Prof. Adewale Obadare, Chief Executive Officer of Digital Encode, says weak cybersecurity frameworks are undermining financial inclusion and exposing Nigeria’s payment ecosystem to rising fraud risks.
Obadare spoke on Friday in Lagos at the Payments Forum Nigeria (PAFON) 3.0 event, where industry stakeholders examined challenges facing digital payments and financial innovation.
He warned that innovation without strong cybersecurity and digital trust could erode gains in the financial sector and discourage adoption of digital payment platforms.
According to him, most cyberattacks in Nigeria are not sophisticated but exploit basic vulnerabilities within payment infrastructure already exposed to the internet.
“Eighty per cent of attacks are unstructured and take advantage of weak systems already exposed to the internet,” he said.
Obadare described cybersecurity as the “big elephant” in the payment ecosystem, warning that fraud and system vulnerabilities would persist without proactive safeguards.
He said many operators prioritised building solutions but neglected security, thereby creating systems vulnerable to opportunistic attacks and exploitation.
The CEO noted that cybercriminals were increasingly leveraging emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, to scale attacks and exploit loopholes more rapidly.
He stressed that regulations, particularly from the Central Bank of Nigeria, remained essential to enforce standards and strengthen the integrity of financial systems.
Obadare added that past interventions, such as migration from magnetic stripe to chip-based cards, significantly reduced incidents of card cloning fraud.
He called for a balance between innovation and cybersecurity, urging stakeholders to invest in people, processes and technology to build sustainable digital trust.
According to him, consumers must also improve awareness and adopt safe practices to reduce exposure to fraud risks in the digital space.
“Without trust, digital payments will remain a push system, but with trust, adoption becomes natural and inclusive,” he said.