The National Bureau of Statistics has explained that the delay in restoring its website, which was hacked 17 days ago, was due to a thorough investigation of the incident and the extended holiday period, which has hindered timely recovery efforts.
According to the NBS, the site will soon be accessible to Nigerians as efforts are ongoing to restore it.
NBS spokesperson, Joel Ichedi disclosed this in an interview with Sunday PUNCH on Friday in Abuja.
Ichedi, who did not provide a specific date for the restoration of the site, dismissed the claim that it was shut down indefinitely.
He said, “It will soon be ready. I called the officer in charge and he said they were still working on it. They want to look at the issue holistically to see whether it was caused by the new website design. They are the experts and they are working on it. Remember that we also went for a long weekend. Very soon, it will be back.”
“An important website like ours cannot be shut down indefinitely. The public can rest assured. We are working on it and very soon it will be working.”
On December 18, 2024, the statistics agency informed the public of a cyberattack that compromised its website on December 18, 2024.
The breach, which was publicly disclosed via the bureau’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, led to a warning for the public to disregard any information on the platform until the situation was resolved.
The incident occurred days after its newly redesigned website was launched and the release of a controversial Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey that revealed that Nigerians paid a total sum of N2.23tn in ransom between May 2023 to April 2024.
It also raised significant concerns about the vulnerability of the bureau’s digital infrastructure, especially considering its crucial role as Nigeria’s primary source of statistical data.
On Saturday, our correspondent checked the NBS website, using desktop and mobile devices, but it was yet to be revived.