The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has responded to the alleged hacking of its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) data Base.
The commission made the reaction via a statement yesterday by the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna
In the statement, Haruna said the commission has commenced an investigation into alleged unauthorised access to its CVR data base.
This follow an assertion relating to a candidate who participated in a recent political party primary election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The Commission said it immediately launched a thorough investigation into the incident and that preliminary audit trail findings had enabled it to identify the user account through which the information was accessed.
Relevant personnel had been questioned while all units connected to the matter were cooperating fully with investigators, the commission stated.
According to the commission, to facilitate new voter registration, transfers and updates during the ongoing exercise, authorised registration officers were granted controlled access to specific components of the CVR data base, but such access was strictly for official duties and withdrawn at the end of the exercise.
The electoral body said it was examining all technical, administrative and operational factors connected to the incident to establish responsibility, determine how the credentials were used and ascertain whether any internal access-control protocols were breached.
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Other points that the commission made are as follows:
- the incident involved the retrieval of a specific voter record and did not indicate any compromise of the wider voter registration infrastructure or the personal data of more than 90 million registered voters.
- INEC is committed to protecting voter information and maintaining the integrity of its electoral systems
- the security, confidentiality and integrity of voter data remain a top priority.
- INEC pledges full cooperation with the Department of State Services (DSS) as it commences a separate investigation into the matter
The Commission also urged members of the public and the media to refrain from speculation while investigations continue, assuring that its final findings and any measures taken would be made public in due course.
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