Digital Forensic Accounting on Cybercrime Deterrence in Africa’s Digital Transformation

This study examined digital forensic accounting on cybercrime deterrence in Africa’s digital transformation, specifically analyzing the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) in Enugu, Nigeria. The research adopted descriptive survey with structured questionnaire. The population for the study consisted of 129 respondents, including criminal investigators, cybercrime analysts, etc. A sample size of 98 was determined using the Taro Yamane formula, ensuring a 95% confidence level and a 5% error tolerance for reliability. Findings shows that forensic accounting has significant effect on cybercrime deterrence (R-value of 75.3%; p-value < 0.05). Additionally, the study found that forensic accounting accounted for (60%; p-value < 0.05) of the variance in digital era. The study concludes that forensic accounting is vital for cybercrime deterrence in Africa’s digital era. Based on the findings, it recommends that financial institutions, government agencies, and other establishments should strengthen digital forensic accounting capacity and skills improvement and provide continuous training and professional development ininvestigative, analytical, communication, digital-forensic, and data-analysis skills. This would enhance the ability of forensic accountants to identify emerging cybercrime techniques, investigate suspicious transactions, and provide reliable evidence for fraud deterrence. Again, relevant regulatory institutions should integrate forensic accounting with stronger digital control and monitoring systems. Such measures would improve the early detection and prevention of cybercrime, reduce financial losses, and contribute to a safer environment in Africa’s digital transformation.