Nigeria’s Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has arrested two examination candidates and a parent for allegedly using artificial intelligence (AI) and other electronic tools to falsify results from the ongoing 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The arrests were announced on Friday, April 17, the same day the board released results for 632,788 candidates who sat for the examination on Thursday, April 16. JAMB spokesperson Fabian Benjamin said the suspects were picked up for allegedly tampering with official result notification messages sent via SMS, in a bid to fabricate or alter scores and mislead parents and guardians.
Benjamin warned that such conduct constituted a serious criminal offence and that the board would pursue all culpable persons to the full extent of the law. He also cautioned candidates against tampering with result messages from JAMB’s official SMS platforms, 55019 and 66019.
The 2026 UTME began on April 16 and is scheduled to run until April 22 at accredited centres nationwide. JAMB confirmed it will release results in batches as the exercise continues.
Candidates who sat the examination on Thursday may check their scores by sending UTMERESULT via SMS to 55019 or 66019, using the phone number linked to their registration. Printing of official result slips is not yet available and will be enabled at a later date.
The incident marks a fresh challenge for JAMB as AI tools become increasingly accessible and are being deployed to manipulate official examination systems. The board has repeatedly warned that it is intensifying its use of technology to detect and prosecute malpractice across all stages of the UTME process.
