Nigeria becomes 13th most vulnerable country to cyberattacks in seven months

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January 20, 2025
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2 min read
cyberattack

Between May and December 2024, Nigeria moved from the 35th to the 13th position on the Global Threat Index, signalling a surge in cyberattacks in the country. The country’s normalised risk index also rose sharply from 46.5% to 62.3% during the referenced period. 

The Global Threat Index is a monthly report compiled by Check Point Securities, a leading cybersecurity solutions company, which measures the global cyber threat landscape based on credible threat intelligence.

According to its latest report, eight other African countries dominated the top 20 position in December, with Ethiopia occupying the number one spot, globally. 

“Ethiopia retained its top spot as the most attacked country with a 98.2% Normalised Risk Index out of the 106 countries featured in the Index,” the report read. 

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Uganda, Angola, and Ghana were also ahead of Nigeria on the list, ranking 8th, 9th and 11th respectively. Meanwhile, Kenya, with a Normalised Risk Index of 57.6% held the 17th position followed closely by Mozambique at the 18th spot with a risk index of 56.9%. 

Lastly, Côte d’Ivoire came in 20th with “a higher Normalised Risk Index than last month” of 55.6%.

In December, the most active cyber attackers were FunkSec, an Artificial Intelligence-powered ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) group responsible for 14% of all reported breaches during the festive month. The group leaked the confidential data of more than 85 victims in December alone, surpassing its competitors in volume.  

FunkSec, which has been linked to Algeria, “appears driven by financial gain and hacktivist ideologies, with its AI-assisted tactics pointing to the increasing use of advanced technologies in cybercrime.” 

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Other notable actors in the cyber threat space last month were FakeUpdates, accounting for 5% of attacks on organisations worldwide, while AgentTesla and Androxgh0st were responsible for 3% each. 

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The report also revealed that education, communications and the military were the most attacked industries globally, underlining the persistent vulnerabilities in sectors that rely heavily on interconnected systems and sensitive data.

“The latest trends in cybercrime underscore the importance of vigilance and innovation in cybersecurity. Organisations must leverage advanced threat prevention measures to protect themselves against the evolving landscape of sophisticated attacks,” noted Maya Horowitz, VP of Research at Check Point Software. 

Over the past few years, Nigeria’s digital economy has witnessed significant growth with the number of internet users rising to 134.78 million and broadband penetration soaring to 42.24 per cent in October 2024, according to data from the Nigerian Communications Commission. 

The current digital boom, however, is threatened by the rapid escalation of cyber incidents. A government that intends to preserve the growth trend must do more than issue threat alerts but focus on investing in and upgrading its cyber defence infrastructure. 

A versatile and experienced writer who enjoys demystifying complex financial data for easy consumption.
A versatile and experienced writer who enjoys demystifying complex financial data for easy consumption.
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