Senate moves to amend Nigeria’s Cybercrime Act

Senate moves to amend Nigeria’s Cybercrime Act

The Senate Joint Committee on ICT & Cyber Security and National Security & Intelligence has set machinery in motion to amend the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015.

A Public Hearing notice signed by Senator Shuiab Afolabi Salisu, Chairman Senate Committee on ICT and Cybercrime on Friday, November 17, 2023, the Senate called for memoranda from stakeholders in the digital communication sectors and the general public that will be considered in the Upper Chamber’s efforts to improve the governance of the cyberspace in Nigeria.

The Cybercrime Act 2015 was enacted to ensure the protection of critical national information infrastructure, to promote cyber security, and to protect computer systems and networks, electronic communications, data and computer programs, intellectual property and privacy rights.

The Act also establishes the procedural powers for cybercrime investigation and the collection of evidence in electronic format when probing criminal offences.

In the public notice, the Senate Committee said the hearing would be held in Conference Room 301 of the Senate Building on Wednesday, November 22, 2023. The Senate committee called on all stakeholders, among them government institutions, ICT and cybersecurity concerns, and national and other security concerns should submit their memoranda to the Committee.

The statement said, “Memoranda, which should be submitted within one week in five (5) soft copies and forty-five (45) hard copies, should be addressed to the Clerk, Senate Committee on ICT & Cyber Security, Room 3.8 White House Building, National Assembly Complex, Abuja.”

The amendment of the Cybercrime (Prohibition and Prevention, etc) Act 2015 has become imperative to review its application over the last eight years since its implementation, to tackle computer-mediated crimes in the country.