The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has advised the public to use the organisation’s social media platforms for further weather information.
This comes after the weather entity’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems collapsed on Sunday evening following a security breach from cyber criminals.
SAWS senior manager Oupa Sigalwe confirmed that this was the organisation’s second cyber attack following a failed security breach on Saturday evening.
Sigalwe revealed critical services such as aviation and marine have been disrupted, including SAWS’ email system and website, which is the hub of critical weather information.
The Star can indeed confirm that SAWS’ website is currently down.
Sigalwe noted that the SAWS has put in place alternative ways to disseminate important information such as the weather forecasts.
“The SAWS’ ICT service providers have been on site since the attack not only to investigate the breach, but also to explore both interim and long-term ways of restoring the collapsed systems and eventually services,” said Sigalwe.
The SAWS is in the process of reporting the criminal act to relevant authorities.
The Star