INEC and SSS Investigate Wike’s Aide Over Voter Database Access

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the State Security Service (SSS) are looking into claims of unauthorised access to the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database. This follows a social media post by Lere Olayinka, the spokesperson for the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. His post seemed to show details from the voter registration records.

INEC spokesperson, Mohammed Haruna, said early checks from its audit have helped investigators find the user account that accessed the information.

Mr Haruna assured Nigerians that there was no sign of an external cyberattack on INEC's systems.
"Preliminary findings from the Commission’s audit trail so far indicate that there was no external breach of the CVR database, no hacking incident, and no unauthorised external access to the Commission’s ICT infrastructure," the statement said.

How it All Began

Lere Olayinka shared screenshots of Nollywood star Emeka Ike’s voter details on Saturday.
In his post, Mr Olayinka criticized the actor for saying he wants to run for a seat in the Federal House of Representatives for the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency in the FCT.
"Emeka Ike was a registered voter in Imo State. He only transferred his INEC Registration to the FCT on May 15, 2026 (15 days ago). And he wants to contest for House of Reps in Abuja," Mr Olayinka posted on X.

"Someone who has never voted in the FCT. What happened to his Imo State?"
Social media users raised concerns about how he got access to the commission’s data as the records showed the admin site of the electoral commission.
Mr Olayinka has not deleted the post.

INEC's Response

INEC said it is taking the allegations seriously and has started a "thorough investigation" to find out what happened.
The commission revealed that initial findings from its audit trail helped to identify the user account that accessed the information.
"Relevant personnel have been questioned, and all units connected with the incident are cooperating fully with the investigation," the statement read in part.

INEC explained that authorised registration officers involved in the ongoing nationwide CVR exercise have controlled access to parts of the registration system to handle new voter registrations, transfers, and updates.
The commission stressed that this access is only for official work and is taken away after the exercise.

The electoral body said investigators are looking into technical, administrative, and operational factors to see how the credentials were used and if any internal access rules were broken.
INEC noted that the information was accessed using valid credentials given to personnel involved in the voter registration exercise, but it was then shared without permission.

INEC also clarified that the incident being investigated involved retrieving a specific voter record and does not imply any compromise of the overall voter registration system or the personal data of over 90 million registered voters.
The commission shared that the SSS has started its own investigation into the issue as well.

"The Commission will continue to cooperate fully with all relevant security agencies and will not hesitate to refer any person found culpable for appropriate legal action," the statement added.