Social media giants, Meta and WhatsApp ordered to pay $220m fine in Nigeria

The Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal has upheld a $220m penalty imposed on Meta Platforms Inc. and its subsidiary, WhatsApp, over discriminatory data-sharing practices affecting Nigerian users.

Delivering judgment on Friday, the tribunal also ordered both companies to pay $35,000 to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) as reimbursement for the cost of the investigation. The social media giants are required to comply within 60 days.

The tribunal, chaired by Thomas Okosun, dismissed the appeal filed by Meta and WhatsApp challenging the FCCPC’s sanctions. It ruled that the Commission acted within its legal powers in addressing alleged violations of consumer and data protection laws.

“The tribunal finds that the FCCPC did not exceed its powers while making orders with respect to data protection,” said Okosun. “The appellants were given ample opportunity to be heard.”

The FCCPC’s decision followed a probe into Meta’s handling of user data in Nigeria. The Commission alleged that Meta’s practices were “abusive and invasive,” granting unauthorized access to users’ personal information and violating constitutional rights. According to the FCCPC, these actions were not only exploitative but also discriminatory against Nigerian users.

In its defence, Meta argued that the demands of the FCCPC were technically impossible and inconsistent with Nigerian law. The company also claimed the fine lacked transparency and procedural fairness.

“The penalty was imposed without allowing them to understand how the penalty would be calculated,” the appeal stated.

At the tribunal hearing on January 28, 2025, Meta and WhatsApp were represented by Professor Gbolahan Elias (SAN), while the FCCPC was represented by Babatunde Irukera (SAN), a former Vice Chairman of the Commission.

Irukera urged the tribunal to dismiss the appeal, noting that foreign legal principles, while not binding, are persuasive in similar matters.

“The tribunal should uphold the Commission’s orders in their entirety,” he said.

The tribunal ruled that Meta must restore Nigerian users’ right to control their data and halt all data-sharing with Facebook or other third parties unless explicit consent is given. Additionally, Meta must revert to its 2016 data-sharing policy and publish an updated user policy by July 1, 2025.

It also added that Meta should submit a compliance letter to the FCCPC and NDPC, provide a revised data policy within 10 days, and end the tying of WhatsApp data to Facebook without consent.

Meta’s data practices have attracted global scrutiny. In 2023, the European Union fined the company €1.2bn for breaching data protection laws. Similar penalties have been handed to other tech giants like Amazon and Google under the EU’s GDPR framework.

Meta defended its position by saying, “In 2021, we globally informed users about how talking to businesses would work. While there was initial confusion, it has proven quite popular.”