The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has disowned an online voter registration portal circulating on social media and called it fake. The commission says the link is a phishing trap, built to harvest the personal details of people who think they are signing up for the 2027 elections.
The warning is the latest in a long line of alerts about electoral scams in Nigeria. This one is hitting people at a bad moment, when many who missed the registration window are still desperate to get on the voters’ register.
INEC’s Deputy Director of Information and Publicity, Wilfred Ifogah, described the website as a phishing scam in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja. He said it was designed to collect personal data from unsuspecting citizens.
Ifogah advised the public to ignore the message and not click the link, warning that doing so could expose users to identity theft and cyber fraud.
He also set out two plain rules about how the commission works. “INEC does not use third-party blogging links or private URL for official exercises,” he said. The commission also does not deliver Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to anyone’s home, which is exactly what the scam promises.
What the Viral Message Claims
The message is titled “INEC ONLINE VOTERS REGISTRATION 2026 ONGOING” and has been spreading on WhatsApp and other platforms. It points readers to a link and says registration closes on August 17, 2026. It also tells applicants that the home address they enter will be used to deliver their PVC.
Both claims fall apart quickly. The registration exercise is over, and INEC does not post cards to people’s houses. Anyone who has collected a PVC knows the process involves an INEC office or a designated collection point.
Fact-Checkers Found Further Red Flags
The fact-checking platform DUBAWA looked into the message and reached the same verdict. The link did not lead to an INEC page. It opened a site hosted on an unrelated domain, and the information it asked for did not match INEC’s real registration process. A WHOIS lookup showed the domain had only been registered in July 2025, while INEC’s own website has been online for more than a decade.
That is a useful habit to learn. A brand-new domain with no history, claiming to speak for a federal agency, should always raise suspicion.
The scammers are exploiting a real situation. INEC extended the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise by two weeks in July 2026, and also introduced a self-service online option for eligible first-time voters. That option lets people begin and finish registration, including biometric capture, on their own devices without visiting an INEC office.
So genuine online registration did exist, which makes a fake version believable. But the exercise has since closed, and DUBAWA noted that INEC’s official platform also says it ended in July.
INEC’s spokesperson, Zainab Aminu Abubakar, told the BBC that anyone who missed the deadline would have to wait until after the 2027 general elections for another registration exercise. That is the gap the scammers are trying to fill, because people who missed out are exactly the ones likely to click a link promising a second chance.
This Is Not the First Time
Fake INEC websites have appeared before.
- In 2021, INEC dissociated itself from a fake CVR site and said it had not accredited any agency or organisation to capture voter details on its behalf.
- In September 2025, the commission warned about a bogus recruitment advert that sent applicants to a fraudulent portal, and said it was not running a general recruitment exercise.
The names and URLs change, but the method stays the same. A fake site borrows INEC’s name, creates urgency, and collects whatever personal information people are willing to hand over.
How to Spot a Fake INEC Website
- Check the web address. The only approved portal for voter registration activities, including updates, transfers, PVC replacement and centre location, is cvr.inecnigeria.org. Anything else claiming to be INEC should be treated with suspicion.
- Distrust shortened links. Links forwarded on WhatsApp and Facebook often hide the real destination.
- Be wary of deadlines and pressure. Scams depend on people acting before they think.
- Ignore promises of home delivery. INEC does not send PVCs to private residences.
- Notice what the site asks for. If a “registration” page wants details that do not fit a normal voter registration, close it.
What to Do If You Already Clicked
If you only opened the link, close the page and do not interact with it further. If you entered personal details, take it seriously. Watch your bank and phone accounts for unusual activity, change passwords on anything that shares the same details, and be careful with calls or messages from anyone who seems to know your information. You can also report the incident to INEC and to the police.
Where to Get Genuine Information
Ifogah urged citizens to verify electoral information through INEC’s official social media handles or its authenticated website, inecnigeria.org. INEC has also published a call centre line, 0700-CALL-INEC (0700-2255-4632), and its social media handle is @inecnigeria.
The warning comes as preparations for the next general election gather pace. After the Electoral Act 2026 was enacted, INEC released a revised timetable that puts the presidential and National Assembly elections on January 16, 2027, with governorship and state assembly polls on February 6, 2027. The final list of candidates is due on November 15, 2026.
With campaigns and candidate lists on the horizon, political talk will keep driving traffic to social media, and scammers will follow it. The safest approach is simple: before you share or click anything that mentions INEC, check it against the commission’s own channels. If a message makes you pause, it is better to ignore it than to pass it on.
