South African Hackers Clear Municipal Debt for Residents and Businesses
In the Gauteng Municipality of Ekurhuleni, hackers manipulated the city’s IT billing system to wipe out property rates owed by residents and businesses.
Forensic Findings Revealed
According to a forensic report compiled by Oma Chartered Accountants in July 2025, the perpetrators gained access to the system and issued rates-clearance certificates by altering or deleting back-end billing records. “This manipulation results in a lower reported outstanding balance than what is actually owed, thereby concealing the full extent of the debtor’s liability,” the report stated.
A Digital State of Emergency
The findings further revealed that these transactions artificially reduced the “brought-forward” balances on debtor accounts, significantly understating the actual amounts owed. The City of Ekurhuleni has described the situation as a “digital state of emergency,” with R1.19 billion in revenue yet to be recovered. Tsholofelo Koopedi, Ekurhuleni’s acting city manager, suggested that the attack likely consisted of a series of smaller breaches occurring over time.
Deletion of Arrears
“They get into the system, delete an account of your business where you are owing whatever,” said Koopedi.
Inside Job Allegations
There are also allegations that the breach was an “inside job.” Officials noted that certain “consultants” were allegedly working with outside influences to deliberately undermine the system. In one instance, it was discovered that ICT staff had implemented a loophole where cybersecurity monitoring was disabled between 18:00 and 06:00. Additionally, Jongizizwe Dlabathi, the MMC for Finance, stated that whistleblowers within the city have reported fraud occurring on a massive scale.
Vigilantes or Criminals?
Social media users have been quick to label these hackers as heroes for providing financial relief to the public. However, with the city’s infrastructure funding now in jeopardy, the question remains: are they digital vigilantes or common criminals?
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