The Nigeria Police Force has intensified efforts to protect Nigeria’s 2027 general elections from digital manipulation after uncovering facilities allegedly used to manufacture artificial online support for political narratives and arresting a suspect accused of spreading false information about a political candidate.
The development has raised fresh concerns about the growing use of technology to influence voters, distort public opinion and create misleading impressions about the popularity of candidates ahead of the next general election.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi, who represented the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, disclosed the development during a webinar organised by the PUNCH Media Foundation on Wednesday.
He explained that the police had carried out targeted raids on facilities known as phone farms following investigations into alleged coordinated attempts to manipulate the electoral process.
Phone farms are locations where large numbers of mobile phones and automated accounts are operated simultaneously to generate online activity and make it appear that a particular issue or political position enjoys widespread public support.
According to Abdullahi, a single individual could operate hundreds of phones to circulate messages, influence online conversations and create artificial engagement around selected political issues.
He said the police had disrupted some of these operations as part of efforts to prevent organised digital campaigns from misleading Nigerians before the 2027 elections.
The police representative also confirmed the arrest of a suspect accused of circulating false information about a candidate from the South-South region.
He alleged that the suspect promoted misleading reports about activities that had not taken place, with the intention of influencing voter behaviour and damaging the candidate’s public image.
Abdullahi said investigators traced the source of the information before making the arrest, adding that the suspect remained in police custody.
He warned that the police would investigate and prosecute individuals found deliberately spreading false information capable of undermining the electoral process.
Beyond the phone farm discoveries, Abdullahi disclosed that the police had acquired cybersecurity tools designed to identify manipulated photographs, deepfake videos and cloned audio recordings.
He said the technology could detect certain forms of artificial intelligence-generated manipulation with up to 99 per cent accuracy.
He identified the use of fabricated videos and cloned voices to make political candidates, public officials and electoral authorities appear to have made statements they never issued as serious threats to the credibility of the elections.
The police have also established an election monitoring room and commenced intelligence gathering ahead of the polls.
Abdullahi, however, stressed that the enforcement exercise would not be used to suppress legitimate political opinions or freedom of expression.
He said investigations and arrests would be guided by the relevant provisions of the law, insisting that citizens would not be targeted simply for expressing their political views.
The police also urged Nigerians to verify election-related announcements through the Independent National Electoral Commission rather than relying on unconfirmed messages circulating on social media.
The warning comes amid growing concerns among electoral stakeholders about the possible use of artificial intelligence and coordinated online networks to spread false information during the 2027 election campaign.
The Director of Programmes at Yiaga Africa, Cynthia Mbamalu, has also urged INEC to strengthen its ability to identify and respond quickly to AI-generated misinformation.
She warned that delayed responses to misleading reports could allow false information to spread and weaken public confidence in the electoral commission.
As political activities gradually intensify ahead of 2027, the police say their priority is to prevent digital manipulation from threatening the credibility of the electoral process while ensuring that lawful public debate remains protected.