Pantami: We recorded 3.8m cyberattacks during gubernatorial polls

The federal government says it recorded a total of 3,834,244 attacks before, during, and after the governorship and state house of assembly elections conducted recently.

Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, in a statement on Wednesday, said the cyberattacks originated from both within and outside Nigeria.

He said the attacks were monitored by a committee set up by President Muhammadu Buhari to protect the cyberspace and information communication technology (ICT) infrastructure during the elections.

Last week, the federal government said 12,988,978 cyberattacks were recorded during the presidential and national assembly elections.

Speaking on the committee’s effort towards the just concluded gubernatorial and state assembly elections, Pantami said the attacks on the Nigerian cyberspace were much lower compared to the  those recorded during the presidential and national assembly elections.

Giving a daily breakdown of the attacks, the minister said on Friday, March 17, 2023, there were 1,046,896 cyberattacks; On Saturday, March 18, 2023, the ministry recorded 1,481,847 cyberattacks.

He said 327,718 cyberattacks were recorded on Sunday, March 19, 2023; while on Monday, March 20, 2023, there were 977,783 cyberattacks.

“This is neither surprising nor unexpected as Nigeria being Africa’s largest democracy, the presidential and national assembly elections are bound to attract much more attention from everyone, including cyber threat actors, than during the gubernatorial and state assembly elections,” the statement reads.

“Furthermore, the minister is confident that the implementation of some recommendations as well as measures taken to fortify our cyber defence mechanisms might have helped in this.”

Pantami, further said the attainments would not have been possible without the continued support of Buhari’s 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 said.