INEC assures on safety of database ahead of elections

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said on Friday it has taken necessary steps to protect its system from hackers ahead of Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections.

The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, who addressed journalists at a media briefing in Abuja, said the commission was working with Glo, MTN, and other major telecommunication network providers to address any problem that might arise during the elections.

Yakubu assured that the INEC has the required expertise to transmit the election results electronically.

He also clarified that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) does not require internet connectivity to operate.

The former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, earlier on Friday expressed concern about the safety of the commission’s database.

Yakubu said: “We have taken sufficient steps to fortify and protect our systems and processes.

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“I must also say we are leaving certain things when it comes to cyber security to ourselves because the walls have ears but Nigerians should rest assured that we are aware that our resources may be susceptible to attacks but we have taken measures.

“We have tremendous experience in transmitting results real-time in Nigeria. We successfully transmitted results for 105 constituencies nationwide.

“Please be rest assured that we are aware of the challenges and we have the capacity within the commission to be able to respond to the challenges.

“After all, the BVAS is not an electronic voting machine; it will not operate online on election day. It is completely offline.

“Where we need a little bit of internet connectivity is when we transmit results from the Polling Unit and we are on top of the game.”

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