Meta Platforms, parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has appealed a Lagos High Court judgment that ordered it to stop unlawfully processing the personal data of Nigerian Facebook and Instagram users for behavioural advertising and pay the naira equivalent of $100,000 in damages.
The company filed its notice of appeal on September 30, five days after Justice A.F. Pokanu of the Lagos High Court, Ikorodu Judicial Division, ruled that Meta’s non-consensual collection, profiling, and use of users’ data for targeted advertising violated privacy rights protected by Nigeria’s Constitution and the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023.
The appeal brings the consent dispute, targeted advertising, and cross-border data transfers before the Court of Appeal.
The suit was brought by the Incorporated Trustees of Laws and Rights Awareness Initiative and five individual applicants. The court ordered Meta to stop the unlawful processing, take remedial steps to bring its Nigerian data-processing operations into compliance with the NDPA, and submit an affidavit of compliance within eight weeks. It also awarded the applicants $100,000 in general damages, ₦1 million ($753.20) in costs and post-judgment interest.
Originally published by TechCabal.