The Federal Ministry of Education has dismissed reports alleging that the Nigeria Education Management Information System (NEMIS) was hacked, describing the claims as “inaccurate and misleading.”
In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Folasade Boriowo, the ministry maintained that the platform remains secure and was never subjected to any cyberattack.
The ministry was responding to a report titled “Suspected Cyberattack Hits FG’s Education Data Platform,” which suggested that the education data system may have been compromised.
“The Ministry wishes to categorically state that the report is inaccurate and misleading. At no time was the NEMIS platform hacked, breached, or subjected to any cyberattack. The integrity, confidentiality, and availability of data on the platform remain fully intact,” the statement read.
According to the ministry, the temporary warning message observed by some users resulted from an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate configuration issue at the hosting level and not from any form of security breach.
It explained that while the issue affected the platform’s secure access certification, it did not lead to unauthorised access, data loss, record alteration, or exposure of sensitive information.
“The incident was purely technical in nature and did not involve any unauthorised access to the system, data loss, data alteration, or exposure of sensitive information,” the ministry said.
“Upon identification of the issue, the Ministry’s technical team, working in collaboration with the hosting service provider, promptly resolved the matter and restored normal service operations. The platform remains fully functional, secure, and accessible to all authorised users.”
The ministry further clarified that browser security warnings linked to SSL certificates should not automatically be interpreted as evidence of a cyberattack or data breach.
“It is important to note that browser security warnings or SSL certificate-related alerts do not, in themselves, constitute evidence of a cyberattack or data breach,” the statement said.
It added that expert opinion referenced in the publication had acknowledged that such warnings could arise from routine technical or configuration issues and should not be mistaken for malicious activity.
The ministry stressed that NEMIS remains a critical digital platform for the collection, management and use of education data nationwide and assured stakeholders that measures are in place to safeguard its operations.
According to the statement, the ministry continues to implement “robust security measures, regular system monitoring, infrastructure safeguards, and periodic security assessments” to ensure the platform remains secure and reliable.
It also highlighted the importance of the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure, describing it as the Federal Government’s flagship framework for strengthening education data governance, integration, accessibility, and evidence-based planning across the sector.