Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has expressed concern over the continued widespread use of free email services by numerous government officials for conducting official business in violation of government policy, saying the practice poses significant risks to national security, data privacy, and the integrity of government operations.
In a statement issued in Lagos by its Programme Officer in charge of cyber-security, Esther Adeniyi, MRA noted that free email services such as Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Hotmail, and Outlook.com, among others, lack the robust security features necessary to protect sensitive government information and that their use by government officials opens up the possibility of data breaches, cyber-attacks, and unauthorised access to sensitive information, which could have serious repercussions for national security and public trust.
Adeniyi recalled that on February 17, 2022, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the National Policy on the Nigerian Government Second-Level Domains, which the then Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, said was aimed at safeguarding official communications using government top-level domains. Following FEC approval of the policy, the minister directed government officials to migrate from using generic domains in their websites and emails to the “second level under the government top-level domain”, warning that the use of private emails for official communications by government officials would no longer be tolerated.
She also recounted that at the formal unveiling of the policy on February 2, 2023, then President Muhammadu Buhari similarly directed all government officials to use relevant government domains for official purposes.
Adeniyi noted that despite the adoption of the policy and various directives dating back to the Olusegun Obasanjo presidency as well as the recent instructions given by President Buhari and Prof. Pantami, hundreds of government officials at federal, state and local government levels have continued to use free email services to conduct official business with impunity.
She said: “In an age where cyber threats are increasingly sophisticated, and the need to ensure data security have become more critical than ever, it is imperative that government officials avoid using free email services for official business as the challenges associated with the practice, ranging from security vulnerabilities and lack of
