Cybercrime Is Evolving: How to Stay One Step Ahead
MEDIA RELEASE
Issued: 23 October 2026
Insight from Dominique Petrus, IT Security Specialist, Letshego Holdings Namibia
Cybercrime does not stand still, and neither should customers stop educating themselves on how to protect themselves. As technology advances, the tools available to criminals become more sophisticated, and the scams built on them become harder to spot at a glance. According to Dominique Petrus, IT Security Specialist at Letshego Holdings Namibia, staying informed about how these threats are changing is now part of staying protected.
One shift worth following closely is AI deepfakes, which is the use of artificial intelligence to create convincing messages, images, and even voice recordings that imitate a trusted person or organisation. AI can produce fluent, personalised text in English, Afrikaans, and Oshiwambo, using gathered information to lure the intended target. AI can also clone a voice from a recording and manipulate video. These scams have already been used locally to promote fake investment schemes. This means video appearances and voices alone are no longer enough to make a final judgement about whether the communication is genuine. Verification, confirming a request through a trusted channel, matters more today than it ever has. A simple security tip worth adopting at home is a family code word for emergencies, and if a call comes in claiming to be a relative in urgent trouble, the safest response is to hang up and call back on the known number before doing anything else.
A less obvious risk lies in what you share publicly. Criminals often use information gathering techniques to collect personal details such as an employer, family members, birthdays, workplaces, or travel plans from public sources. While these details may seem harmless on their own, when combined, they build a detailed profile of a target. Criminals then use this information in social engineering attacks, exploiting trust and familiarity to create convincing stories, impersonate trusted individuals or organisations, and make it easy to manipulate victims into sharing information, making payments, or bypassing security controls. Every online action, from a social media post to an app registration, adds to what is often called a digital footprint. Being mindful of what goes into that footprint is a quiet but meaningful way to reduce risk.
It's not possible to eliminate cyber risks entirely. However, it is important to build resilience, the ability to recognise a threat, respond appropriately, and adapt as the environment changes. Individuals who stay informed, protect their information, and verify before they act will always be better equipped for what comes next, no matter how threats continue to change.
Report anything suspicious to any of these channels:
Toll-free for Telecom fixed lines: 080 000 3313
Toll-free for MTC users: 081 918 37
Call back number: +27 11 929 3334
Email: letshego@tip-offs.com
Website: www.tip-offs.com
For media inquiries, please contact:
Mrs. Ongame Mutorwa
Communications Manager
Tel:(+264)812553658
E-mail: OngameM@Letshego.com
Comments