A forensic accountant and financial crime expert, Joshua Olugbenga Fatogun, has called for the establishment of a coordinated national framework involving the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), cybersecurity agencies, telecom operators, and law enforcement agencies to address the growing threat of AI-driven fraud in the country.
Fatogun made the recommendation amid concerns over the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence and its increasing use by criminals to target Nigeria’s banking and financial technology (fintech) sector.
He also urged regulators to stay ahead of emerging threats by introducing mandatory AI governance standards for banks and fintech companies, including stress-testing systems against deepfake attacks and AI-enabled fraud simulations.
According to him, Nigeria’s banking and fintech ecosystem is becoming increasingly vulnerable to sophisticated fraud schemes powered by generative AI technologies.
“Fraudsters are now using generative AI tools to automate scams, clone voices, impersonate bank executives, create fake customer support chats, and even generate convincing identity documents within minutes,” he said.
The Idoani-born scholar noted that while Nigeria’s digital economy continues to expand rapidly, cybersecurity readiness remains uneven across institutions, particularly among smaller fintech firms that may prioritise growth over compliance infrastructure.
He explained that the biggest shift is that fraud is no longer purely human-driven but is becoming machine-assisted and scalable. He added that a single fraudster equipped with AI tools can now execute attacks that previously required an organised syndicate.
He warned that Nigerian banks face a genuine risk of deepfake attacks, especially given the widespread use of WhatsApp communications, voice notes, and remote approvals in business operations.
According to him, financial institutions must move beyond relying on voice recognition or visual familiarity as proof of identity and instead adopt multi-layer verification systems and behavioural authentication measures.
Fatogun, who is also a lawyer, further explained that artificial intelligence has transformed traditional cyber fraud by enabling criminals to generate highly personalised phishing messages and emails that closely reflect local communication styles.
He said AI tools can harvest publicly available information from social media platforms to design targeted attacks based on an individual’s recent activities, employer, lifestyle, or financial habits.
This, according to him, increases the potential for emotional manipulation, noting that victims are no longer receiving generic scam messages but are instead being subjected to psychologically engineered attacks. He called for cybersecurity awareness programmes to evolve from basic education into behavioural intelligence training.
While acknowledging that some Nigerian fintech companies are taking steps to address emerging threats, Fatogun stressed the need for wider adoption of AI-driven fraud detection systems, real-time transaction monitoring, biometric risk analysis, insider threat management, and stronger Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures.
He also identified insider collusion as a major factor in cyber-enabled fraud, noting that many successful financial crimes involve either deliberate or negligent actions by insiders. To address such risks, Fatogun advocated stronger employee vetting processes, improved access controls, segregation of duties, and enhanced forensic auditing practices.
He also urged Nigerians to exercise heightened caution when engaging in digital communications and financial transactions.
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“The first line of defence is healthy scepticism. Nigerians must learn not to trust urgency, emotional pressure, or digital familiarity. If someone calls claiming to be from your bank, verify independently. Do not rely on caller ID because AI voice spoofing and cloned identities are now possible,” he said.
He also advised people to avoid oversharing personal information online, warning that fraudsters increasingly rely on publicly available data to create convincing scams.
According to him, financial literacy in the digital age must include awareness of cyber threats and online fraud risks.
Fatogun noted that traditional fraud detection systems based on static rules are becoming less effective because AI-enabled criminals can quickly adapt to changing security measures.
“The future of fraud prevention lies in adaptive intelligence systems that continuously learn and evolve. Institutions must embrace predictive analytics, behavioural biometrics, anomaly detection, and forensic AI tools capable of identifying suspicious digital footprints in real time,” he said.
He added that banks, fintech firms, and policymakers must recognise that artificial intelligence has transformed financial crime into a more intelligent, scalable, and automated threat.
He urged them to invest in technology, governance frameworks, forensic intelligence capabilities, staff training, and ethical AI deployment. He also advised policymakers to modernise legal frameworks to address emerging digital threats.
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