The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olanipekun Olukoyede has recounted how a 17-year-old yahoo boy (internet fraudster) hacked his BVN and bank account details using his mobile number.
Mr Olukoyede disclosed this while addressing stakeholders in a video sighted on Thursday, May 2.
The EFCC chairman recounted that the boy was nabbed by anti-graft agency operatives and brought to his office for interrogation.
To test the boy’s IT skills, the EFCC boss asked him to show him how he swindles people’s money through the internet.
The EFCC boss said, “In my Lagos office, I brought in a 17-year-old boy who is studying history 200 level. He’s not doing anything science. The guy sat in my office in Lagos and demonstrated some things to me on my laptop.
“He asked for my number (mobile number), through my number he got my BVN. He now mentioned the name of my account number to me and the bank and I didn’t tell him anything.”
The EFCC chairman said he was in awe of the IT skills of a young lad without an educational background in sciences.
Despite the criminal nature of the boy’s actions, Olukoyede sees a glimmer of hope in his skills. He said with the proper guidance and orientation, the boy could become a valuable national asset.
It had been earlier reported that Nigerian banks suffered a loss of âŚ8 billion due to cybercrimes alone.
This stats was according to findings by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for 2022 released by the EFCC.
Mr Olukoyede revealed that according to the same report, Nigeria annually loses $500 million to cybercrimes.