The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami has disclosed that a total of 3,834,244 attacks were recorded during Saturday’s governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections.
According to Pantami, the attacks originated from both within and outside Nigeria.
The Minister, in a statement on Wednesday by his Senior Technical Assistant (Research and Development), Dr Femi Adeluyi, noted that the activities of cyber threat actors on the Nigerian cyberspace during the Gubernatorial and State Assembly elections were much lower than those during the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
A daily breakdown of the attacks from the attacks, Pantami said shows that: on Friday 17th March, 2023, 1,046,896 attacks were recorded, on Saturday 18th March, 2023: 1,481,847; Sunday 19th March, 2023: 327,718 and on Monday 20th March, 2023: 977,783.
“The attacks were not surprising nor unexpected as, Nigeria being Africa’s largest democracy, the Presidential and National Assembly elections are bound to attract much attention of everyone, including cyberthreat actors, than during the Gubernatorial and State Assembly elections”, the Minister said.
He expressed confidence that the implementation of some recommendations as well as measures taken to fortify the nation’s cyber defence mechanisms might have helped in this regard.
He also reiterated that these attainments would not have been possible without the continued support of the administration towards ensuring Nigeria’s successful transition into the digital economy.
“The digital economy sector has enjoyed Mr President’s unprecedented support and it is highly appreciated”, Pantami added.
