Privacy Scorecard revealed Uganda’s biggest data harvesters

What you need to know:

  • Uganda has seen its bad days on the internet, as seen from the Privacy Scorecard Report. All Ugandans are exposed to potential online threats, and the country is yet to strengthen its policy regarding internet safety.

All countries need to have appropriate legal and technical frameworks to guarantee security for their citizens. In the last decade, users' privacy has also been questioned, with many experts highlighting repercussions for online entities disrespecting rules.

In 2021, a group of experts worked on a Privacy Scorecard, an analysis focusing on privacy and security compliance in Uganda. The report gave many insights, showcasing issues in Uganda and many African countries. So, let's revisit these findings and see just what conclusions can be drawn from them.

What is the Privacy Scorecard?

The Privacy Scorecard is a tool to determine one’s safety on the internet. It includes many different fields to detect any suspicious behavior online. Using the Privacy Scorecard is essential because you will have an insight into your internet’s safety.

Privacy Scorecard report in Uganda

Uganda has created the Privacy Scorecard for its citizens, revealing that there are many data harvesters on Uganda’s network.

Uganda introduced its data protection rules in 2019. In 2021, many companies still struggled to follow its regulations. While some companies perform quite well in terms of data protection, they do not do so well in the privacy departments.

According to study findings, many companies in e-commerce, financial services, telecoms, hospitals, and more do not follow all privacy requirements. For instance, very few companies reveal information on third parties that they share information with. Sadly, it is a common mistake online, with many companies using vague explanations to identify their data flows.

What do data harvesters do?

Data harvesters can collect information about their users on the internet and sell them to companies for marketing purposes. Although that may not sound dangerous, it can get much worse than seeing a couple of ads popping up online.

If data is this accessible, it puts the internet users in danger of possible cyberattacks. That implies criminals can hack into intelligent devices and steal much more than just simple data. Cybercriminals can steal your bank data and transfer everything you have to their account.

Internet safety is critical since you can do more and more things online, such as paying bills or purchasing groceries. That is why we need to protect our information on the internet.

What happened in Uganda?

In 2019, Uganda made a law protecting its citizens’ internet safety – the Data Protection and Privacy Act. It suggests that every person should know what data organizations collect about them and how they will use it. However, this law was inconsistent, as the Privacy Scorecard Report revealed.

Namely, the Privacy Scorecard tool tested 32 most prominent companies in Uganda, and most weren’t complying with the new law. Moreover, each one of those companies was collecting more data than they were allowed.

The citizens of Uganda weren’t aware that someone was collecting their data and selling it to companies, which contradicts the privacy policy. All companies must openly state what they are collecting and whether a third party is involved.

The Privacy Scoreboard Report revealed that Uganda is very vulnerable to cyberattacks and all other kinds of threats on the internet. Recently, cybercriminals stole nearly $4 billlion from banks over one year. So, companies and users must put their best foot forward to protect their assets.

Safety

Since all citizens of Uganda are exposed to cyberattacks, they should ensure that their identity is safe on the internet. To do so, you can use an extra layer of protection, such as a VPN for PC. A Virtual Private Network successfully hides your IP address, which is crucial if you want to keep your location details private.

Moreover, your VPN can hide your identity so you can surf the internet securely. These servers protect your internet traffic it becomes far more difficult to misuse it. Also, you won’t have to worry about certain cyberattacks (like DDoS) anymore. It is time to take the matter into your own hands and ensure your online safety.

Here are some more tips users can follow to protect their privacy online:

Read privacy policies and terms of use. Pay attention to what data services claim to collect. Then, see whether it shares this information with third parties.

Look for reviews. Former or current users can reveal a lot about apps or companies.

Use privacy-first browsers and search engines. If you do, you get one step closer to becoming more private online.

Avoid revealing your personal information unnecessarily. Social media is one of the most popular places to talk about yourself. Against your wishes, keep your posts free from personal details like address or vacation plans.

Conclusion

Uganda has seen its bad days on the internet, as seen from the Privacy Scorecard Report. All Ugandans are exposed to potential online threats, and the country is yet to strengthen its policy regarding internet safety.

However, you should be aware that Uganda’s internet network is not a safe place and that you should make sure that your data is protected. To do so, you should add a layer of protection, such as a VPN, and you won’t have to fear cyberattacks anymore.