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Claim: Multiple social media users claimed that “Yahoo boys” hacked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) X account and replaced its eagle logo with a chicken.
Verdict: False. Despite reports across multiple X and Facebook accounts, no credible news outlets or authoritative source has confirmed this alleged hacking incident in Nigeria.
Full Text
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigeria’s leading anti-corruption agency, is known for its eagle logo, symbolising vigilance and integrity. Recently, social media platforms, particularly Facebook and X, were flooded with claims that the EFCC’s X account was hacked by “Yahoo boys,” who allegedly replaced the eagle logo with a chicken. This rumour rapidly gained attention, causing debates and raising concerns across social media, with many questioning the security protocols of such a critical institution.
The EFCC’s X account, which had over two million followers before its disappearance, suddenly became inaccessible. By Thursday, August 15th, 2024, users encountered a message stating, “This account doesn’t exist.” This abrupt disappearance led to widespread speculation.
An X post from a verified user, Dr Dabo, claimed that “Yahoo boys” hacked the EFCC’s account and changed the logo from an eagle to a chicken. This post, which featured a manipulated image of the EFCC logo as a cartoon chicken, got significant engagement: 885 comments, 2,200 retweets, 9,100 reactions, and 699,600 views.
The claim was posted by verified Facebook user Jack Obinyan, whose post received 1,600 reactions, 370 comments, and 152 shares. Another verified user, George Udom, whose post generated 2,500 likes, 399 comments, and 316 shares within 19 hours.
The post’s virality made us conduct a fact-check.
Verification
To find its origin, we conducted a Google Reverse-Image Search of the image in the various posts. DUBAWA found that the image was first posted by Dr Dabo on his X (formerly Twitter) account. In his post, Dr Dabo claimed that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) account had been hacked and that the hackers had changed the EFCC logo from an eagle to a chicken.
Also, the EFCC issued a statement on their website and Facebook page, categorically denying the hacking claims. They clarified, “The Commission’s official X account has not been compromised in any way. While attempting to update certain information on the Commission’s biography on the app, a technical glitch occurred. This issue was promptly reported to the X Support Team, and the process of restoring the account is now in its final stages.”
We also conducted a Google keyword search to determine if any credible news sources had reported the alleged hacking event. However, we found none.
Conclusion
The claim that “Yahoo boys” hacked the EFCC’s X account and replaced its logo with a chicken is false. The viral image was digitally manipulated, and no hacking incident occurred.
This fact-check is produced for the DUBAWA 2024 Kwame Karikari Fact-Checking Fellowship in partnership with Garkuwa FM to enrich the ethos of truth in journalism and enhance media literacy in Nigeria.
