.
Microsoft has identified digital trust as the cornerstone of Nigeria’s next phase of digital transformation, warning that sustained growth in the country’s rapidly expanding technology ecosystem will depend on the ability of businesses, financial institutions and public agencies to protect users from rising cyber threats.
According to Kerissa Varma, Microsoft’s Chief Security Advisor for Africa, trust has become a critical enabler of digital adoption as fraud, identity theft and cybercrime increasingly influence how Nigerians interact with online platforms. She argued that building secure digital systems is no longer just a compliance issue but a business imperative capable of driving long-term economic growth.
Digital Economy Faces a Trust Challenge
Nigeria has emerged as one of Africa’s leading digital economies, with more than 122 million internet users and a thriving fintech sector that processes billions of naira in digital transactions annually. However, Microsoft believes that maintaining this momentum will require stronger confidence in the safety and integrity of digital services.
Varma noted that consumer trust is becoming a key competitive advantage, observing that users are increasingly choosing platforms based not only on the services they offer but also on how effectively they safeguard personal information and financial assets.
Cybercrime Continues to Threaten Growth
The company highlighted growing concerns over online fraud in Nigeria, citing findings from the Global Anti-Scam Alliance’s State of Scams in Nigeria 2026 report, which showed that 84 per cent of surveyed adults encountered a scam within the past year. Around 22 per cent experienced financial or data losses, while only four per cent reported the incidents to authorities, limiting the ability of regulators and security agencies to track cybercriminals effectively.
Microsoft also referenced the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Financial Stability Report 2024, which recorded a 45 per cent increase in financial fraud cases within a year, with 70 per cent of losses linked to digital channels. The trend, the company said, underscores the growing risks facing Nigeria’s digital financial ecosystem.
Identity Attacks Become the New Battleground
Rather than relying solely on conventional hacking methods, cybercriminals are increasingly targeting user identities and legitimate login credentials.
Microsoft’s 2025 Digital Defence Report found that attackers are now more likely to gain access by compromising genuine accounts than by breaching systems directly. The emergence of artificial intelligence has further complicated the threat landscape, enabling fraudsters to create sophisticated phishing campaigns, fake identity documents and deepfake content capable of bypassing traditional security measures.
The report noted that AI-generated identity documents increased by 195 per cent, while AI-powered phishing attacks have become significantly more effective than traditional methods. Deepfake-related incidents across Africa also rose sharply during 2024, posing additional risks to biometric verification systems and digital identity frameworks.
Social Engineering Remains a Major Threat
According to Microsoft, cybercriminals continue to rely heavily on social engineering, tricking users into voluntarily disclosing sensitive information.
The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) identifies social engineering, phishing, SIM swap attacks and account compromise as some of the most common fraud techniques affecting the country’s financial sector. Meanwhile, cybersecurity firm Surfshark reported that more than 150,000 Nigerian online accounts were compromised during the first half of 2025.
The company also pointed to findings from INTERPOL’s Africa Cyberthreat Assessment 2025, which identified business email compromise as one of the continent’s most financially damaging forms of cybercrime while revealing that the vast majority of African countries still require significant improvements in cybercrime enforcement capacity.
Progress Shows Stronger Collaboration Is Working
Despite the growing sophistication of cyber threats, Microsoft acknowledged encouraging progress within Nigeria’s financial sector.
Data from NIBSS shows that digital payment fraud losses fell to ₦25.85 billion in 2025, representing a 51 per cent decline compared to the previous year. Fraud incidents also dropped from 123,918 cases in 2021 to 67,518 in 2025, reflecting improved collaboration among banks, fintech firms, regulators and consumers. Joint industry initiatives reportedly prevented nearly ₦20 billion in potential fraud losses during the year.
Security Must Become a Business Strategy
Microsoft stressed that organisations can no longer treat cybersecurity as a purely technical function.
Instead, the company recommends greater investment in real-time fraud detection systems, stronger identity verification, phishing-resistant authentication technologies and intelligence sharing across industries and borders. It also called for greater transparency when cyber incidents occur and encouraged businesses to promote fraud reporting to improve visibility into emerging threats.
Trust to Shape Nigeria’s Digital Future
As Nigeria continues to expand its digital economy through fintech innovation, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and online public services, Microsoft believes that organisations capable of earning and maintaining consumer trust will be best positioned for long-term success.
The company argues that trust has become more than a reputational asset it is now a critical component of digital infrastructure that will determine whether Nigeria’s technology-driven growth remains sustainable, inclusive and globally competitive in the years ahead.
