According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), between May 2023 and April 2024, Nigeria recorded 25.35 million stolen phones, making it the country’s most common crime. Less than 12 per cent were ever recovered.
Also, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) recently disclosed that the country loses about N250 billion yearly to cyber-crime.
In its assessment, sim-swap fraud, weak password, among others were the main causes of the rising incidents of social media account hacking across the federation.
To be clear, SIM cards have become a powerful gateway for fraudsters to raid bank accounts and secure illegal loans, thus exposing deep cracks in Nigeria’s digital security system.
The personal toll of the crisis is captured in stories like that of Nimot Shekoni, who discovered that a loan had been taken out in her name using her stolen phone number.
She lamented: “It was really confusing at the beginning because I have never taken a loan from any loan app.
“Why would someone use my phone number to take a loan, and how could the company fail to verify it with an OTP or other measures?”
Another victim, a Lagos-based journalist, Chinelo Obogo, followed all the right steps after her phone was stolen, immediately instructing her bank to block her account and even receiving email confirmations. Yet, weeks later, debit alerts kept draining her savings.
“Despite following due process, my money kept disappearing. I did everything I was supposed to do, yet the system failed me,” she recalled.
Obogo said she spent hours at the bank seeking answers but was met with contradictory explanations.
At one point, she was told the account was blocked; at another, that it was still active. Some of the unauthorised withdrawals were even labeled as loan repayments, despite her never taking any loan.
Similarly, another journalist, Vivian Onyebukwa, discovered her phone missing only after reaching home from work to find her bag slashed open.
She rushed to block her bank account but was delayed because her National Identification Number (NIN) was not properly registered. According to her, she had to re-register at a cost of N8,000 before securing her line.
Within just 20 minutes of the theft, the criminals emptied her account. The next day, her bank demanded repayment of a N60,000 Pay Day Loan she never applied for.
For three months, her salary was partially deducted to cover the fraudulent loan. The thieves also borrowed airtime and money using her SIM card, charges she was forced to repay.
“It was not just financial loss, it was emotionally draining. I had to buy a new phone and still repay debts I never incurred”, Onyebukwa lamented.
Owing to these harrowing experiences, regulators insist they are tightening controls.
A bank source said: “A bank account fraud investigation process is necessary to detect, analyse and stop fraud. We track suspicious transactions, analyse fraud patterns and work with law enforcement to catch criminals. Banks use AI and data analytics to improve fraud detection and prevent financial crimes before they happen”.
Nonetheless, President Bola Tinubu, while speaking at the National Day of Identity in September, flaunted the NIN-SIM linkage policy as a tool that has reduced fraud and enhanced national security. But while the policy has helped sanitise subscriber records, experts say its impact on stolen-phone fraud remains limited.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has introduced stricter monitoring of mobile lines and is working on regulations to criminalise the use of SIM cards for fraud.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, said, “Currently, there is no consequence for using phone lines for fraud. We are looking into regulations that will criminalize such acts”.
Industry stakeholders argue that more robust measures are needed. The Association of Mobile Communication Device Technicians of Nigeria (AMCODET) has called for mandatory registration of mobile phones at the point of purchase, which it says will deter theft.
