The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has uncovered a case of digital examination fraud involving artificial intelligence, leading to the arrest of two candidates and a parent for falsifying 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results.
The arrests were announced on Friday alongside the release of results for 632,788 candidates who participated in the examination on Thursday, April 16.
According to JAMB’s spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, the suspects allegedly manipulated official result notifications sent via SMS, altering scores to present inflated outcomes to parents and the public.
Benjamin explained that the fraud was carried out using AI-driven tools and other electronic methods designed to tamper with the format of JAMB’s official messages.
“Two candidates and one parent are currently in custody for engaging in result falsification using AI and other electronic means,” he said.
JAMB described the development as a growing concern, warning that the misuse of emerging technologies to compromise examination integrity would be met with strict legal action.
The board reiterated that altering or fabricating result messages is a criminal offence and assured that those involved would be prosecuted accordingly.
It also issued a strong advisory to candidates, urging them to rely solely on its verified channels when checking results. Candidates who sat for the April 16 examination were directed to send “UTMERESULT” to 55019 or 66019 using the phone number used during registration.
JAMB emphasized that any message not generated through its official platforms should be treated as invalid.
VANGUARD