People in Nigeria may lose access to Facebook and Instagram after parent company Meta said it faces fines and “unrealistic” regulatory requirements from Nigerian authorities.

Last year, three Nigerian watchdog fined the U.S. social media giant, totaling more than $290 million (£218 million), violating various laws and regulations.

Meta was unsuccessful in a recent attempt to challenge the ruling of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

"Applicants may be forced to effectively close Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria to mitigate the risks of law enforcement measures," the company said in court filings.

Meta also owns WhatsApp, but does not mention the messaging service in its statement.

The High Court has provided the company with a fine until the end of June.

The BBC has asked the Met to outline what it is next, but has not received a response.

Facebook is by far the most popular social media platform in Nigeria, where tens of millions of daily communication and sharing news are used. It is also an important tool for many small online businesses in Nigeria.

Last July, Mehta was asked to pay three fines:

• Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) fined $220 million for suspected anti-competitive practices
• Advertising regulator fines $37.5 million for unauthorized advertising
• The Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC) allegedly violated the data privacy law and fined it $32.8 million.

FCCPC CEO Adamu Abdullahi said that between May 2021 and December 2023, the investigation conducted with the Data Commission revealed “invasive practices targeting data subjects/consumers in Nigeria” but did not specify what they were.

Meta said in a court filing that its "main focus" was in the data committee, which alleged "misunderstanding" of data privacy laws.

Specifically, the Commission requires META to seek prior approval before transferring any personal data from Nigeria to Nigeria - a situation called "unrealistic".

The Data Committee also made other requests.

Meta is told that the icon must be provided with educational video links about data privacy risks. This will be something created in partnership with government-approved educational institutions and nonprofits.

The NDPC insists that the videos highlight the dangers of “manipulation and unfair data processing” that could put Nigerian users at health and financial risks.

Meta described the NDPC's requirement as infeasible, saying the agency failed to "correctly interpret the laws guiding data privacy."