cybercrime Archives - AfricaBusiness.com

8Nov

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

South Africans play a greater role in becoming scam victims than they care to admit

The South African fraud landscape is becoming increasingly risky as fraudsters and scammers look to target individuals with highly sophisticated scams in an environment where it is becoming increasingly difficult for lawmakers and authorities to bring these criminals to justice. "International Fraud Awareness Week is held from 12 - 18 November, and it is important to remain actively aware about the risks fraud poses to us locally as well as globally. In particular, South Africans need to be aware how they are impacted by fraud and the urgency of implementing proactive prevention measures in their daily lives," says Nazia Karrim, Head of Product Development at the Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS). As the custodians of fraud in Southern Africa, and to mark International Fr...

Staying ahead of cybercrime is a business imperative

It is predicted that there will be 7,5 billion Internet users by 2030 and that more than 111 billion lines of new software code is produced each year. While the growth is exciting, these statistics also outline the number of vulnerabilities open to exploitation. Together with an estimated 96 zettabytes of digital content currently produced, this sheer volume will lead to increased cyber-attacks and security events, all of which will be virtually impossible for humans to contain. Ryan Mer, Managing Director, eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider, says that cyber security is almost always a people problem first: “While the amount of business transactions taking place online is constantly growing and working from home is now commonplace, business controls have not kep...

Fighting Fraud in 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a drastic impact not only on people’s health and wellbeing, but on that of businesses too. This was especially poignant for many companies that had to venture into the online world for the first time. Unsurprisingly, the uncertainty that coincided with the sudden digital migration created the perfect opportunity for fraudsters looking to capitalise on the confusion. In fact, South Africa has the third most cyber victims worldwide, losing R2.2 billion a year, with low investment in cybersecurity and immature cybercrime legislation making the country the ideal target.[i] So, what can companies do to ensure that their business is safe from cyber-fraud in 2021? “The first step towards insulating your business from cyber-crime and fraud is to make sure you’re using...