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Nigeria Tops Africa in Weekly Cyberattack Volume
Nigerian organisations are currently facing the highest volume of weekly cyberattacks in Africa, according to the latest African Perspectives on Cyber Security Report 2025 from Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., a leading name in cybersecurity worldwide. The report reveals some eye-opening numbers: Nigeria’s weekly cyberattack volume averages around 4,200 attacks. This is way above the continental average of 3,153 attacks per week and a staggering 60% higher than the global average of 1,963 attacks per organisation.
What’s driving this sharp increase in attacks across Africa? A big factor is the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by cybercriminals. Attackers are now automating phishing, impersonation, and cloud exploitation, making these threats faster and harder to detect.
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Kingsley Oseghale, the Country Manager for West Africa at Check Point, explained how AI is changing the game. “AI has become part of the attack surface,” he said. “Attackers use AI to automate phishing and identity theft on a massive scale. The only real defense is prevention-first security that offers strong visibility, governance, and AI-powered protection.”
The report also points out that cybercriminals are taking advantage of exposed identities and misconfigured systems to hit critical sectors like finance, energy, telecoms, and government institutions. Identity-driven attacks, AI-generated phishing campaigns, and multi-vector ransomware are becoming more common.
Looking at the bigger picture across Africa, Check Point found various trends in different countries. In Nigeria, business email compromise and cloud exploitation top the list. South Africa is seeing more ransomware, smishing, and botnet infections such as Vo1d and XorDDoS. Kenya is grappling with ransomware attacks aimed at its vital energy infrastructure, and Morocco has been hit with coordinated attacks on government and education sectors using DDoS and website defacement.
The report highlights five key shifts defining Africa’s cyber risk landscape in 2025. Traditional ransomware is evolving into data-leak extortion, AI-generated deception is spreading widely, and identity has become the new security perimeter. It also warns that weak cybersecurity could hurt international business, especially under regulations like the EU’s NIS2 Directive. This makes building strong digital resilience an economic must-have for African organisations.
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To tackle these rising threats, the study urges African businesses and governments to embrace prevention-first security approaches. This means continuous risk management, being ready for regulations, and closer public-private cooperation.
Oseghale summed it up by saying cybersecurity must evolve as AI changes how things operate. “The real challenge isn’t just adopting new technology but securing the trust that underpins it,” he said. With Nigeria tops Africa in weekly cyberattack volume, strengthening defenses is more critical than ever.
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