Artificial Intelligence: A Panacea for the Management of Tertiary Institution Security in South-South Nigeria

This study investigates the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a strategic solution for enhancing security management in tertiary institutions in South-South Nigeria. The region grapples with a complex security landscape marked by issues such as cultism, arson, kidnapping and cyber-attacks, which significantly disrupt academic activities and institutional stability. Employing an ex-post facto research design, data were collected from 304 third-year students across six public tertiary institutions using the "Artificial Intelligence as Panacea for School Security Management Questionnaire (AIPSSMQ)," which exhibited high reliability with Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients ranging from 0.71 to 0.78. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) results at a 0.05 significance level indicated that the presence of Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance, automated access control systems, and social network monitoring significantly enhances effective security management. However, a notable "availability gap" and maintenance shortcomings persist, forcing institutions to depend on reactive strategies. This study advocates for a shift towards a proactive "Cyber-Physical" model incorporating privacy-preserving algorithms, such as differential privacy and homomorphic encryption, to ensure ethical data protection alongside improved surveillance. A three-phase preemptive incident-response framework, preparation, prevention and immediate reaction is recommended. Moreover, fostering systemic collaboration between institutions and government is essential to create robust policy frameworks, enhance infrastructure and promote a cybersecurity culture that upholds the integrity of the academic community.