The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has blown the lid off a dangerous syndicate perpetrating a massive fraud on unsuspecting Nigerians. The criminals, posing as NIMC employees, have been issuing fake National Identity Numbers (NIN) to victims, putting their identities and lives at risk.
NIMC Director General, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, revealed the shocking discovery at a press briefing in Abuja, warning citizens to be vigilant and cautious. The commission’s swift action came after a victim reported paying a staggering N120,000 to modify her birth certificate.
The syndicate’s modus operandi is sophisticated and deceptive, with members masquerading as business vendors and cyber cafe operators. They create fake links, develop fraudulent software, and fabricate NINs, leaving innocent citizens vulnerable to identity theft and other serious consequences.
The NIMC has already apprehended some suspects, who are currently facing prosecution with relevant security agencies. This crackdown sends a strong message to criminals: exploiting citizens’ personal information will not be tolerated.
Meanwhile, the NIN database has reached a significant milestone, with over 107.34 million Nigerians enrolled as of May 2024. This crucial identification system is the backbone of various government initiatives aimed at enhancing security, governance, and service delivery.
According to her, “Stay alert, Nigerians, Protect your identity and report any suspicious activities to the authorities immediately.
“This data doesn’t reach our server, resulting in numerous Nigerians falling victim to scams,” she added.
She said a further clampdown led to the discovery of a group of individuals around its annex office.
The NIMC boss, however, declined to disclose details on the number of persons being interrogated but assured that as soon as the investigation was concluded, they would be prosecuted for cybercrimes.
Odusote said, “I am going to speak on extortion, data breach, and privacy. When we carried out our investigations, we discovered that around NIMC’s offices, people were parading as business vendors and cyber cafes, creating links for unsuspecting persons, designing software, and generating fake NINs for people. This data does not come to our server and a lot of Nigerians have been scammed.
“We will not allow them to parade as if they are part of us and they are not. A lot of people have lost money through this method. There is a case I got at our annex office and a lady approached me telling me that she had been extorted of over N120,000 to modify her birth certificate, and the person who extorted her was not an NIMC employee.”
Meanwhile, Coke-Odusote said efforts had reached the advanced stage for ministries, departments, and agencies of government to harmonise their identity database with the NIMC for the country to have a central identity database.
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