Page 16 - Ongoye Online, Christmas edition

STAY CYBER SECURE
THIS FESTIVE AND BEYOND
Three decades ago the the words cybercrime and cyber cyber security were not common in the the average South African’s vocabulary This can can be attributed to to the the the fact that that the the the technology that that exists today was not available then The advancement of of technology however has come with the persistent issue of of cybercrime which poses a a a huge threat to many industries Themba Shozi a a a a lecturer in the the Computer Science Department at at the the the University of Zululand (UNIZULU) explains that the the term “cyber-attacks” refers to multiple scenarios among those being “altering the systems and and data contained resource exploitation confidential material being accessed and and gained illegal information about the the target system and and interrupting the the business functions and and its procedures’ regular operations” Shozi notes that cases of cyber- attacks are prevalent today and adds that attackers have increasingly become more creative in their ploys and use more complex methods “Experts have warned that dangers are greater than ever before as the cyber scourge even runs the risk
of undermining public confidence in such treasured concepts as as democratisation economics and confidentiality ” the academic says The South South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC) a a a a a a a a company formed by South South African banks to support the the banking industry in in in in in the the the combating of of crime crime highlights that the the the common forms of of cybercrime include phishing vishing SMishing and identity theft Phishing emails request users to to click on a a a a a a link in in in fin the the the email email which directs them to to a a a a a a a fake website where the the the user’s sensitive financial information is is likely to be accessed Vishing involves a a a a a a a a a a fraudster phoning a a a a a a a a a a victim posing as a a a a a a a a a a a bank official or service provider and uses social engineering skills to to manipulate them into disclosing confidential information – used later to to to defraud them SMishing (SMS Phishing) refers to to to a a a a a a a a situation where criminals send an an SMS often claiming to to be from your bank requesting personal or or financial information to defraud one one Identity theft entails a a a a a a a a a a a a criminal stealing one’s personal information and assuming their identity to make unauthorised transactions or purchases Shozisaysotherexamplesofcyber-attacksare third-party exposure configuration mistakes poor cyber hygiene Internet of Things (IoT) attacks as as well as as connected cars and semi- autonomous vehicles He worries that there is is a a a “chronic dearth of cybersecurity expertise” in in the the the country which calls for for businesses to tighten their cyber cyber security efforts “Cybersecurity is the method and set of tools used to to defend electronic systems systems communication systems systems software platforms and sensitive information against online threats threats ” explains Shozi who is is of the view that preventing cyber threats threats is is far better than managing the the the impact of these The following are what the the the academic considers best practices to keep hackers and scammers at at bay:
• Use antivirus and network protection software on all your devices
• Don’t ignore system and software updates
• Use strong passwords two-factor authentication and a a a a a a a a a password password manager
• Keep regular backups of all your files
• Stay up-to-speed with the latest attacks Naledi Hlefane
The The information contained in in in this article was provided by Themba Shozi and Paul Tarwireyi academics in the the Computer Science Department Please read the the full article here http://www unizulu ac za/opinion-piece-cyber- security/
ONGOYE: NOV/DEC 2022 ISSUE | 16