By REGINALD KANYANE
27 January 2025- The South African Weather Service (SAWS) Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems allegedly went down on the evening of Sunday, 26 January 2025, following a security breach by criminal elements. According to SAWS, aspects of critical services including aviation and marine have been interrupted.
SAWS spokesperson, Oupa Segalwe said in addition, the SAWS’ email system and website, which is the hub of critical weather information, have been affected. Segalwe said, however, alternative ways of disseminating important information such as the weather forecasts have been put in place.
“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.
“In the interim, the public is advised to rely on the SAWS’ social media platforms for weather information. The SAWS is in the process of reporting the criminal act to relevant authorities,” he said.
Segalwe further said the attack was the second in the space of two days after the initial attempt on the evening of Saturday, 25 January 2025 failed.
The Guardian 