Building cyber resilient infrastructures will be the first step towards guarding all public sector departments from the ever-evolving cyber crime culture becoming more prevalent, incurring billions of rands worth of losses for the public sector.
According to Interpol’s African Cyberthreat Assessment Report for 2021 cyber-attacks cost South Africa over R2.2 billion per annum and 47% of public sector data breaches are not discovered until years after the initial attack.
Furthermore, a report on digital safety from Accenture points highlights that South Africa experiences roughly 557 malware-attacks per hour. This further demonstrates that public sector organisations and state-owned enterprises remain key targets for hackers and cyber criminals calling for public sector organisations to take a closer look at their existing strategies and re-evaluate systems which should be safeguarding them against attacks.
Over the past few years incidents like Transnet, attacks on the city of Johannesburg and the Department of Justice, reiterate the importance of addressing the matter and finding solutions to mitigating similar incidents or from reoccurring in the future. There is an urgent need for public sector organisations and SOEs to investment to be made in upgrading infrastructure, skills, and technology.
The Public Sector Security Summit 2023 (#PubliSec2023) that will be hosted on 3 October 2023 at the Gallagher convention centre will be giving a number of experts a platform to address the pertinent issue of cyber security within the public sector. The event will also be a great opportunity to network with best-in-class solutions providers.
Attendees will include officials from public sector organisations including the likes of representatives from Eskom, Nedbank, Transnet, Gauteng Department of Finance, SARS, South African Police Services, Office of the Chief Justice, Accenture in South Africa, SASSA, and the Gauteng Central Government amongst others.
Keynote speakers that will be addressing essential topics delving deeper into the cybersecurity landscape are:

De – Witt Tromp – Solutions Engineer at Broadcom
John Bosco Arends – Chairperson of the Chartered CIO Council and Group Head Information, Networks and Technology Operations
Dr Nishal Khusial – Director of Technology, Imperium Advisory
Pat Pather – Chief Executive Officer at Forensic Sciences Institute
Derek Nareen – Chief Technology Officer at Digital Wave
Michael O’Neil – Principal Analyst at Insightaas
Silas Wachira Nthigah – Director ICT at Office of the Deputy President Republic of Kenya
Dr Jabu Mtsweni – Chief Researcher and Head of the Cyber & Information Security Centre, CSIR
Tsakani Dumezulu – Director – Goverment Information Technology Officer (GITO) at Department of Basic Education

These speakers will be uncovering a wide range of topics that delve deep into the core of cybersecurity and the unique challenges and strategies that can be applied in the public sector to mitigate risks. Their unique and extensive expertise will bring new perspective and insight into a topic that is fast becoming a top-priority in the midst of an ever-expanding digital landscape.