68.9m of Nigeria’s internet users experience cyberbullying, scams, child sexual abuse – Report
..as Lawmaker, stakeholders push for child online protection law
An estimated 68.9 million Nigerians, 50% of the country’s 137.8 million active internet users, regularly face online harms, including cyberbullying and trolling, online impersonation and scams, child sexual exploitation, and other forms of digital abuse, according to a new report highlighting rising concerns over online safety in Africa’s largest digital market.
The ‘State of Online Harms 2025’ was presented by Gatefield, a public strategy and advocacy organisation, at a Child Online Safety Forum on Monday in Abuja, organised in collaboration with Paradigm Initiative. It revealed other forms of online abuse users face, including gender-based harassment, online sexual abuse misinformation and disinformation, hate speech and incitement, and unsolicited pornography.
The report found that X (formerly Twitter), a social media platform, accounts for 34% of online harms, accounting for the highest, while WhatsApp messaging is a breeding ground for disinformation, and Facebook is overwhelmed by a significant scale of harmful content.
It noted that 31% of reported harmful content is, however, never removed from online platforms.
The report further ranked fake news as the number one digital threat, adding that 58% of online harms target women.
Shirley Ewang, Advocacy Lead, Gatefield, while presenting the report, highlighted policy and regulatory gaps. She noted that existing laws do not explicitly address digital threats, revealing that some are misused to suppress free speech.
Read also: The adverse effects of cyberbullying on society and its legal implications in Nigeria
Shirley also noted a lack of accountability for big tech companies, adding that platform moderation is ineffective and culturally out of touch.
The report, therefore, recommended that tech firms must establish local content moderation teams. It highlighted the need to deepen digital literacy in Nigeria and tasked the government with a comprehensive online safety bill that addresses specific digital harms without creating tools for suppression of legitimate speech.
Meanwhile, stakeholders at the forum pushed for child online safety to protect Nigerian Children in digital spaces. Olumide Osoba, chairman of the Committee on Justice, and sponsor of the Child Online Access Protection Bill, assured of the passage of the bill in the shortest time possible, while expressing concern about the increasing risks our children face online.
He noted that the internet, though an extraordinary tool for education, innovation, and social connection, has also become a space where children encounter cyberbullying, online grooming, identity theft, exploitation, and harmful content that threaten their safety, dignity, and mental health.
The lawmaker explained that the proposed legislation seeks to mandate internet service providers to restrict access to violent or exploitative content; penalise individuals and organisations that engage in cyberbullying, grooming, or the dissemination of intimate images of minors, and promote digital literacy and online safety education for parents, teachers, and young people.
Read also: Cyberbullying and online harassment: Do current Nigerian laws offer enough protection?
He added that the proposed law will establish mechanisms for prompt reporting and redress of online abuse.
“This effort is not merely about legislation; it is about building a culture of online responsibility. It calls on every sector of the government, private industry, civil society, schools, and families to play their part in safeguarding our children”,
“The consequences of inaction are too great to ignore, the trauma, exploitation, loss of innocence and in extreme cases, lives destroyed. Our goal must be to create a digital ecosystem that empowers rather than endangers, that educates rather than exploits”, he urged.
Tony Ojukwu, executive secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, represented by Ngozi Okorie, director, women and children, at the event, urged Nigerians to report online abuse and cyber threats through its automated online reporting platform accessible via its official website www.nhrc.gov.ng
He informed that the commission has dedicated a toll-free line: 6472, where reports related to online child abuse, cyber bullying and grooming can be made anonymously and with confidence.
