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Mashudu Mambo
SILIBAZISO Chalibe from Mpumalanga Suburb in Hwange, Matabeleland North province was all smiles last Saturday after discovering that she can report fraudulent scams and people who use her personal data to tarnish her reputation.
Speaking on the sidelines at a roadshow during the data privacy celebrations hosted by the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz) in Mpumalanga, Chalibe expressed her excitement and vowed to educate her fellow community members on the importance of protecting one’s information.
“I am very happy that this roadshow came at a time when we are facing many challenges in our communities such as scams and to us this means that we are in a position to fight against perpetrators who in the past took advantage of our ignorance.
“The key takeaway from the roadshow was that l can actively play a role in protecting my data and l have the right to confront anyone including network providers to understand why they need my information and how they will use my personal data,” said Chalibe.
She added that this is a wake-up call for people to understand the importance of taking safety measures to protect their data. “I believe that this is a wakeup call for us to ensure that we take proactive measures as we are at times responsible for the circulation of our pictures in different social media platforms as we send our personal information to unknown people or sites,” said Chalibe.
Another resident, Wisdom Dube said the event was an eye-opener, especially in dealing with network providers who at times con their customers.
“I learnt about the different rights that l have as a data subject and the most important thing that l learnt was that if my network provider decides to tamper with any of my data, l have a right to confront them.
“We have instances where we buy data from the different network providers and because of the network challenges they might just use our broadband and tell us that it has depleted. I have learnt that l can confront my network provider and when they do not comply, l can contact Potraz and they will help me deal with the challenge,” he said.
Data Privacy Week is celebrated annually from 22 to 26 January and this year’s event runs under the theme “Taking Control of Your Data”.
Zimbabwe enacted the Cyber and Data Protection Act in 2021. The Act seeks to protect personal data by empowering data subjects to take control of their personal information.
Cybercrime and awareness is relatively new in Zimbabwe and data regarding prevalence is still sketchy. There have been a few cases of cybercrime that have been recorded, however, the National Risk Assessment (NRA) Report of 2020 notes that cyber risks, mainly through digital financial channels, contributed to an estimated US$900 million of illicit proceeds generated from criminal activity in the country.
According to Astra (2022 in the United States of America, there is a minimum of 422 million individuals who were impacted by cybercrime and according to the FBI’s internet crime records 800 944 complaints were registered in 2022.
The figures show a high prevalence of online crime and raises the need
In an interview, the Cyber Security officer of Potraz, Zivo Keith Chamba said the data privacy celebrations are a reminder to institutions and individuals to take responsibility for their data.
“The commemorations serve as a reminder for companies to cease the misuse of collected data and to take responsibility for how consumer data is collected and utilised.
“It provides valuable information on how to identify if personal information is being used without consent and offers guidance on the necessary steps to prevent data breaches,” said Chamba.
He highlighted that there are several rights that the public has in regard to safeguarding data.
“There are a number of rights that are given to data subjects and these entail the right to consent to the processing of their data, the right to be informed that their data is being processed and for what use their data will be used for, the right to withdraw their consent to the processing of their data and the right to have their data corrected if the data held is incorrect or inaccurate.
“The other rights include the right to access their data which is held by a data controller, the right to have their data deleted and the right to complain against the illegal processing of their data as well as providing a general framework for the control of personal information,” said Chamba.
Chamba stated that it is very crucial to understand the importance of safeguarding personal data online.
“Every activity conducted online leaves a digital footprint and this is done without the user’s knowledge. There are all sorts of information collected and shared, including online activity, frequently visited websites, and personal information like identification numbers,” he said.
He urged data subjects to develop a culture of protecting their vital information from being misused online.
“With the rapid expansion of the digital hub and the increasing exposure of children to internet culture, it is crucial to prioritise the proper handling and protection of personal information online.
“We strongly encourage everyone to prioritise their privacy by being diligent with their privacy settings, passwords, and the platforms they choose to upload their valuable information to,” he said.
Online Reporter