A claim that a 2025 Cybercrime Act has been passed into law has surfaced on the internet. The claim has been circulating on Facebook and also on WhatsApp status, as retrieved by our fact-checker.
The claim noted that the act was signed into law by the Senate president, Godswill Akpabio, and warned that citizens should abide.
The post read:
The Nigerian Cybercrime Act (2015) is one of the main law against online crimes like fraud, hacking, identity theft, cyberstalking, and child pornography. It protects critical information systems, requires service providers to keep user data, and prescribes fines or jail terms for offenders. While it helps fight “yahoo-yahoo” scams and cyber threats, critics say parts of it restrict free expression and are sometimes used against journalists and activists.
Due to the sensitive nature of the claim, The FactCheckHub verified its accuracy.
CLAIM
THE FINDINGS
The FactChekHub gathered that the Nigerian Senate has been on its annual recess since late July 2025 and is not expected to resume until September 23, 2025.
This means no new Cybercrimes Act 2025 could have been passed during that time.
In addition, the passage of a bill by the National Assembly alone does not make it law in Nigeria; the President must also sign it before it takes effect.
In one of our fact-checks, we explained that for a bill to be passed into an act, it has to pass through several stages.
The most recent amendment to the law was the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) (Amendment) Act 2024, which President Bola Tinubu signed on February 28, 2024. Although talks about a potential review started in May 2025, no new Act has been passed since then.
Lastly, no local media outlets reported the news as such would be reported by credible media outlets across the country.
THE VERDICT
The claim that the 2025 Cybercrimes Act has been passed into Law is false; the Senate, concerned with making such laws, is currently on recess and will resume in September.
This report is republished from the FactCheckHub.
Fatimah Quadri is a Journalist and a Fact-checker at The ICIR. She has written news articles, fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy in an effort to combat information disorder.
She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org