Nigerian Army X account hit in second military cyber breach in two weeks

Nigera Defence Headquarters

Nigerian Army X account hit in second military cyber breach in two weeks

The Nigerian Army has reported an attempted unauthorised access to its official X account, marking the second reported cyber incident involving a major Nigerian military social media platform in about two weeks.

The incident occurred on Saturday, August 29, 2026, after a series of unusual posts, including memecoin-related content, appeared on the Army’s official X account.

The suspicious posts reportedly began appearing at about 3:50pm, while the Army said it detected and began responding to the attempted unauthorised access at about 5pm.

The development was confirmed by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, in a statement published through the Army’s official Facebook account.

“The Nigerian Army has detected and is actively responding to an attempted unauthorised access to its official X (formerly Twitter) account,” Anele said.

She said the Army had immediately activated technical and protective measures to secure the account, prevent further unauthorised access and safeguard the integrity of information disseminated through the platform.

According to the Army, efforts were also underway to fully secure the affected account and restore exclusive administrative control.

“The Nigerian Army assures members of the public, the media and other stakeholders that appropriate measures are underway to fully secure the affected account and restore exclusive administrative control,” Anele said.

The appearance of cryptocurrency and memecoin-related posts on the account was particularly unusual because the platform is an official communication channel used by the Army to publish information about military operations, security developments, recruitment and other activities.

The Army therefore urged members of the public, journalists and other stakeholders to exercise caution and disregard any suspicious, unauthorised, misleading or unverified content posted through the affected account.

The military warned that such content should not be regarded as representing its official position.

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It also advised media organisations and members of the public to verify information through its other official communication channels until the situation is fully resolved.

The Army identified its alternative official platforms as its Facebook accounts, @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfo; Instagram accounts, @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfo; YouTube accounts, @hqnigerianarmy and @nigerianarmyinfotv; and the X account @nigerianarmyinfo.

It was not immediately clear whether the Army had completely regained control of the affected X account or whether any sensitive information had been accessed during the incident.

The Army did not identify the person or group responsible for the attempted breach and did not disclose the technical method allegedly used to gain access.

There was also no immediate indication that the incident involved a wider compromise of the Army’s internal computer networks or classified military systems.

However, the incident has raised concerns because official military social media accounts have become important channels for communicating security-related information to Nigerians and the international community.

A compromised military social media account could potentially be used to circulate false information about security operations, military deployments, recruitment exercises, security alerts or other sensitive issues.

It could also be exploited to promote fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes, malicious links or other deceptive content to followers who assume that posts from a verified military account are genuine.

The latest incident is particularly significant because it came only about two weeks after the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) experienced a similar breach involving its official X account.

On August 15, the DHQ disclosed that its X account had been compromised and warned the public against relying on suspicious content posted through the platform.

The Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, said at the time that appropriate technical measures had been implemented to secure the account and prevent further unauthorised access.

The DHQ account was subsequently recovered, with the military thanking members of the public for their patience and support.

The earlier incident also involved the appearance of cryptocurrency-related posts on the official Defence Headquarters account, despite the platform being primarily used for official military communications.

The recurrence of similar incidents within a short period has heightened concerns over the cybersecurity of Nigerian military communication platforms.

However, there is currently no official confirmation that the Army and DHQ incidents were connected or that the same individuals were responsible.

The Nigerian Army has also not disclosed whether the latest incident resulted from compromised login credentials, a phishing attack, an administrator account breach or another form of unauthorised access.

Cybersecurity incidents involving official social media accounts can create significant risks even when military networks themselves are not compromised.

Government accounts with large audiences can be used to rapidly spread misinformation, impersonate officials or direct followers towards fraudulent schemes.

The incidents have therefore renewed calls for stronger protection of official government social media platforms, including robust authentication systems, multi-factor authentication, secure administrator access and rapid response procedures when suspicious activity is detected.

For the Nigerian Army, the immediate priority remains securing the affected account and ensuring that only authorised personnel can publish content through it.

The military has urged Nigerians and the media not to share or rely on unusual information appearing on the affected platform without verification.

The public has instead been advised to use the Army’s alternative official communication channels for verified information while the X account security incident is being addressed.

The Army also assured Nigerians and other stakeholders that it remains committed to maintaining information integrity, operational security and responsible strategic communication.

The latest incident underscores the growing importance of cybersecurity for government institutions as social media continues to play a central role in official communication.

With the Nigerian Army X account now the second major military social media platform to face a reported cyber breach in about two weeks, pressure is likely to increase on Nigeria’s defence and security institutions to strengthen the protection of their digital communication infrastructure.