It is no secret that cyber security breaches are rocketing. According to the IBM’s data breach report, 83% of organisations experienced more than one data breach during 2022.
Breaches are costly. The influential Harvard Business Review says the global average cost of a
data breach reached $4,35 million in 2022. These expenses can include ransom payments and lost
revenues to business downtime, remediation, legal fees, and audit fees, according to the HBR
That is why BANKSETA’s sponsorship of a bursary for Sinoxolo Hermanus to study in the feld of cyber security is an invaluable investment, not only for the individual and her company, but for the economy as a whole. “Sinoxolo” means “we have peace” – but when asked about her work day, it’s clear that it’s anything but peaceful! Currently she is an information security analyst with TFG, working in cyber monitoring. This involves monitoring users in business, analysing behaviour anomalies and responding to phishing and other security related incidents.
It’s a big responsibility, but Sinoxolo does not find her work too stressful, since she enjoys it. She ascribes this to having an analytical mind and being able to adapt to changes in the environment, as there are always new ways in which hackers perform their “evil deeds”. She keeps up-to-date by following platforms such as cyber security news.
When not at work, Sinoxolo is pursuing her masters degree in cyber security, also funded by BANKSETA. Her awareness of the BANKSETA goes back to her university days when she was doing her honours degree in 2020. She had started with an undergraduate degree in accounting and information systems, and followed that up with an honours degree in information systems only.
In 2021, she became aware of a BANKSETA learnership opportunity in cyber security at Altron and thought this was a good opportunity for her as it is a growing field in which there is a shortage of skills.
Sinoxolo’s biggest challenge in life has been that of securing financial resources to study. She comes from a poor background in the Eastern Cape and it has been difficult to achieve the kind of education that her family would like her to have. In addition, her father died shortly before she was due to write her fnal exams, but the memory of his frequent questions as to whether she had graduated inspired her to complete her exams successfully. Her dream is to learn more about cyber defence and become a senior analyst. Her message to BANKSETA is to thank them for opening doors for her. Sinoxolo hopes that the organisation will continue to open doors for other people to achieve their goals and fulfil their dreams.