The Federal Government has disclosed that Nigerian security agencies are collaborating with major social media companies to identify and shut down accounts used by terrorists and criminal gangs to publicise attacks, flaunt stolen items and raise funds.
The Director-General of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka, made this known on Tuesday during an end-of-year briefing in Abuja, revealing that platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and X have increasingly been exploited by terrorist groups operating across the country.
According to Laka, security agencies have held several engagements with the social media companies to ensure that content and accounts posing threats to national security are promptly removed.
Laka said the use of social media platforms by terrorist groups had led to the takedown of numerous accounts, according to The PUNCH, which attended the briefing.
“We’ve had several meetings with these social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and X,” he said.
Laka noted that while the platforms are businesses seeking to grow their user base, government agencies consistently engage them on the dangers certain posts pose to national security.
He recalled how bandits previously used TikTok to openly display looted items and even livestream their activities, a practice he said has now been largely curtailed.
“We took those accounts down,” Laka said.
“You don’t see that again. At some point, they were even doing live streams and holding conversations, but we’ve been able to handle all that.”
The counter-terrorism chief explained that terrorist groups have continued to adapt their tactics, including operating under aliases and unverified accounts, stressing that security agencies are also constantly evolving their countermeasures.
Beyond online propaganda, Laka identified ransom payments as a major source of terrorist financing, revealing that point-of-sale (POS) operators are increasingly being used to move such funds.
According to him, kidnappers often provide POS account details to victims’ families, making it harder for authorities to trace the transactions.
Laka explained that investigations often trace terrorist transfers to accounts belonging to POS operators, noting that kidnappers provide the operators’ numbers, receive the transfers, and later collect the cash.
He said security agencies have intensified efforts to track ransom payments, arrest those involved and dismantle terror financing networks, though he declined to disclose operational details for security reasons.
Laka disclosed that several arrests and prosecutions had already been carried out in connection with terrorism financing, adding that asset recoveries and seizures were part of Nigeria’s compliance with international anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing standards.
He also linked Nigeria’s recent progress with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to coordinated investigations involving security agencies, financial intelligence units and the judiciary.
While acknowledging the growing challenges posed by evolving terror tactics and porous borders across the Sahel, Laka warned that instability in neighbouring countries continues to affect Nigeria’s security situation.
He said that toward the end of 2023, Nigeria’s security situation had been improving, but it deteriorated after the coups in some Sahel countries due to the cross-border connections of terrorist groups.
He added that Nigeria must continue to play a leadership role in West Africa and the Sahel to confront the threats
