NDPC says hackers launched 2,000 attacks on agency portal

The National Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, Dr Vincent Olatunji, has said that hackers launched more than 2,000 attacks on the commission’s service portal within one week, highlighting the growing cyber threats facing government institutions as Nigeria expands its digitalisation efforts. Olatunji disclosed this on Monday in Abuja at a Technical and Organisational Drill on Data Protection Measures for IT Administrators Across Ministries, Departments and Agencies organised by the NDPC. According to him, the attacks underlined the urgent need for government institutions to strengthen their cyber defences and build the human capacity required to protect sensitive information and digital infrastructure. He said, “Within one week, we experienced more than 2,000 attempts on our service portal. More than 2,000 within one week. You can imagine what that means.” The NDPC boss explained that cyberattacks could be motivated by different objectives, ranging from attempts to embarrass government institutions to financial extortion and other malicious activities. Olatunji noted that government organisations had increasingly become targets of cybercriminals as more public services migrate online. He said, “A lot of government organisations are being targeted recently. But I don’t think there’s anyone with any major impact on the economy or citizens’ data. But we don’t have to wait until they have a certain effect before we take action.” The commissioner said the Federal Government’s ongoing digital transformation agenda was increasing the need for stronger cybersecurity safeguards across MDAs. He recalled that Nigeria’s digitalisation journey gathered momentum after the issuance of the National Information Technology Policy in 2001, which paved the way for various digital initiatives and strategic roadmaps across government institutions. According to him, the government is intensifying efforts to achieve full electronic governance and seamless interaction between citizens, businesses and public institutions. “A major announcement was made last week that will get 35 ministries to be fully digitalised in Nigeria within the next few weeks. Efforts are already ongoing. Some are fully digitalised already, while others are being encouraged to come on board. Over 100 agencies of government are already being involved in this,” he said. Olatunji explained that many government agencies had already deployed platforms that enable citizens to access services remotely without physically visiting government offices. He cited the com