Nigeria regulator seeks $70M penalty in lawsuit against Meta
By CHINEDU ASADU
Associated Press
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A Nigerian advertising regulator has sued Meta, accusing the owner of Facebook and WhatsApp of publishing unauthorized ads. In a lawsuit filed in a local court, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria sought a $70 million penalty against Meta for publishing unvetted digital ads and for loss of government revenue. A Meta spokesperson said the company doesn’t comment on ongoing legal claims. Nigerian advertising laws require the regulator to approve ads based on certain criteria with the involvement of an advertising practitioner in Africa’s largest economy. The court case comes about a year after the Nigerian government began moves to get social media networks to run local offices in the country.