The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) website is back online, following 29 days of inaccessibility caused by a cyberattack. The bureau had confirmed the hack on December 18, 2024.

While the website is now functional, a notable omission is the controversial “Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey,” which was previously available. The cyberattack occurred just 24 hours after the publication of the report, which detailed alarming crime statistics in Nigeria.

The report revealed that Nigerians paid a staggering N2.23 trillion as ransom over the one-year period between May 2023 and April 2024. It also estimated that 51.89 million crime incidents occurred nationwide during the period. The north-west region recorded the highest number of crimes, with over 14 million cases, while the south-east reported the lowest, with just over six million. Additionally, rural areas experienced a higher crime rate (26,526,069 incidents) compared to urban areas (25,360,963 incidents).

Following the publication, media reports suggested that Adeniran Adeyemi, Statistician-General of the Federation, was questioned by the Department of State Services (DSS) over the methodology and data used in the survey. However, Ichedi Sunday, the NBS Head of Communications, refuted these claims, stating that the statistician-general was never interrogated by the DSS.

The restoration of the website has raised questions about the missing report, but the NBS has yet to issue an official statement on its removal.