Highlight 26/2025: Why strengthening information governance is crucial: How good intentions can compromise personal data and human rights?
Sekatle Sekatle, 22 May 2025
The rapid rate of online information sharing has enabled organizations to disseminate their missions and objectives globally. This development has enhanced transparency and built trust between organizations and global citizens. However, alongside these positive strides, online information sharing can also be exploited for unethical purposes, such as the dissemination of disinformation and misinformation. These harmful practices can negatively affect organizational reputations and, more gravely, compromise personal data and infringe on human rights.
Disinformation is defined as “intentionally false or misleading information. It is often spread to confuse people or to manipulate them into taking certain actions” (Wardle & Derakhshan, 2017). A notable example occurred in Lesotho during the COVID-19 pandemic, when fake job advertisements and fraudulent health data collection forms circulated online, falsely claiming to be issued by Lesotho’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of Public Service (Lesotho Communications Authority, 2020). These incidents undermined public trust, compromised the protection of personal data, and infringed upon the right to privacy of Basotho citizens.
Misinformation, on the other hand, refers to information that is false or misleading but not intentionally spread. It is often shared by individuals who are unaware that the information is incorrect (Wardle & Derakhshan, 2017). A recent case in April 2025 involving the Lesotho Mounted Police Service illustrates this concept. The organization, known for sharing vital public safety information, mistakenly published a photo of a convicted criminal online with the false name of the lead detective involved in the case. This error exemplifies misinformation, with serious consequences. The incorrect identification could endanger the detective’s safety, violate his human rights, and erode public trust in law enforcement’s accuracy and integrity.
To address these challenges and strengthen the safe sharing of online information, Lesotho’s proposed Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bill and Computer and Cyber Security Bill offer crucial legal and technical frameworks that need to be entered into force. The AI Bill aims to ensure the ethical and transparent use of digital technologies, including mechanisms to detect and mitigate the spread of disinformation and misinformation through responsible AI systems (Government of Lesotho, 2025). Meanwhile, the Cyber Security Bill is designed to enhance the protection of personal data and the integrity of online platforms by enforcing security protocols, promoting digital accountability, and educating the public on cyber risks (Government of Lesotho, 2024).
Together, these legislative initiatives can help build trust in digital communication, curb the misuse of information, and foster a safer, more informed digital society in Lesotho. It is important that the Government of Lesotho tables these bills so that Basotho citizens’ personal data and human rights are protected.
Sekatle Sekatle, Highlight 26/2025: Why strengthening information governance is crucial: How good intentions can compromise personal data and human rights?, 22 May 2025, available at www.meig.ch
The views expressed in the MEIG Highlights are personal to the authors and neither reflect the positions of the MEIG Programme nor those of the University of Geneva.