Digital Colonialism Research Articles

Candida Prevalence in the Saliva of Controlled and Uncontrolled Diabetic Patients – A Clinical Study

Context: Diabetes mellitus is a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. The health of oral tissue is related to saliva and both the composition and flow of saliva are altered in diabetic patients. Aim: This study aims to assess the prevalence of Candida in diabetic patients and non-diabetic controls and to assess the relationship between the candidal carriage and glycemic control, the relationship between the oral prevalence of Candida species, and clinical candidal infection, and the effect of antidiabetic therapy and smoking on candidal infection. Settings and Design: This cross-sectional population-based study was conducted on 100 diabetic and 50 non-diabetic (control) patients. Methods and Material: Saliva samples were collected and the concentrated oral rinse technique was used for quantitative oral candidal isolation. A digital colony counter enumerated several candidal colonies on each plate. Statistical Analysis Used: Chi-square test and Mann–Whitney test are used. Results: Colony-forming units (CFU/ml) in diabetics were 3131.14 and in control was 986.8. Out of 55 diet control patients, 30 had a candidal carrier; out of 44 patients on oral hypoglycemic, 30 had candidal carrier; and out of 1 patient on insulin, 1 had a candidal carrier. Out of 19 diabetics (good control), 8 had candidal carrier; out of 28 (moderate control), 12 had candidal carrier; and out of 53 (poor control), 41 had a candidal carrier. Out of 14 smokers, 8 had candidal carriers, and out of 36 nonsmokers, 11 had candidal carriers. Conclusions: Diabetic patients carry a higher number of candida in their oral cavity.

Political Micro-Targeting in Kenya: An Analysis of the Legality of Data-Driven Campaign Strategies under the Data Protection Act

The 2013 general election marked the entry of data-driven campaigning into Kenyan politics as political parties begun collecting and storing voter data. More sophisticated techniques were deployed in 2017 as politicians retained the services of data analytics firms such as Cambridge Analytica, accused of digital colonialism and undermining democracies. It is alleged that political parties engaged in regular targeting and more intrusive micro-targeting, facilitated by the absence of a data protection legal framework.The promulgation of the Data Protection Act, 2019, ostensibly remedied this gap. This paper analyses whether, and to what extent, political parties can rely on the same–or similar– regular targeting and micro-targeting techniques in subsequent elections. While regular targeting differs from micro-targeting as the latter operates at a more granular level, both comprise of three steps- collecting a voter’s personal data, profiling them, and sending out targeted messages.
 This paper considers the legality of each of these steps in turn. It finds that going forward, such practices will likely require the consent of the data subject. However, the Act provides for several exceptions which political parties could abuse to circumvent this requirement. There are also considerable loopholes that allow open access to voter data in the electoral list as well as the personal data of the members of a rival political party. The efficacy of the Data Protection Act will largely rest on whether the Data Protection Commissioner will interpret it progressively and hold political parties to account.

China's Digital Colonialism: Espionage and Repression Along the Digital Silk Road

Through the Digital Silk Road Initiative (DSR), announced in 2015, the People's Republic of China (PRC) is building expansive global data infrastructure and exporting surveillance technologies to dictators and illiberal regimes throughout the developing world.1 In some cases, these exports involve the trade of technology for access to sensitive user data and facial recognition intelligence. Domestically, China uses this type of technology to assert authority over its citizens, censor the media, quell protests, and systematically oppress religious minorities. Now, over eighty countries are enabled to do the same with Chinese surveillance technology.2 This report explores three primary concerns related to China's digital colonialism. China's DSR projects in the least developed regions of the world create a power imbalance between China and the recipient nations, resulting in a high risk for privacy and cybersecurity in those regions. China's export of intrusive artificial intelligence-enabled technologies and ideologies to illiberal regimes around the world enables authoritarianism and systemic oppression and degrades democratic values. Chinese digital dominance poses both a critical cybersecurity threat to the world and a growing threat to competitors' markets through the assertion of new Chinese-style standards of internet governance. As China builds new global internet infrastructure through the Digital Silk Road, it will co-opt billions of new Internet of Things (IoT) devices, servers, and foreign resources to its cyber arsenal. The author's firm, Recorded Future, posits that Beijing will conduct extensive influence operations in conjunction with the development of Chinese-style internet governance in participating Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) countries. If left unchecked by the rest of the world, China will reshape internet governance by replacing democratic values and standards with authoritarian principles.

(Digital) neo-colonialism in the smart city

ABSTRACT The critical research agenda on smart cities has become increasingly interested in the political–economic relations between digital technologies and everyday urban life. It is now clear that in the smart city, quotidian activities have become valorized as data, and are produced, extracted and circulated with little, if any, remuneration to those individuals from whom they have been abstracted. Smart-city scholars often call this process ‘digital colonialism’ to highlight the uneven relations of power that enable processes of dispossession and profit generation. In this article we argue that greater conceptual clarity is needed around digital colonialism. Specifically, what is called ‘digital colonialism’ often entails processes more characteristic of neo-colonialism. By teasing out the differences between digital colonialism and digital neo-colonialism, different relations and processes are illuminated, allowing us to theorize the smart city with greater nuance. Here, we focus on the epistemological claims, practices of legibility and repercussions that emerge when focusing attention on the latter. We show that digital neo-colonialism also requires different political strategies of resistance than its colonial counterpart, and we grapple with the multiple ways in which digital technology research has formulated resistance strategies. We advocate for a collective, structural shift in how data and digital technologies are deployed and circulated within the smart city. To substantiate these claims, we draw on a long-term, ongoing database ethnography in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Antimicrobial Efficacy of Vaccinium macrocarpon mouthwash against Steptococcus mutans in dental plaque of caries active children – A randomized controlled trial

Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) extracts have been found to be rich in polyphenols specifically, including flavonoids, that have been found to exhibit beneficial properties to human health. Considering the recent inclination in the preference of people towards herbal based products and remedies, and taking into account the possible side-effects of chlorhexidine, the current study was undertaken to comparatively evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of Vaccinium macrocarpon and chlorhexidine mouthwash on the Streptococcus mutans count in the dental plaque of caries, active children. The study follows a parallel design involving 50 children divided into two groups of 25 each - Group 1: chlorhexidine mouthwash; Group 2: cranberry mouthwash. The initial plaque samples and the samples were taken after 14 days were evaluated using a digital colony counter for determining the streptococcal colony count/ml. A statistically significant difference was found in both the groups with respect to the Streptococcal colony count when the intra-group comparison was made comparing the baseline values to the values after 14 days. However, no significant difference was seen in the percentage of reduction in the microbial CFU/ml between the two groups. Cranberry mouthwash can be considered to be an effective alternative to Chlorhexidine mouthwash, given its additional systemic effects apart from local beneficial effects in the oral region. Future scope in research should be aimed at evaluating its long term health benefits and any possible adverse effects.

Microbial Contamination of Diesel-Biodiesel Blends in Storage Tank; An Analysis of Colony Morphology

Fuel contamination is a major issue that comes with the utilization of biodiesel. Microbial growth is one of the primary causes of contamination during fuel handling and storage. This work attempts to identify the types, shapes, and growth profiles of microorganisms on fuel samples. The morphology of microbial colonies presented in order to analyze the potential of fuel contamination. The diesel, biodiesel, and the blends are stored in stainless steel (SS) and glass tanks, where each is placed indoors and outdoors during the 90 days of storage time. The morphology of microbial colonies is observed through a microscope with a magnification of 1000x and the quantity is calculated by a digital colony counter. Microbial contamination in all samples considered as high contamination where the Colony Forming Unit (CFU) is greater than 105 L-1. Colony forms are far more assorted in blends than in pure diesel (B0) and neat biodiesel (B100). The transformation of microbial colonies accelerates after 60 days of storage time. The results reveal that the number of bacterial colonies that grow in B20 is higher and more varied, nevertheless the contamination in B100 is significantly higher. This is indicated by a 1.5-fold rise in B20 acidity and a 2.5-fold increase in water content compared to the initial condition.

Video games: flagships of digital colonialism or solitary beacons of creative freedom and diversity?

Video games: flagships of digital colonialism or solitary beacons of creative freedom and diversity?

Archaeological heritage in the age of digital colonialism

AbstractDigital archaeologists claim that their practices have proven to be an important tool for mediating conflict, ensuring that the digital turn in archaeology entails engaging in current political issues. This can be questioned by analysing a copy of the Syrian Arch of Triumph. The original was destroyed in 2015. A year later, a copy was carved out of Egyptian marble; the replica was constructed thanks to digital documentation, which allowed archaeologists to create a 3D model. The arch was placed in various Western locations; however, it never reached Syria. Hybridity, the cultural and political significance of the arch’s replica and its ‘Grand Tour’ invite us to think about different interpretive layers of this artefact of ideological discourse (ontological, epistemological, ethical). In this paper, the replica of the Syrian arch will be analysed through the frameworks of post-colonial theory and technology studies. Both perspectives provide an insight into promising advantages and alarming drawbacks of such digital practices. This paper argues that the case of a copy of the Syrian Arch of Triumph on the one hand reflects the contemporary colonial technocracy in heritage politics (an ethical dimension), and on the other demonstrates that an ideological aspect of its digital reconstruction emerges from a speculative anticipation of what might constitute the universal value of world heritage in the future (an onto-epistemological dimension).

Social Media Socialism: People’s Tech and Decolonization for a Global Society in Crisis

Recent proposals by the neo-Brandeisian School of antitrust seek to ameliorate harms to society created by social media monopolies. While this initiative sounds great on paper, their solutions are inadequate, as they leave the proprietary, profit-seeking structure of social media networking intact. As a result, the neo-Brandeisian framework fails to cope with the harms of Big Social Media networks, such as privacy harms, user manipulation, the amplification of sensational content, the problems of online advertising, digital colonialism, and environmental degradation. This Article argues that social media socialism based on a democratic commons should replace Big Social Media networks. It suggests an interlocking set of tools to decentralize social networks, including network interoperability, data portability, data decentralization, a fully Free and Open Source Software stack, and socialist legal solutions. The guiding framework is based on a People’s Tech model that places ownership and control of social media directly into the hands of the global public. It proposes solutions to (1) force interoperability, data portability, data decentralization, and a Free and Open Source Software stack on social media providers; (2) put rules in place to prevent new business practices that concentrate wealth and power; (3) abolish or amend laws inconsistent with social media socialism; (4) pass strong privacy laws; (5) subsidize the social media commons through a Digital Tech New Deal; (6) form regulatory bodies to regulate social media; (7) formulate solutions jointly with the international community within a decolonial framework designed for global equality, reparations, and environmental sustainability. The Article begins by outlining the harms produced by social media monopolies. Next, it provides a socialist critique of neo-Brandeisian philosophy and its proposals to fix social media. Following that, it explains how commons-based social media decentralization works -- including its history, philosophy, and core components -- using the Fediverse and LibreSocial as case examples. The final section outlines a People's Tech model for social media socialism and addresses possible challenges.

Surveillance in South Africa: From Skin Branding to Digital Colonialism

South Africa’s long legacy of racism and colonial exploitation continues to echo throughout post-apartheid society. For centuries, European conquerors marshaled surveillance as a means to control the black population. This began with the requirements for passes to track and control the movements, settlements, and labor of Africans. Over time, surveillance technologies evolved alongside complex shifts in power, culture, and the political economy. This Chapter explores the evolution of surveillance regimes in South Africa. The first surveillance system in South Africa used paper passes to police slave movements and enforce labor contracts. To make the system more robust, various white authorities marked the skin of workers and livestock with symbols registered in paper databases. At the beginning of the twentieth century, fingerprinting was introduced in some areas to simplify and improve the passes. Under apartheid, the National Party aimed to streamline a national, all-seeing surveillance system. They imported computers to impose a regime of fixed race classification and keep detailed records about the African population. The legal apparatus of race-based surveillance was finally abolished during the transition to democracy. However, today a regime of Big Data, artificial intelligence, and centralized cloud computing has ushered in a new era of mass surveillance in South Africa. South Africa’s surveillance regimes were always devised in collaboration with foreign colonizers, imperialists, intellectuals, and profit-seeking capitalists. In each era, the United States increased its participation. During the period of settler conquest, the US had a modest presence in Southern Africa. With the onset of the minerals revolution, US power expanded, and American capitalists and engineers with business interests in the mines pushed for an improved pass system to police African workers. Under apartheid, US corporations supplied the computer technology essential to apartheid governance and business enterprise. Finally, during the latter years of post-apartheid, Silicon Valley corporations, together with US surveillance agencies, began imposing surveillance capitalism on South African society. A new form of domination, digital colonialism, has emerged, vesting the United States with unprecedented control over South African affairs. To counter the force of digital colonialism, a new movement may emerge to push to redesign the digital ecosystem as a socialist commons based on open technology, socialist legal solutions, bottom-up democracy, and Internet decentralization.

Streptococcus mutans Level Estimation in Saliva before and after Consumption of Chewable Probiotics among School Children

INTRODUCTION: The World Health Organization (WHO) deemed probiotics to be the next most important immune defence system. Also known as the “friendly bacteria”, these lactobacilli-derived food supplements are the current trending weapons to fight against Streptococcus mutans, the prime causative organism for dental caries. AIM: To compare the levels of salivary mutans streptococci in children before and after short-term consumption of dental probiotic chewable containing Lactobacillus acidophilus and Streptococcus salivarius M18. MATERIALS AND METHOD: A cross-sectional study was performed on 10 healthy subjects in the age group of 6-12 years who were followed for 7 days. The assessment of S. mutans in saliva was done at baseline, 1 hour after consumption of probiotic chewable and after 7-day of intervention period using mitis salivarius bacitracin agar. The colonies of S. mutans were identified and counted using a digital colony counter.RESULTS: A statistically significant reduction of salivary S. mutans was recorded after consumption of the probiotic chewable on the 7th day in the probiotic group. Results were found to be statistically significant (P ≤ 0.05) when the differences in the reduction of mutans streptococci counts with probiotic chewable and plain chewable on the 7th day were compared. CONCLUSION: The following study, based on its observations, does conclude that short term consumption of probiotic chewable displays a significant reduction in the level of salivary Streptococcus mutans in children. Thus, keeping in mind the idea that prevention is always better than cure, the awareness regarding probiotics as a therapy to prevent dental caries should be made among both dental practitioners, especially paediatric dentists as well as parents.

Digital Colonialism on Digital Natives: A WhatsApp Usage Perspective

In the new media debate, digital colonialism has become a topic of serious contention. This work looks into the allegation that the internet is exploitative of digital natives’ daily routine and regulates their lives. This study explores this argument in relation to the degree of consciousness of digital natives to seek out their perception of politics of Western domination in the WhatsApp usage. Therefore, the primary purpose of this paper is to find out whether digital slavery is real. Centre Periphery theory and Electronic Colonisation theory form the theoretical background of the study, which utilised questionnaires to determine areas of controversy. Using survey, we found that digital natives do not count the use of the WhatsApp as an element of colonialism. Consequently, 53.26% of the natives do not consider themselves enslaved to WhatsApp usage and thus its colonial powers; however, 28.26% view themselves as willing slaves consequent on the benefits from using the App, while an 18.48% are unsure of their position. Based on the results, it is argued that the concept of digital slavery in terms of absolute dependence on WhatsApp does not quite appeal to digital natives, except that the amount of time they spend on it could make them enslaved, whether or not they agree. To be surer of the level of influence of internet based apps on digital natives, it is recommended that further studies be conducted that will investigate the amount of time they spend on other apps, using a wider sample population.
 Keywords: Digital Colonialism, Digital Natives, WhatsApp Usage, Western Domination, Electronic Colonisation

The Question of Androids in the Sphere of Human Practices: Digital Colonialism or Harmony?

The Question of Androids in the Sphere of Human Practices: Digital Colonialism or Harmony?

Volunteer geographic information in the Global South: barriers to local implementation of mapping projects across Africa

The world is awash in data—by 2020 it is expected that there will be approximately 40 trillion gigabytes of data in existence, with that number doubling every 2 to 3 years. However, data production is not equal in all places—the global data landscape remains heavily concentrated on English-speaking, urban, and relatively affluent locations within the Global North. This inequality can contribute to new forms of digital and data colonialism. One partial solution to these issues may come in the form of crowdsourcing and volunteer geographic information (VGI), which allow Global South populations to produce their own data. Despite initial optimism about these approaches, many challenges and research gaps remain in understanding the opportunities and barriers that organizations endemic to the Global South face in carrying out their own sustainable crowdsourcing projects. What opportunities and barriers do these endemic organizations face when trying to carry out mapping projects driven by their own goals and desires? This paper contributes answers to this question by examining a VGI project that is currently mapping public libraries across the African continent. Our findings highlight how dramatically digital divides can bias crowdsourcing results; the importance of local cultural views in influencing participation in crowdsourcing; and the continued importance of traditional, authoritative organizations for crowdsourcing. These findings offer important lessons for researchers and organizations attempting to develop their own VGI projects in the Global South.

The Impact of Digital Technologies on Leadership in Global Processes: from Platforms to Markets?

Discussions on the impact of digital technologies on national and global processes are rising. Among important issues is the role of large Internet platforms (Facebook, Google, Alibaba, etc.) - key players of the digital markets and in the digital innovations – in producing global leadership / dominance. The article argues, that on the economy side existing USA-China duopoly on the platform markets creates asymmetric advantages for both nations resulting (in future) in unprecedented influence on global processes (up to “digital colonialism”). It is doubtful that potential competitors from third nations may ever destroy this duopoly. Also, the information functions of the platforms are reviewed as resource for global leadership. Noting the evolution of assessments (from techno-optimistic views of platforms as engines of democracy to alarmist views of their role as a “backdoor” for the opponents and adversaries) we accent platform`s growing information impact on the global processes (digital diplomacy, etc.). However, here the USA-PRC duopoly is also actual. Dilemma of alternative solutions to boost the influence of third nations in the new digital, platform economy still may be resolved. Since data is the key resource for the digital markets and platforms, formation of data regulatory regimes appears to be an asymmetric solution. The experience of the EU with its GDPR and other efforts to form new data/digital regimes may serve as a model. Exploiting its` large data market as a competitive factor, the EU may neutralize part of the advantages of stronger actors and orient global platforms towards a more acceptable strategy. However, regulatory practices should be complemented by the development of digital technologies, as well as regional- or national-level platforms. A serious challenge also lies in achieving needed market scale (in order to influence global platforms) and – in the future – in competition of jurisdictions.

People’s Tech for People’s Power: A Guide To Digital Self-Defense & Empowerment

As we progress into the 21st century, digital technology is changing every part of society. With the spread of computers and the internet, enormous amounts of information is being collected by governments and corporations. This guide, which is tailored to the South African context – but applicable to other societies – will equip you with the info needed to protect yourself against government and corporate spying. It provides you with knowledge about People’s Tech for People’s Power: technologies which empower individuals and societies to control their own digital experiences. This guide contextualises the issue of surveillance to its root causes. Problems of privacy, security, and surveillance connect to the broader themes of capitalism and authoritarianism. People’s Tech is essential to creating a more prosperous society that replaces digital capitalism with digital socialism – a society in which the people directly own and control the means of computation, and develop it for the well-being of humanity instead of profit and control. Content is for both beginners and more experienced readers, as well as academic audiences. The material explains some of the fundamentals of 21st century surveillance in South Africa, touch upon themes of digital colonialism, and suggest what people can do to protect themselves from surveillance and empower their society. Drafts were peer reviewed by academics and cybersecurity experts. The author is responsible for all final content. Written for the Right2Know Campaign, this publication is licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0 International.

Antifungal Effectiveness of Various Intracanal Medicaments against Candida albicans: An In Vitro Study

To evaluate the antifungal efficiency of various intracanal medicaments against Candida albicans. One-hundred and forty extracted human mandibular premolar teeth were decoronated, and the biomechanical preparation was done in crown-down technique. 10 μL culture suspension of C. albicans was placed into the prepared root canal space of all the teeth. After 21 days of incubation, all the teeth were randomly divided into 7 groups with 20 teeth per each group. Group I: triple antibiotic powder (TAP) mixed with 3% chitosan solution; group II: TAP mixed with macrogol-propylene (MP) glycol; group III: chlorhexidine-guttapercha (CHX-GP); group IV: Vitapex; group V: 2% chlorhexidine gel; group VI: calcium hydroxide paste; group VII: normal saline with cotton (positive control) were used as intracanal medicaments, and the samples were incubated for 14 days. Intracanal medicaments were then completely removed using the canal brush. Dentinal chips were harvested from the walls of the root canal space in all samples using Gates-Glidden drills, were transferred into test tubes containing saline, and were serially diluted and placed in 140 Sabouraud dextrose agar plates, incubated at 37°C for 48 hours. Colony forming units (CFUs) of C. albicans were then counted using the digital colony counter. One-way ANOVA test showed statistically significant difference among the seven groups, as the p value was < 0.001. Tukey's post hoc test showed intergroup comparison between group I and group V; group II and group III were statistically nonsignificant as p value was >0.05. 2% chlorhexidine gel and TAP mixed with 3% chitosan solution showed superior antifungal efficiency against C. albicans. Chitosan solution's inherent antifungal efficiency and slow and controlled drug release make it as an effective alternate carrier in mixing it with TAP instead of mixing TAP with MP.

Digital Colonialism: South Africa’s Education Transformation in the Shadow of Silicon Valley

Over the past few decades, US-based technology corporations and surveillance agencies colonized the global tech ecosystem. This dissertation proposes a conceptual and theoretical framework to understand how the United States is reinventing colonialism in the Global South through the domination of digital technology. As a policy analysis of digital colonialism – defined as the use of digital tech for political, economic, and social control – it provides a detailed assessment of Operation Phakisa Education (OPE), the secretive plan to fast-track a national e-education rollout to all South African public schools. The study contrasts the Western model of digital capitalism against what I refer to as “People’s Technology for People’s Power” – a nod to the anti-apartheid education movement of the 1980s. People’s Technology merges socialist democracy with technologies and perspectives developed by the Free Software community. It offers a vision for digital socialism that aims to transform the tech ecosystem into a global digital commons based on decentralized ownership and control over the means of computation. The dissertation demonstrates how the national e-education initiative is a primary vessel for Silicon Valley corporations to capture South African education, economy, and society. By placing general-purpose Big Tech products in public schools (such as Microsoft Windows or Google Android), young people and teachers become consumers of Big Tech software, and society is locked into their platforms, products, and ecosystems. By placing education-specific products into schools (such as Office 365 Education or G Suite for Education), public education becomes partially privatized through the educational features designed by Silicon Valley. The South African government has a Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) policy preference explicitly designed to resist US-based corporate colonization, yet policymakers are presently ignoring it. Instead, SA policymakers embrace digital capitalism expressed through the so-called “Fourth Industrial Revolution” narrative. OPE aims to serve the technocratic aims of the state-corporate ruling class, which seeks to “transform” education, economy, and society through Big Data surveillance of teachers and pupils. The dissertation concludes that US technological and conceptual dominance in South Africa constitutes digital colonialism. It emphasizes the need for public inclusion in policy formation and the central importance of People’s Tech to a free and equitable society. Current scholarship critical of digital technology neglects the Free Software community and the problem of digital colonialism, and subsequent literature would be enriched by addressing these issues.

Manuscript Title: Digital Colonialism on Digital Natives in Nigeria: A WhatsApp Usage Perspective

In the new media debate, digital colonialism has become a topic of serious contention. This work looks into the allegation that the internet is exploitative of digital natives’ daily routine and regulates their lives by exploring this argument about the degree of consciousness of digital natives to seek out their perception of politics of Western domination in the WhatsApp usage. Therefore, the primary motivation of this paper is to find out whether digital slavery is real. Media Dependency Theory and Uses and Gratification theory form the theoretical background of the study, which utilised questionnaires to determine areas of controversy. Using a survey, we found that digital natives do not count the use of the WhatsApp as an element of colonialism. Consequently, 53.26% of the natives do not consider themselves enslaved to WhatsApp usage and thus its colonial powers; however, 28.26% view themselves as willing slaves consequent on the benefits from using the App, while an 18.48% are unsure of their position. Based on the results, the argument is that the concept of digital slavery in terms of absolute dependence on WhatsApp is not quite appealing to digital natives, except that the amount of time they spend on it could make them enslaved, whether or not they agree. Further studies could determine the influence of internet-based apps on digital natives and the amount of time they spend, using a more extensive sample population. Keywords: Digital colonialism, Digital natives, WhatsApp usage, Western domination, Media dependency DOI : 10.7176/NMMC/86-04 Publication date: December 31 st 2019

Antimicrobial Activity of Cold Plasma Treatment on Acrylic Denture Bases: An In Vitro Evaluation.

Introduction: Cross-contamination between dental office and prosthetic laboratories is of utmost importance. The dental prosthesis could harbor tones of microorganisms harmful to health staff. It has been estimated that more than 60% of the prostheses delivered to clinics from laboratories or vice versa are contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms. Several disinfection methods and chemicals have been proposed for sanitizing prostheses. Cold plasma, or nonthermal plasma, has been introduced as a new method in medical equipment disinfection. The current study aimed to compare the antimicrobial effect of cold plasma and the routinely used alcohol-based impression disinfectant ASEPTOPRINT® on disinfecting dentures. Methods: In this experimental study, 30 maxillary complete dentures were used as the microbial source. Dentures were randomly divided into 3 groups: (1) cold plasma treatment for 30 seconds, (2) cold plasma for 60 seconds, (3) ASEPTOPRINT® spray. Microbial culturing was taken before and after disinfection in each group on both Blood Agar plates and Soborou Dextrose Agar (SDA) plates. After 48 hours incubation at 37°C, the number of colonies was counted using a digital colony counter and differences between the groups were analyzed. Results: A significant reduction in microbial colonies was observed after using all disinfection methods. ASEPTOPRINT® spray showed more antimicrobial effects comparing to cold plasma. Conclusion: The antimicrobial effect of ASEPTOPRINT® spray solution is more than cold plasma application on both microbial and fungal microorganisms. The time of plasma application was not accompanied by any significant differences in the results.