The Presidency yesterday said the cybersecurity levy was introduced to tackle cybercrimes and terrorism.
It said the nation lost over N273billion (approximately $762million) to cybercrime alone in 2022.
It also claimed that the same levy is in place in Ghana and Rwanda.
Opposition to the policy grew yesterday, with the Trade Union Congress (TUC), ex-Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi, and the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) rejecting it.
A top source, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent, said the Federal Government “cannot be blind to the grievous effects of cybercrimes on the nation’s economy.”
The source made the clarification against the backdrop of the mounting criticisms on the inclusion of Cybersecurity Fund in the Cybercrime Act 2024.
The source said: “The Cybercrime Act 2024 is meant to protect the nation’s economy from collapse; it is not targeted at the masses. Those criticizing the Act do not have the full knowledge of the rationale behind it.
“According to the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), the Nigerian banking sector lost over N273 billion (approximately $762 million) to cybercrime in 2022 alone.
“Apart from that, there have been SIM-swapping attacks on Nigerian banks since 2019 to date.
“Flutterwave, a leading African fintech company, has faced several allegations of security breaches in recent months amounting to millions of dollars in losses to customers.
“Even the Nigerian National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has put adequate security in place to check incidents of data breaches.”
The source said the inherent benefits of the Cybercrime Act are contained in Section 44 of the Cybercrime Act.
He said Section 44 was designed for National Cyber Security Fund in which a levy of 0.005 of all electronic transactions b by some businesses to fight cybercrimes and terrorism.
The source added: “Contrary to insinuations, the Fund will be domiciled in the Central Bank within a period of 30 days.
“Also, an amount not exceeding 40 percent of the Fund may be allocated for programmes relating to countering violent extremism.
“The Federal Government is well-intended with the Cybercrime Act 2024. We live in a global village in Africa, we cannot afford to ignore the reality of the threats of cybercrimes to our economic survival.
“The management of the Cyber Security Fund has enough checks and balances to prevent abuse. This government is determined to fight cybercrime.”
