Meta and NDPC to resolve $32.8 million data privacy dispute out of court

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has initiated settlement negotiations with the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC) following a $32.8 million fine for alleged violations of the Nigerian Data Protection Act.

This comes on Friday, a day when a ruling was also expected on the preliminary objections concerning the ongoing case.

The fine, issued in February 2025, followed the outcome of an investigation in which the commission found Meta guilty of processing the personal data of Nigerians without proper consent. The company was also found to have engaged in behavioural advertising and breached cross-border data rules. The Commission also faulted the company for not filing a compliance audit and for handling data of non-users.

Based on these findings, it issued eight corrective orders alongside the financial penalty.

Meta rejected the decision, insisting it was denied a fair hearing. The company maintained that it had not been given adequate notice or opportunity to respond before sanctions were imposed, arguing that the process violated its constitutional right to due process. It subsequently asked the court to quash the orders.

The NDPC, however, countered by describing the suit as defective and incompetent. Its lawyers maintained that Meta’s filings were inconsistent and that the company was attempting to substitute reliefs already ruled upon with new claims, which is not permissible under court rules. This back-and-forth set the stage for a key ruling.

Dispute gives way to dialogue

Lawyers in both camps surprised spectators by announcing that negotiations were heading towards a settlement. They explained that draft terms were circulated and asked for time to complete talks.

The judge, noting that the law encourages friendly settlement, agreed to refrain from making his decision and adjourned to October 31, 2025, to allow either the adoption of a consent judgment or a final order.

While the Commission initially declined, engaging in settlement negotiations is an acknowledgement that negotiation could provide quicker and more convenient outcomes than a prolonged court fight. Similarly, Meta’s willingness to negotiate is a desire to avoid long-term uncertainty in one of Africa’s largest digital markets.

Why this matters for Nigeria’s digital future

The case is one of the biggest tests of Nigeria’s two-year Data Protection Act. Passed in 2023 to give rights to data subjects, the law tightens the requirements on companies conducting business in Nigeria to safeguard user information, obtain explicit consent, and submit compliance reports. The fine imposed on Meta, along with an independent ₦766.2 million fine imposed on Multichoice Nigeria, suggests that the NDPC is ready to drop the big hammer on foreign and local companies.

For Nigeria, the negotiations on settlement have two important messages. For one, they show that regulators are willing to take a strong stance on the protection of data rights, including against multinationals.

Second, they highlight that foreign tech companies cannot operate outside their own domestic context without consequences. That tension between enforcement and debate will likely frame how the digital economy unfolds, especially as more Nigerians get online and data becomes more valuable.

Read also: Meta threatens to shut down Facebook and Instagram in Nigeria over $290 million fines

The outcome also impacts consumer confidence. In case settlements have stricter requirements of compliance, Nigerians are able to have greater trust that their private data is being handled responsibly.

This could facilitate increased participation in the digital economy, particularly in sectors like e-commerce, fintech, and online services, where trust is essential for adoption. However, if settlements seem too lenient, it calls into question whether big businesses can negotiate themselves out of accountability.

For Meta, the outcome of this case will not just make the company more sensitive to compliance in Nigeria, but it will also resonate across its wider operations across the African continent. Nigeria is the largest internet market on the African continent and is often used as an experimental ground for new policies and digital habits.

A settlement that binds the company to a set of standards could have a spill-over effect elsewhere in other jurisdictions, forcing Meta to adopt similar stronger protections elsewhere on the continent.

Similarly, the NDPC’s handling of the case would strengthen its image as a regulator. Closure on positive terms would show that the Commission possesses the will and power to sanction big global businesses and bring them to order. This will further promote more accountable investment in Nigeria’s tech sector, since businesses will be able to get a clear model for dealing with regulators.

With both parties preparing to head back to court in late October, everyone will be watching to see if they settle or if the court is forced to rule on the objections. Either way, the case has already set a precedent for how Nigeria intends to approach data privacy in an era when digital platforms are having an outsized influence on life.