Tech Legal Matters

Social media has become a big part of many people’s lives. Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram, and many other social media platforms have become some of the prominent forms of communication we use today. However, what we communicate on these social media platforms may have consequences which can lead to legal prosecution.

Also, if you are employed, and as we have witnessed with some instances in South Africa, it can also lead to you being dismissed.

On this episode of the Tech Legal Matters podcast, we are joined by Mathando Likhanya, an Associate Director at PPM Attorneys. She specializes in commercial, regulatory and compliance law, media and advertising, information, and communications technology (ICT) and employment law.

The legal profession and justice systems in many countries are often seen to be the last to adopt digital technology solutions. However, there's usually a good reason for that.

Among many other considerations when adopting digital technology solutions in the justice system is that of being able to prove that the documents and information being used have not been tampered with and have been preserved as they were originally received or produced.

In this episode of the Tech Legal Matters podcast, Tefo Mohapi is joined by Matthew De Wet, an attorney in South Africa who explains how they have been using various digital technology solutions to carry out their work. Matthew also talks about an online solution they have developed for creating a legal Will.

Live streaming has been around for many years. More recently it has been made accessible and more popular by various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and many others. Simply put, it is like having your own media channel broadcasting publicly, live.

Even before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, live streaming was proving to be popular with music artists and other professionals in the entertainment industry. However, as it is with any new technology or digital platform, there are legal concerns.

In this episode of the Tech Legal Matters podcast Melody Musoni, a legal consultant in Johannesburg, South Africa who specializes in Intellectual Property law elaborates on what you should consider before you live stream.

After details were announced regarding South Africa's COVID-19 Tracking Database, the country's Information Regulator issued guidance notes regarding the database and collection of people's data. The notes cover how South Africa's government and business should handle people's data during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this episode of the Tech Legal Matters podcast, Yashoda Rajoo, an attorney at PPM Attorneys, joins Tefo Mohapi to elaborate on what role the Information Regulator plays in South Africa, the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) and how it affects South African citizens, as well as how POPIA applies to how the government handles people's personal data.

The discussion also explains the role of POPIA beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 26 March 2020 South Africa enforced its COVID-19 lockdown by amending the Disaster Management Act. As part of this, also as part of looking to contain the spread of COVID-19, several regulations were implemented that led to what people in South Africa can consider infringements on their rights as guaranteed in the country's constitution.

Notably, the right to freedom of movement is one of the main ones that are affected as the government tries to reduce the spread of the virus by requesting people to stay at home unless they are essential workers. However, there are other regulations that are related to data protection, privacy, and freedom of expression.

We take a closer look at this episode as Lucien Pierce, an attorney at South Africa's PPM Attorneys, explains what all this means.