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Mohammedia – Morocco has emerged as the clear leader in Africa when it comes to government requests for user data from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
According to the 2024 Transparency Report published by Meta, Moroccan authorities made 1,188 requests between January and December 2024. This number is striking not only for its size but also for how much it overshadows the rest of Africa.
To put the scale into perspective, Tunisia, which ranked second in Africa, made only 121 requests in the same year. Other countries followed with much lower figures: Libya (68), Algeria (54), Ghana (38), South Africa (36), and Kenya (35).
Beyond these nations, the African presence in Meta’s global report is almost negligible. This means that Morocco alone accounted for over three-quarters of all African requests submitted to Meta in 2024.
A global snapshot
Globally, Meta received 322,062 government requests targeting 600,341 user accounts in 2024. Of these, Meta provided either full or partial data in 78% of cases, underlining the company’s central role in government investigations and security cooperation.
The Moroccan contribution, while small compared to countries like the United States or India, is remarkable in the African context.
What kind of data is requested?
Meta explains that governments usually ask for user data as part of official investigations. Most requests involve criminal cases, ranging from theft and fraud to more serious crimes like kidnapping.
Typically, authorities seek basic account details such as the user’s name, the date the account was created, and records of account activity. In some cases, governments may also request IP address logs or, in rare situations, access to the actual content of communications.
The report also highlights that in urgent cases, when there is an imminent risk of serious injury or death, governments can make emergency requests without going through standard judicial procedures. Meta may comply voluntarily if it believes the request is justified under those conditions.
Why is Morocco so far ahead?
The Meta Transparency Report itself does not explain why Morocco dominates African user data requests. What is clear from other sources is that the country has significantly expanded its digital governance in recent years.
Morocco has introduced tougher cybercrime and counterterrorism policies, with the Ministry of the Interior openly warning about the use of social media for spreading disinformation and threatening national security.
At the same time, Morocco faces one of the highest rates of cyberattacks on the continent, with 12.6 million attempts recorded in 2024 alone. These pressures have likely increased demand for digital evidence from platforms like Meta in criminal and security investigations.
Meta’s expanding role in security
Beyond Morocco’s numbers, the report underlines how Meta has become a central player in security worldwide. In 2024 alone, the company received 322,062 government requests, covering more than 600,000 accounts, and it complied with at least part of the requests in 78% of cases.
This shows that platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp are no longer just tools for social interaction – they have become key sources of digital evidence for police and intelligence agencies.
For Morocco, the scale of its requests suggests that authorities see Meta’s platforms as indispensable in fighting crime, terrorism, and online threats.
The ability to obtain user information, IP addresses, or even emergency disclosures in urgent cases gives governments access to data that traditional investigations cannot provide.
This reliance, however, also raises new challenges. As Meta continues to grow as a partner for law enforcement, questions about oversight, proportionality, and privacy will remain at the forefront.
Morocco’s case illustrates how quickly digital platforms can become embedded in national security systems, and how their cooperation with governments is reshaping the boundaries between public authority and private technology.
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