CHECKING INTERNET FRAUD IN NIGERIA

(CASE STUDY LAGOS)

BY

RANI MICHAEL TAHOUF

ADMIN NO.: BHC/UFP/08/0338

A PROJECT TO BRIDGE HOUSE COLLEGE IKOYI,

LAGOS, NIGERIA IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT FOR THE AWARD OF CERTIFICATE IN THE

UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION PROGRAMME

i

CERTIFICATION

This Project written by Rani Michael Tahouf under the guidance of

academic committee and approved by the College, has been

submitted and accepted by the Information and Technology

Department of Bridge House College in partial fulfilment of the

requirements for the University Foundation Programme.

Name of Supervisor: __________________________

Signature: __________________________

Date: __________________________

ii

DEDICATION

This Project is dedicated to God Almighty who has been very

supportive of my educational pathway; and has seen me through

this project from beginning to the end.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I want to appreciate Almighty God who saw me through this

project from beginning to end.

I would like to acknowledge my parents who have supported me

all of my life. I would like to acknowledge Mrs Abdulrazaq, The

Executive Director of Bridge House College, who has been very

supportive of my educational pathway in Bridge House College. I

would also like to acknowledge The Director of Studies of Bridge

House College, Mrs Osuno, whose wise words of advice helped

me greatly throughout the writing of this project. I would also like

to acknowledge my project supervisor, Mr Wilson Eghonghon, for

his patience, time and effort in seeing that I completed this project.

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ABSTRACT

This Project is aimed at examining the impact of Internet Fraud in

Nigeria, especially Lagos.

Material, directly and indirectly related to the topics at hand

were reviewed in order to make this study theoretical. Also,

questionnaires were used for the purpose of data collection from a

target population of thirty people, comprising fifteen female and

fifteen male from different age groups and educational

background. I distributed the questionnaires in an internet cafe, and

the head office of a well known internet service provider called

Starcomms. The objectives of this study are to assess problems

within Nigerian cities that would make citizens turn to a life of

crime; to identify what law enforcing bodies, such as the EFCC,

have done to eradicate internet fraud; to discover if it‟s worth

living life as an internet fraudster, taking into consideration factors

such as income.

This entire project was split up into five sections all of which

were arranged in chapters, each chapter focusing on different

issues.

Chapter one gives an introduction about the topic and talks

about the scope of the study, objectives of study, and gives

definition of unfamiliar terms.

Chapter two is the literature review; it talks about the history

of Internet Fraud in Nigeria. It also brings forth analysis of

previous studies concerning the topic, from various literary works.

Chapter three reveals the methods used to carry out the

project; and distribution of questionnaires to a target group.

Chapter four presents the analysis of the data that was

collected with the questionnaires. Percentages, tables and charts

were used to present findings.

Chapter five gives a summary of the topic, a brief

conclusion and my own recommendations towards the

eradication of internet fraud in Nigeria.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certification i

Dedication ii

Acknowledgement iii

Abstract iv

Table of Contents v-vi

CHAPTERS PAGES

Chapter One

1.1 Introduction 1

1.2 Problem Analysis 2

1.3 Objective of Study 2

1.4 Research Questions 3

1.5 Hypothesis 3

1.6 Scope of Study 3

1.7 Unfamiliar Terms 3

Chapter Two

2.1 History of Internet Fraud in Nigeria 5

2.2 Whose Fault? 5

2.3 Internet Fraud in Lagos 6

2.4 Far Reaching Impact 8

2.5 How to Solve the Problem 9

2.6.1 The Internet Scammer‟s Identity 11

2.6.2 How is Internet Fraud Carried Out? 11

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Chapter Three

3.1 Characteristics of Study Population 18

3.2 Data Collection Instrument 18

3.3 Procedures for Processing and Analyzing Collection of

Data 18

3.4 Limitations of Methodology 18

Chapter Four

4.1 Analysis and Presentation of Data 19

4.2 Summary 27

Chapter Five

5.1 Summary 28

5.2 Conclusion 28

5.3 Recommendations 28

Appendix 30

References 35

1

Chapter 1

1.1 Introduction

Internet fraud can be described as an illegal act in which an

individual or organisation is scammed out of money, with the use

of the internet. In other words, it can be defined as advance-fee

fraud carried out over the internet. It has been an issue of rising

concern in Nigeria

In Nigeria, it has been given the nickname “419”. 419 refers

to the Nigerian Criminal Code (Chapter 38: “Obtaining Property

by false pretences; Cheating”). Other slang that has come about

from internet fraud is “mugu/maga” meaning fool, this is what a

victim of internet fraud is called; “yahoo boy” is another way of

calling someone a scammer; “yahoo yahoo” is the act of scamming

someone.

The increase in fraudulent activities, over the years, in

Nigeria has increased at a jaw dropping rate. Most of these

fraudulent activities take place over the internet. In fact Nigeria is

so highly reputed with internet fraud that it has been ranked as the

third worst country in the world in which internet fraud takes

place. This is a huge problem nowadays as it has definitely scared

the image of a once great nation. Many foreigners are lead to

believe that internet scams come from Nigeria and are made solely

by Nigerians. This of course is a very wrong stereotype. There

have been so many attempts made by officials in various

organisations, such as the Economic and Financial Crimes

Commission, with raids of internet cafés and apprehension of some

notorious internet fraud top dogs. But it hasn‟t made any

significant difference as internet fraud in Nigeria is now at an all

time high over the past few years.

Most internet fraud activities in Nigeria are carried out within

Lagos State as it is one of the most technologically and

infrastructural advanced states. With several internet cafés; internet

service providers and banks placing their national headquarters in

Lagos and a seaport nearby it makes Lagos a perfect location to

carry out such a crime.

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1.2 Problem analysis

In Nigeria there is no firm way of dealing with internet

fraudsters as it is very difficult to trace an internet fraudster down.

The way in which they receive payment from victims is well

thought. The norm is requesting payment via bank account but this

way has flaws as it would be easy for the bank to turn the bank

account holder to the police if a victim should find a way to report.

These days‟ scammers ask for a form of payment which can‟t be

reversed or cancelled e.g. Western Union. Also, requesting money

to be sent by post is another way in which scammers can receive

the payment. Also, it‟s against customers rights for an internet

service provider to go through the web pages a customer visits.

This is exactly why fraudsters can get away with this crime so

easily. So long as they don‟t try to defraud someone of a bulk sum

of money (millions of dollars) then the chances of getting caught

would remain low. Also the EFCC (Economic and Financial

Crimes Commission) has proved to be ineffective over the past few

years. When poverty is a major issue in Nigeria it‟s no wonder

people turn to crime so they can provide for themselves. These

days just about anyone could be an internet fraudster; young

teenagers, fresh university graduates, women, elderly men in

society etc. Nigeria‟s economic failure occurred with a

combination of overpopulation rising out of control and Nigeria‟s

dependency on crude oil as a main source of income.

1.3 Objective of the Study

To assess the problems within Nigerian cities such as Lagos

that would make people turn to a life of crime.

To identify what law enforcing bodies have done about the

problem of internet fraud.

To discover whether or not it is worthwhile becoming an

internet fraudster.

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1.4 Research Questions

How is internet fraud carried out?

Why should internet fraud bother Nigerians so much?

Is the government to blame?

What can be done to help?

1.5 Hypothesis

H0: Internet has aided corruption in Nigeria.

H1: Increased usage of internet has discouraged corruption in

Nigeria.

1.6 Scope of Study

I intend to research into the problems created by Internet Fraud in

Nigeria and how it affects everyone in society. As well as finding

out what practical solutions there are to solving it.

1.7 Unfamiliar Terms

Computer - Machine with which

Internet - a world wide interconnection of computers which makes

available resources.

419 - a slang for “fraud”, used in Nigeria. It refers to the criminal

code chapter 32 (obtaining property by false pretences)

Yahoo yahoo - A slang popularly used in Nigeria to describe the

act of carrying out internet fraud.

Mugu - A slang that is used in Nigeria meaning; a victim of

internet fraud.

4

Internet café - A place where people go to surf the internet at an

affordable rate.

EFCC - Economic and Financial Crimes Commision, a Nigerian

agency to combat advanced fee fraud, and related crimes.

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Chapter 2

Literature Review

2.1 History of internet fraud in Nigeria

In the 1980‟s Nigeria was well known for its oil wealth as oil

was just discovered in mass quantity. It was and still is amongst

the top oil producing nations in the world.

Overpopulation is when there are too many people within a

certain area for the given amount of resources. There was a rapid

population growth in Nigeria during the 1980‟s. Many Nigerian‟s

had not yet abandoned the traditional ways of thinking that the

more children to a family the better. Many Nigerians also thought

that because Nigeria was a crude oil producing country, the

country‟s wealth would allow them to live comfortable lives; this

is another reason why there was rapid population growth.

Eventually crude oil production started to fall. A combination of

the two is what allowed the Nigerian economy to deteriorate as

overpopulation started to take place.

The incidence of this meant that people started to loose

money and decided to create scams intended at scamming foreign

business men interested in shady deals within Nigeria‟s oil-sector.

Around this time fraud was mostly used by unemployed university

graduates. Later on, fraudulent faxes were being sent from Nigeria

to business men in the Western world. Around the 1990s the world

developed technologically and with this development came about

the internet. Because of the internet and availability of e-mail some

people saw opportunities to create scams and pass them around

through e-mails. Around this time the Nigerian economy had

deteriorated badly so a lot of people began carrying out what is

called internet fraud.

2.2 Whose fault?

Most people would say that it‟s the fault the government that

Nigeria is now in its current state and internet fraud exists as one

of the worst crimes committed. This is no surprise because the

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Nigerian government consists of several corrupt officials and until

corruption is kicked out, I believe there will be no sudden change

of situation.

The thing that drives people to turn to crime like this is the

harsh living condition of the country; lack of employment (even

for university graduates), uneven spread of wealth, hunger and

thirst, lack of electricity, poor quality shelter etc. The role of the

government is to stabilise the economy, create wealth, provide for

the poor and needy, create jobs etc. If the government was

effective and efficient at fulfilling its duties then internet fraud

wouldn‟t be a huge problem in Nigeria. Simply put, if Nigerians

are made to live in such harsh conditions, crime is one of the only

ways out. In the metropolis of Lagos which is ironically dubbed

“Centre of Excellence” by the government there is so much toil

and hardship. So as long as the economy is weak there‟s practically

no solution to this problem. If the majority of the population was

comfortable then may be internet fraud wouldn‟t be such a

problem.

2.3 Internet fraud in Lagos

It‟s a well known fact that Lagos is the centre of internet

fraud in Nigeria; most fraudulent activities carried out in Nigeria

via use of the internet have come from Lagos. Also, Lagos is home

to one of the best universities in Nigeria, UNILAG (University of

Lagos). UNILAG produces so many graduates yearly in many

different fields, it‟s slowly making a difference by providing the

gift of education to young Nigerians today; it‟s fuelling a nation by

providing a workforce. In Nigeria exists a system; upon

graduation, one must go through what is called NYSC then after

completion of this they can receive employment in their desired

field. It should be a beneficial system but one of the main reasons

why university graduates find it so hard to get employment is

because of existence of NYSC (National Youth Corps Service).

The NYSC was established so that young people who pass through

university at home and abroad may serve Nigeria before entering

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the job market. If a youth should apply for a job without taking

NYSC then it means that by law employers aren‟t allowed to pay

such employees more than N25, 000 a month. In the words of

Bishop David Oyedepo (Overseer of Winners Church, and

Founder of Covenant University Ota, Ogun State) “NYSC is

creating human time-bombs and it should be scrapped. If a young

man or woman can graduate from university with a first class

degree and be unemployed then there‟s a serious problem.”

Because of unemployment, the youth of nowadays will turn

to internet fraud as a means of survival. To add to the problem, a

lot of youth think of ways in which to carry out scams or how

they‟re going to occupy major positions in government and steal

money. If youth in Nigeria have such an attitude towards their

futures then internet fraud is only going to get worse.

In Nigeria there just aren‟t that many employment

opportunities for those with limited or no education and those jobs

that already exist pay very little to employees. In the Untied

Kingdom for example it‟s easy for a student from even secondary

school to get a part time job with good pay. In Nigeria this is the

opposite; there aren‟t many places interested in employing part

time employees and most employers give small pay for plenty

work.

With the computerisation of public schools in Lagos State it

makes it very easy for secondary school students to take up

internet fraud and use it as a means of providing for themselves

and their families. There was a fictitious story written in

„FORTUNE Magazine‟, basically it talked about the spread of

internet fraud and it covers how it is even practised by teenagers. It

tells the story from the shoes of a 14 year-old boy that is called

Akin. It states that Akins‟s parents work for so little every month;

his mother is a cleaner and his father a bus conductor. Akin is

basically the bread winner for his immediate family and other

relatives. His „office‟ is an internet café situated within Ikeja,

Lagos. His boss is a man who others call „chairman‟, he buys

computer time and hires a team of teenagers much like Akin. They

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extract e-mail addresses and credit card information and use this

data to carry out internet scams. Akin‟s boss is computer illiterate,

he gets 60% of the income Akin makes, reserves 20% to pay off

law enforcement officials and teachers who complain when the

boys skip school so they can „work‟, the remaining 20% is still

more than enough for him. He can buy things off the internet such

as phones, laptops, jewellery, watches, and shoes. There‟s a sign at

the door of the café that displays a warning against illegal practices

and offenders will be prosecuted. Ironically nothing is done about

these offenders and the crime shall continue.

2.4 Far Reaching Impact

Today Nigeria is a country most people like to avoid business

dealings with. So long as you are doing business with someone

from the West and you tell them you‟re Nigeria they might think

twice about the business deal in mind. On websites on the internet

people display the warning stating that they don‟t accept

transactions from Nigeria. This is how internet fraud has decimated

the face of a nation which was once made to be glorious with an

outstanding reputation. When you ask people from the Western

World where they think online scams originated most of them

would say Nigeria.

Because of the mistakes others have made others must suffer

the consequences. Around some time in 2007, popular American

television talk show host Oprah Winphery, had a show in which

the issue of online fraud was discussed. From that day it was clear

how the rest of the world sees Nigeria. The country was unfairly

disgraced in this one hour. It was a day that the nation couldn‟t

forget. Victims of 419 came on the show and talked about their

experiences.

Now we‟re amongst the most corrupt countries in the world

and our full potential won‟t be attained any time soon. This is the

cost of the ongoing time. As you have been reading this several

scam letters were fired from Nigeria. Some may be replied to along

with the cash sum requested. This will make the pockets of

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someone shrink and someone else‟s pockets will fatten. It‟s a never

ending cycle; firm action should be taken soon because the nation

is suffering as a result.

Because of fraud, it makes it hard for the average Nigerian to

receive a visa in order to visit or study in countries such as the

U.K. or America.

2.5 How to solve the problem

In Nigeria, the EFCC (Economic and Financial Crimes

Commission) has an anti-fraud unit that is meant to deal with and

eradicate internet fraud within Nigeria. It was established by the

former government of Obasanjo in year 2003. According to an

article by Kabiru Danladi in Daily Trust he said “It became very

popular since its inception due to its dynamic and courageous

leader, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu. The mere mention of EFCC and

Ribadu sent shudders through the spines of dubious public office

holders, politicians, big time crooks and aspiring criminals.” He

also went further as to explaining how under Ribadu‟s leadership

the EFCC has become a wrecking ball towards all corruption

within Nigeria including internet fraud. In an article by Dele

Sobowale in Vanguard he talked about the EFCC having only one

big case “Perhaps the only big case that the EFCC broke on its

own concerned the former inspector general of police, IGP, Tafa

Balogun, GCON.” Basically the I.G. of police was found guilty of

corrupt charges and he only received a minimal jail sentence of

one year after which he walked free despite the fact he stole a hefty

sum of over 100 million naira.

The EFCC claim that they‟re making progress but the

populous begs to differ. Raids of internet cafés, and suspected

fraudsters residencies have been made in the past. But statistics say

that internet fraud is at an all time high. In Lagos one can go to so

many internet cafés (such as Cool Café, Ettim-Inyang Crescent,

Victoria Island) and find internet fraudsters in action. I believe that

the EFCC must take serious action in order to stop existing internet

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fraudsters. The EFCC must make public examples of many internet

fraudsters so they can make any one thinking of carrying out this

crime have second thoughts.

From an economic view it all boils down to people not

having enough money. It‟s no secret, in order to make money one

needs a form of occupation. It is not so easy for anyone to set up a

successful business in Lagos. This is because when there are so

many problems such as lack of electricity, lack of security, and

instability within the business environment the cost of running a

business is so high. Getting a good, well paying job is very hard

these days because there‟s a lack of vacant jobs and those that are

vacant will usually become occupied by those who have been

educated overseas.

This problem lies beyond the individual alone; it is one that

must be solved by the government. As it ultimately has all the

funds in which it should invest wisely so that no one needs to turn

to a life of crime as a means of survival. The government can

create jobs and implement policies which could be used as devices

to stop this growing trend of internet fraud. The reason Nigeria as a

whole is not doing well is because we don‟t have good systems.

Look at the Japan; a nation with only 30 percent flat land and next

to no natural resources and it‟s an economic giant today. Nigeria

on the other hand is blessed with natural resources such as crude

oil, gold, acres of agriculture, and intelligence within our human

workforce. Some of the scams created are so well thought of. If we

have people with so much mental capacity, why not create

something positive for them to use their potential on?

As a geography student I have learned that the reason why a

country won‟t do well is because of the lack of planning. China

was getting overcrowded and because the government made some

simple wise decisions, China is doing well today. Nigeria‟s case is

very similar to China‟s; it is not too late to change the country.

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2.6.1 The Internet Scammer‟s Identity

Just think to yourself about what an internet scam artist from

Nigeria would look like. The stereotypical image most have in our

mind is a young man, may be about 23 to 25, but it goes much

further than that. Women, university graduates, teenagers and big

men take part in this heinous crime. Illustrious people in society

have been nabbed for internet fraud.

In the month of November 2005, internet fraudster

Emmanuel Nwude was sentenced to 25 years in prison after a long

court case that had lasted for years. Mr. Nwude defrauded a

Brazilian bank of $242 million through an internet scam which

made use of fake bank drafts. This court case marked history in

Nigeria as it was the first high-profile court case in which the

EFCC (Economic Fraud and Financial Crimes Commission) was

involved.

Internet fraud pays well, why else would so many people

rush to it? A group of fraudsters can make up to $500,000 within

one to two months provided they catch some „big fish‟ and create

very good scams.

2.6.2 How Is Internet Fraud carried out?

A typical internet fraudster needs a few things to undertake

business:

1. Internet Connection

2. E-mail addresses

3. E-mail extractor

4. E-mail account

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Internet Connection

This should be relatively fast, as time means money. The best and

most affordable way to carry out this act is in internet cafés. Many

areas of Lagos contain shady internet cafés that cater for

scammers. Areas such as Festac are known for this. These internet

cafés have a way of doing it; they shut their doors at night time but

still leave doors open to scammers so that the scammers can work

without fear of discovery. One would imagine that the owners of

such internet cafés receive their own cut. Other scammers who

have made quite the living would graduate to purchasing their own

internet connection so they can work from home. This makes it

harder for them to be traced by officials of the law because they

can‟t get caught in action.

E-mail addresses

These are usually obtained through chain letters cleverly designed,

from internet forums where contributors leave e-mail addresses,

business cards of big businesses etc. The most popular way of

collecting e-mail addresses is from chain letters people send

through e-mail accounts. (Below) is a sample of such a chain letter:

E-mail extractor

This is a piece of software, created with the purpose of extracting

e-mail addresses from a webpage. Once the e-mails are extracted

they‟ll be sent out by the scammer.

E-mail account

The e-mail account is what the scammer will use to forward a

spam letter to the many e-mail addresses collected, sometimes up

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to a thousand. When this is done, there‟s bound to be at least one

person who will fall for the scam. (Below) a sample of a scam e-

mail:

There are different genres of scam e-mails that can be sent. I‟m

only going to expatiate on a few.

Lottery Scam

The lottery scam works by sending fake notices to a recipient

stating that they one a lottery. The winner is usually asked to send

sensitive information to a free email account (i.e. yahoo, hotmail,

g-mail). The scammer will notify the victim that before the cash

prize is released a small fee such as insurance, registration, or

shipping is required. Once the fee has been sent, the scammer will

invent another fee. The reason why this scam works so well is

because the victim instills trust in the scam artist. Also, the victim

sees the big cash prize and blinds themselves to the small fees that

they‟re paying.

Hit Man Scam

An e-mail is sent to a victim stating that a hit man has been hired

by a close friend of the recipient to kill him/her but will call off the

hit in exchange for a large sum of money. The message will go

further with a warning not to contact the local authorities, or the hit

man will be forced to go through with the plan.

Charity Scam

A scammer will pose as a charitable organization, and request

donations so as to help less fortunate. Sometimes they link to

online news articles to strengthen their story and gain more funds.

The aim is to persuade people that they are helping a worthy cause.

14

Once the money is sent the scammer often disappears, some may

become persistent and will ask for a series of payments.

Other Scams

Apart from the scams which I mentioned above you have

scammers impersonating real people and organizations (i.e. a scam

in which wife of late General Sani Abacha says she is under house

arrest and has a huge sum of money in which she can‟t withdraw

without your help.). We also have scams with fictional characters

(i.e. an astronaut who was trapped on the moon, or a person that

ran into a deceased person without a will or any family members or

friends).

Sometimes internet fraud will go further than e-mails; the scammer

in question can approach the victim through an on-line dating

service or instant messenger and attempt to create a romantic

relationship with the victim. The scammer will then use false

display pictures of other attractive people along with a false

personality, usually a wealthy business man in a foreign country.

Later on the scammer may go further on to saying that they‟d like

to meet the person and will request some money, may be for plane

tickets or whatever excuse they can come up with. When the day

of the meeting comes the victim is waiting for someone to arrive

and the scammer disappears from the victim‟s life and looses

contact.

Here is a sample of an internet fraud e-mail that has probably been

sent to so many different e-mail accounts across the world:

15

CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENCY,

THE HONORABLE, GOVERNOR OF CBN.

TINUBU SQUARE, LAGOS- NIGERIA.

Date 15th october,2007.

Official Web Account: soludo11@i12.com

Our Ref: CBN/OHG/OXD1/2007

Your Ref:.................................

TELEX: CENBANK.

PAYMENT FILE: CBN/BEN/07.

Attn: Sir/Madam,

PAYMENT NOTIFICATION OF YOUR FUNDS.

Definitely, I know that this letter will be a surprising one to

You. Firstly, I will like to introduce myself formally as Prof.

Charles Soludo, the Executive Governor of the Central Bank of

Nigeria (CBN). You are been officially contacted by me today

because your

Inheritance Funds were Re-deposited into the "Federal Suspense

Account" of CBN last week, because you did not forward your

Claim

As the Right beneficiary. Well known to all, The Central Bank of

Nigeria is the mother Bank of all commercial Banks here in

Nigeria.

Really these men were unexpected by me because their visit

was impromptu.i had to ask them why they came to see me in

person

And they said that they were here to collect the Inheritance Bill

Sum of (US$20,000,000) which rightfully belongs to you, on your

16

Behalf.

At this development I asked them who authorized them to come

down

To Nigeria for the Collection of this Payment and they told me

That you asked them to come and collect this Funds on your

Behalf.

infact this was the biggest shock that this Bank have ever

Received so far because your Inheritance Funds is still in the

"Federal Suspense Account" of CBN, yet you sent these men to

come

and collect this Funds on your behalf without notifying us.

We in this Bank do not understand why you sent these men to come

and Collect your Funds on your behalf. If actually you want them

to help you Collect your Inheritance Bill Sum, at least you should

have informed me as the Executive Governor of this Bank.

They actually tendered some Vital Documents which Proved that

you

actually sent them for the Collection of this Funds. Honestly, it

really baffles me that you took such decision without my consent.

Here are the Document which they tendered to this Bank today:

1. LETTER OF ADMINISTRATION.

2. HIGH COURT INJUCTION.

3. ORDER TO RELEASE.

Actually, these Documents which they tendered to this Noble Bank

is a clear Proof that you sent them to Collect this Funds for you.

Finally, told them to come back tomorrow morning and they

promised

To come back. As the Governor of this Noble Bank, I was supposed

to

Release this Fund to them but I refused to do so because I wanted

17

to hear from you first.

Due to the Nature of my job, i will not want to make any mistake

in Releasing this Funds to anyone except you whom is the

Recognized Bonafide Beneficiary to this Funds.

Kindly clarify us on this issue before we make this Payment to

these foreigners whom came on your behalf. In receipt of this

Confidential Letter, you are required to call this Bank immediately

You receive this Confidential Letter.

OFFICIALLY SIGNED.

PROF. CHARLES SOLUDO.

GOVERNOR, CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA.

C-B-N

This is obviously a fraudulent document because the

governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria would never address

anybody concerning such a manner. The scammer makes the

victim to believe that he/she has US$20,000,000 which is

supposedly unaccounted for. If the victim should go on and make

contact with the fraudster then the fraudster will find a way to get

money from the victim by making lame excuses as to why the

money is taking long to get to the victim.

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Chapter Three

Methodology

3.1 Characteristics of Study Population

In this project my target population is 30 people; it consists of 15

men and 15 women from different age group, educational

development and social class. I conducted the distribution of the

questionnaires in an office of a well known internet service

provider, called Starcomms. Some questionnaires were filled in by

some friends and family members and the remaining were

distributed within an internet cafe in Lagos.

3.2 Data Collection Instrument

Questionnaires will be used to source data from the population.

The study was carried out with the use of historical analysis,

literature review and questionnaires as well as interviewing various

people.

3.3 Procedures for Processing and Analyzing Collection of

Data

I made use of tables, charts and percentages in order to interpret

and analyse collected data.

3.4 Limitations of Methodology

Basic limitations that occurred in the production of this project

include time constraint, and limited finance to staff and students of

Bridge House College.

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Chapter Four

4.1 Analysis and Presentation of Data

Questionnaires were made and distributed to 30 people, 15

male and 15 female; all of whom are all residents of

Lagos. The people were of different age, academic

qualification and social class. The purpose of this chapter

is to analyze the data collected from samples and answers

to the research questions stated in chapter 1.4.

Sex Number

Male 15

Female 15

Total 30

20

What is your educational stage? Number

Secondary School 13

Undergraduate 3

Postgraduate 14

TOTAL 30

Age Number

15-24 years 16

25-34 years 4

35-44 years 3

45-54 years 5

55 and above 2

Total 30

21

Are You a Resident of Lagos

State?

Number

Yes 30

No 0

Total 30

22

Where do you make use of the

internet?

Number

At Home/Office 18

At Internet Cafés 0

Both 8

I Don‟t use Internet 4

Total 30

23

Whose policies is it that

enhances internet fraud in

Nigeria?

Number

Nigerian Government 26

Western World 4

Nigerian Citizens 0

Total 30

24

Have you received a fraudulent

letter in your e-mail before?

Number

Yes 23

No 3

I Don‟t Use E-mail 4

Total 30

25

What needs to be done

to stop internet fraud?

Number

Educate youth 10

Kick out corrupt

officials

13

Create better living

conditions

5

Arrest all internet

fraudsters

2

Total 30

26

Question Positive Negative Undecided Percentage

(Yes)

Are you aware of

computers?

30 0 0 100

Do you own a computer?

19 11 0 63.33

Are you aware of the

internet?

30 0 0 100

Are you aware of internet

fraud?

30 0 0 100

Do you think internet fraud

should be an issue of major

concern in Nigeria?

26 4 0 86.67

Do you think internet fraud

can be eradicated from

Nigeria?

5 22 3 16.67

Do you make use of e-

mail?

25 5 0 76.67

Do you think the EFCC is

a corrupt body?

24 1 5 80

Do you think the EFCC

can eradicate internet fraud

in Nigeria?

2 25 3 6.67

Do you think that EFCC

has made a significant

difference in eradication of

internet fraud?

7 18 5 23.33

Do you think Nigerians

can stop the spread of

internet fraud?

15 8 7 50

Do you sympathize with

victims of internet fraud?

6 21 3 20

Do you sympathize with

those who carry out

internet fraud?

3 27 0 10

Would you try internet

fraud?

1 23 6 3.33

Have you seen anyone

carry out internet fraud?

7 23 0 23.33

Do you beleive that

Internet fraud originated in

Nigeria?

0 30 0 0

27

4.2 Summary

The data collected tells us that most people are aware of internet

and the presence of internet fraud in Nigeria. It also shows that

Nigerians are concerned about the spread of internet fraud in

Nigeria. Also, most respondents believe that internet fraud can not

be eradicated from Nigeria and that the main law officiating body

(EFCC) is not properly doing its duty. Lastly, the majority of

respondents believe that the Nigerian government is at fault for the

existence of internet fraud in Nigeria.

Also, in question 15, most respondents said that when they

received their first internet fraud letter by e-mail they had a

reaction whereas they fell for the scam. This goes to show that

internet fraudsters are cunning intelligent people who have not

been given sufficient opportunities to show themselves. Another

interesting fact I found is that 23 out of 25 that use e-mail have

received a fraudulent letter in their e-mail inboxes. This just goes

to show that internet fraud is still on the rise and should be stopped

before it goes out of hand.

These statistics show that internet fraud in Nigeria is a huge

problem and the blame lies with the government, but at the same

time it is the government‟s responsibility.

28

Chapter Five

5.1 Summary

Since the 1980‟s the Nigerian economy started to weaken and

fall, this left many Nigerians in a state of poverty and so

levels of crime and corruption, especially within government

increased. Many young university graduates were left

without jobs and started sending fraudulent letters to wealthy

business men abroad; with the increased availability of

internet in the 1990‟s, fraudulent letters were then forwarded

through use of e-mail and today internet fraud has been

committed so much by Nigerians that it has become a major

issue.

5.2 Conclusion

In conclusion, no major difference has been made to the

harsh conditions and internet fraud is at its peak. The

government is the main body to blame because it did not plan

ahead for any of today‟s problems which exist in Nigeria. To

eradicate internet fraud from the Nigerian society practical

solutions should me made starting with the government;

corruption should be made to be a thing of the past, all

corrupt leaders should be kicked out and then jobs should be

created amongst many wealth creating opportunities.

5.3 Recommendations

The following recommendations are suggested from the

findings and results of this study:

1. Corrupt officials should not have any place in government.

2. Existing leaders should create a more equal distribution of

wealth.

3. Practical solutions should be put to use so as to create jobs so

that Nigerians don‟t have to look to a life of crime as a means

of making a living.

29

4. The EFCC should kick out any corrupt law officiators and

should be more serious with their fight against internet fraud

by aprehending more criminals.

5. Internet fraudsters should put their brains to better use.

6. Youth should be educated against law breaking practices.

30

APPENDIX

Bridge House College,

Ikoyi, Lagos

Dear Respondent,

I am a student of Bridge House College currently

undertaking a University Foundation Programme. I am conducting

research on the topic “Checking Internet Fraud in Nigeria: Case

Study Lagos”.

I would be very greatful if you could kindly fill in the

questionnaire attached to this sheet to enable me to complete my

programme. All data collected will only be used for research

purposes only.

Thank You,

The Researcher.

31

1. Sex

M F

□ □

2. Age

□ 15-24 years

□ 25-34 years

□ 35-44 years

□ 45-54 years

□ 54 and above

3. What is your educational stage?

□ Secondary School

□ Undergraduate

□ Postgraduate

4. Are you a resident of Lagos State?

Yes No

□ □

5. Are you aware of computers?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

6. Do you own a computer?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

32

7. Are you aware of the internet?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □ 8. Where do you make use of the internet?

□ At home

□ At internet cafés

□ Both

□ I don‟t use the internet

9. Are you aware of internet fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

10. Do you think internet fraud should be an issue of major

concern in Nigeria?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

11. Do you think internet fraud can be eradicated from

Nigeria?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

12. Whose policies is it that enhances internet fraud in

Nigeria?

□ Government

□ Western World

□ Nigerian Citizens

33

13. Do you make use of e-mail?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

14. Have you received a fraudulent letter in your e-mail

before?

Y N I don‟t use e-mail

□ □ □

15. What was your initial reaction?

………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………

16. Do you think the EFCC is a corrupt body?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

17. Do you think the EFCC can eradicate internet fraud in

Nigeria?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □ 18. Do you think that EFCC has made a significant

difference in eradication of internet fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

19. Do you think Nigerians can stop the spread of internet

fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

34

20. What needs to be done to stop internet fraud?

□ Educate youth

□ Kick out corrupt officials

□ Create better living conditions

□ Arrest all internet fraudsters

21. Do you sympathize with victims of internet fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

22. Do you sympathize with those who carry out internet

fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

23. Would you try internet fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

24. Have you seen anyone carry out internet fraud?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □ 25. Do you believe that Internet fraud originated in

Nigeria?

Y N Undecided

□ □ □

35

1. Wikipedia “Advance Fee Fraud”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/advance-fee_fraud)

2. Wikipedia “Internet Fraud”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/internet_fraud)

3. Thisday (www.thisdayonline.com)

Online Edition

4. Vanguard (www.vanguardngr.com)

Online Edition

5. Akanbi and Nkanga, (March 2 2008),

“Battle against internet fraudsters shifts to N’Assembly”

Thisday Newspaper

6. Leonard Lawal (29 May 2006),

“Online Scams Create Yahoo! Millionaires”

Fortune Magazine

7. Danladi. K, (27 December 2008)

“EFCC on revenge mission?”

Daily Trust Newspaper

8. Obe Idiapo, (17 December 2008)

“Do not be left out of global network security development process”

Vanguard Newspaper

9. Akingbade Tunde, (21 October 2007)

“Exposing ethics of 419ners in Nigeria”

Vanguard Newspaper

10. Sobowale Dele, (08 February 2009)

“Nigeria: Between rapists, 'rescuers' and apologists”

Vanguard Newspaper

11. Ezeobi and Amaefule, (15 January 2009)

“Nigeria’s oil wealth has not lifted the poor-Kofi Annan”

36

PUNCH Newspaper

12. Oketola Dayo, (24 February 2009)

“Internet: Changing the perception of youths globally”

PUNCH Newspaper

13. Anuforo Emeka, (19 March 2009)

“EFCC returns fraud proceed to Indian Victim”

Guardian Newspaper

14. Femi Babafemi, (16 March 2009)

“UNILAG Student Convicted Over Love Scam”

EFCC Press Release

15. Femi Babafemi, (27 October 2008)

“Cybercrime: EFCC Arraigns 58 in Kaduna, Suspects remanded in Prison Custody”

EFCC Press Release

16. Olayele Bisi, (31 March 2009)

“Re-Branding: Can FG re-brand Nigeria Without IT?”

Daily Sun Newspaper

17. Emejo James, (15 April 2009)

“Online Banking under Severe Threat”

Thisday Newspaper

18. Akosile Abimbola, (04 April 2009)

“Internet Fraud Rises 11% in 2008 over 2007-study, US Biggest Perpetrator, Nigeria

3rd”

Thisday Newspaper