Weaponised Empathy: AI Scams and the Nigeria–UK Response

This report presents findings from a three-month interdisciplinary research sprint examining the implications of AI for cybercrime and scams, with a focus on empathic AI technologies exploited by Nigerian-based actors to target victims in the UK and beyond. It argues that AI-enabled scam cultures are not solely a criminal justice problem but a developmental and socioeconomic challenge. Drawing on a multi-stakeholder policy workshop in Abuja (February 2026), and interviews with a European tech VC investor, Nigerian fintech founders, and UK regulators, the report identifies five core findings: AI amplifies longstanding scam cultures rather than originating them; economic strain, cultural rationalisation, and platform affordances produce self-sustaining scam ecosystems; legislation and enforcement consistently lag behind technological change; purely technical or legal solutions will fail without coordinated educational and economic responses; and youth engagement and skills pathways are critical to breaking the cycle. The report proposes five priorities: building trust infrastructure for Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem; creating digital skills pipelines with matched employment; expanding the UK–Nigeria MoU to include innovation and platform accountability; pre-emptive investment in deepfake detection and active digital literacy; and sustained multi-stakeholder coordination.

Emotional AI Lab, Bangor University