South Africa’s Online Harms Study Calls for Safer Platforms Without Silencing Voices

Digital platforms actively influence how far harmful content travels through their algorithms, advertising and monetisation systems, making their decisions central to any effective response.

The damage caused by online abuse reaches into people's privacy, safety and ability to take part in public life, concerns at the heart of a UNESCO- and European Union-supported study on online harms in South Africa. Findings shared by UNESCO on 6 October 2026 call for stronger platform accountability and better coordination between institutions, with responses grounded in constitutional rights so that protecting people from harm also preserves their freedom to speak and access reliable information.

The study draws on research and consultations involving government, regulators, civil society, academia, media, technology stakeholders and development partners, with civil society and government representatives contributing to its methodology, interviews, recommendations and validation. Its findings identify three major concerns: threats to election integrity, technology-facilitated gender-based violence and xenophobic narratives that spread through digital spaces.

Election disinformation puts public trust under pressure

Disinformation and coordinated online activity can make reliable information harder to find and weaken trust in democratic processes, leaving voters to navigate content that can distort their understanding of elections. The report notes that existing electoral legislation predates today's digital communication environment, creating a need for stronger responses that address these risks and safeguard freedom of expression and access to information.

Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi connected access to information directly to the ability to exercise free expression, explaining that people cannot meaningfully speak their minds without knowing what is happening in their country. His remarks underline the importance of making trustworthy information accessible, a concern that places election integrity within a broader discussion about people's ability to participate in public debate.

Online abuse leaves survivors facing difficult routes to justice

Technology-facilitated gender-based violence includes doxxing, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images and AI-generated "nudify" content, with women and girls, female journalists, LGBTQIA+ people and people with disabilities among those disproportionately affected. Existing legal protections offer routes to redress, but survivors face limitations in law enforcement and lengthy legal processes that can expose them to further trauma, showing how the availability of a law does not automatically translate into accessible protection.

Recurring xenophobic narratives blame migrants for crime, unemployment and pressure on public services, often drawing on misinformation to reinforce those accusations. The study raises implementation concerns around the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Act, noting that its regulations were pending at the time of the research, a detail that highlights the importance of examining how legal protections work in practice.

Platforms face calls for accountability that respects free speech

Digital platforms actively influence how far harmful content travels through their algorithms, advertising and monetisation systems, making their decisions central to any effective response. Applying UNESCO's Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms, the report identifies policies that inadequately reflect South African risks, insufficient local language and contextual expertise, limited researcher access to moderation data, and unclear reporting and appeals processes.

South Africa's strong constitutional protections and existing legal and institutional mechanisms provide a foundation for addressing online harms, but fragmented responses point to a need for greater coordination. SM4PSA Chairperson Dr Phathiswa Magopeni stressed that accountability should reflect specific risks, constitutional rights and proportionality, with safeguards against governance becoming a means of censorship. UNESCO Regional Adviser for Communication and Information Al-Amin Yusuph called for Media and Information Literacy initiatives that help citizens independently analyse and verify online content.

The findings were presented at a national dialogue convened through UNESCO's EU-funded Social Media 4 Peace project, in partnership with Research ICT Africa, the University of Pretoria's Centre for Human Rights, the UNESCO Information for All Programme Committee, the UNESCO National Commission for South Africa and the SM4PSA Coalition. The gathering brought the sectors involved in the research into a shared discussion about putting its recommendations into practice.