South Africans who share offensive or inappropriate posts on social media, whether or not they created the content, are increasingly finding themselves in legal trouble. From arrests to million-dollar fines and job dismissals, the digital world is colliding with legal accountability, according to internet law expert Emma Sadleir.
“The law has been playing catch-up for the last decade, but what I’m seeing is arrests taking place on a weekly basis,” Sadleir said in an interview recently.
She emphasized that simply resharing a harmful post could make someone legally responsible for its content. “Anyone who shares is responsible for it. We’re not just looking at the original creator.”
In recent years, courts have shown a willingness to impose significant civil damages and criminal penalties for harmful online behaviour. A Cape Town court ordered an individual to pay R500,000 for using racial slurs in text messages. Although the man claimed the language was not racially motivated, the court disagreed.
In another case involving defamation, a Cape High Court awarded over R1 million in damages to a local pub, Hank’s Olde Irish Tavern, which had been falsely accused online of racial discrimination. Sadleir noted, “We’ve just seen a very big payout in a defamation case against a pub where somebody called the pub racists.”
The stakes are even higher in more serious privacy breaches. Sadleir cited a revenge porn case where someone shared explicit content of a former partner without consent, leading to a court awarding damages exceeding R4 million.
Surprisingly it is not just adults facing consequences. Sadleir revealed that minors are increasingly being arrested for the things they share online. “We are even seeing children being arrested every week,” she said.
The employment space has also become a battleground. Sadleir pointed out that many underestimate how personal social media activity can affect their professional lives. “They see somebody with a very controversial or illegal opinion, put a lot of pressure on the employer,” she explained.
In one case from KwaZulu-Natal, a man was fired for a comment he made on Facebook from his account, outside of work hours. Despite claiming he was acting in his capacity and hadn’t been trained on company policy, the court ruled against him. “The court just said it’s modern-day South Africa. You don’t need to be taught not to be racist,” said Sadleir.
She dismissed the idea that employees can hide behind personal capacity when posting online. “I don’t believe there is such a thing as personal capacity,” she stated.
For South Africans, Sadleir’s message is clear: the internet is not a free-for-all. “You are who you are in the real world when you go online,” she warned.
The Evolution of South Africa’s Social Media Space
South Africa’s internet laws have been gradually evolving to keep pace with the rapid rise of digital communication. Although the country has long had defamation and hate speech laws on the books, their application in the digital space has only recently become more consistent and aggressive.
One of the key moments came with the enforcement of the Protection from Harassment Act and the Cybercrimes Act, both of which have given law enforcement and the judiciary new tools to address digital misconduct.
The Cybercrimes Act, which was signed into law in 2021, specifically targets the unlawful sharing of data, including harmful messages, cyberbullying, and non-consensual distribution of intimate images. This law has made it easier for victims of online abuse to seek justice and for authorities to prosecute offenders.
Legal experts argue that this shift is necessary in a country like South Africa, where online platforms have increasingly been used to stir social tensions, spread misinformation, or conduct personal attacks. The rise in fake news during the COVID-19 pandemic also heightened pressure on the government to crack down on malicious online content.
Human rights advocates, while supporting measures to protect individuals, have urged lawmakers to ensure that freedom of expression is not unnecessarily restricted. The challenge, they say, is striking the right balance between protecting citizens and preserving democratic freedoms.
As digital behaviour increasingly impacts real-life outcomes, socially, legally, and professionally, Sadleir reiterates her legal advice to social media users: “Think before you post. Online speech is not exempt from offline consequences.”
Technext Newsletter
Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!
