Cyberattacks and Digital Inequality: New Barriers to Accessing Services Related to HIV

Published on: 2026-07-26

Source: United Nations – United Nations –

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In an interview with Evgenia Klescheva from the UN News Service, Daria Ocheret, a specialist of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), explained why cybersecurity in the provision of HIV-related services has become one of the directions in combating the epidemic.
Lessons of the pandemic
UNAIDS’ interest in digital security significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many services related to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment had to be urgently moved online due to lockdowns.
However, access to digital technologies turned out to be far from equal. Ochoret gave the example of Zimbabwe, where a clinic posted detailed information on its website about obtaining antiretroviral drugs during the lockdown. However, many people living with HIV in the country used mobile internet packages that provided access only to social networks and messengers, but not to traditional websites.
“That gap between our ideas about how to use digital opportunities to facilitate access to services and what was actually available really struck me back then,” she told the UN News Service.
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In Kazakhstan, an organization created by women living with HIV helped their clients obtain the necessary QR codes to visit medical facilities during the pandemic: some did not have their own phone, others did not know how to use the new system.
According to a UNAIDS staff member, these examples have shown that the digital divide exists not only between countries but also within individual communities. Among people living with HIV, members of the LGBTQI community, sex workers, and people who use drugs, there are both active technology users and those who do not have their own device, reliable internet, or the necessary skills.
“How can we prevent digital inequality from further complicating access to HIV services? Systemic solutions are needed here,” Ocheret emphasized.
From potential threat to real attacks
In 2020, UNAIDS supported a project to develop digital security skills among women’s organizations in Kazakhstan, Belarus, and Ukraine. Participants were trained to use VPNs and other protection tools.
“At that time, such threats were rather theoretical,” noted the interviewee of the UN News Service.
In 2025, as part of the global UNAIDS project supporting LGBTI communities, a survey was conducted involving 21 organizations from 17 countries. It was found that most of them had already faced cyberattacks, often repeatedly. The study also revealed significant gaps in the organizations’ readiness to respond to digital threats. Based on the data obtained, a practical guide and a training module on digital security and prevention of gender-based violence using technology were developed.

According to Ocheret, digital violence cannot be considered in isolation from the situation in the “physical” world: offices, shelters, and other premises of LGBTI organizations are subject to attacks. As of 2025, 64 countries criminalize various aspects of same-sex relations — this is one-third of the world’s states. The Global AIDS Strategy has set a goal to reduce the number of countries applying such laws to 10 percent. The new Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS, signed on June 22 of this year, confirmed the countries’ intention to move in this direction.
“It cannot be said that digital technologies have provoked an increase in violence. They are simply becoming another platform where harm can be inflicted on key groups and the organizations that work with them,” emphasized the UNAIDS specialist.
Data leaks can threaten people
Ocheret named unauthorized access to client databases, employee data, and internal documents as the most serious risk for organizations. This threat is especially significant where same-sex relationships, sex work, or drug use are criminalized and where the law may be applied against organizations providing medical and social assistance to such groups.
In Eastern European and Central Asian countries, project partners reported fake profiles in dating apps, illegal phone checks, surveillance of activists on social networks, blackmail, and the spread of disinformation.
Thus, according to UNAIDS partners, one organization in Central Asia faced a leak of office addresses and activist lists after a series of hacks, phishing attacks, and surveillance. Staff were subjected to blackmail, online harassment, and hate incitement, after which the organization was forced to cease operations. Later, activists resumed activities under a new structure and developed a cybersecurity policy, but due to lack of funds, they could not regularly update protections or provide employees with secure devices.
Digital services: new opportunities and new risks
Amid funding cuts, digital tools are becoming an increasingly attractive way to reach more people at lower costs. Successful chatbots and remote services for key population groups already exist.
In Brazil, for example, a chatbot was created for young transgender people. According to a UNAIDS representative, this format can be convenient and inspire trust: people are sometimes willing to share information with the chatbot that they would not even share with a social worker. However, the widespread use of such chatbots is only possible if confidentiality and data protection are guaranteed.

“If a person asks a question about the side effects of drugs for the prevention or treatment of HIV, this question itself may indirectly indicate that he or she is living with HIV. In conditions of stigma and criminalization, this can become a threat,” Ocheret noted.
An additional problem is the shared use of phones. In Kenya, researchers found that many people use a single device together with relatives, neighbors, or acquaintances. Under such conditions, a message from a chatbot or search history could reveal HIV status, sexual orientation, or other confidential information.
Such digital threats can negatively affect mental health, hinder people from seeking services and continuing treatment, and weaken the work of community organizations.
Technological solutions
Artificial intelligence is already being used in vaccine and drug research, epidemiological data analysis, procurement planning, and advisory services. However, there are still insufficient systemic solutions that would guarantee equal access and safety for people from criminalized and stigmatized groups.
Ocheret also warned that digital technologies can exacerbate inequality between organizations themselves. Those with more resources can acquire secure software, hire IT specialists, and use paid versions of AI tools that provide better data protection. Small organizations often do not have such opportunities.
UNAIDS does not aim to create universal digital tools on its own. The program’s task is to support solutions developed by the communities themselves and help spread successful experiences.
Among practical recommendations, Ocheryet named regular assessment of digital and physical risks, updating security protocols, maintaining contacts with qualified lawyers, and a separate budget line for protecting the organization.
EKOM, one of UNAIDS partner organizations in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, for example, created a self-assessment tool that allows NGOs to check how protected their staff, devices, documents, and client data are, as well as to identify where new protocols or training are needed.
“The problems do not lie in virtual reality or artificial intelligence. They simply become an additional tool for attacks. The cause of vulnerability is stigma, cultural norms, and legislation,” emphasized the UN agency representative.

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