After two cyber attacks targeting mobile networks, one expert has stated that this issue is becoming a big risk, it potentially exceeds even the impact of challenges like load shedding.
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Following two recent cyber attacks targeting mobile networks, one expert stated that the issue is becoming such a big risk, that it potentially exceeds even the impact of challenges like load shedding.
ESET’s recent bi-annual Threat Report stated: “South Africa is the most targeted country in Africa when it comes to infostealer and ransomware attacks.”
One notable incident involved Cell C, which reported in April that RansomHouse had unlawfully disclosed data after hacking South Africa's fourth-largest mobile operator last November. Although the exact number of compromised individuals is unclear, the operator had 7.7 million subscribers as of February.
Data accessed included:
- Full names and contact details (email, phone numbers)
- ID numbers
- Banking details (if stored for billing purposes)
- Driver’s License Numbers
- Medical Records (if supplied for closure of accounts on the death of a family member)
- Passport details
At the end of last month, Africa’s largest mobile network operator, MTN, announced a significant cybersecurity incident that resulted in unauthorised access to the personal information of customers across several of its markets.
Spiros Fatouros, the CEO of Marsh McLennan, Africa and South Africa, said that “these events serve as a critical reminder that cybercrime is no longer a peripheral concern but a central business risk, arguably surpassing traditional challenges like load-shedding in its potential impact”.
ESET’s bi-annual Threat Report, which collected data between June and November 2024, showed that over 40% of ransomware attacks on the continent occurred in South Africa.
This came as INTERPOL’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2022 found that 230 million cyber threats were detected in South Africa in that year. Approximately 219 million, or 95.21% were email-based attacks. At that stage, South Africa was seeing a 100% increase in mobile banking application fraud and is experiencing on average 577 malware attacks every hour.
Fatouros noted that there is an escalating cyber threat landscape that businesses across the globe are having to deal with.
A recent World Economic Forum report, the 2025 Global Risks Report, identified cyber risks as a persistent threat to societal and economic stability. It stated that the role of technology in geopolitical tensions worried the 11,000 business leaders in 121 countries interviewed.
Cyber espionage and warfare were ranked fifth in the two-year outlook.
“Several contributing factors are fuelling this escalating complexity: heightened geopolitical tensions, increasingly intricate and opaque supply chains, the rapid adoption of emerging technologies introducing new vulnerabilities, and the growing web of international regulatory requirements. All of these challenges are compounded by a widening skills gap, further complicating the ability to manage cyber risks effectively,” said Fatouros.
Cape Argus