The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) is facing renewed scrutiny after multiple reports confirmed that some Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres actively assisted hackers in compromising the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The scale of the scandal became evident when the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force arrested at least 20 suspects in Abuja for hacking servers.

Frontpagenews.ng reports that no fewer than 6,458 candidates are currently under JAMB investigation for involvement in technology-enabled cheating, a number considered the largest in the board’s history.

How the Scandal Worked

Hackers, in collaboration with CBT centre operators, gained access to servers through Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. This granted them the ability to log in remotely and write exams for candidates.

A hacker known as Ahmed disclosed:

“While candidates are physically present at CBT centres, hired mercenaries remain outside with remote access to the centres’ servers to write the exams on their behalf.”

The syndicates reportedly instructed candidates to remain calm when logged out of the system, as external mercenaries completed their answers before candidates reconnected.

Complicity of Operators

Education consultants and insiders confirmed that such malpractice was only possible through the collaboration of CBT operators.

“Without an insider, there is no way we could get the IP address. These people are being paid millions of naira. The parents of these candidates have already paid everything to the centres,” an education expert explained.

Another CBT operator admitted that owners were aware of compromised servers but refused to act since they profited from the scheme.

JAMB’s Defense

JAMB spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, strongly refuted claims that the board’s main server was breached.

“Our systems are locally connected. It is through a Local Area Network, not Internet-enabled. No question has ever been on our website.”

He stressed that only local servers belonging to compromised centres were infiltrated, not JAMB’s official database.

Stakeholder Reactions

While the National President of CBT Centre Proprietors Association of Nigeria, Austin Ohaekelem, praised JAMB for reducing malpractice, he argued that genuine technical glitches were being misinterpreted as fraud.

Other stakeholders, including tutorial school operators and education consultants, emphasized the need for JAMB to plug loopholes and invest in stronger technology to safeguard the credibility of Nigeria’s examination system.