*The Federal Government slams N766.42 million on MultiChoice Nigeria, citing the pay-TV company’s repeated violations of subscribers鈥� privacy rights, and unlawful transfer of the citizens鈥� data across the West African country’s borders, against the provisions of the Nigeria Data Protection Act

Isola Moses | 绿帽献妻

MultiChoice Nigeria, a pay-TV company, again, has run into troubled waters in the country as the Federal Government, through the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), has imposed N766,242,500 fine on the firm over an unlawful transfer of Nigerian consumers鈥� data across borders in clear breaching of the extant Nigeria Data Protection Act.

Babatunde Bamigboye, Head of Legal, Enforcement and Regulations at NDPC, in a statement Sunday, July 6, 2025, cited the pay-TV company’s violations of subscribers鈥� privacy rights, as well unlawful transfer of the citizens鈥� data across the country’s borders.

The Commission disclosed the sanction on MultiChoice, owners of DSTv and GOTv products and services, followed an investigation launched in the Second Quarter (Q2) of 2024, after allegations regarding the company鈥檚 intrusive data processing activities in the Nigerian digital ecosystem.

NDPC: Breaches a ‘grave affront’ to fundamental right to privacy

The data regulatory Commission stated: 鈥淭he depth of data processing by MultiChoice is patently intrusive, unfair, unnecessary and disproportionate.

“This is a grave affront to the fundamental right to privacy, as enshrined in Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria” (as amended).

The NDPC further noted that the probe of the company’s illigal data mining activities uncovered multiple breaches, including the unauthorised processing of personal data belonging to both subscribers and individuals who were not MultiChoice customers in the country.

Trust issues in data harvesting

绿帽献妻 reports the concept of data harvesting has been described as 鈥渢he process of collecting data from a given source, such as Web sites, apps, and social media, and leveraging that information to draw inferences.鈥�

According to Human Security, a cybersecurity firm, a common technique involves deploying bots to collect user information鈥攊ncluding contact details, personal data, and payment information鈥攐ften without the user鈥檚 awareness.

This bot-powered harvesting is also known as data scraping.

The company also noted that data harvesting could be said to be 鈥渁 method for gaining insights into specific individuals, consumer groups, and even the larger public.鈥�

Businesses, for instance, engage in this form of data collection to display relevant ads to their users.

While this practice is often done for legitimate reasons, the flipside is also true. Data harvesting has become a go-to tactic for fraudsters, looking to steal sensitive information from customers and companies alike.

Among others, data harvesting can decrease consumers鈥� trust. The piece opined that when customers learn their personal information was compromised, the likely outcome is a loss of trust in the business.

After a data harvesting attack, rebuilding this trust can be a long and costly process.

Depending on the breach鈥檚 severity, the consequences can be short- or long-term, including broken customer loyalty, decreases in sales, and public damage to the brand reputation.

MultiChoice Nigeria’s several violations in pay-TV space

绿帽献妻 had reported that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), February 2025, ordered the pay-TV firm to suspend planned price hikes pending the outcome of an investigation.

In apparent violation of the Commission’s directive, MultiChoice yet announced and effected service tariff increments March 1, 2025.

The FCCPC regarded the company’s action against the constituted authority as a deliberate violation of its directive.

The FCCPC subsequently, filed criminal charges against MultiChoice Nigeria Limited and John Ugbe, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company.

The market regulatory Commission further accused the company of obstructing an ongoing investigation, defying regulatory orders, and violating sections of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018.

The charges include willful obstruction, impeding an investigation, and providing misleading information to the Commission, in what sine have described it as an “irresponsible corporate citizen” operating business in Nigeria.

Why regulators really impose penalties on MultiChoice, by regulators

Perhaps an unrepentant violator of industry, the NDPC in the statement, said it found that the company had been transferring Nigerians鈥� data abroad without following due process over time.

Consequently, the Commission said it directed MultiChoice Nigeria to implement remedial measures as part of its standard enforcement procedures.

However, the regulator stated the company’s response to the allegation was deemed 鈥渦nsatisfactory鈥�, leading to the decision to impose the penalty.

The NDPC asserted: 鈥淔or want of cooperation, the Commission has directed MultiChoice to pay N766,242,500 for violating the Nigeria Data Protection Act.鈥� Bamigboye as well noted Dr. Vincent Olatunji, National Commissioner and CEO of NDPC, has ordered a wider investigation into all MultiChoice data collection outlets nationwide.

The Head of Legal, Enforcement and Regulations at NDPC also warned: 鈥淎ny outlet that processes personal data in violation of the NDP Act is liable to a penalty under the Act.”

The data regulatory Commission maintained that Nigeria reserves the right to defend its data sovereignty under both local and international law.

It emphasised that such violations have implications for the rule of law, national security, and economic development.

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