TikTok Bans Late-Night LIVE Access in Nigeria, Cites Safety Investigation
- TikTok has temporarily restricted its LIVE feature in Nigeria during late-night hours, claiming that the restriction is part of an ongoing safety investigation
- Many Nigerian content creators reported seeing a “No Access” label and were unable to view LIVE streams from other countries
- The move followed TikTok’s recent release of safety statistics showing millions of removed videos and penalised LIVE sessions
Oluwatobi Odeyinka is a business editor at Legit.ng, covering energy, the money market, tech and macroeconomic trends in Nigeria.
TikTok has placed a temporary restriction on its LIVE feature for Nigerian users during late-night hours, according to an in-app notice issued to creators as part of an ongoing safety investigation.
On Sunday at midnight, some users received a system message stating that the platform was “temporarily limiting LIVE late at night in Nigeria” to ensure user safety and protect the community.
Source: Getty Images
The notification appeared only for creators eligible to host LIVE sessions — those with at least 1,000 followers. Checks showed that LIVE sessions that were active earlier in the night went offline between 11 pm and 5 am, Punch reported.
During the restriction window, affected accounts displayed a “No Access” tag. Creators were also unable to view LIVE broadcasts from outside Nigeria.
Several creators confirmed that all LIVE activities were unavailable overnight. Although, TikTok clarified that users’ existing LIVE earnings and balances remained unchanged.
By Monday morning, the feature had been restored, prompting reactions on social media as users debated the reason behind the nationwide limitation.
Late-night hours are typically high-traffic periods for Nigerian streamers who host interactive shows, entertainment segments and other content that attracts gifts from viewers.
The development comes shortly after TikTok released new safety statistics for West Africa.
At its West Africa Safety Summit in Dakar, Senegal, the company reported that in the second quarter of 2025, it acted against more than 2.3 million LIVE sessions and over 1 million LIVE creators globally for violating its LIVE monetisation rules.
Source: Getty Images
Nearly 50,000 LIVE sessions banned in Nigeria
In Nigeria alone, 49,512 LIVE sessions were banned within the same period. TikTok also disclosed that between April and June 2025, it removed over 3.7 million videos posted in Nigeria for Community Guidelines violations.
The platform said 98.7% of those videos were taken down before receiving any views, while 91.9% were removed within 24 hours.
TikTok LIVE allows users to interact with viewers in real time through comments and virtual gifts. To access the feature, users generally need at least 1,000 followers, must be 16 years or older (18 to earn from gifts), and must maintain a clean account history.
Peller reacts
Reacting to the news, TikToker Peller said that while growth on other social media platforms cannot be compared with TikTok’s, he will not face financial hardship as a result of the ban.
He said:
“People are expecting me to be crying after TikTok banned live in Nigeria, thinking I’ll go hungry. I’m an ambassador to numerous brands, and none of my endorsements is less than N40 million."
How Nigerian creators earn on TikTok
Legit.ng earlier highlighted how Nigerian content creators earn from TikTok, noting that Nigerian creators are excluded from the Creator Rewards Program.
As a result, these creators rely on alternative monetisation methods such as brand partnerships, live gifts, affiliate marketing, TikTok ads, and service or merchandise sales.
Only users in three African countries can earn through the TikTok Effect House Rewards Program: South Africa, Egypt, and Morocco.
Source: Legit.ng
