On Wednesday, 14 January, an inaugural lecture by Dr. Ana Marija Dunaj was held at the Faculty of Croatian Studies, University of Zagreb, as part of the selection procedure for a vacant academic position of Assistant Professor in the interdisciplinary field of science, within the scientific fields of Communication Studies and Sociology.

The lecture, entitled “Security on Social Media”, was delivered before an expert committee, faculty members, and students, and was also attended by other interested participants. The Chair of the Expert Committee was Prof. Renato Matić, PhD, with Assoc. Prof. Marica Marinović Golubić, PhD, both from the Department of Sociology at the Faculty of Croatian Studies, and Assist. Prof. Tamara Kunić, PhD, an external member of the committee from Vern’ University of Applied Sciences.

The lecture addressed social media as a source of social insecurity and a crisis of trust, with a particular focus on theoretical frameworks of trust and security, the spread of disinformation, and security risks in the digital environment. Dr. Dunaj also discussed the most common criminal offences occurring on social media, such as hate speech and forms of digital violence, as well as European Union regulatory mechanisms, including the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Special attention was given to the Croatian social context and societal vulnerability in the context of challenges related to trust in institutions, clearly linked to the course Sociology of Security, taught within the undergraduate sociology programme.

Following the lecture, a highly active and substantive discussion took place, involving students, faculty members, and guest lecturers, who raised questions about current challenges in digital security, platform responsibility, and the role of education in strengthening societal resilience to disinformation. Almost all members of the Department of Sociology attended the lecture, expressing their support for Dr. Dunaj, who is currently employed at the Department as a teaching and research assistant.

The Expert Committee evaluated the lecture as highly successful, emphasizing the lecturer’s strong subject-matter expertise, clear and methodologically sound presentation, appropriateness of the content to the level of study, well-developed public speaking skills, and effective use of teaching aids. It was concluded that Dr. Ana Marija Dunaj is fully competent to teach at the higher education level, and the inaugural lecture was assessed as successfully completed.

The lecture confirmed that security on social media is a highly topical and socially relevant issue, generating strong interest among both the academic community and students, and opening space for further scholarly and professional discussion.