Security: Nigeria
Key Facts
—Who: Nigeria Police Force, the national police, under Inspector-General (head of the force) Tunji Disu
—What: Police say they raided phone farms (banks of phones faking online buzz) and acquired AI-detection tools
—Claim: Police say their tools detect deepfakes, fake AI video and audio, with up to 99% accuracy
—Open: Police gave no number of raids, no locations and no vendor name
—As of: 12 November 2026
Nigeria’s police say they are hunting bot networks, meaning automated fake accounts, and AI-made audio and video before the 2027 general elections.
What Police Say They Are Doing
Nigeria’s police say they have started operations to track phone farms and to check AI-made audio, video and photos before the 2027 general elections. Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi, a senior officer speaking for Inspector-General Tunji Disu at a public webinar on Wednesday 11 November 2026, said the force has opened an election monitoring room.
A phone farm is a bank of phones and automated accounts, sometimes hundreds, used to make a topic look popular. Police said they raided suspected phone farms, but they gave no number of raids and no locations.
Police said they have acquired cyber tools that detect deepfakes, which are fake video or audio made with AI, and cloned voices with up to 99 per cent accuracy. That figure is the police’s own claim, and the remarks named no vendor and no test results.
Arrests and Help From Tech Firms
Police said they hold one suspect accused of spreading false claims about a candidate from the South-South, a region of oil-producing states in southern Nigeria. They said the suspect was traced after a complaint.
Police also cited a case in Benin City, Edo State, where a suspect made a manipulated video of President Bola Tinubu saying things he never said. They said the suspect was traced and arrested, and told officers he did it just to trend.
Police said they are working with Meta, the owner of Facebook and WhatsApp, and with TikTok, the video app. When a suspect post appears, the force says it aims to get the user’s details, the location, a takedown and preserved evidence from the platform.
Police said they investigate and prosecute false information, cyberstalking, criminal intimidation, impersonation, threats and incitement where the legal tests are met. They said they drew lessons from the 2023 elections and are strengthening the National Cybercrime Centre, the force’s unit for technology-enabled crime.
What It Means for US Readers
Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, so a vote swayed by fake audio or bot campaigns would matter well beyond its borders. For US readers with business, family or security ties there, the first test is whether voters can trust what they see online.
Police are one of several players in protecting the vote. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the body that runs elections, is the other main source for official election announcements.
What Is Not Known
The police have not said how many phone farms they raided, where they were, or who ran them. The identity of the South-South candidate and of the suspect in custody is also not public.
It is not known which tools the force bought or how its 99 per cent figure was tested. Until the police publish that, the claim stays unconfirmed.
More: Nigeria news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are police doing about AI fake news in Nigeria?
Police say they track phone farms, run digital forensics on suspect audio and video, and are working with Meta, the owner of Facebook, and TikTok to trace posters. They also say they have an election monitoring room.
What is a phone farm?
A phone farm is a large set of phones and automated accounts. It makes a message look as if many people are sharing it.
How accurate are the police detection tools?
Police say the tools detect deepfakes and cloned voices with up to 99 per cent accuracy. That is the force’s own claim, with no vendor or tests published.
Who can be prosecuted?
Police say anyone spreading false information, impersonating others, making threats or inciting violence can face prosecution where the legal tests are met.
Sources
Nigeria Police Force remarks, delivered by Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi at a public webinar on AI, misinformation and the 2027 elections, 11 November 2026; Nigeria Police Council endorsement of Tunji Disu as Inspector-General of Police, 2 March 2026.
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