‘They mocked my dead son’: Inside Africa’s darkest cyberbullying crisis
Dagoretti North MP Beatrice Elachi. Inset: Her son Elvis Murakana, who died in March 2025.
What you need to know:
- Online violence against women is escalating across Africa amid weak legal protections and rapidly evolving digital threats. From deepfakes to death threats, female leaders face unprecedented abuse.
- Dagoretti North MP Beatrice Elachi recounts the cyberbullying she endured after losing her son, highlighting a growing crisis of online violence against women in Kenya and across Africa
- As the world marks the 16 Days of Activism against GBV, UN Women is launching new tools to help governments legislate and police technology-facilitated violence. Kenya has also strengthened its cybercrime laws to address emerging threats.
When Dagoretti North MP Beatrice Elachi received the devastating news that her son, Elvis Murakana, had died, her world fell apart. Yet, even as she mourned his sudden death in March, she found herself confronted by a wave of online abuse that caught her completely unawares.
Speaking during a recent media interview, Elachi opened up about her experience with cyberbullying and underscored the urgent need for legal reforms to protect individuals from digital harassment. She recalled one of her most painful moments: enduring cruel online comments from Gen Z users following her son’s death. “My worst experience came when they talked ill of my son, whom nobody knew. The cyberbullying that surfaced online after his death was overwhelming. It was painful to see private grief turned into public fodder,” she said.
Her remarks come at a time when Kenya is witnessing a surge in digital activism, much of it driven by Gen Z, who have taken to social media to demand better governance and accountability. Elachi said she has since learnt to cope with the bullying, adding it no longer unsettles her.
The promise of digital technology as a force for empowerment is increasingly overshadowed by rising online abuse targeting women and girls across Kenya and the wider East and Southern African region. Cyberstalking, harassment, non-consensual image sharing, and AI-generated deepfakes are spreading rapidly, fuelled by anonymity, artificial intelligence (AI), and weak legal protections. According to the latest report by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the African Parliamentary Union, African women in politics face alarming levels of online threats.
Researchers interviewed 137 female parliamentarians across 50 African countries. Of these, 42 per cent—around 58 women—reported receiving threats of death, rape, beating, or abduction, often through social media. In other words, four in every 10 women interviewed had faced terrifying threats. In Sub-Saharan Africa, only 25 per cent of countries offer legal protection from digital violence. While nations such as South Africa, Kenya, Botswana, Eswatini, Mauritius, and Rwanda have introduced cybercrime laws, enforcement remains weak and the gendered aspects of online abuse are often overlooked. These legal gaps, combined with minimal accountability, have been blamed for the high levels of digital violence against women.
Globally, fewer than 40 per cent of countries have laws addressing digital violence, leaving nearly 1.78 billion women and girls without legal protection. Despite legislation in some nations, enforcement is limited, reporting rates are low, and justice systems remain ill-equipped. Perpetrators also exploit borders and anonymity, escaping consequences with ease. AI-generated abuse—including impersonation, sextortion, and targeted harassment—has worsened the situation.
Ahead of this year’s 16 Days of Activism against GBV, UN Women Regional Director for East and Southern Africa Anna Mutavati stressed the need for decisive action. “Online abuse is not confined to virtual spaces; it doesn’t stay behind a screen. It’s real, and its impact is devastating. It silences women and girls, spreads fear, leads to physical violence and, in the worst cases, femicide,” she said.
She noted that the world cannot allow technology to become a weapon against equality, adding that laws must evolve to protect women and girls both online and offline. “Weak legal protections embolden perpetrators and leave millions of women and girls vulnerable. This must end. During the 16 Days of Activism, UN Women calls on governments, the private sector, tech companies, and communities to act and create a digital world that champions equality, not harm.”
These online attacks often escalate into offline violence and even femicide. Women in leadership, politics, journalism, and human rights advocacy remain among the most targeted. In Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa, female politicians report deepfake attacks and threats of physical harm. Yet digital abuse continues to rise largely unnoticed and unreported. It spreads fear, damages reputations, and silences women’s voices. One in four women journalists report online threats of physical harm, prompting many to reduce their visibility or leave public life entirely. Alarming data further shows that 90–95 per cent of all deepfake content online consists of sexual images of women. About 28 per cent of women surveyed in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Senegal, and South Africa reported experiencing online violence.
The problem is even more severe in some countries. In South Africa, for example, 95 per cent of online aggressive behaviour and abusive language targets women and girls. The report calls for stronger laws and enforcement, increased accountability for tech platforms, and greater support for women’s rights organisations assisting survivors. It also recommends digital literacy programmes for women and girls and investment in prevention of toxic online behaviour.
Call for urgent action
Without urgent action, the report warns, digital spaces will continue to amplify violence and inequality, undermining progress towards gender equality, peace, and development. Online platforms must also strengthen their response by swiftly removing abusive content and improving reporting systems. A 2022 analysis of violence against women in elections, conducted by African Woman and Child Feature Services—a UN Women partner—found that women politicians were among the most harassed online, with some choosing to end their careers or withdraw from social media due to relentless attacks.
A 2019 report by the National Democratic Institute similarly revealed that 3.6 per cent of politically active women in Kenya had experienced online violence on X (formerly Twitter), with insults being the most common form of abuse. In Uganda’s 2021 elections, 18 per cent of women’s accounts monitored experienced sexual violence online, compared to only eight per cent of men’s accounts.
As the world marks the 16 Days of Activism against GBV, this year’s theme calls for urgent global action to close legal gaps and hold perpetrators and tech platforms accountable. To support governments and policymakers, UN Women is launching two new tools—the Supplement to the Handbook for Legislation on Technology-Facilitated Violence Against Women and Girls and the Guide for Police on Addressing Technology-Facilitated Violence. They complement existing guidance on gender-responsive policing for women and girls experiencing violence.
The two resources aim to provide practical support for prevention and response. Until the digital space is safe for all women and girls, true equality will remain out of reach everywhere.
The Kenyan government last month took bold steps to strengthen its fight against online crime and digital abuse following the enactment of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act, 2025. The new law introduces far-reaching changes to address threats such as cyber fraud, digital terrorism, identity theft, and harmful online content, positioning Kenya among African nations taking a firm stand against the misuse of technology.
The amendment expands the 2018 legislation, underscoring the rapid evolution of cyberspace and the growing sophistication of online crime. One significant change grants authorities the power to shut down websites or mobile applications found to promote unlawful activities, child sexual content, terrorism, religious extremism, or cultism. These provisions mark a turning point in Kenya’s digital regulation, enabling quicker intervention against harmful content that threatens national security or public morality.
