Enhanced Modified Security Framework for Nigeria Cashless E-payment System

In January 2012, the Nigeria Apex Bank, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rolled out guidelines for the transition of Nigeria's mainly cash-based economy and payment system to cashless and electronic payment (e-payment) system ending over 50 years of mainly cash-based operated economy and payment system. This announcement elicited mixed reactions firstly excitement due to the enormous benefits this transition will impact on Nigeria economy and at the same time elicited panic due to unpreparedness of the economy to transit successfully to electronic payment in a system hitherto filled with bobby trap of security challenges. Ten months later after the introduction of the policy, only a handful of the major stakeholders are fully compliant mainly because of the complexity and the high prohibitive cost of implementation of CBN adopted security framework, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). This paper surveys the security challenges facing the full implementation of the cashless epayment policy of Nigeria and at the end introduced an enhanced modified security framework for Nigeria's cashless economy that may be easier and cheaper to implement by the majority of the stakeholders after studying the loopholes in the current Nigeria epayment system models.