The Influence Of Digital Content Creation Platforms On Young Women’s Personal Security In Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of digital content creation platforms on the personal security of young women (ages 18–25) in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The contention of the study is that rapid proliferation of digital content creation platforms has revolutionized self-expression and economic empowerment for young women; however, it simultaneously exposes them to severe technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV). Despite rising TFGBV cases in Nairobi, limited empirical research examines how platform affordances influence young women’s personal security. Guided by Radical Feminist and Securitization Theories, the study employed a cross-sectional mixedmethods design. A sample of 150 young women was selected using multistage and purposive sampling techniques, alongside key informants from security and legal sectors. Data was collected via questionnaires, Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and document analysis, and analyzed using SPSS and thematic approaches. Findings revealed that content creation acts as a double-edged sword, where algorithmic and economic pressures force young women to trade physical safety for digital relevance. Specifically, geotagging and passive metadata exposure lead to severe doxxing and physical tracking, while intimate content formats foster parasocial obsessions that escalate into offline stalking, with 88.9% of respondents reporting unwanted physical encounters. Furthermore, deepfakes and digital extortion emerged as critical emerging threats. The study concludes that digital platforms function as patriarchal infrastructures that weaponize women's visibility. Despite legislative frameworks like the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act (2018), implementation gaps leave young women practically unprotected. The study recommends urgent systemic interventions, including enhanced legal enforcement, digital literacy among law enforcement, and strict platform accountability to safeguard young women in the digital creator economy.