Deepfakes in Nigeria: A Fragmented Legal and Regulatory Landscape for Synthetic Media

The rapid advancement of generative artificial intelligence has enabled the creation of hyperrealistic synthetic media, or 'deepfakes', at unprecedented speed and scale. In Nigeria, this technology has produced both creative opportunity and serious legal and political harm, ranging from AI-assisted musical collaboration to synthetic media deployed to manipulate the 2023 general elections and to defraud consumers. Nigeria does not yet possess a dedicated statute governing artificial intelligence or deepfakes specifically. This article examines how deepfakerelated harms are instead addressed through a patchwork of existing legal frameworks, including the Copyright Act 2022, the tort of passing-off and the constitutional right to privacy, the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2018, the NITDA Code of Practice for Interactive Computer Service Platforms, the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) (Amendment) Act 2024, the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act 2015, and the general law of defamation. Drawing on recent case law, notably the Supreme Court's decision in Ubom v Globacom (Nig.) Ltd, and comparative analysis with the United Kingdom, the European Union and South Africa, the article identifies significant regulatory gaps, particularly around AI training data, non-consensual intimate imagery and algorithmic transparency, and proposes recommendations for legislative and institutional reform as Nigeria's National Artificial Intelligence Strategy takes shape.