Department of Basic Education

Administrative fine imposed. Information Regulator, 23 December 2024.

Record ID: za-ir-2024-0007
Jurisdiction: South Africa
Regulator: Information Regulator
Type: penalty notice
Date decided: 23 December 2024
Respondent type: public
Sector: education
Violations: unlawful processing, publication without consent, breach of purpose limitation
Provisions cited: POPIA 2013
Outcome: administrative fine imposed
Penalty: ZAR 5,000,000 (≈ USD 272,000 at the decision date)
Status: appealed
Source: Official document ↗
Source integrity: SHA-256 67e68cfaadb5399b…
Record verified: 30 July 2026

The facts

The Department of Basic Education was ordered by a November 2024 enforcement notice not to publish the 2024 matriculants' results in newspapers and to make the results available to learners by POPIA-compliant means. The department failed to comply, and the Information Regulator issued an infringement notice imposing an administrative fine of R5 million, only the second fine issued under POPIA after the 2023 fine against the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

Orders and outcome

Infringement notice ordering payment of an administrative fine of R5 million for non-compliance with the enforcement notice of 18 November 2024. Announced December 2024.

ADMINISTRATIVE-FINE · PUBLICATION · EDUCATION · CONSENT

Cite this decision

Information Regulator (South Africa), Department of Basic Education, penalty notice of 23 December 2024. African Data Protection Enforcement Tracker, Law Lab Africa Research, https://research.lawlab.africa/tracker/south-africa/information-regulator/2024/department-of-basic-education-matric-results/ (accessed 30 August 2026).

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