SSS accuses APC of plotting hacking; says party has security personnel, foreigners as members

The State Security Services, SSS, said it had uncovered lists containing names and photographs of security personnel, foreigners and under-aged children on the registered members list of the All Progressive Congress, APC.

The spokesperson of SSS, Marilyn Ogar, disclosed this on Wednesday at a news conference in Abuja on Wednesday.

Ms. Ogar also said that a video with tutorial for hacking was also uncovered when the service raided a building in Lagos.

She displayed the lists and other items recovered from the building to newsmen.

She also alleged that SSS recovered forms completed by the APC without passport photographs, alongside books containing names of people with phone numbers and many envelopes containing passport photographs of people.

SSS operatives raided the APC data office at No. 10, Bola Ajibola St., Ikeja, Lagos state, on November 24, 2014. Operatives arrested some staff during the raid.

At the time, the agency said it acted on a tip-off. Later, Ms. Ogar said Nigerians would be shocked when presented with the findings of the raid.

At Wednesday’s briefing, Ms. Ogar said the agency “suspects” that the opposition party was working on an elaborate plan to illegally inflate the number of the members.

“We suspect that there was an elaborate and well-articulated plan to inflate the party’s membership data as well as hack into INEC’s voter registration database,” the spokesperson said.

According to her, this was done through the creation of the party’s membership forms and cards to match INEC’s voters register across the country.

Ms. Ogar said that the video of 21 hacking tutorials, “a temporary voter card, a permanent voter card’’ were also recovered.

“The tutorial video focused on the following areas: How to become a hacker and steps to take to avoid detection in the process of hacking web services.

“Steps and procedures of system hacking, passwords cracking, decrypting, escalating access privileges and creating backdoors to servers,’’ she said.

Ms. Ogar also said that the tutorial clearly explained how to evade security of database such as “Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), firewalls and other measures put in place to deter backers’’.

She said the video also outlined ways to identify vulnerabilities in systems and how to cleverly drop a USB flash drive in a target establishment.

She alleged that the drive, when plugged into any computer, could transmit “malicious codes enough to gain access into and compromise the entire system of the target organisation’’.

“The video explains how to hack into the systems of media houses with the aim of broadcasting fake stories or headlines,’’ she said.

Ms. Ogar said that suspects arrested in connection with the raid had been charged to court, while investigation had begun.

She promised to update the public with further developments.

Responding to questions, Ms. Ogar said the service had written to the security agencies whose personnel were found on the APC register to investigate their involvement and take necessary actions. (NAN)