition of the International Cybersecurity Conference in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said the proposed cybersecurity architecture would establish minimum standards for organisations to protect their systems and networks, while ensuring that cybersecurity became an integral part of Nigeria’s digital transformation.
Inuwa disclosed that the agency was working with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the National Assembly on reviewing the Cybercrime Act to strengthen the country’s legal framework for addressing emerging threats.
He said NITDA was also considering a national cybersecurity policy and minimum investment requirements to ensure that organisations deployed adequate measures to protect their digital infrastructure.
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According to him, the growing sophistication of AI has made it difficult for organisations to rely solely on conventional cybersecurity measures, as attackers and defenders increasingly deploy the technology.
He explained that cyber resilience went beyond preventing attacks to include the ability to recover from breaches and maintain essential operations.
“Cyber resilience is different from cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is about us defending ourselves from attack, while cyber resilience is about our ability to bounce back after the attack has happened,” he said.
Inuwa warned that cybercriminals were increasingly targeting human vulnerabilities rather than computer systems alone, using AI-generated content and social engineering to manipulate people’s beliefs and decisions.
He said the technology could be used to generate convincing voices, videos and pictures, making it increasingly difficult for people to distinguish authentic content from manipulated material.
The NITDA chief also called for stronger digital sovereignty, urging Nigeria to develop greater control over its digital infrastructure, data and technology.
He said the agency had issued the National Sovereign Cloud Regulatory Instrument to strengthen oversight of data, cloud infrastructure and emerging technologies, including AI.
