Technology
Human Error Accounts for 95% of Data Breaches—Odumuboni
By Sodeinde Temidayo David
The Senior Manager, Cyber Risk Services, Deloitte, Ms Funmilola Odumuboni, has said human error was the primary cause of cybersecurity breaches.
The cyber expert, who was a guest at the 2021 annual conference organised by the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, disclosed that human error accounts for 95 per cent of all data breaches.
Ms Odunmoboni, who said the major principles of cyber-security were confidentiality, integrity and availability, stressed that information meant to be kept secure was indeed secure and kept out of the public domain, while the information at hand was correct and the systems were available to use when one wants to use them.
“Cyber-attack occurs every 39 seconds and cybercrimes increased by nearly 300 per cent following the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Also, human error is the primary cause of cybersecurity breaches, accounting for 95 per cent of all data breaches; 86 per cent of breaches were financially motivated and 10 per cent were motivated by espionage and 36 per cent of breaches involved phishing, 11 per cent more than last year,” she said.
Speaking from the financial markets and investor protection perspectives, the Head of Start-Up Operations at CSCS, Mr Folagbade Adeyemi, stated that the Nigerian market has not been exempted, as fraudsters continue to attempt exploitation of probable vulnerabilities to cause significant investor loss.
According to him, in order to prevent fraudsters from exploiting systemic gaps by assuming an individual identity, investors should take ownership of their identity and increase the effort level for identity theft by carrying out account updates such as contact information, strengthening access controls and periodically reviewing their accounts to ensure safety.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CSCS Plc, Mr Haruna Jalo-Waziri, in his presentation, stated that the conference, the third in the series, was timely given the increasing global incidence of cyber-attacks, especially as network compromise arising from remote connections associated with work-from-home presents new forms of cyber security exposures.
Mr Jalo-Waziri added that the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has increased digitization and adoption of new technologies, even though, still presents new risks to cyber security.
According to him, cyber security is not the responsibility of the IT officers, it is rather a collective responsibility of everyone connected to CSCS the system, including customers, who should have education on best practices so as to prevent them from being the weakest link in the systems.
The event themed Cyber Security was put together to raise awareness on cybercrime in the country and find ways to tackle it.
It was attended by CSCS joint leading industry professionals in information technology and cyber security, including various participants from various sectors of the economy.
This year’s meeting discussed innovative ways of enhancing the security architecture of firms, with emphasis on the role of different stakeholders, especially employees and customers in protecting the integrity of information technology networks and systems.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The language support for its AI Search features has been expanded by Google, with the inclusion of Yoruba and Hausa in Nigeria.
This is part of a broader effort to make AI more inclusive across the continent, with support now extending to a total of 13 African languages.
Under the AI Overviews and AI Mode, speakers of both Nigerian languages can utilise AI-powered Search experiences in their mother tongue for quick summaries and conversational exploration.
This means existing AI features in Google Search are now accessible to people like the student in Kano asking a question in Hausa, and the trader in Ibadan seeking advice in Yorùbá.
By addressing language barriers, this update ensures that technology reflects the identity and culture of the people it serves. With this expansion, more people can now use AI Mode to ask complex questions in their preferred language, while exploring the web more deeply and naturally through text or voice.
The 13 languages now supported across Africa include Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Hausa, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, Yorùbá, and isiZulu.
These languages were chosen based on the vibrant search activity across the continent, ensuring that our AI experiences reach the communities that need them most.
Commenting on the development, the Communications and Public Affairs Manager for Google in West Africa, Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, said, “Building a truly global Search goes far beyond translation — it requires a nuanced understanding of local information.
“With the advanced multimodal and reasoning capabilities of our custom version of Gemini in Search, we’ve made huge strides in language understanding, so our most advanced AI search capabilities are locally relevant and useful in each new language we support.
“This is about ensuring Nigerians can converse with Search in their mother tongues, making information more helpful for everyone.”
To use AI Overviews and AI Mode in the local language, users must open the Google app on an Android or iOS device, or via the Web. They are required to tap on AI Mode within the Search experience. Thereafter, they can type or speak the question in their preferred language, such as Hausa or Yorùbá, and let the AI guide the journey.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Telecommunications operators in Nigeria will now be required to give subscribers a minimum of 14 days’ notice before deactivating their SIM cards over inactivity or post-paid churn, following a fresh proposal by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The proposal is contained in a consultation paper, signed by the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, Mr Aminu Maida, and titled Stakeholders Consultation Process for the Telecoms Identity Risks Management Platform, dated February 26, 2026, and published on the Commission’s website.
Under the proposed amendments to the Quality-of-Service (QoS) Business Rules, the Commission said operators must notify affected subscribers ahead of any planned churn.
“Prior to churning of a post-paid line, the Operator shall send a notification to the affected subscriber through an alternative line or an email on the pending churning of his line,” the document stated.
It added that “this notification shall be sent at least 14 days before the final date for the churn of the number.”
A similar provision was proposed for prepaid subscribers. According to the Commission, operators must equally notify prepaid customers via an alternative line or email at least 14 days before the final churn date.
Currently, under Section 2.3.1 of the QoS Business Rules, a subscriber’s line may be deactivated if it has not been used for six months for a revenue-generating event. If the inactivity persists for another six months, the subscriber risks losing the number entirely, except in cases of proven network-related faults.
The new proposal is part of a broader regulatory review tied to the rollout of the Telecoms Identity Risk Management System (TIRMS), a cross-sector platform designed to curb fraud linked to recycled, swapped and barred mobile numbers.
The NCC explained in the background section of the paper that TIRMS is a secure, regulatory-backed platform that helps prevent fraud stemming from churned, swapped, barred Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Numbers in Nigeria.
It said this platform will provide a uniform approach for all sectors in relation to the integrity and utilisation of registered MSISDNs on the Nigerian Communications network.
In addition to the 14-day notice requirement, the Commission also proposed that operators must submit details of all churned numbers to TIRMS within seven days of completing the churn process, strengthening oversight and accountability in the system.
The consultation process, which the Commission said is in line with Section 58 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, will remain open for 21 days from the date of publication. Stakeholders are expected to submit their comments on or before March 20, 2026.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The founder of Interswitch, Mr Mitchell Elegbe, has been honoured for pioneering Nigeria’s digital payments revolution.
At a ceremony in Lagos on Sunday, March 1, 2026, he was bestowed with the 2025 Silverbird Special Achievement Award for shaping Africa’s financial ecosystem.
The Silverbird Special Achievement Award recognises individuals whose innovation, vision, and sustained impact have left an indelible mark on society.
Mr Elegbe described the award as both humbling and symbolic of a broader journey, saying, “This honour represents far more than a personal milestone. It reflects the courage of a team that believed, long before it was fashionable, that Nigeria and Africa could build world-class financial infrastructure.”
“When we started Interswitch, we were driven by a simple but powerful idea that technology could democratise access, unlock opportunity, and enable commerce at scale.
“This recognition by Silverbird strengthens our resolve to continue building systems that empower businesses, support governments, and expand inclusion across the continent,” he said when he received the accolade at the Silverbird Man of the Year Awards ceremony attended by several other dignitaries, whose leadership and contributions continue to shape national development and industry transformation.
In 2002, Mr Elegbe established Interswitch after he was inspired by a bold conviction that technology could fundamentally redefine how value moves within and across economies.
Under his leadership, the company has evolved into one of Africa’s foremost integrated payments and digital commerce companies, powering financial transactions for governments, banks, businesses, and millions of consumers.
Today, much of Nigeria’s electronic payments ecosystem traces its foundational architecture to the systems and rails established under his leadership.
“Mitchell’s journey is inseparable from Nigeria’s digital payments evolution. His foresight and resilience helped establish foundational infrastructure at a time when the ecosystem was still nascent.
“This recognition affirms not only his personal legacy, but the broader impact of Interswitch in enabling commerce and strengthening financial systems across Africa,” the Executive Vice President and Group Marketing and Communications for Interswitch, Ms Cherry Eromosele, commented.
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