2025 UTME: JAMB Exposes Sophisticated Malpractice, Faults Parents, CBT Centres

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has raised alarm over rising technology-driven examination malpractices, warning that the integrity of Nigeria’s admissions process is under serious threat.

This followed a report submitted on Monday in Abuja by the board’s Special Committee on Examination Infractions, chaired by Dr. Jake Epelle, to JAMB Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede.

The committee, inaugurated on August 18, 2025, was tasked with probing irregularities in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), reviewing JAMB’s systems, and recommending reforms.

Presenting the findings, Epelle disclosed that the probe uncovered disturbing new forms of fraud. These included 4,251 cases of finger blending—a deliberate bypass of biometric checks—190 instances of AI-powered impersonation using image morphing, 1,878 false disability claims, forged credentials, multiple NIN registrations, and collusion between candidates and organised syndicates.

Parents, tutorial centres, schools, and some CBT operators were found to be complicit, Epelle said, stressing that weak legal frameworks hinder effective sanctions. “To us, this was a moral obligation, a national service, and a fight for the soul of meritocracy in Nigeria,” he stated, describing malpractice as “highly organised, technology-driven, and dangerously normalised.”

The panel recommended sweeping reforms, including:

AI-powered biometric anomaly detection tools

Real-time monitoring via a central Examination Security Operations Centre

Cancellation of fraudulent results

Sanctions ranging from one- to three-year bans and prosecution of offenders

A Central Sanctions Registry for institutions and employers

Digitisation of correction processes

Stronger disability verification measures

Tighter control of mobile-first platforms

A ban on bulk school-led registrations

The committee also proposed amendments to the JAMB Act and the Examination Malpractice Act to cover biometric and digital fraud, alongside the creation of a Legal Unit within JAMB.

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For preventive measures, it urged a nationwide Integrity First campaign, embedding ethics into school curricula, and holding parents accountable for aiding malpractice. It further advised rehabilitative measures, such as counselling and supervised reintegration, for offenders under 18 in line with the Child Rights Act.

Epelle warned that failure to act swiftly could lead to a total collapse of trust in Nigeria’s education system.

“If left unchecked, examination malpractice will continue to erode merit, undermine public trust, and destroy the very foundation of Nigeria’s education and human capital development,” he cautioned.