🇿🇦 English, 26 October 2026, cybersecurity workforce
South Africa's Cyber Defenders Struggle to Keep Pace with AI-Driven Threats
A shortage of cybersecurity specialists and a lack of practical skills hinder South Africa's ability to address growing cyber threats.
A 2024 CSIR national survey found that 63% of cybersecurity positions in South African organisations were partially or fully unfilled.
Cybersecurity professionals need to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to understanding how AI-enabled attacks work as well as how AI-supported technologies can be used to identify and respond to them.
Strengthening the connection between tertiary education and industry will be critical to developing the capabilities needed to address AI-driven threats.