The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has urged Nigerian financial institutions to establish specialized electronic fraud response teams
The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has called on commercial banks to establish specialized electronic fraud response teams to swiftly track and combat digital financial crimes.
Speaking at the 19th Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) Annual Banking and Finance Conference in Abuja, Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) Akaninyene Ezima noted that unified internal response units are essential to help law enforcement agencies access fast, reliable information during cybercrime investigations. In a message delivered by ACP Abdullahi Bashir, the unit emphasized that financial institutions must adequately train their workforce on real-time threat detection to protect customer accounts.
Highlighting the need for sector-wide collaboration, the cybercrime center urged commercial banks to form a united front by creating a centralized digital reporting platform. Under the proposed framework, any bank targeted by a cyberattack would immediately log the incident on the shared platform.
This real-time notification system would alert Chief Information Security Officers across the banking sector to emerging security threats, allowing institutions to adjust defenses and block hackers before similar breaches spread across the financial ecosystem. Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director of Payments System Supervision, Dr. Rakiya Yusuf, backed the call, reiterating that swift information exchange remains essential to preserving financial stability.
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Financial sector leaders at the conference supported the police initiative, stressing that security strategy must shift from individual bank protection to overall ecosystem defense. Ecobank Chief Executive Officer Bolaji Lawal noted that safeguarding financial infrastructure requires collective responsibility from all industry participants.
Addressing the growing deployment of advanced technologies, Deloitte Cyber Risk Services Partner Funmilola Odumuboni emphasized the importance of setting up clear governance controls around artificial intelligence.
She urged financial institutions to conduct regular cybersecurity simulation drills to ensure their operational systems remain fully prepared to handle complex, automated cyber threats.
