Cybercrime has escalated since the start of lockdown, as fraudsters are taking advantage of internet vulnerabilities caused by “work-from-home" arrangements. South Africa is amongst the most targeted countries in the world, and cybercrime has become the number 1 concern of many business owners and individuals.

Business owners and individuals are well-advised to take proper precaution against Cyber criminals, and to buy insurance protection against this risk to and avoid financial losses.

Credit bureau, Experian made headlines recently after it experienced a massive data breach which exposed the personal information of as many as 24 million South Africans and 793 749 business entities to a suspected fraudster. This is one of the largest single data breaches in South Africa in terms of client records - and if a bureau as big as Experian can be hacked, it can happen to anyone.

Nischal Mewalall, CEO of the South African Banking Risk Information Centre says: ‘’The compromise of personal information can create opportunities for criminals to impersonate you, but does not guarantee access to your banking profile or accounts. However, criminals can use this information to trick you into disclosing your confidential banking details.’’

Most of us have found phishing e-mails of one sort or another in our inboxes. Some of these attempts are rudimentary and fairly easy to spot. But more and more regularly now, professional phishing syndicates are targeting unsuspecting consumers with targeted, well-formulated scams known as “spear-phishing”, catching many people unaware – and costing victims and the economy billions of rand annually.

This why cybercrime insurance products like PhiShield’s FUNDS PROTECT have become critical.

Consumers are exposed to a myriad of cybercrime risks – some obvious, but many not so plain to see. Here are some fraud events which are insurable with a product like PhiShield's FUNDS PROTECT: