Government denies hacking incident on national educational database website

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The Federal Ministry of Education has denied reports that the Nigeria Education Management Information System was hacked, insisting that the platform remains secure and that no cyberattack occurred.

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The ministry was reacting to a report titled “Suspected Cyberattack Hits FG’s Education Data Platform”, which suggested that the education data platform may have been compromised.

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In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Folasade Boriowo, the ministry described the report as “inaccurate and misleading.”

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“The Ministry wishes to categorically state that the report is inaccurate and misleading. At no time was the NEMIS platform hacked, breached, or subjected to any cyberattack. The integrity, confidentiality, and availability of data on the platform remain fully intact,” the statement read.

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The ministry explained that the temporary warning message seen by some users was caused by an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate configuration issue at the hosting level, rather than any security breach.

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According to the statement, the issue affected the platform’s secure access certification but did not result in unauthorised access, loss of data, alteration of records or exposure of sensitive information.

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“The incident was purely technical in nature and did not involve any unauthorised access to the system, data loss, data alteration, or exposure of sensitive information,” the ministry said.

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It added that its technical team worked with the hosting service provider to address the problem immediately after it was detected.

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“Upon identification of the issue, the Ministry’s technical team, working in collaboration with the hosting service provider, promptly resolved the matter and restored normal service operations. The platform remains fully functional, secure, and accessible to all authorised users.”

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The ministry also sought to clarify the nature of browser security warnings, noting that SSL certificate alerts should not be automatically interpreted as evidence of a cyberattack.

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“It is important to note that browser security warnings or SSL certificate-related alerts do not, in themselves, constitute evidence of a cyberattack or data breach,” the statement said.

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It further noted that expert opinion referenced in the publication had acknowledged that such alerts could result from routine technical or configuration issues and should not be mistaken for malicious activity.

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The ministry stressed that NEMIS remains a key digital platform supporting the collection, management and utilisation of education data across the country and said measures were in place to safeguard its operations.

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It stated that it continues to implement “robust security measures, regular system monitoring, infrastructure safeguards, and periodic security assessments” to ensure the platform’s reliability and protection.

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The statement also highlighted the importance of the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure, describing it as the Federal Government’s flagship framework for improving education data governance, integration, accessibility and evidence-based planning across the sector.

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The ministry urged media organisations and members of the public to avoid circulating unverified information capable of creating unnecessary concern and eroding confidence in government digital platforms. It advised stakeholders to seek clarification through official channels before publishing claims relating to government digital systems.

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