The National Identity Management Commission, NIMC, has debunked allegation that it

exposed sensitive data of Nigerian citizens as it concerns the Commission amongst many other data-collecting agencies.

The identity agency in a statement by its spokesman, Kayode Adegoke, dismissed the allegation as false and baseless.

The statement read inter alia:

The Commission, at this moment, assures the public that the data of Nigerians has not

been compromised, and the Commission have (sic) not authorised any website or entity to sell

or misuse the National Identification Number (NIN) amongst all the identities stated in the

report.

The following websites: idfinder.com.ng; Verify. Ng/sign in, championtech.com.ng,

trustyonline.com, and anyverify.com are data harvesters not authorised by NIMC to access

or manage sensitive data. NIMC urges the public to disregard any claims or services these

websites offer and should not give their data as they are potentially fraudulent and data

provided by the public on such websites are gathered and stored to build the data

services they illegally provide.

Consequently, the public should know that the Commission has taken robust measures to

safeguard the nation’s database from cyber threats- a secure, world-class, full-proof

database is in place. The commission’s infrastructure meets the stringent ISO 27001:2013

Information Security Management System Standard, with annual recertification and strict

compliance with the Nigerian Data Protection Law.

Furthermore, NIMC advises Nigerians to avoid giving their data to unauthorised and

phishing sites. This poses the danger of data harvesting and comprises individual data.

The Commission reaffirms its commitment to upholding ethical standards in data

protection in line with federal government directives and data privacy regulations.

Moreover, licensed partners or vendors are not authorised to scan or store NIN slips but to

verify NINs through approved channels.

The Commission is currently working closely with security operatives to apprehend these

elements masquerading as online vendors, and they will be made to face the full wrath of

the law.

NIMC urges the public to remain vigilant against false information and rely on verified

sources for accurate updates. The Commission remains committed to providing secure

and reliable identity management and upholding the highest level of security for systems

and databases, which are critical national assets.