The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has issued a warning to all 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) candidates over a new wave of scam text messages making the rounds.
These fraudulent messages are being sent by individuals aiming to deceive and steal from unsuspecting candidates.
According to a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, JAMB’s Public Communication Advisor, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, explained that the texts are not from the Board.
He noted that the fraudsters are impersonating JAMB using a fake code that combines the examination’s numerical identifier, “8863,” with the Board’s official short code, “55019,” to make the messages look authentic.
Dr. Benjamin said these scammers falsely claim to have discovered errors or manipulations in candidates’ registration details and then instruct recipients to contact certain people who supposedly can “help” resolve the issue. He made it clear that these messages are entirely false and should not be trusted.
“We want to emphasise that these messages are not from JAMB. Security agencies have been notified and are actively tracking the perpetrators behind this scam,” Benjamin said.
JAMB has advised all candidates to be extremely cautious and ignore any message that doesn’t come through the Board’s verified communication channels.
He noted that scammers often take advantage of the exam period to trick students and their families, playing on their fears and urgency to resolve problems that don’t actually exist.
Benjamin urged candidates and the general public to verify any message that seems suspicious. He noted that genuine messages from JAMB will always follow a specific format and come from official lines.
He also encouraged anyone who receives strange messages to report them to the appropriate authorities and avoid calling or texting unknown numbers. “Candidates are strongly advised to ignore such messages. This is a common tactic employed by fraudsters who seek to exploit the examination period to deceive and defraud innocent candidates,” he stated.
The Board also reminded the public to rely only on information from JAMB’s official platforms, such as their website and verified social media pages, for accurate updates.
