By Eric Moji, Abuja
Security operatives have apprehended 20 persons suspected of hacking into the computer-based 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), administered by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
According to Channels Television, the arrests were made in Abuja, the nation’s capital, by operatives from the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
The report suggests that the suspects belong to a larger syndicate, thought to consist of over 100 members, which specialises in breaching the computer systems of examination bodies such as JAMB and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
Quoting security sources, Channels Television added that the suspects have confessed to sabotaging the examination to discredit JAMB and discourage students from using CBT for future tests to be conducted by NECO and the West African Examination Council (WAEC).
The suspects reportedly charged special candidates between N700,000 and N2 million to obtain high scores in the UTME, using private schools and colleges as their operational bases.
It will be recalled that this year’s UTME, which began in April across the country, was marred by widespread complaints from candidates.
Many reported being unable to sit the exam after being assigned to distant test centres.
When JAMB released the UTME results on 9 May, the data revealed that over 78% of candidates scored below 200 out of a possible 400 marks.
This sparked protests, with many questioning the fairness and credibility of the examination process.
At a press briefing on 14 May, JAMB Registrar Ishaq Oloyede acknowledged a technical glitch that undermined the integrity of results from 157 test centres nationwide.
Oloyede confirmed that the issue affected 379,997 candidates, attributing the discrepancies to faulty server updates in JAMB’s Lagos and South-East zones.
The error, he explained, prevented the upload of candidates’ responses during the first three days of the examination.
In response, JAMB has since organised a re-sit for all affected candidates.
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