Nigerian organisations are now facing the most intense wave of cyberattacks on the continent, recording the highest number of incidents in Africa in January 2026, according to fresh data released by Check Point Research.
The latest Global Threat Intelligence report shows that organisations in Nigeria experienced an average of 4,701 cyberattacks per week per organisation during the month, placing the country ahead of other African peers captured in the survey. The figure represents a 12 percent increase year-on-year and a noticeable rise from the 4,622 weekly attacks recorded in December 2025.
The findings come at a time when cyber risks are escalating globally. On average, organisations worldwide endured 2,090 cyberattacks per week in January, marking a 3 percent increase from December and a 17 percent rise compared to the same period last year. The continued rise highlights intensifying ransomware campaigns and growing exposure linked to the rapid deployment of Generative AI tools across corporate environments.
Within Africa, Nigeria’s position at the top of the chart underscores the scale of its digital footprint and expanding online economy, but also highlights the mounting vulnerability facing its public and private sector institutions. Angola followed closely with 4,512 attacks per organisation per week, though its figures declined 7 percent year-on-year. Kenya recorded 2,172 weekly attacks, representing a 41 percent drop from the previous year, while South Africa logged 2,145 attacks per organisation per week, reflecting a 36 percent year-on-year increase.
Across the continent, organisations experienced an average of 2,864 attacks per week, down 6 percent year-on-year. The most targeted sectors were government institutions, financial services providers, and consumer goods and services companies, illustrating how cybercriminals continue to focus on entities that manage sensitive citizen data, financial transactions, and critical supply chains.
Ian van Rensburg, head of security engineering for Africa at Check Point Software Technologies, said the January data reflects a shift in the nature of cyber threats. According to him, attacks are not just increasing in number but are becoming more calculated and opportunistic.
The report warns that African organisations accelerating digital transformation initiatives face growing exposure where cybersecurity investments lag behind technology adoption. Of particular concern is the unchecked integration of Generative AI tools into business operations, which is creating new blind spots within corporate networks.
Check Point’s data reveals that one in every 30 Generative AI prompts submitted from corporate environments in January posed a significant risk of exposing sensitive information. Alarmingly, 93 percent of organisations using Generative AI tools were impacted by potentially risky prompts.
Beyond high-risk submissions, a broader share of prompts contained sensitive material such as internal documents, customer data, personal identifiers and proprietary source code. On average, organisations were found to be using 10 different Generative AI tools per month, many of which operate outside structured governance frameworks. This fragmented adoption increases the likelihood of data leaks, ransomware infiltration and AI-driven attack vectors.
Globally, the education sector remained the most targeted industry, with institutions experiencing an average of 4,364 weekly attacks per organisation, up 12 percent year-on-year. Government entities followed at 2,759 attacks per week, reflecting an 8 percent annual increase. Telecommunications ranked third with 2,647 weekly incidents, also up 8 percent year-on-year, as cybercriminals intensified efforts to exploit connectivity infrastructure and expanding 5G ecosystems.
From a regional perspective, Latin America recorded the highest attack volumes worldwide at 3,110 attacks per organisation per week, reflecting a 33 percent year-on-year increase. The Asia-Pacific region followed closely with 3,087 weekly attacks, up 7 percent. Africa’s average stood at 2,864 attacks per organisation, while Europe and North America recorded year-on-year increases of 18 percent and 19 percent respectively.
Ransomware continues to rank among the most disruptive threats globally. In January alone, 678 ransomware incidents were publicly reported, representing a 10 percent increase compared to January 2025. North America accounted for 52 percent of reported cases, while Europe represented 24 percent, underscoring sustained targeting of economically advanced regions.
The United States remained the most affected country, accounting for 48 percent of global ransomware victims. The United Kingdom followed at 5 percent, while Canada and Germany each recorded 4 percent. Italy and Spain each accounted for 3 percent of reported victims.
Industry-wise, business services emerged as the most impacted sector globally, representing 33 percent of ransomware cases. Consumer goods and services accounted for 15 percent, while industrial manufacturing recorded 11 percent of incidents.
In terms of threat actors, the Qilin ransomware group led global activity in January, responsible for 15 percent of disclosed incidents. LockBit followed at 12 percent, while Akira accounted for 9 percent. Together, these groups were behind a significant portion of publicly reported attacks.
For Nigeria, leading Africa in weekly cyberattacks presents a dual narrative. On one hand, it reflects the country’s deepening integration into the global digital economy, driven by fintech expansion, government digitisation efforts and increasing enterprise technology adoption. On the other, it highlights the urgent need to strengthen cyber resilience across both public and private institutions.
As digital transformation accelerates across banking, telecommunications, government services and emerging AI applications, cybersecurity is fast becoming a boardroom priority rather than a back-office function. Industry analysts note that prevention-focused strategies, real-time AI-powered threat detection and tighter governance around Generative AI deployment will be critical in reducing exposure.
With cybercriminals refining their tactics and exploiting every gap created by rapid technological adoption, Nigeria’s leadership in Africa’s cyberattack rankings serves as a wake-up call for organisations to move cybersecurity from reactive response to proactive defence.
