The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), on Wednesday disclosed that its Computer Emergency Readiness and Response Team (NITDA-CERRT) had detected activities of a hacktivist group targeting the country’s vital digital infrastructure.
NITDA said the hacktivist group, known for its politically and religiously motivated cyber campaigns, poses a significant risk to the nation’s critical information infrastructure.
According to a statement by the Agency’s Spokesperson, Hadiza Umar, their tactics include targeted attacks on government digital services, using various attack types particularly, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, and that they have a track record of successful attacks in various countries.
“NITDA hereby alerts the general public to be wary of the occurrence of these attacks which underscores the undeniable and concerning fact that cyber-attacks are not a distant threat but rather a looming danger that resides much closer to us than we may have previously acknowledged.
“This realization compels us to recognize the urgency of reinforcing our cyber front, fortifying our digital defenses to shield against these malicious intrusions and secure the safety of our critical information and infrastructure.
“The consequences of such cyber-attacks are always severe and may have wide-ranging impacts which includes: Disruption of Critical Services, Economic Losses, as well as Public Trust and Reputation Loss,” the statement said.
To guide against the attack, NITDA-CERRT advised all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, including other providers of critical services in the country to ensure the implementation of measures to prevent against DDOS attacks.
