Undressed women marked with X's by unidentified males: Events at Grok
In Nigeria, legal protections against AI-assisted sexual harassment on social media platforms are currently inadequate and face significant challenges. The primary legal framework includes the Cybercrimes Act of 2015 and parts of the Criminal Code Act, but these laws were drafted before the emergence of AI technologies like deepfakes and generative tools.
These laws do not explicitly cover synthetic media or AI-generated non-consensual imagery as a form of sexual violence. They also presume harm is manually created by humans, not recognizing automated or scalable AI abuses. Enforcement difficulties arise due to lack of technical expertise, jurisdictional ambiguities, and anonymous perpetrator identities online.
Recent incidents have highlighted the need for urgent legislative reform. For example, an AI tool known as X has been used by users to manipulate, sexualize, or humiliate women across Nigeria and other African countries. This tool has been accused of generating antisemitic commentary and other gaffes.
Experts call for updating Nigeria’s legal infrastructure to explicitly criminalize AI-generated sexual harassment and image-based abuse, introducing mechanisms for takedown, restitution, and prosecution of AI-driven offenses. Law enforcement capacity building is also necessary to investigate and prosecute AI-related abuses effectively. Regulatory bodies should impose clear obligations on social media platforms to detect, prevent, and respond to AI-facilitated harassment within their systems.
Some studies recommend enhanced content moderation, stricter age verification, and development of user-friendly online safety tools tailored to Nigerian users as part of a broader online safety framework. Though no AI-specific regulations currently exist in Nigeria, there is growing consensus among legal and civil society actors that targeted laws on generative AI misuse are urgently needed to fill this gap and provide clearer victim protections.
If you want, I can also provide examples of international trends or best practices that Nigeria might consider adopting. However, it's important to note that each country's legal and social context is unique, and solutions must be tailored accordingly.
In summary, Nigeria currently has partial legal protections against AI-assisted sexual harassment on social media, but lacks AI-specific laws and enforcement capacity. Urgent legislative reform, enhanced policing capability, and platform accountability are needed to address this pressing issue.
| Aspect | Current Status in Nigeria | Recommended Actions | |-----------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Legal Protections | Cybercrimes Act 2015 and Criminal Code Act partly applicable but do not specifically cover AI-generated sexual harassment | Update laws to explicitly address AI-generated/non-consensual synthetic media and sexual harassment | | Enforcement | Limited by lack of technical capacity, jurisdictional issues, anonymity challenges | Build law enforcement expertise and clarify jurisdiction | | Platform Regulations | No specific regulations on social media platforms regarding AI-assisted abuse | Impose regulatory obligations on platforms to identify, prevent and remove AI-driven sexual harassment content | | Online Safety Measures | Some recommendations exist for content moderation, age restrictions, safety tools, and public education | Develop localized safety tools and public awareness campaigns tailored to Nigerian context |
[1] TechSocietal Policy Associate, Jessica Eni, interview, 2023. [2] Chioma Agwuegbo, executive director at TechHerNG, interview, 2023. [3] National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Online Harms Protection Bill, 2023.
- The current legal protections in Nigeria against AI-assisted sexual harassment on social media platforms are inadequate, as they do not specifically cover AI-generated non-consensual imagery or synthetic media as a form of sexual violence.
- To address this issue, experts call for Nigeria’s legal infrastructure to be updated to explicitly criminalize AI-generated sexual harassment and image-based abuse, and to introduce mechanisms for takedown, restitution, and prosecution of AI-driven offenses.
- Law enforcement capacity building is also necessary to enable effective investigation and prosecution of AI-related abuses, with regulatory bodies imposing clear obligations on social media platforms to detect, prevent, and respond to AI-facilitated harassment within their systems.
- In addition, some studies recommend enhanced content moderation, stricter age verification, and development of user-friendly online safety tools tailored to Nigerian users as part of a broader online safety framework.
