South Africans who fall victim to online scams, hacking or harassment can now get free help. The Cyber Helpline, a charity from the UK, has started a 12-month pilot in the country, TechCentral reported.
The charity is running the service with MiDO Academy, a local social impact group. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is paying for the pilot.
“Many people simply don’t know where to turn when something happens to them online,” said Rory Innes, founder and CEO of The Cyber Helpline.
The helpline deals with many kinds of cases. These include investment and job scams, phishing, hacked accounts and fake social media profiles. It also helps with sextortion, identity theft and ransomware.
The service is confidential and open to anyone in South Africa aged 13 and older. It is meant for individuals and sole traders, not for larger businesses.
Victims first use a chatbot on thecyberhelpline.com. It gives step-by-step advice at any hour. If a case needs more help, it goes to a human responder.
There is no phone hotline, the organisers told TechCentral. Responders usually check for new cases twice a day, and the official turnaround time is 72 hours. People who have just lost money should call their bank straight away instead of waiting.
The helpline cannot get money back or investigate crimes, the partners said. It helps victims understand what happened, secure their accounts and devices, keep evidence and know where to report. It can refer people to banks, the South African Police Service or mental health services. It does not replace a police report.
The charity said more than two million people have used its advice since 2018. More than 100 000 people have received direct support. South Africa is its third country after the UK and the US.
Students from MiDO Academy, which trains young people for cybersecurity jobs, staff the local service under experienced supervisors. Ten responders are working and 16 have finished training. The Cyber Helpline vetted and trained them, and the AWS trust and safety team gave extra training in Cape Town.
The idea came from Anna Collard, a senior vice-president at security training company KnowBe4 and a co-founder of MiDO Academy. “Sophisticated scams are designed to manipulate human psychology,” she said.
Victims often feel shame and anxiety on top of any money they lose. The local guides are built to deal with these feelings as well as the technical problem.
Case details are encrypted and stored on AWS in line with the Protection of Personal Information Act. They are shared with other groups only if the victim agrees. The partners plan to use anonymised data to track new threats.
AWS has not said how much money it gave. Sarah Currey, who works in the AWS office of the chief information security officer, said the company funded the pilot as part of its security work.
The organisers said each responder costs about R50 000 a year. This covers a small stipend, project management, workspace, equipment and training. There is also a yearly licence fee paid to The Cyber Helpline UK. More AWS funding is not guaranteed, and the pilot must prove itself first.
MiDO Academy is running a fundraiser called the Cyber Steps Challenge on BackaBuddy during October. Entry costs R100 per person. The R50 000 target would pay for about one responder for a year, according to the organisers.
Source: this article is based on reporting by TechCentral. Image: TechCentral. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Technology desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Werner Jacobs covers technology for Tzaneen Voice. Werner reports on mobile networks, data prices, internet access, smartphones, apps, AI, cybersecurity and South African tech companies. Each story explains what a new product, price change or policy means for ordinary users in South Africa.