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Tag: NDPC

  • NDPC, NIMC to investigate private website’s alleged access to Nigerians’ data, says Tijani

    NDPC, NIMC to investigate private website’s alleged access to Nigerians’ data, says Tijani

    Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) are set to investigate the alleged access to the data of registered Nigerians.

    This was stated by the nation’s Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani via his X handle amid the report of a private website having a free course to the data of Nigerians.

    The private website, XpressVerify.com, in a newly published report, was accused of having unrestricted access to the National Identification Numbers (NINs) and personal details of every registered Nigerian.

    According to the report, the website has since monetised the recovery of NINs and personal information on the Nigerian identification database.

    “Anybody can retrieve details such as phone numbers, full names, NIN, address, and photographs of any Nigerian whose data is on the National Identity Database with as low as N200.

    “The website does not confirm what type of person can check what type of information. There were no restrictions to the number of NIN-related data that could be fetched when FIJ checked.

    “Vendors across different Nigerian cities have been checking the NINs and phone numbers of citizens from the same database NIMC ought to maintain and keep secure,” the report said.

    In response to the report, the Communications Minister clarified that the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has ceased to be under the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

    He, however, vowed that the primary legal institution responsible for the identity management system and regulations of the identity sector will work closely with the nation’s data protection agency to probe the matter.

    “NIMC is no longer under @FMCIDENigeria but our @ndpcngr will work with colleagues at @nimc_ng to investigate this immediately. Thanks for sharing,” Tijani stated.

    In the wake of the development, the Nation reported that Namecheap Incorporated, the domain registrar through which the private website’s domain was purchased, indicated that it has now suspended the domain of the identity verification website.

  • Stop exposing your personal information online, NDPC warns Nigerians

    Stop exposing your personal information online, NDPC warns Nigerians

    The director general of Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Vincent Olatunji has warned Nigerians against uploading and exposing their personal information on the internet as doing so exposes an individual to possible danger.

    Olatunji was speaking at the closing ceremony of a summer training programme organised by the Teen Ambassador Foundation in collaboration with Net Access Communication Ltd in Abuja.

    The summer training which began on July 24 and ended on Sept. 2 was targeted at training Teenagers and Youth on Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics Education with Robotics.

    Represented by the head of legal enforcement and regulation of the commission, Babatunde Bamigboye, the director general said Nigerians should be wary of putting all their data on the internet so as to keep people from knowing everything about them. 

    He said: “At the commission, we protect data, and most of what you will need to develop apps depends on data. You must protect your information when you go online. It is important that this form part of our curriculum as teachers of children because they are now exposed to what adults are exposed to.”

    He commended TAF for organising such a programme to keep the children busy during the holiday while assuring the teenagers that 20 years from now they would remember “today and thank the organiser.

    “The world of ICT especially this robotic artificial intelligence is the world of the new oil where everyone is going towards. Now you have better opportunities than Bill Gates.”

    Read Also: NDPC probes banks over data breach

    The director general of Teen Ambassador Foundation (TAF), Paul Adiwu called on the federal government to invest more on Information and Communications Technology for teenagers 

    Adiwu said even though the centre was not a training institute, it has a passion for developing the potential of teenagers in the country and exposing them to science technology engineering, mathematics, and robotics by employing experts to engage them.

    Also speaking, the member representing Jos North, Bassa Federal Constituency of Plateau State, Hon. Avia Agah commended the Director General of TAF for the initiative, saying “I am overwhelmed and happy, you have chosen humanity at a time when the country is grappling with so many challenges, you have chosen to keep our children in this endeavour.”