A manager of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board Computer-Based Test (JAMB CBT), has been arrested for allegedly engaging in an online chat with a 15-year-old candidate, using information accessed during her exam registration.
The incident was revealed when the candidate’s mother, who had used her phone number to register her daughter, received inappropriate messages on her device shortly after the registration process.
The mother of the candidate in a social media post accused JAMB of negligence and lack of data security, prompting an investigation.
The mother’s statement revealed that the CBT manager accessed the phone number from the registration form and initiated a text conversation, mistakenly assuming he was communicating directly with the candidate.
The manager, despite being made aware of the teenager’s age, persisted in messaging and advised that the communication be kept confidential.
The mother’s post on the incident generated outrage on the social media.
Subsequently, JAMB initiated an internal investigation and collaborated with law enforcement authorities, leading to the arrest of the accused staff member, along with an alleged accomplice, within hours.
Speaking to newsmen after the arrest, JAMB’s ICT consultant, Damilola Bamiro, on Thursday said, “Today, based on the social media report that has gone round where a mother complained that her 15-year-old daughter was being approached by a staff of one of our CBT centers, and immediately we got that information, we swung into action.
“We identified the center and since our system identifies who has registered a candidate, we were able to apprehend both the person that registered the candidate and the person that approached the minor.
“We have them in custody already, just to assure Nigerians that JAMB will always swing into action whenever any case against any candidate is reported”.
