The organisation, WhatsApp, said this in a statement made available on Saturday in Lagos.
It said: “We disagree with the decision today as well as the fine and Meta will be appealing the decision.
“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 has actually proven quite popular.
The response came in a statement issued by the FCCPC, which was signed by Adamu Abdullahi, the acting executive chairman, and claimed that Meta had refused to give Nigerian consumers access over their data.
The FCCPC claimed that Meta had used its market dominance and exchanged user data without permission.
The media-released statement claimed that Meta was subject to a monetary penalty of only $220 million USD as a result of the FCCPC’s final order.
According to the statement, the fine complies with both the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection (Administrative Penalties) Regulations 2020 and the FCCPA 2018.
Based on information indicating that Meta had violated the terms of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation 2019 and the FCCPA 2018 through its platforms, the FCCPC declared in May 2021 that it had opened an investigation
It said that these rules were in force before the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 was passed and put into force.
The competition protection body observed that Meta supplied certain information in response to summons and document requests.
It said that, up to April 4, 2024, Meta’s representatives and hired legal counsel had regularly communicated with and met with investigators and analysts from the commission and the NDPC.
The FCCPC emphasized that during the course of its inquiry, it found evidence that Meta was abusing and invading Nigerian data users.
Among other things, this involved discriminatory actions against Nigerians and the unauthorized collection of personal data
Located in Menlo Park, California, Meta Platforms, Inc., doing business as Meta, is an international technological company of American origin.
In addition to other goods and services, the business owns and runs Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp.
Facebook Comments