Customs Deploys AI-Powered Intelligence to Combat Fake News, Online Scams
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has commenced efforts to tackle the growing spread of fake news, online scams and misleading information targeting the Service through the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced digital data-tracking tools.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed this on Friday, October 30, 2026, at the NECCIPR Roundtable ’26 held in Lagos, under the theme, “Algorithm Influence & Public Relations.”
Represented by the National Public Relations Officer of the Service, Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Abdullahi Maiwada, the Comptroller-General emphasised the importance of strategic communication in ensuring that the public understands and appreciates the rationale behind Customs operations and enforcement activities.
Maiwada explained that artificial intelligence was becoming increasingly relevant to the Service’s operations, particularly in customs classification, risk assessment and the management of information.
“AI is central to our operations as public relations officers because it defines what we do in terms of the role of classification. AI can also be used to aid issues of risk management, which involves timing the risks involved in items coming in so they can be categorised according to their different assessments,” he said.
He further highlighted the potential of AI-driven tools in analysing public sentiment and assessing how Nigerians perceive the activities and policies of the Service.
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According to him, the NCS is leveraging available digital platforms to establish facts, counter misleading narratives and strengthen collaboration with relevant agencies to identify and apprehend individuals responsible for spreading false information.
He stressed that effective public communication requires proactive engagement, credible information and the ability to respond promptly to emerging narratives that could undermine public confidence in the Service.
Earlier, the convener of the Neccipr Roundtable ’26, Nkechi Ali-Balogun, said the initiative was founded on the conviction that public relations professionals must go beyond managing organisational messages to actively shaping national discourse.
She noted that the growing influence of artificial intelligence and digital algorithms had fundamentally changed how information is produced, distributed and consumed, raising critical questions about who controls public narratives.
“This year, we confront a question that touches every one of us. When machines decide what we see, who is really shaping the Nigerian mind? Who now controls the flow of information that shapes what Nigerians believe?” she asked.
Ali-Balogun observed that a single algorithm could influence political narratives, amplify conspiracy theories and determine the information consumed, believed and shared by millions of people.
The roundtable also featured keynote addresses by the President and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Ike Neliaku, and former Minister of Education, Obiageli Ezekwesili, alongside other distinguished dignitaries.
The discussions underscored the growing need for public relations practitioners and institutions to adapt to emerging technologies, strengthen information integrity and uphold professional standards in an increasingly algorithm-driven communication environment.
By PRNigeria
