Cyber-Attack as a Menace to Effective Governance in Nigeria
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Cyber-attack is an attempt by hackers to damage or destroy a computer network or system for purposes of
mischief, fraud, and/or hedonism. To say that the incidences of cyber-attack are increasing rapidly in Nigeria is not only an
understatement but also a cliché. From the organized private sector to public service, hackers have not spared any entity.
More recently, governments in both developed and developing countries have had to deal with this menace on a frequent
basis. The government of Nigeria is not an exception the thorn in the flesh. Indeed some government officials have blamed
ineffective governance on the menace of cyber-attack, thereby creating the impetus for this research. The study therefore
investigates the incidences of cyber-attack in Nigeria and its impact on democratic governance. The study was based on
descriptive and explorative research design. This involves the use of research instrument administered to retrieve vital
information from the target audience. The information gathered were coded into scale variables that support empirical
investigation of the subject matter. In this study a total of 150 questionnaires from which a total of 126 were retrieved and
used for the analysis. The data analysis utilized frequency distribution involving percentage and factor analysis. This
method is frequently used in the Social Sciences research. Both factor analysis and relational analysis were applied. Factor
analysis establishes the most prominent factor responsible for cyber-attacks motivation while the relational analysis was
further utilized in examining the determined effect of incidence and nature of cyber-attacks on the assessment of the
effectiveness governance in Nigeria. The evidence from the study provides significant result in support of a significant
influence of cyber-attack menace on the perception of governance. Analysis of the motivating factors suggests that
financial benefits and wide spread dissemination of the virus accounted for most factor responsible for the attacks. The
study therefore recommends that government and law enforcement agencies should strategize on means of providing a
more comprehensive data base to facilitate effective investigation and further research in this area.
Keywords
H Social Sciences (General), JA Political science (General), QA75 Electronic computers. Computer science