Experts to discuss disinformation, cybersecurity in Africa

Disinformation and cybersecurity in Africa will be the theme of discussion at an event in Cape Town, South Africa on Wednesday.

Hosted by the Spanish embassy in South Africa, the hybrid forum on disinformation and cybersecurity will be held at the Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa.

Participants who cannot be physically present for the event can join virtually via this link, organisers said.

“As you may be aware, African countries have increasingly become the targets of sophisticated nation-state level disinformation campaigns,” the organisers said in a statement. “The effects can be to undermine public trust, the foundations of democracy and the rule of law.”

The event will be held in collaboration with Constella Technologies and Haven Cyber-Technologies.

At the forum, the organisers said, government, business, and civil society leaders would address disinformation in South Africa and in the African continent at large. They would also share insights and experiences with participants to understand “the actors and objectives behind the campaigns, and discuss effective digital tools and policy responses.”

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“The first in-depth study on disinformation relating to migration networks and human trafficking in West Africa will be presented at the event,” the organisers said.

Information disorder — otherwise known as fake news — and cyberbullying are invading and influencing the political and social landscape of Africa negatively.

Africa’s rapidly shifting information landscape has created asymmetric leverage for anti-democratic actors to propagate false information for political ends, according to Africa Centre for Strategic Studies, noting that “Disinformation represents a destabilizing threat to the open and dependable information pathways on which democracies rely”.