The Rise Of Digital Scam Targeting UTME Candidates

The battle for university admission in Nigeria has taken a troubling digital turn. As millions of candidates prepare for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), a new breed of online fraudsters has emerged, selling guaranteed scores and pre-released answers to desperate students and parents.

Many online platforms now operate openly through websites and WhatsApp, promising success in exchange for money while undermining the integrity of one of Nigeria’s most critical examinations.

At the centre of the controversy is Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), which conducts the UTME nationwide.

Registrar of JAMB, Ishaq Oloyede, first raised the alarm during a recent media interaction. He warned that the scams are neither minor offences nor harmless shortcuts.

According to him, fraudsters are using technology, social media and even artificial intelligence to impersonate JAMB officials and manipulate candidates.

“These are organised criminal networks. They are attacking the credibility of our examination system, and many students and parents are unknowingly complicit.”

He disclosed that the fraudsters had impersonated JAMB officials, forged identity cards and even used artificial intelligence to generate fake images of him to gain the trust of parents and candidates. “They used AI to create a fake Registrar. They collected money using lies.”

Oloyede further revealed that investigations had linked candidates across at least 25 states to online fraud schemes. Some candidates, he said, travelled across state lines to register in locations where they believed malpractice would be easier to execute.

He stressed that candidates and parents who pay for such services are not victims. “They are willing collaborators,” he stated.

Going forward, JAMB announced that it would cancel the registrations of candidates who paid for illegal assistance or joined WhatsApp groups advertising examination fraud.

Ignorance, the Board said, would no longer be accepted as an excuse. While JAMB maintains that its systems can detect cheating devices and suspicious examination patterns, it emphasised that public cooperation remains essential.

Following JAMB’s exposure of fake websites, LEADERSHIP conducted an online investigation and discovered that several platforms are actively targeting 2026 UTME candidates with promises of guaranteed high scores.

One of the most prominent among them is Examplaza. The platform describes itself as Nigeria’s “most trusted exam help service”, claiming to provide verified answers for JAMB, WAEC, NECO, GCE and NABTEB examinations.

It advertises verified UTME answers, midnight delivery and scores above 350, alongside claims of insider access, near-perfect success rates and money-back guarantees.

According to JAMB, none of these claims is true.

The website urges students to subscribe through WhatsApp or directly on its platform and to pay via bank transfer to access the so-called verified answers.

It references the 2026 UTME schedule, listing examination sessions in March, May, August, September and October, and presents itself as a solution to examination stress, including power cuts, long queues and high-pressure testing environments.

It also claims that receiving the exact examination questions beforehand allows candidates to focus on mastering concepts rather than guessing answers in the examination hall.

Examplaza further claims that its answers are sourced from a network of former JAMB invigilators, senior candidates and private tutors.

It advertises features such as 24-hour early delivery through a secure PIN, VIP WhatsApp groups for pre-examination answer drops at 11 pm, full refunds if answers are delayed, and a 98.7 per cent first-attempt match rate with official examinations.

The platform also publishes customer testimonials highlighting dramatic score improvements, including candidates allegedly moving from failing grades to top scores and gaining admission into prestigious universities.

It offers different subscription packages: a Standard package (Answer Page only) for N8,000; a VIP package (Answer Page plus WhatsApp group access) ranging from N20,000 to N25,000; and a full JAMB CBT package for N15,000.

Students are instructed to select their subjects, pay via bank transfer and receive a PIN granting access to answers.

In addition, the site claims to provide pre-release analysis, likely questions and step-by-step solutions, including for practical subjects such as Physics.

It promotes urgency, warning that prices will increase as examination dates approach and that answers will only be delivered at midnight.

The platform also claims a legacy dating back to 2010, asserting that it has helped over 800,000 students achieve top scores without any data breaches. It concludes with a call to action, urging students to subscribe immediately to secure their “guaranteed” examination success.

For JAMB, however, such claims represent a direct assault on fairness, honesty and the merit-based system upon which Nigeria’s university admission process depends.