A 27-year-old woman, Hafsat Abubakar, has urged Nigerians to verify information before posting or resharing content online after she was arrested over an alleged false report claiming that fintech company OPay was shutting down its operations.
Abubakar, who spoke to journalists after being paraded at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Thursday, said she did not knowingly circulate false information and immediately removed the post after OPay identified it as fake.
According to her, OPay published a notice on its official social media platforms calling on her to delete the post and issue a public apology. She said she complied with the request the same day.
Abubakar explained that she took down the post at about 8pm on August 31 and issued a public apology before 11pm, within the deadline given by the company.
However, she said she was arrested at her home in Zaria, Kaduna State, about five days later, following a petition allegedly filed by OPay.
She said the police informed her that the company had petitioned against her and that the matter was being investigated before she was taken to Abuja.
The young woman said she had no intention of causing panic or misleading the public, adding that she regretted any inconvenience caused by the post.
Reflecting on the incident, Abubakar called on social media users to exercise greater caution when sharing information, particularly claims capable of affecting businesses or the public.
Her warning came as a reminder of the potential consequences of sharing unverified information online, even when the person circulating it may not be aware that the information is false.
“I never knew the information was false,” she said, explaining that her decision to publish the claim was based on her belief that it was genuine at the time.
She further advised Nigerians to make verification a priority before publishing or resharing information on social media.
