“Any Restriction On TikTok Must Have A Clear Legal Basis” — CSOs Ask NCC, NITDA, ONSA To Investigate Northern Nigeria Disruption

A coalition of 12 civil society organisations has called on the Federal Government, telecommunications regulators, network operators and TikTok to urgently investigate and explain a prolonged disruption affecting access to the social media platform in parts of northern Nigeria.

The organisations said users in Kaduna, Kebbi, Kano and Sokoto states have experienced difficulties accessing TikTok since about September 14, 2026, with what initially appeared to be intermittent access problems developing into what they described as a “multi-week digital blackout.”

The coalition comprises Accountability Lab Nigeria, Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, Digital Africa Research and Safety Lab, DigiCivic Initiative, Gatefield, Hope Behind Bars Africa, Media Rights Agenda, Paradigm Initiative, RACE Africa, Spaces for Change, TechHerNG and TechSocietal.

In a joint statement, the groups said preliminary information gathered from affected users indicated that people have struggled to load TikTok content, watch videos and upload media using ordinary mobile-data connections.

According to the coalition, the reported disruption does not appear to be limited to a single internet service provider, while some users have reportedly been able to regain access by using Virtual Private Networks.

The groups, however, cautioned that the ability of some users to access TikTok through VPNs does not, by itself, prove that the platform has been deliberately blocked.

They said available information had yet to establish whether the problem resulted from a technical failure, a network-routing issue, a malfunction on TikTok’s side, traffic-management measures or an intentional restriction.

“The reports and information have not, however, established whether the disruption results from a technical failure, a network routing problem, a platform-side malfunction, a traffic management measure, or an intentional restriction,” the coalition said.

It therefore adopted the description “TikTok Disruption” pending further technical evidence, while expressing concern that the problem had persisted for more than two weeks without a public explanation identifying its cause.

The organisations said the matter goes beyond access to entertainment because digital platforms have become important tools for business, journalism, communication, civic participation and public discourse.

“Unexplained social media disruptions not only undermine democracy but also truncate the local economy,” the coalition said.

The groups consequently called on the Nigerian Communications Commission, National Information Technology Development Agency, Office of the National Security Adviser and relevant agencies of the affected state governments to work with telecommunications companies, Internet service providers and TikTok to establish the cause of the disruption and publish their findings.

They said that if the disruption was found to have resulted from an intentional restriction, the authorities should immediately end any blocking, throttling or interference that lacked a clear legal foundation.

The coalition invoked Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which protects freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information, arguing that any government action restricting access to an online platform should satisfy requirements of legality, legitimate purpose, necessity and proportionality.

The groups also demanded public disclosure of any government directive, request or order affecting access to TikTok.

According to them, where such a directive exists, the government should disclose the authority responsible for issuing it as well as its legal basis, scope, duration and purpose.

They further asked the NCC to facilitate independent technical testing in the affected states to determine whether the difficulties were caused by ordinary network problems or some form of network-level interference.

The coalition said such tests should examine possible Domain Name System interference, IP or domain blocking, throttling, routing anomalies, application-specific filtering, Server Name Indication or protocol interference and differences between affected networks and geographical areas.

Telecommunications operators were also urged to provide timely information to consumers whenever major service disruptions occur, while the NCC was asked to determine whether the TikTok problems had been formally recorded as network incidents and, where necessary, require operators to explain their cause and anticipated restoration periods.

The coalition also turned its attention to TikTok, asking the company to disclose whether it had detected any technical problem affecting users in northern Nigeria or made changes to its infrastructure, routing or content-delivery systems that could explain the disruption.

It warned authorities against intimidating or penalising citizens, journalists, researchers and civil society organisations merely for documenting the outage, carrying out legitimate network measurements or discussing its implications.

The groups also cautioned against broad restrictions on VPN technology simply because some affected users had relied on VPNs to regain access to the platform.

They argued that VPN use in itself should not be regarded as evidence of unlawful conduct and said any restriction on such technology should similarly comply with legal requirements of necessity and proportionality.

As a longer-term measure, the coalition called for the introduction of a national Internet disruption transparency protocol that would set out how regulators, network operators and other public agencies should disclose major interruptions affecting access to digital services.

It also proposed a formal mechanism through which government agencies investigating major Internet disruptions could engage civil society groups, digital-rights organisations, technical experts, academics, affected users and industry representatives.

The groups said the arrangement would reduce uncertainty, limit misinformation and strengthen public confidence in Nigeria’s digital infrastructure.

They further asked the NCC and other authorities to publish a comprehensive report at the end of the investigation explaining what happened, the areas and networks affected, the technical cause of the disruption, whether any government agency was involved, whether a legal directive was issued and the measures taken to prevent a recurrence.

“The reported disruption to TikTok access in parts of northern Nigeria warrants prompt, transparent and independent investigation,” the coalition said.

It added that legitimate government concerns relating to national security, public order or unlawful online activity should be addressed through targeted, lawful and proportionate measures rather than unexplained restrictions affecting an entire communications platform.

The coalition said it would continue monitoring reports from affected users and engaging relevant stakeholders as it seeks additional evidence about the nature and source of the disruption.

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