In her one-room apartment in Lugbe, Abuja, 35-year-old Laraba Jacob has grown increasingly frustrated by persistent phone calls from agents of a mobile payment service encouraging her to open an account.
At first, Jacob ignored the calls, believing them to be harmless. However, they soon became frequent and disruptive, interrupting her work, meetings and even navigation while using digital maps. Despite repeatedly hanging up and blocking numbers, the calls continued from new phone lines.
She said the situation lasted through most of 2025, easing only slightly toward the end of the year. “In December, they called only twice. I think they got the memo, though they’ve already called twice this year and I didn’t pick,” she said.
Beyond the inconvenience, Jacob was disturbed by how the company obtained her phone number. She later recalled starting, but not completing, an online account registration about four years earlier.
She also said unsolicited messages from loan companies had become routine, with multiple promotional messages received across several months advertising quick loans and instant cash solutions.
Jacob’s experience reflects a wider trend affecting many Nigerians who regularly receive unsolicited calls and messages promoting goods and services.
Nigeria operates under the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023, which regulates how organisations collect, process and protect personal data. Enforcement is handled by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
As digital banking, telecommunications, e-commerce, social media and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) expand, Nigerians are sharing more personal data than ever, increasing the risks of misuse, data breaches and cybercrime.
The NDPA grants individuals rights including being informed about how their data is used, accessing and correcting personal information, requesting deletion or restriction, objecting to unauthorised processing and avoiding unfair automated decision-making.
Despite this legal framework, reported data breaches involving banks, telecoms firms, online platforms and public institutions have increased, often linked to weak security systems and limited public awareness. Authorities have, however, stepped up enforcement through investigations, compliance audits and sanctions against erring organisations.
Experts say foreign companies frequently access personal data such as phone numbers and email addresses for targeted advertising, raising privacy concerns. They argue that individuals should retain control over how their data is collected, stored and used, including the right to consent or demand deletion.
Even as privacy concerns persist, analysts note that data remains central to building a strong AI ecosystem, describing it as a key driver of innovation and economic competitiveness.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Aminu Maida, has described AI as essential infrastructure, comparable to roads, power and ports, noting that countries that invest early stand to unlock productivity, jobs and economic opportunities.
At the 2025 Centre for Journalism Development AI Summit, Managing Director of Co-Creation Hub, Dr Oluwaseun Adepoju, said Africa cannot build an impactful AI ecosystem without strong data infrastructure, adding that some data can be anonymised and used for public good.
Analysts, however, warn that personal data is often reused without consent, generating profits with little benefit to data owners. They advocate fair data-sharing frameworks that promote local data storage, revenue sharing and technology transfer.
Adepoju recommended adopting data cooperatives similar to South Korea’s model, where representatives negotiate on behalf of citizens to ensure data safety and fair compensation. He also proposed data donation platforms that allow individuals to voluntarily share data for public-interest research rather than private exploitation.
Senior Tech Policy Fellow at the Mozilla Foundation, Ms Kito Shilongo, said compensation for data use could be social, political or cultural, including giving people a voice in shaping products built from their data.
Stakeholders stress that Nigeria can balance privacy protection with AI development by investing in indigenous solutions, expanding local data centres, improving skills development and increasing public awareness of data rights.
They note that Nigeria currently has about 21 active data centres, but capacity remains limited, requiring coordinated investment to meet rising demand by 2030, in line with the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy 2020–2030.