Battle over publishing of matric results set to return to court

Keely Goodall

Keely Goodall

10 October 2025 | 7:00

The legal battle around the publication of matric results is once again heating up.

Battle over publishing of matric results set to return to court

Grade 12 pupils writing their final exams. Picture: @Siviwe_G/X

The Department of Basic Education and the Information Regulator are set to face off in court later this month around the publishing of matric results.

This is the continuation of a debate that has been ongoing since 2022.

The argument centres around the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), and whether publishing matric results in newspapers and online violates this.

The information regulator argues that the results should not be published, even if no names are attached.

“There are a lot of significant issues to chase. I do not know why the regulator is chasing this particular issue, because it seems rather insignificant compared to many other major infringements of privacy that are happening on a daily basis,” says tech lawyer John Giles.

To listen to John Giles, Managing Director and digital, data, and tech lawyer at Michalsons, in conversation with John Maytham on CapeTalk, click the audio player below:

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