According to Art. 1 of Decree 2007-937 of 7 August 2007 on the identification of purchasers and users of mobile telephone services offered to the public, operators holding a telecommunication licence open to the public are required to identify the purchasers and users of SIM cards when signing up for mobile telephony services.

It is reported that the Senegalese Government has restricted access to online platforms and applications under the pretext of addressing illegal content, despite the absence of a clear definition for the term. For instance, during the events of March 2021 in Dakar, the Government blocked access to websites and applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Telegram, and YouTube, and suspended the signal of television channels like Sen TV and Walf TV.
Additionally, from the 1st to the 4th of June 2023, platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, and Telegram were reportedly inaccessible amid widespread demonstrations following the sentencing of opposition figure Ousmane Sonko. More recently, in August 2023, authorities banned access to the social media platform TikTok, intensifying efforts to suppress dissent after dissolving the main opposition party and arresting its leader.

The indicator "6.2.4 - Government Internet shut down in practice" of the V-Dem Dataset, which measures whether the government has the technical capacity to actively make internet service cease, thus interrupting domestic access to the internet or whether the government has decided to do so, has a score of 3 in Senegal for the year 2023. This corresponds to "Rarely but there have been a few occasions throughout the year when the government shut down domestic access to Internet."
It has been reported that in June 2023, authorities in Senegal imposed a shutdown of mobile internet in certain areas, further limiting communication access. The action was taken to prevent the spread of what authorities described as "hateful and subversive messages" amidst public disturbances. Additionally, mobile internet access was once again restricted following the arrest of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko. Since August 2023, cellular data has been reported to be consistently cut off in Senegal, with internet services typically disabled from around 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. local time, indicating a recurring pattern of internet shutdowns.

Senegal has not joined any free trade agreement committing to open transfers of cross-border data flows.

Law No. 2008-12 provides a comprehensive regime of data protection in Senegal. The Law provides an essential data protection framework, including requiring data processing notifications, setting out fundamental data subject rights, and regulating data transfers.

Art. 4 of Law No. 2008-12 provides that legally entitled public authorities, in the context of a particular task or the exercise of a right of communication, may request the controller to communicate personal data to them. It is not clear whether a court order is required.

The Intelligence Services Law provides that in the event of a threat to national interests and the absence of any other means, the intelligence services may use intrusive technical surveillance and location procedures to collect information useful for neutralising the threat (Art. 10). To this end, the entities holding the data are obliged to provide the necessary assistance to the intelligence services without delay.

Law No. 2008-8 of 25 January 2008 on Electronic Transactions establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries for copyright infringements. According to Art. 3.2 of the Law on Electronic Transactions, intermediaries may not be held civilly liable for activities or information stored at the request of a recipient of such services if they did not have actual knowledge of their unlawful nature or of facts or circumstances indicating such a nature, or if, as soon as they became aware of such knowledge, they acted promptly to remove such data or to prevent access to them.

Law No. 2008-8 of 25 January 2008 on Electronic Transactions establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries beyond copyright infringements. According to Art. 3.2 of the Law on Electronic Transactions, intermediaries may not be held civilly liable for activities or information stored at the request of a recipient of such services if they did not have actual knowledge of their unlawful nature or of facts or circumstances indicating such a nature, or if, as soon as they became aware of such knowledge, they acted promptly to remove such data or to prevent access to them.

Senegal has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Senegal has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Senegal does not have comprehensive trade secret legislation. Yet, there are provisions addressing disclosure, acquisition or use of confidential information in the course of industrial or commercial activities by third parties in Art. 6 of Annex VIII of the Bangui Agreement ratified by 17 French-speaking States, including Senegal, since 2002.

It is reported that there is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Senegal to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practised in both the mobile and fixed sectors based on commercial agreements.

It is reported that the Government holds a minority stake (27%) in Sonatel-Orange Senegal, the country's largest Internet and mobile communications provider.

It is reported that Senegal mandates functional and accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market.