A LAGOS State High Court sitting in Ikorodu has ordered X Corp, the owner and operator of the X platform (formerly Twitter), to disclose information capable of identifying the anonymous operator of a parody account accused of manipulating and republishing a Nigerian student’s birthday post.
News Point Nigeria reports that the court also awarded ₦20 million in general damages against the unidentified operator of the X account, @boutmoney112, over the unauthorised alteration and republication of the applicant’s social media post. The court further awarded conditional general damages of ₦50 million against X Corp, which would only become payable if the company fails, omits or refuses to comply with the disclosure order.
The judgment, delivered in June 2026 but only recently made public, was handed down by Justice Adeniyi Pokanu in a suit filed by Nigerian student, Esther Agboola, who operates the X handle @agirlnamed_esth.
The case is regarded as one of Nigeria’s latest judicial decisions addressing the intersection of constitutional privacy rights, personal data protection and anonymity on social media platforms.
According to the judgment, Agboola posted photographs on January 9, 2026, with the caption, “Chapter 25. Happy Birthday to me!” to celebrate her 25th birthday.
She told the court that the operator of @boutmoney112 subsequently retrieved an earlier post she had made in January 2025 while celebrating her 24th birthday.
The anonymous user allegedly altered the timestamp of that earlier post to make it appear as though it had been published in January 2022.
The court found that the alteration created a false narrative suggesting the student had lied about her age.
According to Agboola, the manipulated post exposed her to cyberbullying, harassment, public ridicule, mental distress and reputational damage.
She consequently approached the court seeking declarations that her constitutional rights had been violated, damages, and an order compelling X Corp to disclose information capable of identifying the anonymous account operator.
In his judgment, Justice Pokanu held that the unauthorised manipulation, alteration and republication of the student’s post violated her constitutional right to privacy as guaranteed under Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution.
The judge further ruled that the conduct amounted to unlawful and unfair processing of personal data contrary to Sections 24(1)(a) and 24(1)(e) of the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023.
Section 24(1)(a) requires personal data to be processed lawfully, fairly and transparently, while Section 24(1)(e) mandates that personal data must be accurate and not misleading.
In arriving at the decision, the court relied on judicial authorities affirming that constitutional privacy protections extend beyond physical spaces to include personal information and data.
Among the authorities considered were Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Ltd v. Barr Godfrey Eneye and Incorporated Trustees of Digital Rights Lawyers Initiative & Ors v. NIMC.
Justice Pokanu directed X Corp to file an Affidavit of Disclosure within 14 days of being served the enrolled order of the judgment.
The affidavit is expected to disclose information capable of identifying or locating the operator of @boutmoney112, including the person’s full name, contact details, means of identification and any other relevant information in X Corp’s possession.
The court held that X Corp, as the owner and operator of the platform, controls user information and platform activity logs capable of assisting in identifying the anonymous account holder.
The judge also considered a Dutch court order compelling a social media platform to reveal the identity of an anonymous user, which had been cited during the proceedings.
Justice Pokanu awarded ₦20 million in general damages against the unidentified second respondent for the mental anguish, emotional distress, harassment, reputational injury and humiliation suffered by Agboola.
He also awarded ₦50 million in general damages against X Corp, making the award conditional upon the company’s compliance with the disclosure order.
According to the judgment, the ₦50 million will become payable if X Corp fails, omits or refuses to file the required Affidavit of Disclosure.
The ruling therefore grants Agboola both monetary relief against the anonymous user and a court-backed mechanism for obtaining information capable of revealing the person’s identity.
The applicant was represented by Dr. Olumide Babalola and two other lawyers.
The judgment noted that neither respondent filed any processes in the suit, and neither had legal representation before the court.
The court consequently granted the applicant’s originating motion dated January 25, 2026, in its entirety.