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The Department of State Service (DSS) has denied laying a siege of Premium Times over a report recently published by the newspaper. The special security agency also denied hacking phones of the newspaper's reporter, Samuel Ogundipe, who reported the story.

The spokesperson of the DSS, Peter Afunanya, said the report is unfounded and just a needless sensationalism. "There is no such operation at the moment by the service targeted at the Premium Times, its editor or staff. If there is any need for the DSS to discharge its duty, it sure have to do that with every sense of decency and in accordance with laid down procedures," he said. Afunanya said the report should be discarded, reiterating that the security agency is not after the newspaper. Reports had been circulating online that the DSS was after the newspaper over a report claiming that there was a rift between the chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Babagana Monguno. There are speculations that the reporter behind the story had gone into hiding over alleged threats by operatives of the DSS. The report had exposed a memo allegedly written by Monguno Monguno accusing Kyari of undue interference on matters bordering on national security.