International Data Privacy Day 2023 focuses on children's privacy rights and online safety

The Information Regulator (Regulator) in partnership with Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) will host the International Data Privacy Day on Friday, 27 January 2023, at the McAuley House School in Parktown.

This year the Regulator and MMA will create awareness by focusing on the protection of personal information of children. A digital literacy information session will be led by the Regulator’s Chairperson Adv. Pansy Tlakula along with the Article 12 Web Rangers.

The Web Rangers are a group of children coordinated by the MMA, who educate their peers on data protection, online safety and advocate for inclusion in policy formulation of rights which affect them. Learners from McAuley House, Bhukulani Secondary School in Soweto and Phomolong Secondary School in Tembisa will attend the session.

The digital literacy information session is aimed at educating learners on being digitally savvy and playing an active role in the protection of their personal information. The Regulator will promote the role it plays when children feel that their personal information has been violated.

Early last year the Article 12 Web Rangers held a session to review section 34 and 35 of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), where recommendations and proposals were to be considered by the Regulator. As such after the information session, a roundtable discussion between the Regulator and key role players who actively must ensure the rights of children are protected will take place.

The roundtable will discuss the report with recommendations and proposals titled “The protection of personal information of children”. Ultimately the sessions will seek to build partnerships and craft a plan of action on programmes to create awareness and participation of children in data protection rights.

The theme for the event is – “Protecting personal information is a priority, be cyber savvy”.

Source: Government of South Africa