The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) security systems and protocols experienced more than 220 data security breaches reported in the country since the beginning of this year.
As a way of limiting further damage, some CIPC systems have been shut down.
The CIPC said it was not the only organisation that had been subjected to such a breach, “and there has been a massive increase of cyberattacks within South Africa and it would seem that as a jurisdiction, we are being targeted”.
“Breaching the security infrastructure of any organisation, institution or agency is nothing more than a criminal act and the perpetrators are criminals that should be portrayed as such.”
The CIPC commissioner, advocate Rory Voller, highlighted the seriousness of the breach.
He said this week that as a result of the criminal nature of the breach of CIPC security systems and protocols, the necessary steps would be taken to ensure that the guilty were held responsible.
“Every reasonable step is being taken to ensure that the CIPC systems and platforms are protected from unlawful and/or unauthorised access and abuse, and remain available to our clients for transacting.”
He said the CIPC “has always been aware of the possibility of attacks against its databases and over the years have invested significantly in the best technology to secure the data kept on our registers, despite having the legal obligation to disclose same”.
The Mercury