UWC’s law faculty has conferred a Doctorate of Philosophy by publication for the first time, the university said.
Dr Eveshnie Reddy’s PhD by publication, An Enforcement Framework for Cryptocurrency Crime: A South African perspective, consisted of four published journal articles and one book chapter.
A PhD by publication is a degree awarded in recognition of a research published in numerous formats or journals. Unlike a conventional doctorate, you are not expected to undertake a new research project.
It was conferred on Thursday December 12 at UWC’s Jakes Gerwel Hall in Bellville.
In her research, Dr Reddy argued that current laws like South Africa’s Cybercrimes Act and Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) offer partial solutions but lack clear provisions for cryptocurrency-specific crimes.
The legal definitions of “money laundering” and “cyber fraud” must also be re-evaluated to include cryptoassets, she said.
“I needed to delve into computer science a little bit and understand how encryption technology works, how the dark web works, how criminals actually go into the dark web, and what types of crimes are actually committed. And it’s very nuanced.”
Dr Reddy is also part of the African Fintech Law and Regulation Network coordinated by her PhD supervisor Professor Vivienne Lawack.
“I am very proud of Eveshnie. After completing her PhD by publication she has been invited by the Department of Computer Science and Technology at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom to take up a postdoctoral fellowship,” said Professor Lawack.
