The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has disclosed that interactive computer service platforms/internet intermediaries such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, among others are required to fulfill specific conditions in order to continue operations in Nigeria. This was made known on Monday in a document issued by NITDA, which stated that each online platform is required to register as a legal entity with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), comply with regulatory demands and tax obligations, and also appoint a country representative, who will interface with Nigerian authorities.
Online platforms are also expected to “abide by Nigerian laws and not deploy or modify their platform in any way that will undermine or interfere with the application and/or enforcement of the law.
“Act expeditiously upon receiving a Court order directing a Platform to provide any information under its domain or any assistance to any authorized government agency for the purpose of carrying out an investigation, combating cybercrimes, or prosecuting an offense.
“Act expeditiously upon receiving a notice from a user or an authorized government agency of the presence of unlawful content on its Platform. A Platform must acknowledge the receipt of the complaint and take down the content within 24 hours.
“Act expeditiously to remove, disable or block access to non-consensual content that exposes a person’s private areas, full or partial nudity, sexual act, or revenge porn, where such content is targeted to harass, disrepute or intimidate an individual”.
NITDA stated that the Code of Practice is focused on safeguarding the human rights of both Nigerians and non-Nigerians living in Nigeria against hate speech, cyber bullying as well as disinformation, and/or misinformation.
It was also created to “provide information to authorities on harmful accounts, suspected botnets, troll groups, and other coordinated disinformation networks and delete any information that violates Nigerian law within an agreed time”.
The Code of Practice was developed in partnership with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) with input from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, among others.
The Agency stated that the Code of Practice “shall come into effect on the date issued by NITDA”.
