Meta Fined $220 Million by Nigeria’s Antitrust Agency Over WhatsApp Privacy Policy

Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, has been slapped with a $220 million fine by Nigeria’s antitrust agency for breaching data and privacy laws with its updated privacy policy. The Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) stated that its inquiry into WhatsApp’s May 2021 privacy policy revealed significant fairness violations imposed on Nigerian users.

The FCCPC initiated the investigation following concerns about the privacy policy update that WhatsApp introduced globally in May 2021. The commission found that the new terms were enforced without adherence to standards of fairness, particularly impacting Nigerian users.

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In a statement, the FCCPC noted that the remedies proposed by Meta in April were inadequate to address the concerns raised. “A package of remedies Meta proposed in April didn’t resolve its concerns,” the commission reported, according to Bloomberg.

WhatsApp defended its policy update, with a spokesperson explaining, “In 2021, we went to users globally to explain how talking to businesses among other things would work and while there was a lot of confusion then, it’s actually proven quite popular. We disagree with the decision today as well as the fine and we are appealing the decision.”

The commission has mandated Meta to restore Nigerian users’ rights to control the use of their data immediately. Furthermore, Meta must ensure that its privacy policy is in full compliance with applicable data protection laws and halt the sharing of WhatsApp users’ information with other Facebook companies and third parties.

Source: Bloomberg