CITAD trains women to tackle cyber threats

Twenty women human rights defenders in Nigeria’s northern Kano State have completed a two-day training on digital safety and online protection aimed at helping them tackle growing cyber threats against themselves and their work.

The training was organised by the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), with support from the Association for Progressive Communications, under its Strengthening Digital Safety and Collective Resilience of Women Human Rights Defenders project.

The programme brought together women involved in human rights advocacy, journalism and community mobilisation.

Project Lead Amina Khalid said the training was designed to give participants practical skills to identify and respond to digital threats.

“The training is designed to equip women human rights defenders, journalists and advocates with practical tools to protect themselves and their work from the growing digital threats they face,” Khalid said.

Khalid said CITAD had previously trained 40 women human rights defenders and journalists from Bauchi and Jigawa states during a similar programme in Dutse, Jigawa State.

She said the growing use of digital platforms had exposed women human rights defenders to threats including phishing, account hacking, identity theft, malware, surveillance, doxxing, cyberstalking, impersonation and misinformation.

Participants received training on account hacking, device theft, spyware, online surveillance, social engineering, online harassment, impersonation, image-based abuse and the preservation of digital evidence.

They were also taught secure communication practices, including end-to-end encryption, secure email, file encryption and safe cloud storage.

The training also introduced Reportrix, a secure multilingual digital reporting platform developed by CITAD for reporting gender-based violence, misinformation and digital rights violations.

Hidaya Salisu Ahmad, one of the participants, said the training had changed her understanding of digital safety.

“I have learnt that digital safety goes beyond using strong passwords. I now understand the importance of protecting my devices, communications and personal information,” she said.

Another participant, Zulaikha Danjuma, said the practical sessions had equipped her with knowledge to identify and respond to online threats.

“I have learnt how to recognise different forms of digital threats and what steps to take when an account or device is compromised. I will also share the knowledge with people in my community,” she said.

Samira Adnan said the training had increased her awareness of online privacy and secure communication.

“Before now, I was not fully aware of some of the risks associated with the information we share online. The training has taught me how to communicate more securely and preserve evidence when a digital incident occurs,” she said.

CITAD said the programme was aimed at strengthening the collective resilience of women human rights defenders by enabling them to anticipate threats, respond to attacks and continue their advocacy safely.

The organisation said participants were expected to share the knowledge gained with their organisations and communities across northern Nigeria.