2023: INEC tightens security around digital assets, warns hackers

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, says it has taken steps to strengthen its digital assets with a view to ensuring foolproof security of all its web-based resources ahead of the 2023 polls.

Speaking at a forum in Abuja, Chairman of the INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said the steps are necessary to forestall hacking of INEC Results Viewing iRev Portal, adding that fraudulent people tried to hack into its system during the last governorship elections in both Osun and Ekiti states.

“Our engineers reported several cyber-attacks on the portal during the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections, some of them from as far as Asia. I am glad to note that all of them failed.

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“However, while we are confident in the security solutions that we have deployed for IReV and all our web presence, we must remain vigilant and continue to strengthen our defences. We have tasked our engineers to do everything possible to fully protect the IReV and all our web resources,” Yakubu said at a forum in Abuja.

Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi also said the commissioner successfully dealt with the threats. He assured that INEC’s team of engineers would continue to anticipate such threats and consistently evolve security safeguards for its dog talk assets.

“All online resources, like websites or portals, are prone to attacks or hacking. It is a common phenomenon. What the INEC Chairman talked about was an attempt by some rogues to compromise the integrity of our INEC Result Viewing Portal. But the Commission successfully dealt with the threats,” said Oyekanmi.