Nigeria fined Meta for $ 220 million for misuse of Facebook and WhatsApp data
The tribunal of Nigeria retained a fine of $ 220M against Meta for data secrecy violations of WhatsApp and Facebook, increasing global regulatory pressure. Meta denied the wrongdoing and should follow it by the end of June.
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In a major setback for Tech Giant Meta Platform Inc., the original company of Facebook and WhatsApp has lost its appeal against a fine of $ 220 million imposed by the Consumer Protection Authority of Nigeria. The decision was given by Nigeria competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal on Friday.
Penalty, initially imposed by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) in 2023, stems from several consumer data violations exposed during a joint investigation with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission. Additionally, Meta has been ordered to pay an additional $ 35,000 to cover FCCPC’s search expenses.
According to FCCPC spokesperson Ondaz Ijagavu, the tribunal found Meta and WhatsApp guilty of engaging in several illegal practices. These included data, discriminatory data handling and misuse of market dominance. The Commission argued that these works violated Nigeria’s Consumer Protection and Data Privacy laws.
“The Tribunal ruled that several action by WhatsApp and Mata, for which the Commission concluded the violation, was correctly recognized, and that the commission did not wrong to create the conclusions,” Ijagavu said.
Meta denies allegations
According to Baron, Meta has denied any wrongdoing and disagreeed with the ruling and imposed punishment. The WhatsApp spokesperson reiterated the company’s stand in an email soon after the first declaration was declared in June 2024.
Despite its objections, the meta has to follow the tribunal’s decision by the end of June and settle the fine, as reported by local media outlets.
This decision adds to Mata’s growing global regulatory troubles. The company is facing 200 million fines from the European Union on its controversial “pay or consent” data model on Facebook and Instagram, which regulators say that the European Union’s data violates the privacy rules of the Union.
Nigeria is one of the largest markets in Mata in Africa, with over 164 million internet membership by March 2025. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp dominate online communication.
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