The Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force have arrested at least 20 individuals in Abuja for allegedly hacking the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) computer-based test (CBT) results, organized by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
According to security sources, the suspects are part of a syndicate comprising over 100 members specializing in hacking the servers of key examination bodies, including JAMB and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
Preliminary investigations reveal that the syndicate aimed to sabotage the CBT system to discredit JAMB and discourage the use of computer-based testing for future examinations conducted by NECO and the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
A source disclosed that one of the suspects confessed the group would install malware on hardware within CBT centres. This software enabled remote access to JAMB servers at targeted centres, thereby manipulating exam data.
The syndicate allegedly planted routers near the centres, which overrode JAMB’s official platforms. This allowed so-called “special candidates” — who paid between ₦700,000 and ₦2 million — to receive real-time answers during the examination.
“The ghost software disrupted the CBT systems, causing a mismatch between the candidates’ responses and the actual questions. This manipulation contributed to the widespread poor performance recorded in the 2025 UTME,” the source stated.
The DSS, according to insiders, had been covertly investigating the network long before the scandal became public. Arrests were made across several states, including Lagos, Edo, Anambra, Kano, and Delta, with more suspects still being pursued.
The source further revealed that many members of the syndicate own private schools and “special centres,” profiting heavily from exam fraud. Their opposition to CBT-based exams stems from fears it would dismantle their illegal operations.
As of Friday evening, no evidence had been found implicating the seven JAMB staff who supervised the service providers at the two centres under investigation.
