The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has put Guarantee Trust, Fidelity and Zenith Banks under investigation over alleged data breach.
Also under investigation of the Commission according to the News Agency of Nigeria is Babcock University and Leadway Insurance.
A data breach is an unauthorized access to confidential information.
The National Commissioner of the Commission, Vincent Olatunji disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
Olatunji revealed that the investigation came following complaints from data subjects.
He explained that with the new Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA), the commission had been empowered with a legal framework to address issues of citizens’ data breaches.
“In the last few weeks, the NDPC has received complaints bordering on unlawful data processing, unauthorized access to personal data and violation of data subjects’ rights.
“Under Part 10 of the newly signed NDPA 2023, a data controller with a turnover of N200 billion yearly may pay as high as N2 billion, which represents two per cent of the gross revenue.
“Not only that, offenders also risk up to one-year jail term. We are currently investigating Guarantee Trust Bank, Fidelity, Unity, Zenith Banks, Leadway Insurance and Babcock University, among others, for data breach,” Olatunji disclosed.
According to him, many micro-finance banks have yet to align their operations with data privacy and protection requirements.
He further revealed that loaning organisations would face the law with the new mandate of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
Olatunji said the mandate required loan organisations to seek compliance and clearance from NDPC before approving online lenders.
“The commission is investigating over 400 complaints in the online lending sector. Soko Loan is already working on a comeback to the digital lending market, but yet to be approved,” said the commissioner.
He, however, said that the commission was engaging in sensitisation exercises to ensure that data controllers understood the implications of a data breach.
According to the national commissioner, the NDPC prioritises awareness more than the scorched earth enforcement process.
