The Nigeria Police Force has warned that individuals who use artificial intelligence and other digital tools to spread false information capable of influencing the 2027 general elections will be investigated and prosecuted.
The warning comes as the force steps up efforts to tackle online manipulation, including the use of deepfake videos, cloned voices and coordinated social media accounts to distort public opinion.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi gave the warning on Wednesday, November 11, during a webinar by Punch, titled AI, Misinformation and Nigeria’s 2027 Elections: Safeguarding the Truth, Protecting the Vote, examined the risks posed by emerging technologies to electoral credibility.
Abdullahi, who represented the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, disclosed that the police had acquired cyber solutions capable of detecting manipulated videos, photographs and audio recordings with up to 99 per cent accuracy.
He said the force was also conducting digital forensic examinations of suspicious content circulating on social media to establish whether they had been manipulated.
READ ALSO: INEC Flags 268 Voter Records Over Suspected AI-Generated Photos
According to him, AI-generated materials could falsely portray political candidates, government officials and electoral authorities as making statements they never actually made, potentially misleading voters.
The ACP also revealed that the police had established an election monitoring room and begun intelligence gathering ahead of the polls.
As part of the operation, he said officers had raided facilities known as phone farms, where hundreds of mobile devices and automated accounts are allegedly used to manufacture online engagement and create false impressions of widespread public support for particular positions.
“We have recently come across information regarding the coordinated effort being made by some individuals to see that they tamper with our elections. Having dissected the information, we were able to carry out targeted raids at phone farms,” he said.
Abdullahi further disclosed that a suspect had been arrested over the alleged circulation of false information about a political candidate from the South-South region.
He said the suspect allegedly presented information about events that had not happened or were still being planned as though they had already occurred, with the intention of influencing voter behaviour and damaging the candidate’s reputation.
The police officer said investigators traced the source of the claims following a complaint before making the arrest.
He stressed, however, that the force would not interfere with legitimate public opinion or peaceful political discussions.
“If the relevant legal elements are not established, we cannot go out and disrupt the peaceful conduct of public opinion. We cannot do that,” he said.
Abdullahi also urged Nigerians to verify election-related announcements through the Independent National Electoral Commission, particularly reports suggesting changes to the election timetable.