16th March, 2012
Nigeria loses millions of naira to computer crime every year. But soon criminals, who derive joy in hacking through the computer network system to perpetrate such electronic fraud, would be in for a very tough time.
P.M.NEWS gathered authoritatively that the time is up for the cyber and electronic crime ‘specialists’ in the country as the law has now recognised the input of computer forensic experts in investigating and thus giving evidence in the law courts.
Hitherto, the evidence given by the forensic experts was not accepted in Nigerian legal system.
Confirming P.M.NEWS finding, Prince Nasiru Ikharo, the South-South Coordinator of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), who is also an expert in computer forensic, disclosed that the newly amended evidence act now allows electronic evidence to be presented in court.
However, the new deal did not come on a platter of gold. The ‘war’ for the acceptance of computer forensic evidence in litigation was fought by the Computer Forensic Institute of Nigeria (CFIN).
“Before now the evidence act did not allow for any form of electronic evidence to be admitted in court. The act has been amended.
“The new evidence act now allows for electronic evidence to be presented in court when there is litigation in that regard,” he said.
Prince Ikharo disclosed that the CFIN has been in existence for more than 10 years now but much was not heard about it because it was not allowed to function in its appropriate capacity in crime detection.
He disclosed that very soon the association would, with the support of law chambers, security agencies and other institutions/agencies, be holding a conference to enlighten/educate legal practitioners on computer forensics.
—Isaac Olamilekan/Benin