FG Moves Against Terrorists’ Online Propaganda

Nigerian security agencies are collaborating with major social media companies to identify and take down accounts used by terrorist and criminal groups to promote their activities and raise funds, the Director-General of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka, has disclosed.

Speaking at an end-of-year briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, Laka revealed that platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and X have been exploited by terrorists to publicise operations, display looted items, and communicate with supporters.

“We have had several meetings with these social media platforms… They are businesses looking to grow their subscribers, but we engage them, explain the effects of certain posts on national security, and we take them down,” Laka said. “There was a time when bandits would go on TikTok showing their loot. We took those accounts down – you don’t see that again. At some point, they were even doing live streams and holding conversations, but we’ve been able to handle all that.”

Laka noted that terrorist tactics continue to evolve, including the use of aliases and unverified accounts, adding that security agencies are constantly adapting to counter such developments. He identified ransom payments as a major source of terror financing, with point-of-sale operators increasingly exploited to move funds.

“In many cases, ransom payments are transferred to accounts belonging to POS operators, who then release the cash to kidnappers, making tracking more difficult,” Laka explained. “You see a transfer made by terrorists, and when you investigate the account, it belongs to a POS operator. The kidnappers give out the POS operator’s number, the money is transferred, and they go to collect it.

The counter-terrorism chief said security agencies have intensified efforts to track ransom payments, arrest those involved, and disrupt terror financing networks. While operational details cannot be made public for security reasons, Laka revealed that several arrests and prosecutions have been carried out in connection with ransom payments and terrorism financing.

Asset recoveries and seizures form part of Nigeria’s compliance with international anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing standards. Laka attributed the country’s recent progress in meeting the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force to coordinated investigations by a joint committee involving security agencies, financial intelligence units, and the judiciary.

Acknowledging the challenges posed by evolving terror tactics and porous borders in the Sahel region, Laka assured Nigerians that security agencies will continue to strengthen both physical and digital counter-terrorism efforts.

“Towards the end of 2023, the security situation in Nigeria was improving. But after the coups in some Sahel countries, the situation worsened because these terrorist groups have connections across the region,” Laka said. “So Nigeria has to play a leadership role in West Africa and the Sahel to address these threats.

As long as those countries continue to face these challenges, Nigeria will also face them. We are doing our best, and we will not relent. In 2026, we are going to up our game.”

The removal of these accounts follows repeated calls for platforms hosting content that promotes or supports terrorist activities to take them down. Social media has increasingly been used by criminal groups to spread propaganda, showcase illicit activities, and communicate within their networks.