The failure to attach the financial implication on a Bill seeking to convict persons indicted of internet fraud has stalled the passage of the Bill for second hearing at the Senate.
Senate stood down the Bill, sponsored by Senator Olugbenga Kaka, till another legislative day.
In his lead debate on the bill, Senator Kaka said the bill when passed into law would prohibit and punish anybody found guilty of internet fraud.
He noted there is no prevailing legislation that punishes anybody found guilty of internet fraud as no provision was made both in the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) act and penal code in the country.
He said,“ the objective of the bill is to make provision for the prohibition and punishment of electronic fraud and crime and to prohibit the unauthorized access to use any progrmme or data held in a computer.
“ The bill therefore, seeks to enhance computer security . the objective is to achieve adequate protection to the integrity of computer system ,providing enhanced penalties in cases where offences result in damages , which includes financial loss, injury or harm, and providing a distinct jurisdiction framework for prosecution of offenders under the bill.
“ The background to this bill is that individual privacy is a constitutional right of every citizen and we must continue to ensure that safeguard are put in place to protect this right. We therefore need to adopt a flexible and responsive approach to the protection of personal date, including acceptance of self-regulatory solutions and enact laws that forbid the disclosure of personal date.”