Government has urged Ugandans to be vigilant before logging into any social media platform.
This has been disclosed by the executive director of National Personal Data Protection under the Ministry of Information, Technology and National Guidance, Stella Alibateese, at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala while launching the 2024 data privacy campaign ahead of the International Data Privacy Day.
The day is celebrated internationally on 28th January every year and Uganda will be marking this day on January 31, 2024.
According to Alibateese, most Ugandans rush and sign on terms of various social media platforms and end up losing their privacy when the said platforms release their private information.
She thus advised Ugandans to embrace the Data Protection and Privacy Act, which the government enacted in 2019, and among the terms provided under the Act urges Ugandans to protect their data by regulating the collection and processing of personal information.
It also provides for the rights of the persons whose data is collected and regulates the use or disclosure of personal information among others.
Among the penalties for those who breach the law include being jailed for 3-10 years or a fine of 2% of the gross annual revenue depending on the nature of the case.
