Nigeria fines Meta $220 million for breaking data and consumer rules

Meta Platforms has been fined $220 million by Nigeria’s competition watchdog, following investigations that revealed data-sharing on social platforms was in violation of local consumer, data protection, and privacy laws.

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) of Nigeria has accused Meta of unauthorized data appropriation from Nigerian users on its platforms. It further alleges that Meta has abused its market dominance by imposing unfair privacy policies on users and has treated Nigerians unfairly compared to other jurisdictions with similar regulations.

Meta did not respond immediately, but the FCCPC stated in a release that the company had submitted certain documents and had enlisted legal representation who have met and interacted with the agency.

The investigations were conducted in collaboration with Nigeria’s Data Protection Commission and lasted for a period of 38 months, according to FCCPC Chief Adamu Abdullahi.

According to Abdullahi, the investigations revealed that Meta policies do not give users the choice or ability to decide or refuse consent for the collection, use, and sharing of personal data.

“According to Abdullahi, the investigation has determined that Meta has been involved in various and ongoing infringements, including abusive and invasive practices against data subjects in Nigeria.”

“After carefully reviewing the extensive evidence and considering Meta’s ample opportunities to present their case, the Commission has made a final decision and imposed a penalty on Meta,” Abdullahi stated.

According to Abdullahi, the final order outlines the necessary steps and actions that Meta must take in order to comply with local laws.

In May, Turkey’s competition board imposed a fine of 1.2 billion lira on Meta after conducting investigations into data-sharing practices on its Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp platforms.

Meta has encountered resistance in Europe and other jurisdictions due to accusations of violating data protection laws.

Europe has strongly criticized Meta’s decision to utilize personal data for training its artificial intelligence models without obtaining consent.

Meanwhile, the competition watchdog in South Africa has revealed its intention to launch an investigation into the potential unfair competition practices of digital platforms, such as Meta. The focus of the investigation will be on whether these platforms utilize news publishers’ content to generate ad revenue.