Nigerian Copyright Commission

Kemi is a professional photographer.

After days of planning, shooting, and editing, she uploaded one of her best photographs online. The image quickly gained attention.

A few weeks later, she discovered it on several websites.

No credit.

No permission.

No payment.

Someone had simply copied her work and used it as their own.

Like many creators, Kemi had one question:

"Is my work even protected?"

The answer is yes.

Under the Nigerian Copyright Act 2022, photographs, books, articles, software, musical compositions, films, sound recordings, broadcasts, paintings, illustrations, and other original creative works are protected by copyright.

The moment an eligible work is created and fixed in a tangible form, the creator acquires rights over that work.

In simple terms:

• A writer owns their manuscript.
• A musician owns their composition.
• A filmmaker owns their film.
• A photographer owns their photograph.
• A software developer owns their code.
• A designer owns their original artwork.

The law does not require a work to be famous, commercially successful, or critically acclaimed before it deserves protection.

Original creative effort is enough.

Unfortunately, infringement remains common.

Every day, copyrighted works are copied, uploaded, shared, streamed, or distributed without authorization across websites, social media platforms, messaging groups, and other digital channels.

Many creators see these violations and do nothing.

Others assume nothing can be done.

That assumption benefits pirates.

When infringement is identified and reported, action becomes possible.

If you discover your work being used without permission:

• Take a screenshot
• Copy the infringing link
• Submit a report through the S.T.O.P reporting hub

🔗 https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY

The Special Taskforce Against Online Piracy (S.T.O.P) of the Nigerian Copyright Commission works with rights holders, industry stakeholders, and enforcement partners to address online copyright infringement and piracy.

Your work has value.

The law recognizes that value.

Protect it.

Report infringement.

🔗 https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY

Forward and Share to every creator on your network.

June 1st, 2026. WIPO opened its first sub-Saharan Africa office right here in Abuja. The world is finally recognizing what we already know: Nollywood is the second largest film industry on earth. Afrobeats is a global movement. Nigerian tech startups are raising unicorns.

This is our moment.

But while leaders celebrate, pirates are still working every single day.

Websites that stream full Nollywood movies hours after release. Telegram channels with over 100,000 members sharing music, films, and software for free. WhatsApp groups where one forwarded link steals a creator's months of labour.

These are not innocent fans. These are organized thieves profiting from Nigerian talent.

The NCC Special Taskforce Against Online Piracy has the power to identify, investigate, and shut them down. But they cannot be everywhere. They need your eyes and your reports.

🔗 Report any pirate website, Telegram channel, or WhatsApp group here:
https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY

Take a screenshot. Copy the link. Send it through the report hub. That single action could take down a channel stealing from hundreds of creators.

WIPO has put Nigeria on the global IP map. Now it is our turn to protect what is ours.

Forward this message to every group, every creator, every stakeholder you know.

Let's stop piracy together.

🔗 https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY

STOP PIRACY Official: Instagram, X, Facebook | Linktree The Special Taskforce Against Online Piracy: an NCC unit fighting digital copyright theft of music, films, software & books online.

DG WIPO Commissions WIPO Nigeria Office at UN House Abuja
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‎Director-General, World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Mr. Daren Tang has officially commissioned the WIPO Nigeria Office as the first and only office of WIPO in sub-Saharan Africa during his official visit to Nigeria on Monday 1st June 2026.
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‎The commissioning underscores the growing global recognition of Nigeria's creative, tech and innovation ecosystem specifically aiming to help industries like Afrobeats and Nollywood translate copyright into real financial assets.
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‎The DG WIPO was accompanied during the ceremony by the Hon. Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, UN Assistant Secretary-General, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr. Mallick Fall, Director-General, NCC, Dr. John Asein and other Heads of IP Agencies in Nigeria.
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‎Delivering his address on: _IP for the good of Everyone, Everywhere,_ the DG WIPO commended Nigeria for its cultural influence and economic growth notably with the film industry ranking as the second largest in the world and its growing status as a start-up and innovation hub with over 3000 technologies and a top global ranking for unicorn valuation.
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‎Congratulating Nigeria for its National IP Policy and Strategy launched last year with its focus on strengthening IP institutions and laws, he emphasised on the need to mainstream IP into the economy, society and culture to support businesses, entrepreneurs, MSMEs, creators and researchers in order to align with the renewed hope and development agenda of the government. He highlighted six areas of digital opportunity for IP including: IP financing, tech transfer, creators, youth, SMEs and trade.
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‎Mr. Tang, noted that ‘’IP is not just about big companies, big unicorns and established companies, IP is for everyone everywhere’’. He disclosed that innovation and creativity is not only moving from the periphery to the centre but emerging economies and developing countries like Nigeria are the entities of such transformation. He further informed that IP can no longer be seen as a matter only for experts and technicians but must be mainstreamed into economy, society and culture to help innovators, creators everywhere to succeed.
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‎Thanking the participants for their collaboration in supporting Nigeria’s growth and development, he charged everyone on the need for a national innovation system to drive economic growth, social progress and cultural development using IP as a strategy to support individual creators and build a national innovation ecosystem. He also hinted on the establishment of Nigeria’s first International IP Training Institute by WIPO.
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‎Hon. Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, while welcoming the DG WIPO to Nigeria to unveil the WIPO Nigeria Office in her remarks, focused on advancing Nigeria’s industrialization, economic diversification and the implementation of the National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy to scale Nigeria’s enterprise globally.
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‎Pictorials from the event:
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Monday morning. The sun is up, but for three hardworking Nigerians, the week has already brought pain.

Blessing runs a small fashion brand in Port Harcourt. She designs unique Ankara print patterns and sells them as digital downloads on her website. Last night, a customer sent her a screenshot: someone had screenshotted her entire collection, created a cheap Telegram channel, and was selling her designs as "free resources." Blessing stayed awake until 2 a.m., fuming. She thought, "I worked three months on those patterns. My rent depends on this. Now a thief eats from my table."

Deji is a creator in Ilorin. He produces short motivational videos and sells affordable social media templates to other small business owners. Last week, he uploaded a video to his Instagram page—his face, his voice, his editing. Two days later, he saw the exact video on another page. The watermark was cropped out. The voice was still Deji's. The thief had added his own logo and was running ads to sell Deji's own template pack. Deji's phone hasn't stopped buzzing with messages from confused customers asking, "Is this your other page? Why is someone else selling your work?"

Fatima is a baker in Kaduna who started sharing short recipe videos on TikTok. She invested in a camera, lighting, and editing software. Her brownie tutorial went viral—500,000 views. But a blog copied her video, re-uploaded it to YouTube, and placed ads before it. Fatima saw the video while scrolling. Her face. Her kitchen. Her recipe. Zero kobo in her pocket.

Three different names. Three different businesses. One identical problem: online piracy.

It doesn't matter if you sell digital templates like Blessing, social media assets like Deji, or recipe videos like Fatima. When pirates steal your work online—on Telegram, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, blogs, or illegal marketplaces—they don't just steal a file. They steal your time. Your investment. Your family's next meal. Your ability to wake up on a Monday and say, "I am building something."

But here is the truth: You are not powerless. You do not have to accept theft as the cost of doing business online.

The Special Taskforce Against Online Piracy (under the Nigerian Copyright Commission) exists for people exactly like Blessing, Deji, and Fatima. Their mission: to identify, investigate, and disrupt copyright violations in the digital environment. They take down infringing content. They gather evidence. They go after the networks that profit from your hard work.

This Monday, do one powerful thing for your business.

🔗 Report online piracy here:
https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY

By clicking that link, you can:

Report stolen content (music, films, software, books, designs, videos, templates, and more)

Connect directly with the anti-piracy taskforce

Access updates and enforcement alerts

Share this message with every small business owner and creator in your network. Blessing, Deji, and Fatima need to know they are not alone. And so do the countless others waking up to stolen work this morning.

Your creativity is your capital. Protect it like your life depends on it—because your livelihood does.

Stop piracy. Start reporting. Take back your Monday. 🔗 https://linktr.ee/STOPPIRACY