In many ways, 2021 was a landmark year for online privacy. In April 2021, Apple rolled out an update allowing users to opt-out of app tracking, with most iPhone users having done so by the end of the year. There were even talks to disable tracking technology on the world’s most popular web browser.
We also saw movement on the legislative front, with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) coming into effect in July. (Kenya and Nigeria’s equivalent acts came into effect in 2019). In fact, Gartner, a technology research and consulting firm, predicts that modern privacy laws will cover 75 percent of the world’s population by the end of 2023.
