AI now enables 55% of cybercrime in Africa as losses hit $484m – CID

AI has become a significant enabler of cybercrime on the African continent, with 55% of reported cybercrime cases now utilizing artificial intelligence, according to the Director-General of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Ghana, COP Lydia Yaako Donkor. This trend is reflected in Interpol’s 2026 African Cyber Threat Assessment, which highlights the growing sophistication and financial impact of cybercrime across the continent.

Donkor emphasized that AI is being used to create convincing phishing messages, clone voices, generate synthetic images and videos, and automate personalized deception, making cybercrime more sophisticated and challenging to combat. The rise of AI-driven cybercrime is compounded by Ghana's rapid digital transformation, which has expanded the avenues for cybercriminals to exploit through mobile money, internet banking, digital payment applications, online commerce, and instant transfers.

As a result, organized cybercrime networks employ a range of tactics, including social engineering, stolen identities, mule accounts, compromised devices, malicious links, fake businesses, cryptocurrency, and fraudulent investment schemes to obtain and transfer illicit funds. Donkor stressed the need for law enforcement agencies to enhance their technological capabilities and for greater public awareness to address the evolving cyber threats.

Brief written by urgent.news from GBC Ghana's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.