NGO Trains Female Journalists To Avert Digital Attacks – News Agency Of Nigeria

A non-governmental organisation, TechSocietal, has warned that women journalists may face rising digital threats ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 elections, including AI-powered deepfakes, online harassment and coordinated disinformation campaigns.

The warning was delivered in Lagos during a two-day training organised for 30 female journalists of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). The programme focused on helping participants strengthen their digital safety skills in response to evolving online risks.

TechSocietal’s Cyber Security and Digital Protection Officer, Miss Emmanuella Aston, said women in public-facing roles are becoming more vulnerable to cyberattacks and reputation-focused digital abuse. According to her, the risks now extend beyond ordinary hacking to include AI-generated fake images, false videos, cloned voices, doxxing, trolling and the non-consensual circulation of intimate content.

She stressed that women journalists, politicians and activists cannot simply withdraw from digital platforms, as online visibility remains essential to their work and public engagement. Instead, she said they must build stronger and more practical digital defence habits.

“This training is designed to provide practical protection strategies tailored specifically to women in public life, rather than general internet safety advice,” Aston explained.

She added that advances in artificial intelligence have made it easier to create highly convincing manipulated content, increasing the likelihood of smear campaigns and misinformation operations, especially as political activities gather pace before the next general election cycle.

Aston noted that the training was hands-on, with participants adjusting security settings on their devices and accounts during practical sessions. By the end of the workshop, she said, attendees had taken direct steps to improve the protection of their devices, online accounts and digital identities.

She also encouraged the journalists to pass on what they had learned to other women in newsrooms, civil society organisations and public institutions, broadening awareness of digital safety practices.

Also speaking at the event, TechSocietal’s Legal and Policy Programmes Officer, Jessica Ikemdilim, led sessions on identifying synthetic media, AI-generated abuse and deepfakes that threaten information integrity.

She said participants were trained to verify suspicious digital materials using metadata checks and other forensic techniques that can help distinguish authentic content from manipulated media.

Ikemdilim expressed confidence that the journalists would apply the skills in their professional work and contribute to safer online spaces by resisting the spread of AI-enabled abusive content.

For NAN management, the training was seen as both timely and necessary. Deputy Editor-in-Chief Mrs Ijeoma Popoola said the sessions were especially valuable for women with visible online profiles and influence.

According to her, the programme broke down complex cybersecurity concepts into practical lessons that participants could immediately use to protect their personal information, devices and digital presence.

Assistant Editor-in-Chief Ms Folasade Adeniran also said the workshop provided useful guidance on staying safe online and recognising deepfakes or other forms of synthetic media.

Participants echoed similar views. Mrs Florence Onuegbu called for similar sessions to be extended to male journalists as well, noting that cyber threats and AI-driven misinformation now affect the wider media profession.

A NAN journalism intern, Aisha Martins, said the training improved her ability to detect deepfakes, verify digital content and challenge AI-generated falsehoods in the course of reporting.

The workshop highlights a growing concern in Nigeria’s media and civic space: as artificial intelligence tools become more accessible, the potential for digital manipulation and targeted abuse is also expanding. For journalists, particularly women, the challenge is no longer only about protecting devices from intrusion, but also defending credibility, identity and public trust in an increasingly hostile online environment.

With the 2027 elections approaching, the message from the training was clear: digital resilience is becoming an essential part of newsroom preparedness.