
Kaspersky warns of SARS-themed phishing scams
JOHANNESBURG - As South Africa's tax season gets underway, cybersecurity firm Kaspersky is urging citizens and businesses to stay vigilant amid a surge in phishing scams.
Cybercriminals are increasingly sending fake SARS-related messages, taking advantage of the auto-assessment period to deceive taxpayers.
Kaspersky advises the public to think carefully before clicking on suspicious links and to report any suspected scams directly to SARS to avoid falling victim to fraud.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

IOL News
2 hours ago
- IOL News
SARS to provide sign language interpreters at branches for deaf taxpayers
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has confirmed that it will provide South African Sign Language (SASL) interpreters The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has confirmed that it will provide South African Sign Language (SASL) interpreters at selected branches across the country on Friday. Earlier this week, the revenue service announced the successful completion of the auto assessments period, which ran from July 7th until July 20th. The tax filing period is now under way, with individual taxpayers encouraged to file via eFiling or the SARS MobiApp. "The successful completion of the Auto Assessment period, which ran from 7 to 20 July 2025, will be followed by the tax filing period via eFiling and the SARS MobiApp for individual taxpayers from Monday, 21 July–20 October 2025," Sars said.


The Citizen
3 hours ago
- The Citizen
Thailand, Cambodia clash with jets and rockets in deadly border row
At least 12 people were killed as Thailand and Cambodia exchanged heavy fire over a disputed border zone near the Emerald Triangle. This frame grab from UGC video footage taken and posted on Facebook by Chatchak Ratsamikaeo on July 24, 2025 shows smoke billowing from the roof of a convenience store attached to a petrol station in Sisaket province after it was hit by a rocket strike from Cambodia. Thailand launched air strikes on Cambodian military targets on July 24 as Cambodia fired rockets and artillery, killing at least 11 civilians, in a dramatic escalation of a long-running border row between the two neighbours. (Photo by Courtesy of Facebook user Chatchak Ratsamikaeo / AFP) Thailand and Cambodia fought their bloodiest military clashes in more than a decade on Thursday, with at least 12 people killed as the two sides battled with tanks, artillery and ground forces over a disputed border zone. The fighting marks a dramatic escalation in a long-running spat over an area known as the Emerald Triangle, where the borders of both countries and Laos meet. The decades-old squabble flared into bloody clashes more than 15 years ago and again in May, when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a firefight. In Thursday's clashes, Cambodia fired rockets and artillery shells into Thailand and the Thai military scrambled F-16 jets to carry out air strikes. The Thai public health ministry said one soldier and at least 11 civilians were killed, most of them in a rocket strike near a petrol station in Sisaket province. Footage from the scene showed smoke pouring from a convenience store attached to the petrol station. Provincial officials said most of the dead were students inside the shop when the attack happened. ALSO READ: SA acts against dumping of Chinese and Thai washing machines 'I heard a loud noise three or four times, and when I looked over, there was a gigantic cloud of smoke,' Praphas Intaracheun, a 53-year-old gardener from Sisaket province, told AFP. He was was refuelling at another petrol station around 300 metres (984 feet) from the one that was hit. 'I was absolutely shocked. This is the first time I've ever experienced anything like this,' he said. 'I'm scared it might escalate during the night when you can't see anything. I don't even dare sleep.' The Thai public health ministry said 35 civilians have been wounded. 'I don't even dare sleep' Fighting was focused on six locations, the Thai army said, with ground troops and tanks battling Cambodian forces for control of territory. ALSO READ: Myanmar holds minute of silence for over 2 000 earthquake victims Six Thai air force jets were deployed, hitting two 'Cambodian military targets on the ground', according to Thai military deputy spokesperson Ritcha Suksuwanon. Cambodia has not yet commented on casualties on its side. Defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata refused to answer when asked about the issue at a news conference. Both sides blame the other for starting the fighting, which erupted near two temples on the border. The Cambodian defence ministry said its forces had responded in self-defence against an 'armed assault'. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet requested an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council to address what his foreign ministry labelled 'unprovoked military aggression'. Thailand's government, meanwhile, accused Cambodia of being 'inhumane, brutal and war-hungry' and said all border crossings had been shut and nearby residents evacuated. ALSO READ: 'We need aid': rescuers in earthquake-hit Myanmar city plead for help as death toll passes 1 000 The Thai military blamed Cambodian soldiers for firing first, and later accused them of a 'targeted attack on civilians', saying two BM-21 rockets had hit a community in Surin province, wounding three people. Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh urged its nationals to leave Cambodia 'as soon as possible'. China, a close ally of Cambodia, said it was 'deeply concerned' about the clashes, calling for dialogue — while urging its citizens in Cambodia to avoid the border with Thailand. Long-running row The violence came hours after Thailand expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own envoy after five members of a Thai military patrol were wounded by a landmine. Cambodia downgraded ties to 'the lowest level' on Thursday, pulling out all but one of its diplomats and expelling their Thai equivalents from Phnom Penh. The border row also kicked off a domestic political crisis in Thailand, where Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended from office pending an ethics probe over her conduct. ALSO READ: Rescue efforts underway after deadly Myanmar-Thailand earthquake A diplomatic call between Paetongtarn and Hun Sen, Cambodia's former longtime ruler and father of Hun Manet, was leaked from the Cambodian side, sparking a judicial investigation. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has called on both sides to 'stand down' and start talks. Malaysia currently chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which both Thailand and Cambodia are members. – By: © Agence France-Presse


eNCA
3 hours ago
- eNCA
Stigma haunts Gambians accused in state witch purge: study
BANJUL - The years have passed but the stigma remains for Gambians accused of being witches, who were detained more than a decade ago under the abusive dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh, research revealed. Hundreds of people, many of them elderly women, were targeted under the eccentric west African dictator's 2008-2009 purge on witchcraft. The victims were taken to his compound and other secret locations where they were subjected to beatings, rape and forced to drink hallucinogenic concoctions. The episode created lasting psychological and social scars that endure not just for the victims but also their families and communities, according to a new study in the Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology. The research, funded by the United Nations Development Programme, involved interviews and surveys in the five communities most affected by Jammeh's witchcraft purges, located in western Gambia. Under the study, led by researcher Mick Finlay of the UK's Anglia Ruskin University and conducted in collaboration with the University of The Gambia and Nottingham Trent University, a total of 153 people were interviewed and 128 surveyed. Although many of the participants believed the witch hunts were organised to frighten people not to speak out against Jammeh (89 percent) or to create divisions (87 percent), a full quarter also believed the threat from witches was real, according to the research. To keep citizens in a permanent state of fear during his 22-year rule , Jammeh wielded a potent mix of brute force, mysticism and pervasive superstition -- including beliefs that Jammeh had supernatural powers. Belief in witchcraft has strong roots in The Gambia, particularly rural areas, where witches are said to cause illness, infertility, financial misfortune and death, and are additionally believed to eat children. The fact that the witchcraft accusations were state-orchestrated makes the situation unique, Finley told AFP. Normally, witchcraft accusations are "more gossip and rumour", he said in an interview. Against the state-backed nature of these witch hunts, victims felt the issue should be dealt with at the community or even government level. "The victims often said, you know, we want the government to come out and tell everybody that we are not witches," Finlay told AFP. There are "really simple things in terms of mending people's reputations that need to happen after dictatorships and war", Finlay added. A Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) to investigate human rights abuses carried out under Jammeh's rule between 1994 and 2017 recommended the establishment of a law making witchcraft accusations illegal. - People 'avoid us' - Approximately 41 deaths occurred during the witch hunts, with victims also suffering long-term health issues from being forced to drink toxic liquids, beatings and other abuse, according to the TRRC. Research for the new report, which was conducted in 2022, revealed that victims were the targets of shaming, mocking and gossip and often felt unable to attend traditional cultural events. "People tend to avoid us", one victim told the researchers. "We don't go their funerals or their naming ceremonies." Self-isolation was also reported, as was stigmatisation of victims' families, children and larger communities. To conduct the purges, Jammeh invited Guinean and Malian witch hunters into The Gambia, while his Green Boys and Girls vigilante group and the armed forces also helped carry out the roundups, according to the report. While the exact motivation behind the episode is unclear, Jammeh believed that witches had killed his aunt. Victims were taken to a compound in the southern village of Kanilai where Jammeh lived. There, they were generally held for several days while being forced to drink noxious liquid and sometimes bathe in an herbal concoction. Although a wide variety of community members were invited to participate in the survey, researchers said those comfortable with talking about stigmatisation could be over-represented, while those with a fear of witches could be under-represented. After losing an election to current President Adama Barrow in 2016, Jammeh fled The Gambia the following January for Equatorial Guinea.