1,605 Arrests Across Africa in Coordinated Infrastructure Cyberattack Crackdown
A coordinated continental law enforcement operation has resulted in 1,605 arrests across Africa, targeting criminal networks responsible for ransomware and cyberattacks on critical infrastructure. The operation signals a maturing collective enforcement response to organised digital crime, building on earlier actions such as Ghana's 102-person syndicate raid.
Africa's Cyberwar: the $5 billion gap nobody is measuring properly
INTERPOL's own figures tell the story: Africa reported $484 million in cyberattack losses in 2025, but estimates the real damage at roughly $5 billion. That's a tenfold gap — and it exists almost entirely because 89% of member countries say attacks go unreported.
So the 1,605 arrests are genuinely significant. But they're being counted against a crime wave we can barely see.
Until breach disclosure is mandatory across the continent — not just in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Mauritius — every enforcement headline is fighting a fire whose actual size remains unknown.