•Identify role of SIM card registration 

•Expose how kidnapping gangs now communicate 

By Esther Onyegbula

Across Nigeria, fear is reshaping everyday life. Families now think twice before attending weddings, funerals, birthdays and community celebrations. 

Parents worry when children leave for school. Farmers abandon fertile lands, while travellers increasingly plan journeys based on safety concerns rather than convenience.

From the forests of the North-West to communities in the South-West, kidnappers and other armed criminal groups have transformed insecurity into one of Nigeria’s most pressing national challenges. This is happening irrespective of the availability of modern tracking equipment.

Despite advances in technology and increasing security deployments, many within and outside the country remain baffled by the failure of security agencies to consistently identify and track kidnappers’ locations.

The concern is fuelled by the widespread use of technologies such as mobile phone tracking, biometric identification systems, surveillance tools, and digital databases, which many believe should make it easier to trace criminal activities and apprehend offenders. 

As a result, questions have continued to arise over why kidnappers are often able to communicate with victims’ families, negotiate ransoms, and move between locations without being swiftly detected by law enforcement agencies.

Security experts told Sunday Vanguard that the answer lies in a troubling reality: criminal networks are evolving faster than Nigeria’s security architecture.

For the Chief Executive Officer of Security Watch Africa Initiatives, Mr Patrick Agbambu, many Nigerians underestimate the sophistication of today’s criminal groups.

“The challenge with tracking kidnappers and bandits in Nigeria is more complex than many people realise,” Agbambu said.

According to him, many criminal networks have moved beyond conventional communication systems and now exploit emerging technologies that are far more difficult to track.

“When new technology emerges, we often focus on its benefits without paying enough attention to its potential misuse. These criminals are not isolated local actors. Many have links to international criminal networks and are technologically savvy.”

He explained that some kidnapping gangs now communicate through satellite-based internet services rather than traditional GSM networks, making surveillance and interception significantly more difficult.

“Tracking communications made through satellite internet services is considerably more difficult than tracing regular phone calls. Investigators may find themselves tracing signals to servers or host locations outside Nigeria, making investigations far more complicated.”

Interest services

The challenge, he noted, is worsened by the abuse of SIM card registration processes.

“Criminals often use SIM cards registered in the names of innocent citizens. By the time investigators trace a number, the registration details may lead to someone entirely unrelated to the crime.”

Agbambu argued that contrary to public perception, the problem is not necessarily a shortage of skilled personnel within security agencies.

“The real issue is inadequate tracking infrastructure and the resources needed to maintain it. We have competent ICT experts, but many agencies lack sufficient equipment and funding to keep pace with evolving threats.”

He called for greater investment in modern tracking systems while stressing that technology alone cannot solve the problem.

“Community intelligence remains critical,” he said.

According to him, many rural communities affected by kidnapping suffer from weak security presence, poor infrastructure and limited intelligence gathering.

“Criminals rarely operate successfully in a community without assistance or information from people familiar with the area. Residents must become more vigilant and willing to share information.”

He warned that some criminal groups spend months establishing relationships within communities before eventually launching attacks.

Kidnappers

Poor road infrastructure, he added, further hampers emergency response, often allowing kidnappers to escape before security operatives arrive.

The growing sophistication of criminal networks has reinforced concerns that Nigeria’s security challenge extends far beyond individual kidnapping incidents.

For Baltimore-based police officer and security analyst, Monday Alade, insecurity has created a national atmosphere of fear, uncertainty and economic disruption.

“Across the country, from rural farming communities to major urban centres, millions of Nigerians now live under the persistent shadow of insecurity,” he said.

According to Alade, kidnapping, armed banditry, violent robberies, communal attacks and terrorism-related violence have displaced communities, disrupted businesses and weakened investor confidence.

“In many parts of the country, citizens no longer ask whether insecurity exists. They ask whether government institutions still possess the capacity to fully contain it,” he noted.

Alade believes the crisis presents an opportunity for far-reaching reforms.

“No economic reform, infrastructure agenda or national development strategy can fully succeed without internal security stability. Security remains the foundation upon which every successful nation is built,” the security expert added.

Drawing from his experience in the United States, Alade argued that sustainable security depends largely on strong, professional and intelligence-driven policing systems.

“Successful nations rely on modern, intelligence-led police institutions. Long-term internal security cannot depend solely on military deployments, “ he noted 

Technology 

He called for a comprehensive transformation of the Nigerian Police Force through improved training, technological upgrades, intelligence gathering, cybercrime capabilities and modern investigative techniques.

“The Nigerian Police Force must evolve from a largely reactive institution into a modern, technologically capable and professionally respected security organisation,” he submitted.

While Alade focused on institutional reforms, Technical Partner at Davijey Integrated Services Limited, Mr Job Inegbenijie, said one of the biggest weaknesses in Nigeria’s security architecture is its continued reliance on reactive responses.

According to him, security agencies are often mobilised only after attacks have occurred, leaving criminals with enough time to execute operations and escape.

“The problem is not that security agencies are not responding. The problem is the time gap criminals exploit between an attack and the arrival of security personnel.”

He pointed to the recent abduction of students in Oyo State as evidence of the limitations of conventional response mechanisms.

“What needs to change is our approach. We must move from reactive security to proactive security.”

Inegbenijie advocated preventive security systems capable of detecting, disrupting and delaying attacks before they succeed.

According to him, schools, rural communities and vulnerable public facilities require stronger perimeter protection, smart surveillance systems, modern communication infrastructure and advanced anti-intrusion technologies.

He also highlighted the enormous pressure on security agencies, noting that personnel are simultaneously confronting terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other security threats across the country.

Inegbenijie said:”When criminals know they can complete an operation within minutes while security personnel may need much longer to arrive, that gap becomes their greatest advantage.

“We need a first line of defence that protects victims and buys valuable time for security agencies to respond effectively.”

For his part, security and safety expert, Dr Timi Ajayi, observed that the warning signs about the current insecurity have existed for years.

“We have been talking about proactive security for a long time,” he said.

Gangs

According to Ajayi, many criminal groups spend years preparing, gathering intelligence and embedding operatives within communities before carrying out attacks.

He blamed complacency and inadequate preparedness for allowing criminal networks to gain footholds in vulnerable communities.

“In security management, profiling is critical. Communities need to know who is entering their environment, where they are coming from and what their intentions are.

“We have had warning signals for more than a decade. These groups do not suddenly appear. They study the terrain, build relationships and position themselves strategically before striking,” he argued.

Ajayi warned that some forests across the South-West may already be serving as operational bases for criminal groups and called for increased deployment of drones, surveillance technology and intelligence-led operations.

“These criminals use sophisticated tactics. They conduct surveillance, establish advance teams and carefully plan their operations. If we continue to wait until attacks happen before responding, we will always remain one step behind.”

For him, the lesson is clear: prevention must become the cornerstone of Nigeria’s security strategy.

Weakness 

The concerns raised by Ajayi were echoed by Executive Director of Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC, Mr Okechukwu Nwagunma.

According to him, recent attacks in Oyo State exposed weaknesses in intelligence coordination, rural security coverage and rapid-response capacity.

“The incidents suggest that forests and remote communities across the region may increasingly be used as hideouts and transit routes by kidnappers and armed groups.”

He called for stronger regional collaboration among state governments, security agencies, traditional rulers and local communities.

“Securing vulnerable schools and communities, strengthening interstate cooperation, deploying surveillance technology and improving the welfare and training of security personnel are essential.”

Security expert, Dr Hashim Saludeen, also identified community participation as one of the weakest links in Nigeria’s security architecture.

“The component missing in our security architecture is the community and how it participates,” he said.

Collaborators

According to him, criminal groups often depend on local collaborators for information, logistics and operational support.

“These groups do not operate in isolation. There are usually individuals within communities providing information and support.”

He urged governments across the South-West to prioritise border-community security, intelligence gathering, surveillance of ungoverned spaces and community engagement initiatives.

Experts also expressed concern over the growing tendency of citizens to share sensitive security information on social media before reporting incidents to security agencies.

Agbambu warned that such actions can inadvertently compromise rescue efforts and investigations.

“When people witness incidents, their first reaction is often to post online. While social media can raise awareness, critical information should first get to security agencies.”

Also sharing his thoughts, Managing Director, Badinson Security, Matthew Ibadin, said: “Like every other Nigerian, the police and army are victims. For instance, the police do not have these equipment and training because government has not been able to invest in those areas for a long time.

“Go to their training school, there is nothing there; go to their offices, there is nothing there. Politicians have destroyed the police because they do not want them to function well. Since 1999 to date, no democratically elected government has been able to fund the police.

“Let us hold federal government responsible and ensure it gives the police everything it needs to do its job effectively. If not, police and arny will continue to try their best but it requires the political will by the President to equip them to perform their duties in terms of welfare, equipment and training.”

Framework 

Despite differences in emphasis, the experts interviewed agreed on one central message: insecurity cannot be solved by security agencies alone.

Government must invest in technology, intelligence and infrastructure. Security institutions must modernise and build public trust. Communities must become more vigilant and citizens must be willing to provide timely information.

For many Nigerians, the question is no longer whether insecurity exists.

The real question is whether the country can adapt quickly enough to confront a new generation of criminals who are increasingly organised, technologically sophisticated and capable of exploiting weaknesses within the nation’s security framework.

As kidnappers evolve, experts want Nigeria to evolve even faster.

They believe failure to do so could have consequences far beyond individual abductions, threatening economic growth, social stability and public confidence in the state’s ability to protect its citizens.