AI is involved in 55% of cybercrime across Africa, but only 8% of intelligence analysts have advanced skills to fight it

Artificial intelligence was involved in 55% of cybercrime cases observed across Africa in 2025, but only 8% of the continent’s law-enforcement intelligence analysts possessed advanced expertise to investigate AI-powered attacks.

The disparity is allowing cybercriminals to automate scams, impersonate corporate executives, create synthetic identities and attack financial institutions faster than many African security agencies can respond, according to INTERPOL’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026.

The report draws on information from 36 African countries, alongside cyberthreat data provided by Mastercard, Fortinet, TrendAI, the Shadowserver Foundation and other private-sector partners.

INTERPOL surveyed 49 African member countries and received responses from 36, representing a response rate of 73%. The assessment covers cybercrime activity observed between January and December 2025.

It found that AI was used occasionally in 47% of cybercrime cases and frequently in another 8%, meaning the technology played some role in 55% of the cases observed.