Gauteng High Court judges tossed the Information Regulator's attempt at blocking matric results from appearing in newspapers, ruling that listing exam numbers instead of names does not violate privacy laws under POPIA. The full bench called the regulator's argument about students figuring out classmates' grades through seating arrangements a poorly constructed thought experiment with zero real-world evidence backing it up, and judges pointed out nobody has complained about actual harm from this tradition over the years.
The regulator slapped a five-million-rand fine on the Department of Basic Education for refusing to stop newspaper publications after claiming the practice still breaks data protection rules, despite a settlement back in 2022 where everyone agreed exam numbers were cool. This marks the third legal beef between the regulator and the education department over how results get shared publicly.
The ruling lets newspapers publish matric results by exam number as usual when they drop in mid-January, while the regulator figures out whether to appeal the decision.
The regulator slapped a five-million-rand fine on the Department of Basic Education for refusing to stop newspaper publications after claiming the practice still breaks data protection rules, despite a settlement back in 2022 where everyone agreed exam numbers were cool. This marks the third legal beef between the regulator and the education department over how results get shared publicly.
The ruling lets newspapers publish matric results by exam number as usual when they drop in mid-January, while the regulator figures out whether to appeal the decision.
