The latest mass disclosure of documents linked to Jeffrey Epstein was supposed to answer a long-standing public demand: sunlight, finally, on a case that has come to symbolise elite impunity and institutional failure. Instead, the release has exposed a different and deeply troubling weakness ~ how easily the machinery of transparency can become a second instrument of harm when it forgets who it is meant to protect. At the heart of the controversy is not the principle of disclosure itself.

Few would argue that a case of this magnitude should remain sealed forever, especially when questions about networks, enablers and missed chances for accountability still linger. But transparency is not a moral absolute; it is a tool. Like any tool, it can be used carefully or carelessly. In this instance, the carelessness has been devastating. Survivors found their identities, contact details, and even images circulating because redactions failed. For people........

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