Data Protection: NITDA Approves NCC’s Regulation On Telecom Firms

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says it has approved the regulation of the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) on telecommunications companies, in line with the Nigerian Data Protection Regulation (NDPR).
The Director-General of NITDA, Mr Inuwa Kashifu, said this yesterday in a statement  in Abuja while reacting to a publication on ‘New NCC Directive will push telecoms to violate the NDPR’ on October 18.
The Tide’s source reports that NDPR was established in January 2019 to ensure privacy data protection and avoid violations by data providers, among other requirements.
According to the director-general, NCC’s directive to telecommunication companies is to ensure they stored and made available, recordings of communications carried out over their network was in line with the provisions of the NDPR.
According to him, the regulation is to ensure that  government provides adequate information to relevant regulators and made them aware of the benefits accrued for national security.
Kashifu said “The right to privacy, which the NDPR seeks to protect, is established by Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution as amended”.