South African weather service says cyber attack disrupted critical services for days

The South African weather service said it suffered a significant data security incident that put its email system and website out of operation and disrupted other critical services.

 

Headquartered in Pretoria, the South African Weather Service, or SAWS, is the meteorological service under the South African government’s Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.

 

In a notice of data security incident posted on social media, SAWS said that on January 26, it detected suspicious activity in its internal network that affected several critical systems. SAWS immediately launched an investigation, with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

 

“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,” reads a notice on social media.

 

SAWS added that 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 organisation added that the incident affected several “critical services including aviation and marine have been interrupted. In addition, the SAWS’ email system and website, which is the hub of critical weather information, have been affected.”

 

SAWS has, however, put together “alternative ways of disseminating important information such as the weather forecasts.”

 

In a separate update on X, SAWS said that it is in the process of restoring normal operations and so far, its email system and phone lines have been restored.

 

In a statement shared with the media, Chief Executive Officer of SAWS, Ishaam Abader, said, “Thus far, we have not had an interruption of services. Weather products for marine and aviation sectors are being conveyed via alternative channels. Daily forecasts are being sent regularly via email to media houses and to Disaster Management Authorities.”

 

Mr Abader added that forecasts will be disseminated through social media platforms until the organisation’s website is restored.