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South Africas digital wellbeing is in ICU due to lax security, low number of users, and broadband growth, according to the latest Digital Quality of Life Index. The countrys worst criteria rankings were for cybersecurity (95th place), number of internet users (91st) and broadband speed growth (80th). Surfshark, an internet security firm, indexed 110 countries that covered 90% of the global population in the third edition, which ranks countries digital wellbeing according to the five pillars of internet quality, internet affordability, e-infrastructure, e-government, and e-security. An additional 25 countries were added to the index this time. Internet quality measures the...

South Africas digital wellbeing is in ICU due to lax security, low number of users, and broadband growth, according to the latest Digital Quality of Life Index.

The countrys worst criteria rankings were for cybersecurity (95th place), number of internet users (91st) and broadband speed growth (80th).

Surfshark, an internet security firm, indexed 110 countries that covered 90% of the global population in the third edition, which ranks countries digital wellbeing according to the five pillars of internet quality, internet affordability, e-infrastructure, e-government, and e-security. An additional 25 countries were added to the index this time.

Internet quality measures the stability, speed and year-on-year growth of online connections, while internet affordability measures working hours required to pay for broadband and mobile internet. E-infrastructure measures the percentage of internet users per country and its network readiness, while e-security measures the ability to tackle cybercrime and the status of data protection laws, and e-government measures the roll-out of online government services and AI readiness.

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South Africa ranked 68th globally out of 110 countries, a drop of nine places compared to 2020, but placed first among the 18 African countries surveyed. The countrys best criteria rankings were a seventh place for mobile internet stability, 21st for mobile affordability, and 24th for broadband internet affordability.

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Denmark took the top position in the index for the second year in a row, and the new overall top 10 has changed considerably, with a new entrant, South Korea, taking the second spot, ahead of Finland (3) and Israel (4). The United States jumped to the 5th position from the 22nd spot the year before, with significant improvements in internet quality and e-infrastructure.

Singapore was in sixth place, France in seventh, Switzerland eighth, Germany ninth, and Britain in 10th place.

Digital opportunities have proved to be more important than ever during the COVID-19 crisis, stressing the importance for every country to ensure fully remote operational capacities for their economies, says Vytautas Kaziukonis, CEO of Surfshark.

That is why, for the third year in a row, we continue the Digital Quality of Life research, which provides a robust global outlook into how countries excel digitally. The index sets the basis for meaningful discussions about how digital advancement impacts a countrys prosperity and where improvements can be made.

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SA's internet access not quite the world's worst, but far from the best - - The Citizen