Regulation Of Digital Platforms And Online Businesses

Online businesses and Digital platforms have transformed the economic sector of countries around the world, including Nigeria. From food-delivery apps like Glovo and Chowdeck to E-commerce platforms like Jumia and Jiji to social media platforms and AI like ChatGPT, these technology-driven platforms have completely revolutionized individual interactions and the exchange of goods and services.

This increasing use of digital platforms and online business has brought about many notable changes, including a surge in the growth of the entrepreneurial sector and an increase in the employment rate, even as new and existing businesses continue to leverage online platforms to reach a wider audience and guarantee 24/7 accessibility to their customers all over the world.

With the development and continual integration of digital platforms and online businesses into our everyday lives, significant legal and regulatory challenges, such as data privacy/protection, payment of taxes, platform liability, consumer rights, etc., have come to light, showing the need for effective regulation of these platforms to ensure accountability, protect users, and maintain a fair digital market competition.

DATA PRIVACY AND PROTECTION:

Data privacy and protection generally refer to the management and safeguarding of consumers’ personal data collected by online businesses and digital platforms. Where these platforms lack appropriate data protection and privacy practices, they lose the digital trust of consumers, as users will be unwilling to share sensitive personal data.

In Nigeria, data privacy and protection are primarily regulated by the Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA).¹ By the provisions of the NDPA, digital platforms and online businesses that interface with consumer data are required to process data lawfully and in a manner that guarantees transparency, data minimization, and purpose limitation.

These responsibilities of digital platforms have been further reinforced by recent regulatory developments like the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) Digital Lending Regulations 2025², which place limitations on how digital lending platforms may use consumer data, expressly prohibiting actions like gaining unauthorized access to customers’ personal contacts for coercive debt collection or harassment. This highlights increasing focus on legal, equitable, and transparent data handling in Nigeria’s digital space.

The increasing impact of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is the law upon which the NDPA is largely modelled, the continued adoption of AI, and consumers’ increasing demand for more transparency, guarantee a stricter enforcement of these data protection and privacy laws in the future.

PLATFORM LIABILITY AND CONTENT MODERATION

The use of digital platforms like social media has transformed the way information is shared, enabling quick and widespread dissemination at the tap of a button. However, this evolution in information dissemination has raised questions about the liability of these platforms regarding user-generated content.

Recent global occurrences involving the misuse of AI digital platforms like ChatGPT have also intensified the argument that platforms owe a duty of care as it pertains to user-generated content³.

In Nigeria, recent developments like the White Paper on the Framework for an Online Harm Protection Bill (OHP Bill), as published by the Advocacy of Policy and Innovation in Partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) indicate a shift to a more organized and structured approach to content monitoring and liability of digital platforms in Nigeria.

In particular, the Bill aims to establish an exhaustive regulatory framework that places specific responsibilities on digital platforms, especially those that host user-generated content. It introduces a “duty of care”⁴ model that requires digital platforms to proactively identify and mitigate harmful online content, while balancing users’ rights to privacy and freedom of expression.

CONSUMER PROTECTION IN THE DIGITAL SPACE

In the light of potential risks connected with digital purchases, an emerging legal trend as it pertains to the regulation of digital platforms and online businesses is the protection and safeguarding of the interests and economic rights of consumers. Regulators like the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, the Advertising and Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON)⁵, and the Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA) demand transparency in negotiations, advertising, and pricing, placing on digital businesses the responsibility to make sure that customers are well-informed and shielded from dishonest business practices.

The FCCPC DEON 2025⁶ highlights a step in the direction of strengthening consumer protection more than ever. The regulation introduces mandatory registration and approval procedures for digital lending platforms and prohibits exploitative activities like harassment, intimidation, and deceptive loan terms by these platforms.

LICENSING OF DIGITAL BUSINESSES

Despite their virtual operations, online businesses and digital platforms are generally still required to register with relevant regulators. In highly regulated sectors like Fintech (OPay, MoniePoint, etc.), these digital platforms must obtain a sector-specific license before they can commence operations. This implies that these platforms have adhered to relevant regulatory standards and function within established legal frameworks.

CONCLUSION

Technological innovation has led to a rapid increase in digital platforms and online businesses, which have reshaped the commercial and economic landscape of countries around the world, including Nigeria.

This reshaping of the economic sector has come with its attendant legal and regulatory challenges, demanding a flexible, robust, and ever-evolving system that governs and oversees these digital activities if we want to sustainably balance innovation amidst control, consumer protection, accountability, and fair competition.

Footnotes

1. The Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023 is regulated by the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC)

2. DEON Regulations 2025

3. The case of Adam Raine, a teenage boy who committed suicide, allegedly with the help of ChatGPT

4. The White Paper defines “duty of care” as the legal obligation placed on internet service providers, social media platforms, search engines, and other online intermediaries to take reasonable measures to avoid harm to users from content transmitted or stored on their platforms.- https://nitda.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Updated-OHP-WHITE-PAPER-copy-compressed.pdf

5. See the case of Digi Bay Limited V Attorney General of the Federation & Anor, Unreported Suit No. FHC/L/CS/1262/2024), where the Federal High Court affirmed that ARCON’s powers extend to the regulation of adverts and marketing done on social media.

6. FCCPC Digital, Electronic, Online, or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations, 2025. See footnote 2 above.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.