Candice Sutherland The recent hijacking of a courier van carrying South African citizens’ UK visa application forms has brought to the fore the issue of liability for the loss of these documents, especially if these documents containing sensitive and personal information are used to commit identity theft.  This is according to Candice Sutherland, Business Development Consultant at SHA Specialist Underwriters – the largest liability underwriting management agency (UMA) in Southern Africa – who says it is crucial for businesses dealing with people’s personal information to ensure the safety and security of those documents. “This is particularly important in light of the rise in identify theft, paired with the pending implementation of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI).” In this case, the custodian of the information is the British High Commission – that is who the applicants entrusted their documentation to, says Sutherland. “However, it appears that the couri...

ASHLEY MADISON WEBSITE HACK HIGHLIGHTS CYBERCRIME THREAT FOR BUSINESSES Candice Sutherland The need for businesses to ensure that they are adequately protected from cybercrime has been brought to light once again following the announcement that the notorious dating website Ashley Madison is the latest victim of hackers. It is estimated that more than 37 million of its global subscribers, of which 175 000  subscribers are South African, could now see their personal information – including bank details - compromised unless the website shuts down. This is according to Candice Sutherland, Business Development Consultant at SHA Specialist Underwriters, who says that this incident is yet another example of how easily hackers can target businesses and breach all their security systems in order to access confidential and sensitive information.  “The 2015 Security Report released by Check Point Security revealed that 106 unknown malware hit businesses every hour. 83% of the ...