BREAKING: INEC suspends staff linked to Emeka Ike’s voter data leak

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, says it has suspended an electoral officer allegedly involved in the voter data leak concerning Nollywood actor and politician, Emeka Ike.

The Commission disclosed on Thursday that investigations by security agencies and data protection regulators are still ongoing.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna,  made the disclosure during a fireside chat organised by the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa, PAACA, in Abuja.

The suspension came against the backdrop of a controversy that arose after the voter registration details of actor and politician, Emeka Ike, surfaced online during a dispute linked to a political party primary election in the Federal Capital Territory.

The electoral body said preliminary findings showed there was no external breach of its ICT infrastructure or compromise of its voter register.

Rather, according to the Commission, the data was allegedly accessed using valid credentials assigned to officials involved in the ongoing CVR exercise and subsequently disclosed without authorisation.

INEC said its audit trail enabled investigators to identify the specific user account used to access the voter record, leading to the questioning of personnel with access to the system.