On election integrity, the report highlights risks from disinformation and coordinated online activity that can undermine access to reliable information and trust in democratic processes. It notes that existing electoral legislation predates today’s digital communication environment, calling for stronger responses that safeguard freedom of expression and access to information.
Technology-facilitated gender-based violence includes doxxing, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images and AI-generated “nudify” content. Women and girls, female journalists, LGBTQIA+ people and people with disabilities are among those disproportionately affected. Despite existing legal protections, survivors face limitations in law enforcement and lengthy, potentially re-traumatising legal processes.
The study also identifies recurring xenophobic narratives that scapegoat migrants for crime, unemployment and pressure on public services, often relying on misinformation. It flags implementation concerns around the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Act, whose regulations were pending at the time of the study.
Stronger platform accountability
The report finds that digital platforms actively shape the reach of harmful content through their algorithms, advertising and monetisation systems.
Applying UNESCO’s Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms, it identifies policies that inadequately reflect South African risks, insufficient local language and contextual expertise, limited researcher access to moderation data, and opaque reporting and appeals processes.
Although South Africa has strong constitutional protections and several legal and institutional mechanisms addressing online harms, responses remain fragmented, underscoring the need for greater coordination.
Access to information is the basis of the freedom of expression. It is the infrastructure that makes freedom of expression mean anything at all. You cannot meaningfully speak your mind in a country where you cannot find out what is actually happening in it.
Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Hon. Solly Malatsi.
SM4PSA Chairperson Dr Phathiswa Magopeni emphasised that accountability must uphold constitutional rights.
This report comes at a pivotal moment for safeguarding information integrity in South Africa. The Coalition values the report’s emphasis on tailoring responses to online harms, ensuring they are risk-aware, rooted in constitutional rights and proportionality, and that platform governance and accountability efforts do not become a means of silencing and censorship.
SM4PSA Chairperson Dr Phathiswa Magopeni
UNESCO Regional Adviser for Communication and Information Al-Amin Yusuph said combating disinformation requires a shift “away from restrictive censorship and toward comprehensive Media and Information Literacy initiatives that enable citizens to independently analyze and verify online media.”
