Bring Back My Identity

Copyright © 2014 Manqoba Mngomezulu

First edition 2014

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

ISBN 978-0-620-62492-3

eISBN 978-0-620-62493-0

Published by Inpassion Publishers,

A division of Inpassion Group

Edited by DY for Inpassion Publishers

Cover by Tshiamo for Inpassion Publishers

Website: www.inpassionpublishers.co.za

Website: www.meetmanqoba.co.za

E-mail: manqoba@inpassion.co.za

Cell: +2783 5129 117

Printed in South Africa

DEDICATION

I dedicate this book to:

• Everyone who carries a valid identity document, (also referred to an I.D. in South Africa);

• Everyone who has been a victim of the theft of personal information;

• Everyone who woke up and learnt that they were married to a stranger;

• Everyone who woke up and found that they had credit accounts and loans registered in their name, and yet had no knowledge of them;

• Everyone who was misled and had their personal information requested and used to conclude a shady deal or transaction of some kind;

• Everyone who got tricked when making a submission for a claim of some kind or another; and

• The person reading this book right now, I hereby dedicate this book to you.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I thank the Lord for His amazing grace and favour. He is worthy of all the glory and honour. I am a witness; all things are possible with the Lord. He has ensured that everything that has to do with me including my personal information is protected.

Special thanks to you, my beautiful and loving wife Lumka. For lending me your time to spend on this book, what should have been our quality time. Thank you for your unwavering support, Mncwaaa!

I would like to thank the Minister of Home Affairs, Honorable Malusi Gigaba for writing such powerful foreword on this book. I am truly grateful for his availability and willingness to participate in this initiative. The nation will be empowered!

I would like to thank the various information security leaders who paid particular attention to the importance of information security. The mission to protect ourselves and the greater society and community at large, against fraudsters, continues…

I would also like to thank all the people, i.e. victims of information theft, who shared their testimonies with the aim of cautioning and empowering other fellow members of society from the same fate. Let us be ambassadors of change, let’s continue to spread the word about how we may protect ourselves from these fraudsters.

A big thank you to Nonhlanhla Mnisi for giving me critical pointers in writing this book and also for just being a helpful person in general. What a good coach she is! May you be blessed always.

I would also like to thank my Pastors, Elvis and Nkosingiphile Dumane, my information security coach Steve Jump, my family, my friends, Mpaki Elephant, Mcebo Shange, Truevine Community Church-Midrand and everybody who supported me. Your confidence in me keeps me going.

FOREWORD

As human beings, we too infrequently reflect on those things which are of value to us. If asked, we might answer that we value such things as our health, family, friendships, or achievements. Among those things one takes for granted, is one’s identity. Most of us take for granted that:

• we are who we say we are;

• who we are is recognized by all;

• who we are is under our sole control, and cannot be changed or claimed by anyone else.

Sadly, these fundamental principles of identity can no longer be taken for granted.

Identity fraudsters steal individuals’ identities for various nefarious reasons. It may be for pure profit motives, assuming someone’s identity to gain access to their accounts, or to open up new credit accounts in their name, absconding with funds and merchandise leaving an unsuspecting person’s finances and credit record in ruins. Some criminals assume the identity of innocent third parties when facing arrest to evade accountability for their crimes. Terrorists and other transnational criminals use fraudulent identities to cross borders.

These pernicious threats thrive on poor security measures and safeguards, and laxity on the part of individuals. And, their risk is increasing drastically in our world today.

The Department of Home Affairs’ core mandate is to secure the identity and status of all South Africans. We confirm the identity and citizenship status of each South African, by certifying their birth and adding them to the National Population Register, of which we are the custodian. The new, international award winning Smart-ID Card is a major step forward in the execution of our mandate, as its security features preclude the identity fraud to which the green bar-coded ID book was vulnerable. Over the coming several years, all 38 million green ID books will be replaced with Smart-ID Cards. These cards, like our passport, are amongst the highly-secure documents printed by Government Printing Works, a state-owned entity overseen by the Department which uses world class, state of the art security printing technology and expertise.

Citizens must do their part to secure their own identities by: registering your child’s birth at the hospital or within 30 days at a Home Affairs office; registering for an ID immediately upon turning 16; registering the deaths of loved ones immediately; protecting your identity documents; and taking precautions against identity fraud as outlined in this necessary book.

Our world is complex and dynamic. An increasing amount of transactions and interactions take place electronically, via phone, tablet and internet. We must remember a myriad number of passwords, PINs and security protocols. Coupled with our busy lives and obligations, even the most sophisticated among us can be successfully targeted by identity fraudsters, if we are not vigilant and do not take the necessary preventative measures as a matter of habit.

Those of us who are not particularly tech-savvy or familiar with the most current identity fraud risks – the vast majority of us – are at even greater risk. In this light, Manqoba Mngomezulu’s effort is particularly welcome and relevant, as it is accessible to all, and written to empower the average citizen. This book is an excellent contribution to the effort to secure all our identities. What it tries to bring to our attention, not in a sensational and alarmist fashion, is that much as technology is an enabler and access to it has made our lives inordinately easier, it however contains enormous risks that need to be mitigated, inter alia, through vigilance in order to combat identity theft and other crimes that can be and are committed online to people in general and children in particular.

Malusi Gigaba, Member of Parliament (M.P.) – Minister of Home Affairs

One morning upon arrival at work, I was unexpectedly contacted by Human Resource (H.R.) personnel, querying why I had applied for a loan at a particular bank as he was well aware that I was not particularly under any financial distress. He knew this because I

Impressum

Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 12.08.2015
ISBN: 978-3-7396-0938-6

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Widmung:
I dedicate this book to: •Everyone who carries a valid identity document, (also referred to an I.D. in South Africa); •Everyone who has been a victim of the theft of personal information; •Everyone who woke up and learnt that they were married to a stranger; •Everyone who woke up and found that they had credit accounts and loans registered in their name, and yet had no knowledge of them; •Everyone who was misled and had their personal information requested and used to conclude a shady deal or transaction of some kind; •Everyone who got tricked when making a submission for a claim of some kind or another; and •The person reading this book right now, I hereby dedicate this book to you.