When the screen becomes a weapon:

December, 2025

When the screen becomes a weapon:

Digital violence against women in South Africa and across Africa

By Leretha Legal (Pty) Ltd

They call it “online” because it happens through screens, but the harm is as real as any bruise. The non-consensual sharing of intimate images, sustained digital harassment, doxxing, gendered disinformation, deepfake impersonation and coordinated smears do not merely damage reputations. They threaten safety, dignity, livelihoods and the emotional stability of women and girls across the continent.

African lawmakers are beginning to recognise the scale of this danger, yet recognition is not the same as protection. This article charts the legal terrain in South Africa and other African jurisdictions and confronts the gaps with a clear, survivor-centred lens on what must urgently change.

What the law says: the current landscape

South Africa took an important step with the Cybercrimes Act 2020, which criminalises the unlawful sharing of intimate images without consent. For the first time, survivors have a specific statutory offence instead of relying on indirect civil remedies or general harassment provisions.

Across Africa, bodies such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights have acknowledged technology facilitated gender based violence as a growing human rights threat and urged states to introduce protective frameworks. Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and others have adopted cybercrime or computer misuse laws addressing online harassment, cyberstalking, identity misuse and image-based abuse.

Yet the result is a fragmented patchwork. Protection varies widely, leaving many survivors unprotected, unspoken for or retraumatised by the very systems meant to support them.

Internationally, there is consensus that digital violence must be understood within the broader continuum of gender based violence. It is not a separate inconvenience. It is a direct attack on autonomy and equality.

What the laws get right

• Visibility and recognition

Criminalising non-consensual image distribution and related harms validates survivors’ experiences. Naming the abuse gives authorities a clearer mandate and offers survivors a formal route to seek justice.

• Flexible legal tools

Where no single law captures the full range of digital abuse, countries combine statutes dealing with harassment, extortion, unlawful access and identity fraud. This recognises that digital violence is rarely linear and often involves multiple overlapping harms.

Where the law fails survivors: the painful truths

• Enforcement is weak

Statutes exist on paper, but implementation collapses in practice. Many police officers lack training in digital evidence. Prosecutors deprioritise cases. Courts grapple with rapidly evolving technologies. Survivors face disbelief, victim blaming or administrative hurdles that close justice’s doors before they can enter.

•Survivors are sometimes criminalised

Across parts of Africa, morality-based laws have been turned against survivors themselves. Women whose intimate images were leaked have been charged for “creating” those images. The state, instead of offering protection, becomes another perpetrator.

•Borders and platforms dilute accountability

Images cross borders in seconds. Perpetrators operate anonymously or from other jurisdictions. Global platforms determine what gets removed and when. Without regional harmonisation and cross-border cooperation, many cases simply die in the system.

•The socio-economic damage is ignored

Digital violence costs women their employment, relationships, housing and psychological stability. The harm is economic, social and deeply emotional. Yet most laws reflect only punitive objectives, ignoring the long tail of consequences survivors carry alone.

•Technology platforms remain unaccountable

Reporting systems are confusing, takedowns are slow, and survivors are repeatedly asked to relive the trauma to “prove” their victimisation. In the absence of clear regulatory duties, the burden falls on those least able to bear it.

The human cost: far beyond legislation

The impact of digital violence is devastating. Careers collapse after leaked images circulate at work. Teenagers face relentless harassment that pushes them toward self-harm. Women activists and journalists endure coordinated attacks that include manipulated images and threats of sexual violence.

The trauma does not end when a post is removed. Copies resurface. Screenshots reappear. The fear becomes chronic. Survivors alter how they move, speak, work and interact online and offline. Digital violence reshapes their world.

What must change: a survivor-centred agenda

•Strong, explicit civil and criminal remedies

Laws must name image-based abuse, doxxing, impersonation, extortion and the emerging harms created by AI-generated content. Survivors need rapid civil options, emergency takedowns, preservation of evidence and protection orders while criminal matters proceed.

•Training for frontline responders

Police, prosecutors and judicial officers must receive specialised training in digital investigations and trauma informed engagements. Survivors should not be expected to explain the law to officials tasked with enforcing it.

•Repeal laws that punish survivors

Victim-blaming statutes rooted in outdated moral codes must fall away. Consent and bodily autonomy are non-negotiable foundations of justice.

•Accountability for digital platforms

African governments should require faster takedowns, transparent reporting pathways, and dedicated escalation channels for urgent victim cases. Evidence preservation must be mandatory.

•Regional alignment

Digital harm does not stop at national borders. Africa needs harmonised model laws, shared enforcement frameworks and improved mutual legal assistance.

•Prevention and long-term support

Schools must integrate digital citizenship and consent education. Survivors need access to psychological counselling, legal aid and safe spaces to rebuild their lives and livelihoods.

A closing call: justice must be felt, not just written

Laws mean little if they do not safeguard lived experience. Digital violence is not a glitch in the system; it is a direct assault on dignity, autonomy and equality. Screens should not become weapons, and women should not be left to navigate unsafe digital environments alone.

Justice must be measured in more than arrests. It must be felt in how quickly a survivor can reclaim her agency, restore her sense of safety and return to the world without fear or shame.

Until that becomes the norm across Africa, the promise of digital justice remains unfulfilled.

Newsletter Disclaimer: The views, opinions, and legal interpretations expressed herein are subject to change, as they may be influenced by new developments, amendments to the law, or judicial interpretations. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and relevance of the content at the time of publication, readers are advised to seek personalised legal counsel to address their specific circumstances.