EFCC Twitter account mysteriously disappears after threats from Yahoo Boys

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) Twitter account, @officialEFCC, has mysteriously vanished from the social media platform X, leaving Nigerians and netizens puzzled. This disappearance comes shortly after a group of alleged internet scammers, known as “Yahoo boys,” threatened to wage cyber warfare against the anti-corruption agency.

EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale confirmed that the account had been inaccessible for three days, attributing the issue to a network problem. He assured that the agency’s ICT team is working diligently to resolve the issue, stating, “Our ICT department has been on it for almost three days now. We are hoping it will come up again.”

To verify the situation, AllNews.ng conducted a search on Twitter but found no trace of the EFCC’s official account.

The account’s disappearance follows threats made by a group of purported internet scammers, who accused the EFCC of violating constitutional rights by cracking down on questionable online activities in Nigeria. According to reports from People’s Gazette, these threats surfaced on Reddit and other platforms, with some users claiming they had been extorted by EFCC investigators.

In recent months, the EFCC has intensified its efforts against alleged internet scammers, conducting raids on hotels and university dormitories in a bid to curb the practice, which anti-corruption advocates say has tarnished Nigeria’s reputation. However, these actions have sparked criticism from human rights activists, who accuse the EFCC of using excessive force during arrests. Following public outcry over a midnight raid at Obafemi Awolowo University, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede announced a halt on nighttime operations, but this ban was reportedly short-lived as agents resumed midnight arrests.

It remains unclear whether the disappearance of the EFCC’s Twitter account was a result of internal deactivation or a sanction from X for violating platform policies. X lists both scenarios as possible causes for the account’s unavailability.

As of Thursday morning, there were no indications of a shutdown or disruption on the EFCC’s official website or its other social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram.

In response to the situation, cybersecurity expert Chidiebere Ihediwa has urged the EFCC to consider rehabilitating educated internet fraudsters, commonly known as “Yahoo Boys,” by redirecting their skills toward becoming information technology specialists. Speaking at an award ceremony at the Police Officers Mess in GRA Ikeja, Lagos, Ihediwa, who is also a software developer, emphasized that knowledge can be either positive or negative. He argued that while many of these young men possess technical skills, their current focus is misaligned with the positive contributions needed for societal growth.