"Attackers Might Steal Your Information": Nigerian Govt's Official Website Outdated, Unsafe to Use
- The official Nigerian State House website, www.statehouse.gov.ng, is alarmingly vulnerable due to its use of the outdated HTTP protocol instead of HTTPS
- Despite efforts to notify the webmaster about issues like an outdated copyright year, no action has been taken
- Oluwaseyi Odekomaya, the head of the Department of Software Engineering at SQI College of ICT, told Legit.ng that the development makes the website vulnerable to cyber-attacks and puts user data and privacy at risk
PAY ATTENTION: The 2024 Business Leaders Awards Present Entrepreneurs that Change Nigeria for the Better. Check out their Stories!
State House, Abuja - The Nigerian government's official state house website is alarmingly vulnerable and unsafe for public use. Sadly, those responsible for its smooth running appear indifferent to this development.
This website, www.statehouse.gov.ng, serves as the official digital platform for the federation, a repository for all presidential speeches and events' images. It ensures public access and preservation of important government records.
Source: UGC
It also provides comprehensive information about every key member of the administration.
From the homepage, visitors can easily navigate to the ‘people’ webpage, which features profiles of the president, vice president, and their spouses. A page, labelled ‘The Cabinet’, offers a wealth of public information about presidential aides, all just a click away.
PAY ATTENTION: Click “See First” under the “Following” tab to see Legit.ng News on your Facebook News Feed!
Ideally, this website should be the primary source for anyone in the country seeking direct information from the government. However, its web address uses the outdated ‘http’ protocol instead of the more secure ‘https’ standard.
Source: UGC
Any attempt to log onto the site will trigger a warning from the web browser, cautioning that the site is unsafe due to its lack of standard security protocols.
This is the message users get when they try to visit the site.
"Your connection is not private.
"Attackers might be trying to steal your information from statehouse.gov.ng (for example, passwords, messages, or credit cards). Learn more."
Implications of HTTP instead of HTTPS
In 2018, Google Chrome started marking all HTTP sites as “not secure” to encourage the adoption of HTTPS, a secure version of HTTP.
Oluwaseyi Odekomaya, the head of the Department of Software Engineering at SQI College of ICT, headquartered in Ogbomoso, Oyo state, explained:
"One of the major security risks associated with a website using HTTP instead of HTTPS is that any information sent over HTTP is not encrypted.
"This means anyone can read the information being sent to and from the website (or web application), which could be disastrous if such information were sensitive."
This lack of encryption makes the connection insecure, leaving it vulnerable to eavesdropping, interception, and tampering.
One of the Nigerian government's website features is a 'Participate' page, where citizens can comment or reach out to Aso Rock by simply filling out forms. However, given the site's current state, any information put there is at the user's risk.
This situation becomes even more critical when considering sensitive information, such as personal, financial, or national data.
This information can be compromised without the proper security measures, making the website more susceptible to cyber-attacks.
Nigerian govt's official website's outdated copyright
Furthermore, scrolling down to the footer of the State House website, one will find the copyright symbol accompanied by the year 2020. This is clearly outdated information.
Source: UGC
No response from presidential handlers
Discovering the errors, this reporter navigated to the "Contact Us" page and sent an email directly to the website webmaster.
In the email, the outdated copyright year was pointed out and requested it be updated to reflect 2024, ensuring the website presents the most accurate information possible.
The email was sent on Friday, April 12. At the time this report was filed on Tuesday, April 30, no changes had been made.
Source: UGC
The development indicates that the oversight may not just be a minor technical issue but a symptom of a larger problem—a lack of commitment to maintaining and updating critical online infrastructure.
In today's digital age, where security and accuracy are paramount, such a discrepancy should be frowned upon.
According to Odekomaya, the implications are far-reaching. An outdated website may not be receiving regular security updates, patches, or maintenance, leaving it vulnerable to cyber-attacks and putting user data and privacy at risk.
"An outdated copyright notice date often signifies that the website has not been updated in a while, which may deter people from visiting," the cybersecurity expert told Legit.ng.
"This also negatively impacts a site's ranking, making it less likely to appear in search engine results, such as those on Google."
Tinubu's photographer criticised for poor shots
In another report, President Bola Tinubu's official photographer has been criticised after a portrait picture of Tinubu he shot made it to the public.
The picture blurred the face of the president while leaving the background, which Nigerians felt was a mistake as they believed it should have been more professionally handled.
PAY ATTENTION: Donate to Legit Charity on Patreon. Your support matters!
Source: Legit.ng
