Do you know that you risk 5 years in jail when you access a computer without the owner's consent?

The Nigeria Cybercrime Act, signed into law on May 15, 2015 stipulates that, a five-year jail term awaits offenders that gain “unauthorized access” into a computer or network for fraudulent purposes.

The Nigeria Cybercrime Act 2015, is the first statutory instrument in the country that criminalizes online actions, prescribing punishment and creating legal procedures for investigation, protection and enforcement.

By way of definition, the Nigerian law views unauthorized access as when someone gains access to a website, program, server, service or other system using someone else’s account or other means. This has over the years posed a security concern on the global Internet space across the world including Nigeria.

According to the subsection (1) of section 6 of the Cybercrime Act 2015, “Any person, who without authorization, intentionally accesses in whole or in part, a computer system or network for fraudulent purposes and obtain data that are vital to national security, commits an offense and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of not more than 5 years or to a fine of not more than N5,000,000.00 or to both fine and imprisonment.”