The Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) have arrested no fewer than 20 individuals for allegedly hacking the results of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
The arrests, carried out on Friday in Abuja, were the result of a coordinated operation by operatives of the DSS and NPF targeting cybercriminal activity linked to the UTME Computer-Based Test (CBT) results.
According to reports, the suspects belong to a larger syndicate believed to have more than 100 members, who specialize in hacking the servers of major examination bodies, including JAMB and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
The development comes amid growing controversy over the recently conducted UTME, with some Nigerians calling for the resignation of JAMB Registrar, Professor Is-haq Oloyede, following widespread technical disruptions.
JAMB had earlier confirmed that technical issues compromised UTME results at 157 centres across Lagos and the Owerri zones. Last Wednesday, Professor Oloyede disclosed that the issues were promptly investigated and traced.
“Within 24 hours of rigorous work, we were able to isolate the source of the problem,” Oloyede said.
According to him, the Lagos zone—comprising only Lagos State—recorded disruptions at 65 centres, affecting 206,610 candidates. In the Owerri zone, which covers the South East region, 92 centres were impacted, affecting 173,387 candidates.
“The issue was discovered on the second day of the 2025 UTME, which was Friday, April 25. We identified an omission in the system configuration, specifically within the LAG category,” the Registrar explained.
Authorities are continuing investigations to dismantle the wider hacking network and ensure accountability. Meanwhile, JAMB has pledged to rectify all errors and ensure affected candidates are not disadvantaged.
