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The advent of the internet has revolutionised the present society by driving and sustaining economic growth in developed and developing countries hence providing a platform for a new means of communication and making the world a global village. Cyberspace has opened up societies and cities to the technology driven world and also to threats. Most digital information and transactions are carried out stored in the cyberspace and are susceptible to attacks.
Nigeria has a population of over 200milliom (World Bank, 2019), with a staggering 258,493,026 Mobile GSM users, as of November, 2018. In 2019, the Nigerian Communication Commission revealed that about 160 million people subscribed to the internet (NCC, 2019; Punch, 2019a) though Nigeria is rated 47 in the world as it relates to the number of internet subscribers. The ITU Connect 2030, suggests that there will be 70 per cent Internet penetration by 2023 worldwide, thus the need a for a secured cyber space (GCI, 2018).
The number of GSM users and internet subscribers increases on a monthly basis; the question remains; are these subscribers secured in the Cyberspace. Most activities are presently carried out via internet and being relied upon to serve as medium to service-oriented operations but it should be noted that the over reliance on the cyberspace exposes persons/businesses to cyber-attacks/threats.
Cyberspace is an international and unstable domain which is identified by the use of electrons and electromagnetic spectrum whose aim is to create, modify, store, exchange, extract, use and delete information without a sole administrator (Mayer, 2014). Nigeria being on the international domain benefits from the existence of cyberspace. As a developing country with a growing economy, Nigeria stands a greater chance of benefiting from this space because of her population which is fast growing and also serves as a market hub for Africa (Ukwuoma, 2019). Such benefits include; serving as an information resource, serves a medium of communication, and social networking (Majid, 2012).
The cyberspace has assisted developing/developed countries grow and sustain its economy. These benefits come with a major challenge, which is cyberattacks. Countries such as the USA, UK and Russia with the best and stringent cyberspace security measures have suffered setback, as attacks and fraudulent activities has affected citizens, businesses and Government and has made the cyberspace community to operate with caution (Oulsola, et al., 2014). These fraudulent activities are carried out with the sole aim of financial gains by attacking bank accounts of individuals, businesses and governments. Information Technology (IT) contributes immensely to the Nigerian economy and other developed countries such as the United States and United Kingdom, however IT exposes citizens, firms and States to the danger that are often been perpetuated in the Cyberspace.
The number of cyber criminals in Nigeria and around the world is on the rise because interconnectivity and communication medium via the cyberspace has also increased, which has made it extremely difficult to apprehend and persecute these cyber criminals with their targets been any IT or IT related devices/services. The persistence of cybercrime is in on the rise because it is easy to execute and very rewarding, the FBI in collaboration with the EFCC, currently released/published a list of Nigerians who are on the most wanted list and defrauded individuals and companies of like sum, although, this has sounded a warning to those who intend to and currently practicing the act to desist or face the wrath of the law.
According to a report of the Council of Economic Advisers to the President of the United State (2018), a cyber activity could be regarded as malicious activity if an unauthorized user tries to mar the privacy of available information/communication systems or could be referred to as an activity to attack the confidentiality, Integrity and Availability (CIA) of information or computers (Naser and Zolkipli, 2013). It is based on these activities that countries have developed cybersecurity measures to curb the activities of unauthorized use. The Federal Bureau of Investigation alongside other investigative bodies have tried to clamp down the activities of cybercriminals through collaboration with States yet the crime activities still persist. In 2017, the Director of National Intelligence in the United States posited that the activities of mischievous elements in the cyberspace is on the increase and has degenerated to become the strategic threat to the government and industry sources, malicious cyber activity is a growing concern for both the public and private sectors and further stated that cyber threats were the most important strategic threat challenging the US economy and the world economies at large.