News 16:00

BULLETIN 10 July 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The former VBS Mutual Bank chairperson pleads guilty to 33 charges
# Governments and the energy, and telecommunications sectors in Africa are most vulnerable to cyber attacks
# And, soccer: England’s manager says they have a chance to make history tonight

# Former VBS Mutual Bank chairperson Tshifhiwa Matodzi has pleaded guilty to 33 charges at the High Court in Pretoria. The mastermind behind the theft of over 2.2-billion-rand from the bank, admitted to charges including theft, fraud, money laundering, and racketeering. He confessed to stealing 250-million-rand by creating fictitious accounts. The bank, placed under curatorship in 2018, began liquidation dividends in 2022. Of the 32 people arrested, the most-high profile sentence was former chief financial official Phillip Truter, who received seven years’ imprisonment and turned state witness.

# Former minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor has drawn parallels between the struggles of Palestinians and South Africans during apartheid. Speaking at Rhodes University in Makhanda in the Eastern Cape, she noted that, unlike South Africans who received guidance in their fight against oppression, its taken global nations months to address the issues in Gaza. Pandor emphasised the need for a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Hamas conflict:

# Governments, energy, and telecommunications sectors in Africa have been highlighted as most vulnerable to cyberattacks. Advanced persistent threats like MuddyWater, FruityArmor, and Sidewinder have used social engineering, fake job ads, and sophisticated malware such as DeadGlyph and StealerBot. To mitigate these risks, Kaspersky advised limiting third-party access, using corporate-grade security, securing operational technology endpoints, and upskilling cybersecurity teams. Organisations are urged to educate employees on cybersecurity practices in order to stay ahead of these threats.

# A crocodile of 4.3 metres has been shot dead after killing a 12-year-old girl in Australia. The reptile, believed to be at least 30 years old, attacked the girl as she was swimming with her family last week. Her death was the first fatal crocodile attack in the Northern Territory since 2018 and has rekindled debate on whether more should be done to curb the crocodile population. It is estimated there is currently one crocodile for every 2.5 people in the region.

# Soccer: England manager Gareth Southgate says they are ready to make history as they face the Netherlands in the semifinals of the European Championship in Germany today. The Three Lions are aiming to move a step closer to winning the competition for the first time in their history. The winner will face Spain in Berlin on Sunday after they beat France two-one yesterday. Southgate says there has been a definite shift in the mindset of his players:

# And, the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-6-cents and the euro at 19-rand-56-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-13-cents and Bitcoin trades at 58-thousand-493-dollars-52-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-377-dollars-48-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-46-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….