Concerns over data privacy have emerged in Bayelsa State following the discovery of an Excel file containing personal details of 5,568 teachers on a government website. The leak comes months after Governor Douye Diri cancelled a teachers’ recruitment exercise over alleged violations of service rules.
The document, titled ‘Bayelsa Basic Education Teachers’, reportedly prepared by the Bayelsa Basic Universal Education Board, contained sensitive information including names, gender, qualifications, TRCN numbers, National Identification Numbers (NINs), dates of appointment, and retirement years. FIJ found the file hosted on the state finance ministry’s website.
Despite the breach, collective action by affected teachers appears unlikely. FIJ noted that similar data leaks in other states, including Kogi, drew little response from victims, reflecting low awareness of digital rights. A civil society group, Accountability Lab Nigeria, has warned that poor digital literacy continues to expose Nigerians to data abuse.