MTN Nigeria has found itself in another “major” data depletion claim, further raising questions about consumer rights, ethical data deductions, and unauthorised data billing. The matter, currently trending on X (formerly Twitter), has led to public outcry and is being tracked by millions of Nigerians.
A Nigerian lawyer and MTN Nigeria subscriber, Zaenab Olawunmi Adams, Esq, challenged the unexplained depletion of 708.55GB of an 800GB annual data allocation in just 104 days, demanding that the operator provide detailed records explaining how the data was consumed.
In a formal complaint sent to MTN Customer Care on August 27, 2026, Zaenab, a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, said she subscribed to MTN’s 800GB annual data plan for ₦125,000 on May 15, 2026.
On data depletion
According to the complaint, her account showed a remaining balance of 91.45GB as of August 27, meaning approximately 708.55GB had been depleted, representing about 88.6% of the 800GB allocation, despite only about three months and 12 days having elapsed since she made the subscription.
Zaenab argues that the rate of depletion is unusual, which warrants an investigation into the accuracy and integrity of MTN’s data-accounting system, the backend framework the operator tried to defend its integrity during the Data on Trial event in June.
During the late hours of Sunday, August 30, three days after Zaenab filed the complaint through her law firm, Losen Solicitors, MTN responded with a data usage report.
Although Zeanab said the company didn’t provide an explanation outside written records, she said in an X post that a representative of the telecoms operator had reached out to settle the matter via phone call.
However, the information supplied in one of the over 100-page spreadsheets sent for the data usage report triggered more concerns.
Date, Hour, Time
0 hour, 21 hour, 22 hour, 23hour
This isn’t an explanatory report like I demanded but a muddled up report.
My mail to you @MTNNG was well detailed and explanatory that a secondary school student can easily read and understand.
I believe I duly deserve the… pic.twitter.com/9U5ueKBD3e
— Arike Sugar Sugar (@yettydlaw_)
August 31, 2026
First, the spreadsheet is not presenting the transactions in chronological order. Reading the spreadsheet from top to bottom, the balance appears to jump: 639.05 → 637.73 → 638.01 → 638.19 → 636.68 → 638.18…
It looks strange because the times themselves are out of order. For instance: 16:15 → 18:03 → 17:07 → 17:16 → 20:19 → 17:16 → 16:22… It raises questions about how MTN’s data accounting system works, and why the supplied records show balances moving both upward and downward.
Secondly, if the report is chronological and balances increase between transactions, MTN would need to explain the source and nature of those credits, reversals, or adjustments, and provide a clear breakdown of where the data went.
Also, if MTN is sending a customer an over 100-page report, the customer should reasonably be able to understand how the data depleted, what it was used for, and the calculations. Any attempt to present the data in a vague manner translates to a means to confuse and frustrate the user from exercising their rights.
The rigid over 100-page document now requires Zeanab to seek the services of a data analyst to help understand the report.
Nigerian subscribers expect to get maximum utility for mobile data bundles they buy. If the data runs out when it wasn’t expected to, they feel cheated. But a large percentage tend to let go at the first occurrence.
Internet subscriber
When they experience data depletion for a second time, they tend to react and voice their complaints. The situation becomes serious when they realise other subscribers are experiencing the same.
The public outcry becomes critical at a time when purchasing power is rapidly declining owing to harsh economic conditions and when the cost of data subscription has become expensive following the telecoms tariff review in January 2025.
The Zaneab case is not the first
In an attempt to get more reactions, a Google Form has been created to gather responses from MTN Nigeria’s subscribers who have, at one time or another, suffered from data depletion or felt cheated.
Also Read: MTN Nigeria blames system glitch for inflated data usage report.
The case comes days after Bashir Ahmad, Special Assistant on Digital Communications to former President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari, claimed MTN Nigeria SMS data reported that he used 58.83 GB via the cellular network on Tuesday, August 11.
It was more suspicious when MTN’s daily data report initially supplied an inflated accumulation of data consumption for Tuesday, August 11, to customers before sending another report with the inscription “your corrected data usage for 11-08-2026…”
Days later, in its Newsletter, the operator acknowledged that its daily data usage SMS report experienced a temporary glitch during that week. This caused the system to incorrectly display the figures by calculating the data usage based on gigabytes (GB) instead of megabytes (MB).
However, the glitch and clarifications raised more questions about the integrity of MTN’s system. It failed to clarify whether the glitch only affected the system that sends data reports via SMS or its backend system that calculates and deducts data usage of subscribers.
Before the operator publicly acknowledged the glitch, MTN had sent a usage breakdown of their supposed “incorrect data calculation report” to the former Presidential aide.
In its Data on Trial event, MTN made an attempt to clarify what has changed in how data depletes, compared to two years ago.
Karl Toriola, the Chief Executive Officer, explained that 4G/5G speeds and new smartphones and their default high-definition settings can increase data consumption for images, audio and video, which require more data. He added that continuous cloud/WhatsApp background backups are the main drivers behind rapid bundle depletion.
Meanwhile, the problem is not necessarily that Nigerians don’t have the money to get data; they only demand an explanation and accountability for a data depletion calculation they find strange.
MTN Nigeria CEO, Karl Toriola at MTN’s Data on Trial on Saturday June 6, 2026
Beyond sending daily data usage reports or rolling out a data calculator, MTN needs to provide an honest and detailed explanation of how its data accounting works.
The issue is not whether faster networks, high-resolution content or background processes can consume more data. The bigger question Nigerians are asking is whether the volume of data deducted from their bundle accurately corresponds to the traffic generated.
The operator’s response to this growing concern should go beyond explaining how modern smartphones and high-speed internet consume more data. MTN should address the integrity and transparency of its data-depletion records.
It’s not an affordability conversation, but a matter of trust and accountability in MTN’s data calculation meter.
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