Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) has moved swiftly to quell viral social media rumours claiming its student portal was hacked, with some posts even alleging students’ fee balances had been mysteriously cleared.
In an official statement released on Tuesday, December 9, the university’s Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academics, Professor Robert Kinyua, firmly denied the allegations. He labelled the circulating information as “false and misleading,” assuring all students and stakeholders that no data breach occurred.
“JKUAT has noted with much concern recent misinformation circulating on social media. This information is false,” Kinyua stated. “All University systems and portals remain secure, and all student records and data are safe.”
According to the administration, the disruption that sparked the panic was not a cyberattack but the result of a planned system upgrade. The temporary outage, which began on Saturday, December 6, and lasted for approximately three days, was part of a maintenance operation to integrate a new student household fee component, in line with the institution’s updated funding model.
“The temporary outage experienced on the Student Portal, which has since been resolved, resulted from a scheduled system upgrade,” Kinyua explained.
The outage led to widespread confusion among the student body. Many who logged in found their portals displaying missing academic records or showing their fee balances as zero, leading to a frenzy of speculation online. Some students prematurely concluded they had been hacked, while others wondered if the system had crashed under the pressure of ongoing mass examination registrations.
“We reassure all our students and stakeholders that no data or records have been affected in any way,” Kinyua affirmed, addressing the concerns directly.
By Tuesday morning, students who refreshed their pages found the portal fully restored, with all academic details and correct fee balances visible, effectively putting an end to the days of uncertainty and rumours.
The incident highlights how quickly technical glitches can spiral into major misinformation campaigns in the digital age, prompting institutions to prioritise clear and timely communication with their communities.
