Cybercrime and youthpreneurship in South East Nigeria: Prospects and Challenges

Abstract

Over the years, the alarming growth of the internet and its
wide acceptance has led to increase in loss of interest in
entrepreneurship in south east, Nigeria among the youths. In
Nigeria to- day, several internet assisted crimes known as
cybercrimes are committed daily in various forms such as
fraudulent electronic mails, pornography, identity theft,
hacking, cyber harassment, spamming, Automated Teller
Machine spoofing, piracy and phishing. Cybercrime is a
threat against various institutions and people who are
connected to the internet either through their computers or
mobile technologies. The exponential increase of this crime in
the society has become a strong issue that should not be
overlooked. The impact of this kind of crime can be felt on the
lives, economy and youth development of a nation. Therefore,
this paper focuses on cybercrime and youthpreneurship in
south east, Nigeria. Two specific objectives guided the study.
The study adopted a descriptive survey design The study made
use of both primary and secondary sources of data.. However,
the data collected were presented and analyzed using
frequency, percentage and t-test analytical tools. The study
revealed that youthpreneurship is a veritable tool for
addressing the persistent problems of youth involvement in
cybercriminality and poverty, as well as inclusive growth and
social exclusion. However, the study recommended thus,
Governments hold the responsibility and social contract to
ensure that youthpreneurship and programmes associated
with skill acquisition is included in school curruculum, from
primary to tertiary institutions. Furthermore, government
should as well consider the Ibo apprenticeship scheme, as a
social investment programme, specifically to boost the
informal sector that also helps in driving the economy and in
turn has the capacity of ensuring inclusive growth and
eliminating the social exclusion amongst the youths