Abuja, July 19, 2024 – The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) says it has imposed $220 million fine against Meta Platforms Incorporated over discriminatory practices against Nigerian data and consumers.
Dr. Adamu Abdullahi, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of FCCPC disclosed this in a statement on Friday’
He said the penalty followed a joint investigation by the Commission, and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) into Meta platforms’ conduct, privacy policies, the operation thereof, and practices between May 2021 and December 2023, and over this period of 38 months.
Abdullahi said that on May 2021, the Commission had directed WhatsApp LLC and Meta Platforms, Inc., formerly called Facebook Inc., to defend themselves regarding its investigative report which detailed how their conduct allegedly violated relevant data laws.
He said Meta responded by providing some information in response to the requests and summons under the joint investigation.
The FCCPC boss said the totality of the investigation concluded that Meta platforms, over a protracted period of time, had engaged in conduct that constituted continuing infringements of the FCCPA and NDPR, “particularly, but not limited to abusive, and invasive practices against data subjects/consumers in Nigeria, such as appropriating personal data or information without consent, discriminatory practices against Nigerian data subjects/consumers or disparate treatment of consumers/data subjects compared with other jurisdictions with similar regulatory frameworks, abuse of dominant market position by forcing unscrupulous, exploitative, and non-compliant privacy policies which appropriated consumer personal information without the option or opportunity to self-determine or otherwise withhold or provide consent to the gathering, use, and/or sharing of such personal data.”
He said that having been satisfied with the evidence on the record and that Meta Parties had been provided with every opportunity to articulate any position, representations, refutations, explanations or defences of their conduct and practices under law, the Commission had entered a final order and issued a penalty against Meta Parties including $220,000,000 fine. (GBN)
