FG goes tough on businesses, unveils tool that helps Nigerians report breach of data privacy

• The contented of information privateness has been connected the beforehand burner for a while, particularly aft a fashionable fintech mislaid billions of naira successful a breach past year
• The national authorities has present launched an implementation and exertion usher for businesses to support customers from specified breaches
• There is besides a instrumentality that allows the customers instrumentality an progressive portion successful the process by instantly reporting suspected breaches to the NDPC

Legit.ng writer Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has implicit a decennary of acquisition successful concern reporting crossed integer and mainstream media.

In the quest to safeguard the rights of Nigerians to information privateness and protection, the national authorities has unveiled the Nigerian Data Protection Act General Application and Implementation Directive (NDP ACT-GAID).

The Act includes provisions that screen areas similar Lawful Bases of Data Processing, Data Protection Principles, Data Subjects’ Rights, Material and Territorial Scope of the NDP Act Data Ethics and Emerging Technologies.

National Commissioner/ CEO of the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Dr. Vincent Olatunji, announced this successful a quality league successful Abuja connected Thursday.

The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) volition present beryllium partnering with the users, who volition stroke the whistle connected information breaches. Photo credit: Fayez Nureldine/Rob Dobi
Source: Getty Images

Olatunji noted that this would impact the objectives of the 2023 Data Protection Act, and propulsion Nigeria to the frontiers of the 4th Industrial Revolution arsenic envisaged by the government.

Data Breach leads to nonaccomplishment of N11 billion

The contented of information information has been connected the apical burner for immoderate months. Recall that Nigerian outgo elephantine Flutterwave suffered repeated breaches.

The institution lost $24 million successful the first, and N11 cardinal successful the 2nd breach. The hackers transferred the funds to respective accounts successful 5 Nigerian banks.

Breaches often hap owed to the compromise of information systems wherever customers/users' information person been stored.

With the NDPC Act-GAID, the national authorities is protecting Nigerians from being victims of specified breaches owed to errors from businesses.

Areas covered successful the Implementation Directive

Other areas covered successful the NDP ACT-General Application and Implementation Directive (GAID) see Data Privacy Impact Assessment, Cross-border Data Transfer, NDP Act Compliance Audit Returns, Training and Certification of Data Protection Officers, Cooperation and Collaboration.

It besides includes; Benchmarking with planetary champion practices, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Standardised Grievances Redress Mechanism, and emerging technologies similar Artificial Intelligence.

According to Olatunji, implementation of the NDP Act-GAID is portion of the government’s determination to make an enabling situation for businesses, portion besides ensuring that citizens’ privacy, correspondence, telephone conversations, telegraphic communications and homes should beryllium protected according to the law.

Recall that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) had its website taken implicit by hackers aft a data breach.

Implementation commences successful six months

The NDPC CEO announced that afloat implementation commences successful September 2025, portion the provisions relating to fees travel into effect successful January 2026, Leadership News reports.

Implementation volition commence successful six months, portion provisions that person to bash with fees volition instrumentality afloat effect connected 1st of January 2026. Photo credit: NDPC
Source: UGC

This volition supply the businesses capable clip to marque the needed adjustments and incorporated privateness features by plan and by default. Organisations volition besides person clip to beryllium afloat acquainted with the provisions, ruling retired immoderate claims of ignorance.

Olatunji noted that NDPC had conducted respective engagements with constituted authorities, civilian nine organisations, firm bodies, planetary bodies, the media, and the information subjects.

Data subjects tin initiate remediation

Mr. Olatunji noted that the privateness breach remediation process has besides been afloat democratized truthful subjects can initiate remediation erstwhile they fishy a breach of privacy.

He said;

“We achieved this by introducing information subjects’ Standard Notice to Address Grievance (SNAG) which empowers information subjects to usage the instrumentality of the Commission to request remedial enactment from information controllers and processors without archetypal penning to the Commission.“This process makes implicit 230 cardinal Nigerians our contiguous and nonstop partners successful ensuring adequacy of information extortion successful Nigeria. Through Automation, the SNAG volition beryllium accessible anyplace successful each nooks and crannies of Nigeria and astir the world.”

Olatunji warned that information processors and controllers volition present person to reply for their actions and omissions, arsenic it affects the rights of Nigerian citizens.

NDPC launches Know Your Data Rights campaign

In related news, the NDPC launched a Know-Your-Data-Rights run to amended the nationalist connected what their rights and responsibilities are successful narration to information protection.

The run warned Nigerians to beryllium cautious erstwhile surfing the net oregon buying online, and debar opening unusual mails oregon clicking unusual links.

NDPC noted that specified actions from users could compromise information information and pb to immense losses.

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Source: Legit.ng