NIGERIAN government has deported 50 foreign nationals, including Chinese nationals, following a crackdown last week on one of the country’s largest foreign-led cybercrime syndicates, according to a statement by the country’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to the agency, the move brings the total number of foreign nationals convicted in the ongoing operation to 102, all of whom were charged with “cyber terrorism and online fraud.”
A total of 192 people were arrested in the operation in Lagos last Friday, a move that signals the Nigerian government’s continued commitment to combating online crime.
Nigeria has long been linked to online fraud, particularly love fraud, which has raised concerns both locally and internationally. The EFCC’s data shows that such crimes were among the most prevalent crimes in the country last year.
In recent years, the EFCC has successfully uncovered several hideouts of young men known as “Yahoo Boys”, who use technology to learn fraud techniques. In addition, some major cases of online fraud have been linked to Nigerians abroad, while others were uncovered by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Last year, Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, removed thousands of accounts in Nigeria that were being used to scam social media users, including deleting more than 5,700 Facebook groups that were used to distribute fraud techniques.
Security authorities and technology experts have warned citizens to remain vigilant against the tactics used by online fraudsters, including posing as women to trick people into sending them sexual material that could be used to defile them.
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