A Nigerian online influencer and social commentator has taken MTN Nigeria to court after claimed that the telecommunications giant failed to explain how approximately 150 gigabytes of data vanished from his line, including 20GB that disappeared in just eight minutes while his mobile data was switched off.
The case, filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, is scheduled for mention on November 18. The plaintiff, known online as KAA, is a popular podcaster and social commentator who documented the dispute with the telco in detail on his social media pages.
In his account, KAA wrote: “About three weeks ago, I posted about how over 150GB disappeared from my MTN line. The most shocking part was that 20GB vanished in 8 minutes, with my mobile data turned off.”
He explained that MTN responded swiftly: “Within minutes of making that post, MTN Nigeria replied publicly. They said they had investigated and that I actually used the data. They said this without even knowing which number was affected.”
When he challenged the claim, he said the telco reached out privately: “When I called out that false claim, they messaged me privately on X and asked to call me. On the call, a customer service agent apologised when I asked why they had lied publicly about an investigation that never happened. Then we got to the real issue. She admitted she had no answers. She said she would send the case to their technical team and call me back.”
Days later, MTN returned with what it described as investigation results. KAA recounted: “According to MTN, I used 30GB on Google services that day, and another 19GB watching YouTube while I was in a meeting at Transcorp. Looks like I now have a spirit that uses my phone to watch videos while I’m in a meeting.”
He then challenged the explanation with independent calculations: “YouTube uses data based on video quality. The heaviest setting, 4K, uses about 7GB an hour. Using 20GB would take nearly 3 hours of nonstop 4K. I lost 20GB in 8 minutes. That’s more than 20 times faster than the heaviest video YouTube can play. And 19GB on YouTube while I was in a meeting? That’s almost 3 straight hours of 4K on a phone, in a meeting room. With my data turned off.”
KAA also questioned the network speeds required: “Forget video. Say my phone was just downloading as fast as it could. To pull 20GB in 8 minutes, it would need about 330 Mbps every single second, with no dips. That’s faster than MTN’s own typical 5G speed in Abuja, which NCC data puts at around 180 Mbps.”
He further noted the location made the claim implausible: “I was at Transcorp Hilton Abuja, where MTN coverage is poor in my experience. A weak signal means slower speeds and less data used. MTN is asking me to believe my phone hit record-breaking speeds in a place where it can barely hold a signal.”
On the possibility of uploads, he wrote: “Suppose I uploaded files instead. MTN’s upload speed usually swings between 15 and 20 Mbps. At that speed, 100GB alone takes 11 to 15 hours. All 150GB vanished between 6 AM and 2 PM. That’s 8 hours. To upload 150GB in that window, my phone would need more than double MTN’s normal upload speed, nonstop, for 8 hours straight. I have never uploaded a large file from my phone in my life.”
He also cited his device records: “The iPhone 17 Pro Max eSIM has a 5,088 mAh battery capacity, and at 95 percent Battery health, it would take about 25-30 percent to stream a 4K Video on YouTube for three hours, but on that day, my battery usage records showed that YouTube used only 2% of Battery and spent about 20 minutes screen time. And going even further, my phone shows I have used 23.8GB on YouTube for the entire 10 months that I started using the phone. MTN says I used 19GB of that in one day, during a meeting.”
He added: “By the time I was done with the maths from my own investigation, she simply said she would have to go back for more investigation and call again. That was 12 days ago. I haven’t heard back.”
KAA directed his frustration at the company’s leadership rather than the agent: “I don’t blame her, and I told her so. She’s a customer service agent doing her job. The people who should answer are the ones behind the executive doors who signed off on that public claim.”
He concluded: “My last words to her were: tell your people not to bother sending you again. Bring the explanation and the results of your so-called investigation to court. We meet MTN and the other telcos at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on the 18th of this month.”
The matter comes amid growing public frustration over data depletion complaints in Nigeria. MTN Nigeria has not publicly commented on the specific allegations. The case goes to the Federal High Court in Abuja on November 18.
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