TikTok temporarily disabled access to its LIVE streaming feature for users in Nigeria during late-night hours, citing an ongoing safety review. The restriction, which ran from 11pm to 5am on Sunday, was announced through an in-app notification and lifted by Monday morning.
The alert to users read: “We’re temporarily limiting LIVE late at night in Nigeria as part of our investigation to ensure our platform remains safe and our community stays protected.”
The blockage affected all LIVE activities, including streams hosted by creators outside the country, and prevented Nigerian users from going live or viewing broadcasts throughout the night.
Only TikTokers with at least 1,000 followers, the minimum threshold required to host LIVE sessions, received the notification, according to checks by The Nation.
Creators React as Prime Streaming Hours Go Dark
The sudden suspension triggered widespread conversations across social media. Night-time is traditionally a peak period for Nigerian streamers who host interactive shows, entertainment challenges, gaming sessions, and trend-driven broadcasts that often attract significant virtual gifts.
While many creators voiced concern about lost engagement opportunities, TikTok assured users that existing earnings and LIVE gifting balances would not be affected.
Restriction Follows Recently Released Safety Figures
The move comes just weeks after TikTok published updated enforcement statistics for West Africa during its Safety Summit in Dakar, Senegal.
The company revealed that in the second quarter of 2025, it removed:
-
2,321,813 LIVE sessions and
-
1,040,356 LIVE creators globally for violating monetisation rules.
In Nigeria alone, TikTok banned 49,512 LIVE sessions within the same period.
Beyond LIVE restrictions, the platform disclosed that 3,780,426 videos were removed in Nigeria between April and June 2025 for breaching community guidelines. Impressively, 98.7% of those were taken down before receiving any views, while 91.9% were removed within 24 hours.
As access returns to normal, creators continue to monitor whether the late-night LIVE restriction signals a broader policy shift for one of Nigeria’s most influential digital platforms.
About the Author
