Digital Lanterns in a Forest: X’s Location Tags Illuminate Risk Across Southern Africa

X’s new profile-location feature raises safety concerns across Southern Africa, with digital-rights experts warning it could expose activists, journalists and political figures to harassment and surveillance risks (image source)

X’s new profile-location feature — revealing users’ countries, regions, creation dates and username histories — is being framed as a tool for transparency. But across Southern Africa, digital-rights experts warn it may expose activists, journalists and political actors to fresh risks in an already volatile online environment.

A Tool Built for Clarity, Now Creating Shadows

The platform argues that displaying a user’s origin helps distinguish genuine voices from bots. In theory, it strengthens authenticity. In practice, even a country-level tag can be weaponised in Southern Africa’s tense political climate. Critics say that for activists crossing borders quietly or opposition figures navigating hostile networks, such metadata can betray their positions to online abusers, state actors or partisan rivals.

Metadata as a Weapon in Online Battles

Early reactions show how quickly the feature can be misused. Screenshots of location tags have already been repurposed to brand diaspora commentators as “outsiders” and to discredit critics as disconnected or foreign. Digital-rights analysts warn that a single visible tag can trigger harassment campaigns, distort public perception, or undermine the safety of those relying on anonymity in their work.

Journalists and Activists Reassess Their Digital Footprints

Journalists are also reconsidering their operational security. A location tag reading “Zimbabwe,” experts note, doesn’t confirm residency — VPNs, device logs and app settings can obscure or expose data unpredictably. Many users remain unaware of these dynamics, heightening the danger of unintentional disclosure in politically sensitive conversations.

Civil Society Calls for Risk-Sensitive Defaults

Civil-society groups across the region are pushing for safer controls, including default location-hiding for high-risk accounts and clearer user settings. Activists are being encouraged to tighten their digital hygiene, manage devices more carefully and decide strategically when — or whether — to reveal such metadata. In this evolving digital ecosystem, literacy is no longer optional but a core survival skill.

The new feature underscores a broader reality: transparency is never neutral. In Southern Africa’s digital landscape, a lantern meant to illuminate can also cast dangerous shadows. X’s update reflects the ongoing tension between authenticity and exposure — and the shared responsibility of platforms, regulators and users navigating this intricate terrain.