Financial losses due more than doubled to $484 million in 2025, according to the agency
Artificial intelligence played a role in more than half of the cybercrime cases examined across Africa in 2025, as criminal groups increasingly turned to the technology to automate attacks, produce convincing deepfakes, and expand large-scale fraud operations, Interpol said on Monday.
The African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026, which draws on intelligence from law enforcement agencies in 36 African countries, found that AI featured in 55% of cybercrime cases examined in 2025.
At the same time, reported financial losses linked to cybercrime more than doubled from $192 million in 2024 to $484 million in 2025. The report said the increase reflected the growing role of AI-facilitated scams, credential harvesting, and automated social engineering campaigns.
Interpol said AI has lowered the barrier to entry for cybercriminals, enabling even relatively inexperienced offenders to launch sophisticated attacks. According to the report, criminals are increasingly using AI to generate convincing deepfake videos and voice recordings, create synthetic identities for financial fraud, and craft highly personalized phishing campaigns.
The report estimated around 600,000 sextortion cases across Africa in 2025, with South Africa accounting for 30% and Kenya 13%. It also found that 72% of surveyed countries reported the presence of scam centres, most of them in Southern and West Africa.
Governments across Africa are moving to strengthen their defenses. Earlier this year, Kenya announced plans to amend its cybercrime legislation to address AI-driven threats. South Africa has also warned that AI-powered attacks and deepfakes are creating new security challenges, while Senegal launched an online reporting platform to improve the response to online offenses affecting children.
“Cybercrime has emerged as one of the most significant criminal threats to the region,” Interpol Cybercrime Director Neal Jetton said. “AI is automating every stage of a cyberattack from reconnaissance and phishing to extortion and evasion.”
Interpol said 17 African countries enacted or updated cybercrime legislation in 2025, while four agency-led operations resulted in more than 1,500 arrests and the recovery of assets worth over $100 million.
