This emerged from the just-concluded cybersecurity conference in Pretoria which brought together experts from the private sector, government departments, state owned entities and teaching institutions.
The aim of the conference was to map out progress that has been made with regards to policy development and implementation and to define areas of collaboration with the private sector and academia.
Minister of State Security, David Mahlobo said at the end of the four-day conference that the government alone cannot secure the cyberspace and related information and communication technologies.
“The private sector is expected to contribute to national skills, research and development.
Academic institutions should take a lead in developing academic programs that focus on developing the required technical skills in partnership with government. Civil society is expected to take interest in the general awareness programs and at least ensure their devices have updated malware protection,” he said.
The conference heard how South Africa is losing hundreds of millions of rand annually to cybercrime and what organizations need to do to protect the integrity of their systems.
Prior to the conference, the government launched the National Cybersecurity Hub in a bid to fight rising cyber crimes.
The hub will serve as a central point for collaboration between the industry, government and civil society on all cybersecurity related incidents in South Africa.
South Africa has a higher rate of cybercrime than other African countries. In 2013, the country was number three in the world in phishing incidences. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
