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Terrorist groups are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI), cryptocurrencies, drones and social media to recruit fighters, finance operations and evade security agencies across Nigeria and the wider West African region, National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has warned.
Ribadu, represented by the National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka, raised the alarm yesterday in Abuja at a three-day regional training conference on detecting and disrupting terrorists’ exploitation of information and communication technologies.
He said terrorist groups were exploiting digital platforms to spread propaganda, radicalise potential recruits, raise funds and coordinate attacks across national borders.
According to him, the growing use of artificial intelligence, drones and virtual assets has introduced new challenges for security agencies, making it necessary to improve their capacity to identify and disrupt threats before attacks occur.
“Emerging technologies add further complexity: Artificial Intelligence can rapidly produce personalised content; drones and autonomous systems can expand operational capabilities; and virtual assets can create new financing channels. We must, therefore, strengthen our ability to anticipate, detect, analyse and disrupt threats before they materialise,” he said.
The NSA said tackling the threat required more than acquiring sophisticated equipment, stressing the need for technical expertise, stronger institutions and closer cooperation among security agencies.
He also called for improved cross-border intelligence sharing and the timely exchange of actionable cyber threat information among countries in West Africa and the Sahel.
“Nigeria recognises that no institution, country or sector can defeat terrorism alone,” Ribadu said.
He disclosed that Nigeria was working with the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre to secure accreditation for the National Counter Terrorism Centre as a regional centre of excellence for counterterrorism in West Africa and the Sahel.
He said the initiative followed President Bola Tinubu’s declaration at the High-Level Africa Counterterrorism Summit in April 2024.
Also speaking, Acting Director of the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre, Idriss Lalalli, said terrorist organisations, including the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Boko Haram and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), were expanding their operations through digital technologies.
“Across West Africa and the Sahel today, ISWAP, Boko Haram and JNIM are extending their reach through technology. They recruit on social media platforms, move and conceal funds via mobile money, gift cards and cryptocurrencies.
“They buy weapons on darknet marketplaces, communicate over satellite links beyond our networks, and fly drones across borders, using artificial intelligence to tailor propaganda and evade detection,” he said.
Lalalli warned that the speed and relatively low cost of digital tools allowed terrorist cells to reach wider audiences and move faster than security agencies could respond.
“What makes this difficult is speed and cost. A cell with a modest budget can now reach audiences far beyond its physical presence and move faster than our procedures can respond. The capability to counter it remains thinly and unevenly distributed across our member states,” he said.
He, however, said the capacity gap could be addressed through specialised training, regional coordination and stronger collaboration with private-sector operators.
Lalalli said the programme would equip participants with skills in cyber threat intelligence, open-source intelligence, digital forensics and blockchain analysis to help them track online recruitment networks, preserve digital evidence and trace cryptocurrency transactions.
He stressed that the different areas of training must work together to strengthen investigations and prosecutions.
The AU official also called for stronger partnerships with social media companies, telecommunications operators and financial service providers, noting that much of the infrastructure exploited by terrorists was privately owned.
Addressing participants, he said: “You leave as this continent’s first cohort of trainers in this domain. You will leave here not just carrying home a certificate, but a responsibility. The Centre will stand behind you. But the multiplier is you.”
The three-day conference brought together participants from West Africa and the Sahel, alongside representatives of the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, the Multinational Joint Task Force, regional intelligence structures and international organisations.
