Preparing for the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Recommendations to Adapt Cyber Security Governance and Skills in South Africa
Abstract:
As the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is unfolding in the society around us, gaps and opportunities are revealed in terms of cyber security governance and policy responses. Therefore, within this article, the shortcomings of cyber security implementation in South Africa are identified and recommendations are made in terms of cyber security governance, policy, education, and awareness. In terms of governance, the maturity of South Africa’s implementation systems is analyzed using the international metric systems. It is argued that, although strides have been made in terms of cyber security legislation and policy in South Africa, more agile governance is needed. With the increasing dependency on data in the 4IR, proactive measures to train cyber security professionals are needed to protect citizens. The authors warn about the skills gap in terms of cyber education in South Africa. They argue that in training cyber security specialists, curricula not only require the inclusion of more technical skills, but also soft skills—such as communication, writing, and leadership.
AUTHORS
Tshwane University of Technology Pretoria,
South Africa
Professor Joey Jansen van Vuuren (PhD) is a NRF-rated researcher in the faculty of ICT at Tshwane University of Technology. She is also the Vice Chair of the international IFIP (Federation for Information Processing) Working Group 9.10. She is also a coordinator of SA for the BRICS Integrated Thematic Group Computer Science and Information Security (ITG-CSIS). Her research focuses on cybersecurity, education, government, policy, and culture. She was the coordinator of the South African CybersecurityCentre of Innovation for the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), which initiated several cybersecurity government initiatives in South Africa. The centre also focused on the promotion of research collaboration, cybersecurity education, and the exchange of cyber threats. She was also involved in the development of cybercrime strategies for the South African Police Services. Previously as the Research Group Leader for Cyber Defence at CSIR, she gave the strategic research direction for the research conducted for the South African National Defence Force and Government sectors on cyber defence. She has spent over 25 years in academia and research and has published various journal papers, conference papers, and book chapters on cybersecurity governance. She has presented on numerous forums, such as national conferences and also international conferences, some of which she has been invited to as the keynote speaker. She is also very passionate about the development of people outside the university and is involved in the offering of training in the TVET and other education sectors.
Department of Visual Communication Tshwane University of Technology Pretoria West,
South Africa
Anna-Marie Jansen van Vuuren is a screenwriting lecturer within the film programme of the Department of Visual Communication at the Faculty of Arts and Design, Tshwane University of Technology. Her current research includes the history of contemporary South African cinema. Her work has been published in journals such as Journal of African Cinemas, Communicatio, as well as in international conference proceedings.
Published In
Journal of Information Warfare
The definitive publication for the best and latest research and analysis on information warfare, information operations, and cyber crime. Available in traditional hard copy or online.
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