Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is seeking an out-of-court settlement with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) following a $32.8 million fine imposed on the company for alleged data privacy breaches involving Nigerian users.
At a hearing before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, legal representatives of both parties confirmed that settlement discussions were at an advanced stage and that draft terms had already been exchanged. They requested an adjournment to finalize the negotiations, with the possibility of presenting the agreement to the court for adoption as a consent judgment.
The dispute originated in February 2025, when the NDPC fined Meta and issued eight corrective orders over alleged violations of the Nigeria Data Protection Act. According to the Commission, Meta engaged in behavioural advertising without securing users’ consent, failed to file its mandatory 2022 compliance audit, breached rules on cross-border data transfers, and unlawfully processed the data of non-users.
Meta challenged the sanctions, arguing that it was denied due process and fair hearing before the penalties were imposed. The company’s counsel, Prof. Gbolahan Elias, SAN, claimed that the Commission’s actions contravened constitutional rights guaranteed under Section 36. NDPC’s counsel, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, countered that Meta’s lawsuit was fundamentally flawed and asked the court to dismiss it.
Justice Omotosho, who had earlier reserved ruling on the Commission’s preliminary objection and Meta’s motion to amend its filings, adjourned the matter to October 31, 2025, for either the adoption of settlement terms or delivery of a ruling.
The case is one of several recent enforcement actions by the NDPC since the Nigeria Data Protection Act came into effect in June 2023. In July, Multichoice Nigeria was fined N766.2 million for breaching subscribers’ privacy rights and carrying out unauthorized cross-border data transfers.
-
Meta Moves to Settle $32.8m Data Privacy Dispute with Nigeria Regulator
Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is seeking an out-of-court settlement with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) following a
