Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi’s Facebook account hacked

Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi’s Facebook account has been hacked.

The Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Development said it had noted with concern that Kubayi’s Facebook account had been compromised.

Nefarious posts on Kubayi’s account

Kubayi’s spokesperson Terrence Manase said nefarious posts have been shared on the justice minister’s account.

“An individual or group has illegally gained access to the account and is using it to solicit potentially illegal opportunities and send messages about potential projects to unsuspecting individuals.

“The ministry condemns this illegal activity and warns the public to be cautious and not fall victim to this scam.

“Please note that Minister Kubayi has not sent messages about project opportunities to anyone,” Manase said.

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Manase warned that impersonating Kubayi or anyone else is a serious criminal offence, and offenders will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

“The ministry will be reporting this incident to the relevant authorities and social media platform owners to ensure that swift action is taken to prevent further illegal activity.

“We urge the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the authorities immediately,” Manase said.

MK party hacked

In July last year, X-rated material was posted on Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, with the party confirmed that its Facebook account had been hacked.

MK party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said at the time said it was aware of the malicious content posted on its page and contacted the Meta support team to regain control of the account.

Hacking politicians

Politicians and government departments have become prime targets for cybercrime, owing to the wealth of information they have on citizen activity and government operations.

One of the biggest threats to governments is ransomware, as seen in the September 2021 attack on the Department of Justice, and the July 2021 attack on state-owned Transnet.

President Cyril Ramaphosa also came under attack two years ago when hacking group SpiderLog$, was able to obtain his private data, including details of a loan he took out from a South African bank in the 2000s, his home address, ID number, and cellphone numbers.

Data breaches

In August last year, IBM’s annual Cost of a Data Breach Report revealed the average cost of a single data breach case in South Africa was a whopping R53.1 million in 2024.

According to the report, stolen or compromised credentials were the most common initial attack vectors in South Africa, accounting for 17% of all cyberattacks.

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