Top cyber threats in South Africa

According to Cybersecurity Ventures, the total cost of cybercrime globally is expected to reach $10.5tn this year, with Statista estimating it could soar to $15.6tn by 2029. This alarming rise is largely due to the growing use of generative AI, including Deepfake technology, and increasingly advanced social engineering tactics.

Businesses across South Africa need to remain on high alert for:

Phishing

One of the most common and dangerous threats is phishing. It involves deceptive tactics designed to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information or clicking malicious links. While emails remain a popular vehicle, hackers now use SMS messages (smishing), fake QR codes (quishing), fraudulent Wi-Fi networks (evil twin attacks), and even fake social media profiles (angler phishing).

Variations such as spearphishing and whaling target specific individuals or executives with higher access privileges. The danger lies in how easily a single click can compromise an entire network, leading to data loss, financial theft, and severe reputational damage.

Regular awareness training, VPNs for remote workers, and strong spam filters are key defences.

Malware

Another major concern is malware. Malware is malicious software like trojans, viruses, worms, spyware, and ransomware.

Ransomware stands out for its devastating impact: it locks users out of their data and demands payment to restore access. Even when ransoms are paid, recovery is never guaranteed. The resulting downtime and damage to reputation can cripple or permanently close a business.

Regular data backups, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and limiting employee access by role are crucial steps to reduce risk.

Insider threats

Not all threats come from outside. Insider threats occur when employees or contractors misuse their authorised access, either intentionally or accidentally. Sometimes this stems from negligence or compromised credentials, while in other cases it’s a deliberate act of data theft or sabotage.

Because the activity originates from a trusted source, these incidents are harder to detect and can cause significant damage before discovery.

Strong security audits, offboarding protocols, and behaviour monitoring tools help reduce this risk.

Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks

From an infrastructure perspective, DDoS attacks can overwhelm a website or network by flooding it with fake traffic, leading to downtime, lost revenue, and frustrated customers.

These attacks highlight the importance of using hosting providers with DDoS mitigation tools and implementing content delivery networks (CDNs).

Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks

Other advanced tactics, such as MitM attacks, intercept communication between two parties to steal or alter information in transit. These attacks are difficult to detect and often only surface once the fraud or identity theft has revealed itself.

Businesses can defend themselves by ensuring all websites use HTTPS with valid SSL Certificates, avoiding public Wi-Fi for transactions, and enabling end-to-end encryption for communication apps.

Domain hijacking

Finally, domain hijacking has become a growing concern for South African SMEs. In these attacks, cybercriminals gain unauthorised control of a company’s domain name, often through weak registrar accounts or stolen credentials. Losing control of a domain can mean losing a website, business emails, and customer trust overnight.

Registering with a trusted domain registrar, enabling domain locks, and using strong passwords with two-factor authentication (2FA) are essential safeguards.

At Domains.co.za, security is at the core of our services. Our Domain Name Registration service includes Domain Transfer Locks on all .za domains, Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), WHOIS Privacy, and multiple, timely, renewal reminders to prevent unauthorised access or domain hijacking.

Our web hosting packages are just as robust, with built-in SSL Certificates, daily backups, DDoS protection, firewall monitoring, and real-time malware scanning.

With Domains.co.za, your website and brand are safeguarded by a partner you can trust.