The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended an electoral officer allegedly linked to the recent unauthorised disclosure of voter information, as investigations by security agencies and data protection regulators continue.
The development was disclosed on Thursday by Mohammed Haruna, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, during a fireside chat on the recently concluded Ekiti governorship election organised by the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA) in Abuja.
The controversy emerged after voter registration details belonging to actor and politician Emeka Ike surfaced online during a dispute arising from a political party primary election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), raising concerns about the security of voter records.
INEC subsequently launched an investigation into what it described as the unauthorised release of information obtained from its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database.
According to the commission, preliminary findings showed that its ICT infrastructure was not hacked and that there was no wider compromise of the national voter register. Instead, the information was allegedly accessed through valid credentials assigned to personnel involved in the ongoing CVR exercise and later released without authorisation.
The commission said its internal audit system identified the user account used to retrieve the voter record, leading investigators to the personnel with access to the platform.
INEC stressed that the incident involved only a single voter record and did not affect the personal data of more than 90 million registered voters in its database.
Haruna said the commission acted immediately after discovering the breach, suspending the officer and removing him from his position pending the outcome of investigations.
“As soon as this thing happened, we were worried and took immediate steps. As I am talking to you now, the officer involved is under suspension. He is no longer functioning in that office,” he said.
He added that the commission had concluded its internal inquiry and handed the matter over to relevant authorities for further action.
Haruna revealed that the officer admitted involvement in the incident and allegedly acted out of personal grievances linked to previous interactions with political actors.
While declining to disclose further details due to ongoing investigations, he said the matter had been reported to data protection regulators, while the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services (DSS) were conducting separate probes.
“The police have done their own investigation. The DSS has also conducted investigations. We have completed our internal investigation and suspended the officer. We are waiting for the final reports before taking the next step,” he said.
The INEC commissioner maintained that the incident should not be interpreted as evidence of systemic weaknesses in the commission’s data management system.
He said the electoral body would continue strengthening safeguards around voter information and remain committed to protecting the personal data of Nigerians.
Haruna also called for greater public understanding of how voter information is collected, stored and managed, arguing that increased awareness would help counter misinformation about election technology and data security.
According to him, INEC will continue working with data protection regulators, civil society groups and security agencies to strengthen public confidence in the management of voter information ahead of future elections.
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