BY OUR REPORTER
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has launched a full-scale internal investigation into the alleged misuse of official access credentials that led to the unauthorized disclosure of private data belonging to a prominent political candidate.
The security breach, which has sparked intense anxiety across Nigeria’s political landscape, involves a candidate who recently participated in a political party’s primary elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Information detailing the candidate’s registration records had flooded social media and mainstream media platforms, raising urgent questions about the safety of the country’s central voter repository.
In a swift reaction to the growing public outcry, the Commission issued a comprehensive press statement on Tuesday, June 2, signed by Mohammed Kudu Haruna, the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC).
Acknowledging the severity of the situation, INEC confirmed that it has already used digital forensic tools to track down the exact user account responsible for retrieving the leaked data.
Crucially, the electoral umpire has dismissed early, panicked reports suggesting that its core servers were targeted by external cybercriminals or international hackers.
Preliminary findings from INEC’s internal audit trails indicate that the infrastructure remains intact and impenetrable to outside forces. Instead, the commission pointed the finger directly at an insider breach.
According to Haruna, the data was accessed via valid user credentials that had been officially assigned to personnel participating in the ongoing nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.
”The audit trail from the preliminary investigation has enabled the Commission to identify the user account through which the information was accessed,” the statement revealed.
“Accordingly, relevant personnel have been questioned, and all units connected with the incident are cooperating fully with the investigation.”
To facilitate the ongoing CVR exercise across the federation, INEC temporarily grants Registration Officers controlled access to specific components of the database.
This allows them to register new voters, handle transfer requests, and correct existing records. While this access is strictly restricted to official duties and designed to be withdrawn once the registration window closes, it appears a rogue operative abused these privileges.
The commission is now critically analyzing all technical, administrative, and operational protocols to understand exactly how the credentials were manipulated and to establish clear individual responsibility.
In a bid to calm a jittery electorate, INEC strongly emphasized that this breach was isolated and targeted. The commission reassured the public that the privacy of the broader national voter register—which holds the biometrics and personal details of over 90 million Nigerians—has not been compromised in any way.
”The incident under investigation relates to the retrieval of a specific voter record and does not indicate any compromise of the Commission’s broader voter registration infrastructure or the personal data of over 90 million registered voters,” Haruna stated.
The electoral body reiterated its unyielding commitment to the integrity and confidentiality of citizen data, promising that the security of its Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure remains a top institutional priority.
The drama has escalated beyond a mere internal disciplinary matter. The Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria’s secret police, has independently waded into the controversy.
The intelligence agency has launched its own autonomous criminal investigation to uncover whether the leak was a case of simple indiscretion, financial bribery, or part of a coordinated political sabotage plot to destabilize the FCT electoral process.
INEC welcomed the intervention of the secret police, noting that it is cooperating fully with security agencies. The commission warned that it will not shield any staff member or contractor found culpable, promising to hand over compromised personnel for aggressive legal prosecution.
As wild theories continue to multiply across digital platforms, the electoral body urged the media and the public to exercise restraint and ignore unfounded speculations while the dual investigations run their course.
INEC promised to maintain absolute transparency and release its final findings, alongside punitive measures, to the public in due time.
