Tag: cybersecurity

South African enterprise is no stranger to the phenomenon of cybercrime. In light of numerous high-profile data breaches, it is evident that digital espionage is on the rise. In fact, the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) estimates that South Africans lose R2.2bn to internet fraud and phishing attacks annually.

With estimates that between 30,000 and 50,000 drones are currently being operated in South Africa unmanned aerial vehicles have punched a gaping hole in existing physical and IT security strategies.

The demand for cybersecurity solutions is growing rapidly, businesses around the globe are investing heavily in security. Annual global cyber losses are expected to hit US$6 trillion by 2021, with cybersecurity spending projected to exceed a total of US$1 trillion for the five years leading up to 2021.

In 2018, web miners, applications that run in a user’s browser and mine cryptocurrencies for profit, could have consumed as much as 18.8 gigawatts of electric power, according to our research on the economic and environmental impact of web mining. This makes it comparable to the power consumption rate of Poland and means the environmental impact of web mining is close to 800 tons of CO2 emissions.

Businesses are putting themselves at increased risk of losing data, by not curbing the actions of current and former employees. 25% of workers in South Africa still have access to files and documents from a previous employer, putting the integrity of data and company livelihood at risk, finds new research ‘Sorting out digital clutter in business’.

Governing bodies, and the role they play, are under the spotlight like never before. How should members of governing bodies ensure that they are covering all the bases?

For any South African organization, the best way to prepare for POPI is to implement a solid data protection strategy that guards against loss of data whether through malicious or accidental methods.