Stakeholders are outraged by the CBN's directive on bank clients' social media presence

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) stated that the directive was illegal.Many parties have called the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) instruction to Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) to investigate their clients' social media presence unconstitutional.According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the mandate was included in a recent Customer Due Diligence Regulations, 2023 signed by the CBN's Director, Financial Policy and Regulations Department, Chibuzo Efobi. The CBN had ordered that all DMBs gather detailed information on their customers, including their social media names. Commercial banks must now obtain social media handles and digital identification of consumers as part of a necessary Know Your Customer (KYC) policy in the financial services industry, according to the order. According to the top bank's Customer Due Diligence Regulations 2023 report, the order is aimed at improving the battle against financial crimes. It stated that financial institutions subject to CBN regulation were now required to collect and verify customers' social media handles as part of their KYC procedure. The obligation, it added, applied to both individuals and legal entities and aimed to improve the accuracy and depth of consumer identification. Meanwhile, the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) stated that the directive was illegal. According to Vincent Olatunji, National Commissioner of the NDPC, the CBN mandate is unconstitutional and violates the Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA) just approved by President Bola Tinubu.