Cybercrime costs the South African economy an estimated R2.2 billion rand per annum, According to the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and its extent in the country was recently highlighted by cybersecurity experts who reported that more than half of South African firms were impacted by ransomware over the past year.
Billy Petzer, a cybersecurity systems expert at CSIR, has emphasized the importance of investing in sponsorships, training, and bursaries in order to address the significant skills gap in the field.
Soft skills are also critical in the cybersecurity domain, and individuals in fields such as economics, law, psychology, sociology, communication, and media studies have a vital role to play.
The cybersecurity skills shortage is a growing concern, with cybersecurity consistently ranking among the top-five most in-demand fields in IT and technology. Kaspersky, a cybersecurity company, estimates that about 87% of organizations do not currently have adequate cybersecurity skills to protect themselves.
Afaf Al Fahchouch