In the first quarter of 2025, TikTok intensified its enforcement of community norms, purging more than 3.6 million videos posted by Nigerian users for policy infractions. The company’s Community Guidelines Enforcement Report reveals that Nigeria has consistently ranked among the top 50 countries for content removals, with violations spanning Integrity & Authenticity, Privacy & Security, Mental & Behavioural Health, Safety, and Civility
This surge in removals follows a sharp rise from the 2.4 million Nigerian videos taken down in Q4 2024, part of TikTok’s broader global crackdown that saw a total of 153 million videos removed across all markets
The platform has also deleted 211.5 million accounts in that period, 185.3 million fake profiles and 20.5 million underage accounts, to preserve safety and authenticity
TikTok emphasizes its proactive approach: it now flags harmful content before user reports in over 98 percent of cases globally. In Nigeria, up to 99 percent of violating content was removed swiftly, often within 24 hours, and mostly without user prompting
According to the platform, the bulk of removed material from Nigeria related to sensitive or mature themes (99.4 percent flagged pre-report), regulated goods like illicit trade (99.1 percent flagged in advance), and mental-health content (99.9 percent flagged before reports). TikTok attributes this to a strengthening of algorithms and investments in Trust & Safety technologies
Nigeria’s recent spike in video takedowns illustrates TikTok’s commitment to safeguarding users, especially youth, from harmful content. While critics argue these measures can curb freedom of expression, TikTok maintains that robust moderation is essential for a safe, positive digital ecosystem.