Spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi said the suspension will allow them to ensure that they pay money to the correct recipients and avoid fraudulent activities.
“The agency is encouraging people to take responsibility to make sure that their identity numbers are not used for fraudulent activities. Sassa beneficiaries must ensure that they do not share their identity numbers with strangers to avoid becoming aiding fraudsters,” said Letsatsi.
Letsatsi said those whose profiles are marked “referred” should contact the agency immediately.
“When beneficiaries check their status and see that it is marked as “referred” it means that the Sassa system has flagged potential fraudulent activity therefore the beneficiary must contact Sassa immediately to resolve the case,” he said.
He further encouraged recipients not to change their banking details as this would delay the payment process.
In October, two first-year students from the University of Stellenbosch alleged that Sassa's application system was vulnerable.
Parliament then gave social development minister Sisisi Tolashe's department 30 days to probe the allegations made by the students. Tolashe submitted a report to parliament a month later, confirming the students' findings.
In her report, Tolashe said their investigation team found that its assessment of the Social Relief Distress grant web application revealed vulnerabilities that could compromise the security and functionality of the system.
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Sassa suspends SRD grants to suspicious recipients
Image: SA Government/ X
The Social African Security Agency (Sassa) has suspended Covid-19 relief fund grant payments to all accounts it suspects to be fraudulent to allow a process where beneficiaries will have to verify their details.
Spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi said the suspension will allow them to ensure that they pay money to the correct recipients and avoid fraudulent activities.
“The agency is encouraging people to take responsibility to make sure that their identity numbers are not used for fraudulent activities. Sassa beneficiaries must ensure that they do not share their identity numbers with strangers to avoid becoming aiding fraudsters,” said Letsatsi.
Letsatsi said those whose profiles are marked “referred” should contact the agency immediately.
“When beneficiaries check their status and see that it is marked as “referred” it means that the Sassa system has flagged potential fraudulent activity therefore the beneficiary must contact Sassa immediately to resolve the case,” he said.
He further encouraged recipients not to change their banking details as this would delay the payment process.
In October, two first-year students from the University of Stellenbosch alleged that Sassa's application system was vulnerable.
Parliament then gave social development minister Sisisi Tolashe's department 30 days to probe the allegations made by the students. Tolashe submitted a report to parliament a month later, confirming the students' findings.
In her report, Tolashe said their investigation team found that its assessment of the Social Relief Distress grant web application revealed vulnerabilities that could compromise the security and functionality of the system.
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