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Africa: regulate surveillance technologies and personal data

A surveillance camera is seen on a street in Nairobi.

Authorities in Nairobi have installed digital surveillance cameras as part of Kenya’s smart-city initiatives. Credit: Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty

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Nature 607, 445-448 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01949-9

References

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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