News
Digital Entrapment · LGBTQ+ Rights · Tech Regulation · Uganda
Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023 facilitates digital entrapment, with law enforcement and criminals using dating apps and social media to target LGBTQ+ individuals, leading to over 1,000 documented human rights violations and criminal charges between May 2023 and March 2025, as reported by Access Now and HRAPF.
The article details how the AHA and the Computer Misuse Act provide a legal basis for privacy violations, doxxing, extortion, and arbitrary detention. Nine specific cases illustrate "catfishing" tactics where state agents or informants create fake profiles to obtain incriminating digital evidence, resulting in arrests and forced anal examinations.
Tech companies, including popular dating apps like Bumble, Grindr, and Tinder, are criticized for inadequate user protection, lacking end-to-end encryption, and having vague community guidelines. Human rights organizations emphasize companies' responsibility to prevent adverse human rights impacts, especially in regions with anti-LGBTQ+ laws, citing ongoing entrapment and extortion gangs in Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa.
