For many Pretoria residents, election information may arrive before they have had a chance to look for it.

It can appear in a family WhatsApp group, a Facebook post, a TikTok video or a message forwarded by a neighbour or friend. While some information may be shared by people who genuinely believe it is true, other content may be deliberately created or distributed to mislead voters.

Ahead of the 2026 local government elections, the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has introduced an electoral code of conduct on countering disinformation. The code sets out rules for political parties, candidates and those acting on their behalf when communicating with voters online and offline.

The code is intended to support election integrity and free, fair and orderly elections. It applies from its promulgation on September 4 until the election results are declared.

For residents, understanding the difference between misinformation and disinformation can help them identify potentially misleading election content.

Misinformation versus disinformation

Misinformation is false or inaccurate information shared without an intention to deceive. For example, a resident could forward an incorrect voting date to a WhatsApp group because they genuinely believed it was correct.

Disinformation involves false or misleading information that is deliberately created or shared to deceive, cause harm or influence how people understand an issue.

The IEC specifically describes election disinformation as false or misleading information shared by someone who knows it is untrue, or has no reasonable basis for believing it is true, with the intention of misleading voters or disrupting an election.

The difference is largely about intent. However, either can spread quickly and leave residents unsure about what they can trust.

What residents should look out for

According to the IEC, residents should be cautious of posts making claims about voting dates, voting times, voting stations, registration requirements or who is eligible to vote.

Residents should also check fake statements or announcements attributed to the IEC or its officials against the commission’s official communication channels.

Other warning signs include fake accounts, co-ordinated networks of accounts or bots designed to make a political view appear more popular than it is, and political advertising that does not clearly identify who paid for or distributed it.

The code also addresses doxxing, which involves sharing someone’s private information without consent to cause harm.

AI-generated or manipulated images, videos and audio are another concern. Under the code, synthetic content used by political parties and candidates must be clearly labelled before being distributed.

Residents may notice unusual facial movements, unnatural lighting, distorted hands or blurred edges in suspicious content, but these signs alone cannot confirm that something has been generated or manipulated using AI.

Steps residents can take

The safest first step is to pause before sharing.

Check where the information originated, whether the account is genuine and whether the claim appears on official IEC platforms or is supported by credible news organisations.

If a post claims the IEC has changed a voting date or venue, residents should verify it directly through the commission instead of relying on a forwarded message.

A reverse-image search can also help establish whether a photograph is being used out of context. Services such as Google Images and TinEye allow users to search for an image and see where else it has appeared.

For example, an old photograph from another event or location could be presented as a current Pretoria incident, creating a misleading impression about what happened.

Requirements for political parties and candidates

Under the code, political parties and candidates must check information for accuracy before distributing it and take responsibility for content published by them, for them or on their behalf.

If they become aware that they have distributed false or misleading information, they must publicly retract and correct it within 36 hours and, where appropriate, censure those responsible.

The code also prohibits deceptive practices, including fake accounts, bot networks, co-ordinated inauthentic behaviour, doxxing and cyberbullying.

Parties and candidates must report instances of online election disinformation to Real411 within 36 hours of becoming aware of them and promote awareness of the code among their members and supporters.

The code further prohibits disinformation targeting the IEC, its commissioners or staff, with parties required to publicly correct such information where it occurs.

Where to report suspected disinformation

The IEC has designated Real411 as the official platform for reporting election-related disinformation.

Its complaints process allows members of the public to submit suspected digital harms for the Digital Complaints Committee to assess.

Residents should provide supporting information, such as a link or screenshot of the content and details about where and when they encountered it.

Complaints cannot be submitted anonymously, although the complainant’s identity is kept confidential through the complaints process.

Residents can submit an election-related complaint through the Real411 complaints portal.

The process can result in matters being reviewed, referred to another body or addressed through other appropriate measures.

Election-related complaints are shared with the IEC’s Directorate for Electoral Offences, while its independent outcomes are submitted to the IEC for consideration.

The aim is not to discourage political debate or legitimate criticism, but to help residents distinguish between genuine political discussion and content that may deliberately mislead them.

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