Afrigather The Data Regulator of South Africa says no authorized justification exists for the Division of Fundamental Training to proceed with publishing matric ends in the newspapers.
The Data Regulator stated the division was issued an enforcement discover on 4 November 2024 following the regulator’s initiative evaluation of the division’s compliance with the Safety of Private Data Act (POPIA).
NO LEGAL JUSTIFICATION FOR DBE TO PUBLISH MATRIC RESULTS IN NEWSPAPERS
The apply of accessing matric outcomes spanned a few years, the place the entire nation had entry to the outcomes of matriculants utilizing ID numbers, examination numbers and learners’ private credentials.
The Data Regulator discovered that the division was not compliant with part 11 of POPIA and was in breach of the circumstances for the lawful processing of private data by failing to acquire consent for the publication of matric outcomes from the learners or dad and mom/guardians of learners who sat for the 2023 Nationwide Senior Certificates examinations.
Data Regulator spokesperson Nomzamo Zondi stated there was no authorized justification for the Division of Fundamental Training to proceed publishing the ends in the newspapers. Due to this fact, the IR directed that the outcomes of the 2024 matriculants shouldn’t be revealed within the newspapers and should make these outcomes obtainable to the learners utilizing strategies which might be compliant with POPIA, reminiscent of every learner acquiring their end result from the college or utilizing the safe SMS platform of the DBE which permits every learner to entry their outcomes confidentially.
Zondi stated within the enforcement discover, the IR has directed the division to acquire the consent of
learners or the dad and mom/guardians of learners who will write the matric examination in 2025 earlier than publishing their ends in newspapers.
“The DBE should additionally, amongst others, develop a system which can allow it to acquire the consent of the learners or their dad and mom/guardians earlier than the publication of their matric ends in newspapers. The IR has directed that the DBE shouldn’t publish the outcomes of the 2025 matriculants if the Enforcement Discover directions are usually not complied with,” Zondi added.
AFRIFORUM PREPARES COURT CHALLENGE
In January 2022, the Division of Training stated it recognised the POPIA and they’re going to due to this fact now not be publishing matric outcomes on digital platforms. The division stated that it revered the precise to privateness to guard in opposition to illegal assortment, retention, dissemination and use of private data.
Foyer group AfriForum challenged the division’s determination within the excessive courtroom and ultimately, the outcomes for the 2021 NSC exams had been revealed.
Following the newest ban, AfriForum stated it has instructed its authorized group to organize a case to make sure that the outcomes of this 12 months’s matric outcomes could also be revealed on media platforms.
AfriForum’s head of cultural affairs, Alana Bailey, stated it’s within the public’s curiosity that this data is shared on public platforms.
“To label this as a violation of people’ proper to privateness doesn’t make sense, as solely examination numbers seem within the media. The courtroom has beforehand informed AfriForum and the opposite events that this doesn’t go in opposition to anybody’s proper to privateness,” she stated.
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