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Over 20 Suspects Detained for Allegedly Hacking JAMB’s 2025 CBT Examination Servers
More than 20 individuals are currently being held in custody by the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigerian Police Force in Abuja, following allegations of hacking the servers used for the 2025 Computer-Based Test (CBT) examinations conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
The arrested suspects are believed to be part of a wider cybercrime syndicate consisting of over 100 members. This syndicate reportedly specializes in breaching the digital infrastructures of major examination bodies, including JAMB and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
According to security sources, the suspects have confessed to intentionally compromising the CBT systems in an effort to undermine the credibility of JAMB and cast doubt on the reliability of computer-based examinations, thereby discouraging their adoption by other examination bodies such as WAEC and NECO.
One of the sources revealed that the group employed custom-designed malicious software to remotely access and manipulate JAMB’s servers at specific CBT centres. The software was secretly installed on wireless routers strategically positioned near these centres, enabling unauthorized access to JAMB’s secure platforms.
“The hackers’ method involved placing routers in close proximity to targeted CBT centres,” the source explained. “These devices provided remote access to JAMB’s systems, allowing specially selected candidates—who had paid substantial sums—to receive real-time answers during the exams. The software used also interfered with exam data, causing a mismatch between the displayed questions and the ones candidates were actually answering, which contributed to the poor performance witnessed in the 2025 exams.”
Further investigations revealed that candidates who benefited from this illicit arrangement paid between ₦700,000 and ₦2 million to secure high scores. Many members of the syndicate are reportedly proprietors of private schools and operators of tutorial centres, who used the illegal proceeds to fund so-called “special centres” designed to facilitate exam malpractice.
The suspects were apprehended through coordinated security operations across multiple states, including Lagos, Edo, Anambra, Kano, and Delta. Authorities have yet to release their identities, citing ongoing investigations and pending court proceedings.
Meanwhile, a separate security source confirmed that no evidence has so far linked the seven JAMB officials who oversaw service providers at the affected CBT centres to the hacking activities.
“At this stage, there is no indication of complicity by the seven JAMB staff who supervised the service providers at the two compromised centres,” the source added.