The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Ola Olukoyede has called on stakeholders across Nigeria’s public and private sectors to establish a comprehensive, collaborative strategy to combat the escalating threat of cybercrime.
Speaking at the 2025 FITC/NIBSS ThinkNnovation Cybersecurity Conference 6.0 in Lagos yesterday, Olukoyede stressed that effective cybersecurity must be built on pillars of collaboration, transparency, ethics, and widespread citizen awareness.
Represented by Deputy Commander of the EFCC, DCE Ayo Oyewole, Head of Public Affairs, Lagos Directorate 1, the Chairman delivered the opening address for the conference, themed “Securing Tomorrow: Cyber Resilience, Intelligent Defence, and the Architecture of Trust in a Borderless World.”
Olukoyede characterised modern cybercrime as having evolved from simple scams into a “global criminal enterprise sophisticated, syndicated, and systemically dangerous.”
He emphasised the urgent need for both a national and international coordinated response to cyber-enabled financial crimes, which increasingly pose cross-border threats to Nigeria’s digital financial landscape.
He warned that the menace jeopardizes more than just the financial system, stating it “threatens not just our financial systems, but also national security, democratic institutions, and most importantly, public trust.”
He highlighted the commission’s proactive role and recent strategic reforms aimed at enhancing its capacity to fight digital crimes.
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He mentioned the establishment of a 24/7 Cybercrime Rapid Response Center equipped with digital forensic tools and advanced technology and strengthened partnerships with key local and international entities, including NIBSS, CBN, NCC, Interpol, and global Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs).
Olukoyede mentioned capacity-building initiatives to equip the workforce with the skills needed to tackle complex digital offenses and successful disruption of major cybercrime syndicates, resulting in the recovery of billions of naira in stolen assets.
Olukoyede underscored that in the digital economy, “trust is more valuable than technology.”
He stressed that every data breach or failed transaction erodes public confidence, making the safeguarding of this trust “a matter of national security.”
To this end, the EFCC is focusing on several key areas: deepening cooperation with financial institutions to better detect and deter cases of insider fraud, intensifying efforts to protect depositors from targeted cyberattacks and working alongside regulators to strengthen cybersecurity laws and improve mechanisms for recovering assets lost to digital crimes.
He urged all stakeholders to move beyond mere awareness to action, from passive defenses to resilient ecosystems, and from basic compliance to systems that inspire enduring trust.
