The organization Zara – Civil Courage and Anti-Racism Work presented its 8th “Countering Hate on the Internet Report” on Wednesday evening. According to the report, 1,716 cases of online hate were documented between September 2024 and August 2025. Since the founding of the “GegenHassimNetz” counseling center in 2017, a total of 15,113 cases have been recorded. Most cases were racially motivated (53 percent), followed by “non-ideologically motivated hate” (31 percent) and sexism (6 percent). The NGO classified 46 percent (798 cases) of the hate reports as (criminally) relevant and 54 percent as not legally relevant.
Among the reports classified as criminally relevant, insults were the most common (30 percent), followed by incitement (17 percent) and cyberbullying (10 percent). Violations of the Prohibition Act accounted for nine percent of reports, dangerous threats for five percent, and (cyber)stalking for three percent. Another 26 percent fell under “other criminally relevant offenses,” according to ZARA.
Zara: Legally permissible content can still cause harm
This year’s report focused on the topic “Lawful but Awful.” It shows how legally permissible online content can still “hurt people, silence them, and ultimately prevent fair, democratic discourse,” ZARA stated.
“Legal online hate shapes the everyday lives of many people and reveals where the rule of law reaches its limits when it comes to protecting human dignity. It is precisely at this intersection that ZARA’s work begins: We listen, provide advice, and take action where other systems fall short,” explained ZARA’s executive director Rita Isiba, according to the organization’s press release.
1,985 individual counseling sessions for affected persons
According to the report, ZARA conducted 1,985 individual counseling sessions for affected persons and witnesses over the last counseling year. These included psychosocial support and legal assessments of hate reports in particular. The counseling center requested the removal of hateful posts 404 times, the report said.
Women and people perceived as female are particularly affected by online hate, according to ZARA. At the same time, they are especially active in reporting: 70 percent of online hate reports submitted to ZARA come from non-male individuals, it said.
