The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it will not rely on artificial intelligence outputs or screenshots as evidence in its ongoing investigation into alleged digital impersonation involving its chairman.

INEC’s Director of ICT, Lawrence Bayode, disclosed this during an interview on Channels Television on Monday, while responding to resurfaced social media posts linked to an account alleged to be associated with the commission’s chairman, Mahmood Yakubu.

Bayode said the commission had already involved security agencies and would engage independent forensic experts to verify the authenticity of the account and the content in circulation.

“We are taking this further because even though we have referred this to security agencies, we rely on evidence. We are also going to be engaging a third party, for instance, forensic experts, to look into this,” he said.

He stressed that the commission would not base its conclusions on unverified materials. “I will not base my judgments on screenshots. I will not allow that to guide my conclusion,” he added.

According to him, the investigation also involves internal technical reviews, especially as the commission prepares to expand its deployment of technology ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Bayode described the issue as part of a broader pattern of digital impersonation and misinformation, warning that emerging online threats must be addressed early to safeguard the integrity of future elections.

He also cautioned against relying on claims generated by artificial intelligence tools such as Grok, noting that such systems can produce inaccurate or misleading outputs if not independently verified.

The controversy followed the resurfacing of a 2023 social media post by Dayo Israel of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which critics claimed received a response from an account allegedly linked to the INEC chairman. The commission has denied the claim, insisting the chairman does not operate any personal X account and describing the allegation as part of a coordinated misinformation campaign.

INEC said it is working with security agencies to identify those responsible for the impersonation and reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the credibility of its digital communication channels ahead of future elections.