Nigeria Moves Up In Cyber Threat Rankings

Nigeria’s critical sectors, including banking, education, and government sectors are facing increasing wave of cyber-attacks, as the country climbs to 11th place among Africa’s most targeted nations, according to a report.
The report by Check Point Software Technologies Ltd’s Global Threat Index for January 2025, highlighted a surge in cyber threats across Africa, with Nigeria steadily rising in the rankings from 14th place in August 2024.
Ethiopia remains the most attacked country, while other African nations, including Zimbabwe, Angola, and Uganda, also feature among the top 20 most targeted globally.
Nigeria’s financial sector has been hit particularly hard, with a 2024 banking trojan attack compromising 100,000 customer accounts and resulting in $3 million in financial losses.
Meanwhile, the education and government sectors have also emerged as prime targets for cybercriminals seeking to exploit vulnerabilities in digital infrastructure. FakeUpdates, a persistent malware threat, continues to dominate the cyber landscape, while attackers increasingly leverage artificial intelligence to automate and scale their operations.
The vice president of Research at Check Point Software, Maya Horowitz, warned that traditional cybersecurity defenses are no longer sufficient, urging organisations to adopt AI-driven security strategies to stay ahead of evolving threats.
“AI is transforming the cyber threat landscape, with cyber criminals rapidly evolving their methods, leveraging AI to automate and scale their tactics and enhance their capabilities. To effectively combat these threats, organisations must move beyond traditional defenses and adopt proactive, adaptive AI-powered security measures that anticipate emerging risks,” Horowitz stated.