The Federal High Court in Lagos recently ruled on a matter concerning a regulation by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) requiring financial institutions to collect customers’ social media handles as part of their Know-Your-Customer (KYC) procedure. Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, presiding over the case filed by lawyer Chris Eke, declared that this regulation does not violate the right to privacy.
Eke had challenged the regulation, claiming it infringed upon the constitutional right to privacy outlined in Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution. However, Justice Dimgba dismissed the suit, emphasizing that providing a social media handle is akin to furnishing email addresses or phone numbers for contact purposes. He reasoned that such information assists financial institutions in conducting due diligence to ensure customers are suitable for business transactions.
The judge highlighted that social media handles, being part of the public domain, do not breach privacy rights. He noted that individuals willingly share such information, making it accessible to the public. Additionally, he deemed concerns about monitoring social interactions by financial institutions as speculative and unfounded.
In concluding his judgment, Justice Dimgba upheld the notice of preliminary objection (NPO) filed by the CBN, effectively striking out the suit. He declined to award costs in the matter.
Overall, the ruling underscores the court’s interpretation of the regulation as a reasonable measure to enhance customer identification and does not contravene privacy rights
