Nigeria has fined Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, $220 million for violations of antitrust, data protection, and consumer rights laws. The country’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) accused Meta of discriminatory practices, market dominance abuse, unauthorized sharing of Nigerians’ personal data, and denying Nigerians control over their data use. The decision comes after a 38-month FCCPC investigation starting in May 2021 that allegedly turned up “significant evidence” of Meta’s invasive practices against Nigerian data subjects. FCCPC chief Adamu Abdullahi emphasized the need for Meta to comply with Nigerian laws and stop exploiting consumers and abusing the market. Despite Meta proposing a remedy package, the FCCPC deemed it insufficient. The government’s action mirrors recent antitrust and data collection breaches cases against Meta in other regions, including the European Union.
SOURCE: DW
Nigeria Penalizes Meta for Data Privacy Violations
