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Nigerian Army Confirms Cyberattack Attempt on Official X Account

The Nigerian Army has confirmed an attempted unauthorised takeover of its official X account, formerly known as Twitter, saying immediate measures have been activated to secure the platform and prevent further compromise.

The incident occurred at about 5pm on Saturday, August 29, 2026, and is being treated by the Army as a cybersecurity breach.

In a statement signed by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, the Army said technical and protective measures had been deployed to safeguard the account and protect the integrity of information communicated to the public.

The military said it was working to regain full control of the affected account.

“Fully secure the affected account and restore exclusive administrative control.”

The Army also warned members of the public and the media to be cautious about information appearing on the affected account while the security incident is being resolved.

It specifically advised the public to disregard any suspicious, unauthorised, misleading or unverified content that may be published from the account.

“Such content does not represent the official position of the Nigerian Army.”

The warning comes as the Army works to determine the extent of the attempted compromise and restore exclusive administrative access to the account.

The military urged Nigerians and media organisations to verify information through its other official communication channels until further notice.

The Army listed its alternative platforms as its Facebook accounts @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfo, Instagram accounts @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfo, X account @nigerianarmyinfo, and YouTube accounts @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfotv.

The Army reaffirmed its commitment to information integrity, operational security and responsible strategic communication, while thanking members of the public for their vigilance and cooperation.

It said further updates would be issued as the situation develops.

The incident highlights the importance of securing official government and military social media accounts, particularly because unauthorised posts from such platforms could potentially be mistaken for legitimate statements from the authorities.

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Ogunsola Gbenga is the Founder and Publisher of NaijaWide Media, the publisher of TheNaijaWide.ng, an independent Nigerian digital news publication covering Nigerian, African and international news.

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