The National Examinations Council (NECO) has issued a stern warning to school owners and other relevant stakeholders, urging them to cease the practice of enrolling candidates for its examinations by proxy on Monday.
According to NECO, this fraudulent act often leads to identity theft and the issuance of fake results, which poses significant risks to the integrity of the examination process.
Azeez Sani, the Acting Director of Information and Public Relations at NECO, emphasized that the Council is taking strong measures to curb impersonation and other forms of malpractice during its examinations.
These steps, he explained, are aimed at ensuring that only genuine candidates sit for the exams and that the results reflect the true performance of the students.
To combat impersonation, NECO has introduced several measures. Among these is the use of Biometric Data Capturing Devices, which are employed to verify the identity of each candidate during the examination process.
In addition, the Council has implemented the use of customized answer booklets, which are designed to be unique to each candidate.
To further secure the integrity of the examination results, NECO has begun embossing the candidate’s photograph and date of birth on the original certificates issued after the exams.
Another significant step taken by the Council is the launch of NECO e-Verify, an online platform designed for the confirmation and verification of NECO results.
Introduced last year, this platform allows members of the public and other interested parties to authenticate any certificate that claims to have been issued by NECO.
Sani warned that any certificate which cannot be verified or authenticated through the e-Verify platform should be considered fake.
In light of these developments, NECO is calling on State Ministries of Education and school owners to ensure that only the personal details of legitimate candidates are used when registering students for NECO-conducted exams.
The Council stressed the importance of honesty and transparency in the registration process, as it seeks to eliminate fraudulent activities that could undermine the credibility of the examinations.
Additionally, Sani revealed that candidates who were found guilty of impersonation in the recently concluded 2024 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) Internal had their results withheld.
This action, he noted, is part of NECO’s comprehensive policy to combat all forms of examination malpractice and maintain the integrity of its certification process.
NECO’s measures reflect its commitment to upholding high standards in the conduct of examinations and the issuance of results.
The Council remains resolute in its efforts to ensure that the examination process is free from fraud, and that the results accurately represent the performance of the candidates who sat for the exams.
