‘Most Nigerian princes aren’t even Nigerian’: JD Vance’s scam joke sparks online pushback

• JD Vance joked about his mother funding “Nigerian princes” during a podcast discussion about AI and online misinformation.

• The remark drew pushback from Nigerians online, with some arguing that the “Nigerian prince” stereotype is outdated.

• Modern online fraud is now a global problem, with scammers using AI, investment schemes, impersonation and other sophisticated tactics.

US Vice President JD Vance set out to warn Americans about online misinformation during a recent podcast appearance.

Instead, he ended up drawing criticism from Nigerian social media users after making a joke about one of the internet’s oldest stereotypes.

During an appearance on the Bryce Crawford Podcast on September 1, Vance spoke about how difficult it has become to tell what is real online. He recalled how his mother had sent him a TikTok video claiming that he and his wife, Usha Vance, were having marital problems. 

He told her the video was fake and used the story to joke about her history of falling for things she sees online.

“I mean, my mom, like, again, God love her, but she has made many Nigerian princes many thousands of dollars,” Vance said.

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He then joked that there was an “entire Nigerian Camelot dynasty” being funded by his mother. The comment was meant as a joke, but some Nigerians online were not amused. 

A few users criticised Vance and questioned why the familiar “Nigerian prince” stereotype was still being used to describe online fraud.

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One commenter wrote, “Most Nigerian princes aren’t even Nigerian,” while another called Vance a “big fool and big liar.” A third argued that online fraud has moved far beyond the old Nigerian-prince email scams.

And that is an important point. While Nigeria is associated with the infamous “419” advance-fee scam and remains a significant source of cybercrime, online fraud is no longer tied to one country.

According to the 2024 World Cybercrime Index, Nigeria ranks fifth globally as a major source of cybercrime. The countries occupying the top four spots are Russia, Ukraine, China, and the United States itself. 

Modern scams have also become far more sophisticated. The US Federal Trade Commission said consumers reported losing more than $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, with investment scams alone accounting for $5.7 billion. 

The FBI also recorded more than $20 billion in reported losses through its Internet Crime Complaint Centre in 2025.

Scammers now use fake investment opportunities, government impersonation, business email compromises, romance scams and even fake law-enforcement accounts. The old Nigerian prince email is just one small part of a much larger global fraud industry.

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Vance’s warning about AI-generated misinformation is valid. But by using the “Nigerian prince” stereotype to make his point, he also showed how easily old internet stereotypes survive even as the scams themselves continue to evolve.