South Africa's ransomware crisis is intensifying, and attackers aren't taking a holiday break. This week on Priviso Live, we unpack the alarming industry analysis showing why South African organisations remain dangerously exposed, with poor patch cycles, weak identity controls, and inadequate backups creating a perfect storm during the festive season when security teams are stretched thin.

We dive into the explosive political fallout surrounding the Communications Minister's controversial EEIP directive - a potential game-changer for Starlink's entry into South Africa that's drawn sharp criticism from the ANC and ignited fierce debate about transformation frameworks and regulatory authority.

The episode reveals stark continental cyber intelligence: Ethiopia and Nigeria are facing unprecedented AI-driven attack rates, with banking, telecoms, and energy sectors under siege from automated phishing kits and enhanced credential attacks. Meanwhile, South Africa's Information Regulator breach portal exposes the true scale of incidents the country has been facing.

But it's not all regulatory drama and threat warnings. We explore NIST's groundbreaking draft AI Cybersecurity Framework - your blueprint for AI governance while South Africa's legislative environment catches up. Plus, we take a fascinating journey through Christmas cybersecurity history, from the 1987 Christmas Tree EXEC worm to the Lizard Squad attacks that ruined millions of gaming Christmases in 2014.

With practical takeaways for security leaders, urgent warnings about AI-generated holiday scams, and critical guidance on protecting your organisation during the most vulnerable time of year, this episode is essential listening before you log off for the holidays.

Don't wait until December 22nd to lock down your defences - the attackers already haven't.

Join hosts Lyn, Stephen, and Kayla as they tackle the pressing security challenges heading into the festive season, plus the year's most significant developments in AI and cloud security.

This Episode Covers:

The Security Budget Crisis: Nearly half of organizations face flat or reduced security budgets despite rising threats. The sobering reality? Teams are stretched thin, with only a third believing they have adequate skills to protect cloud and AI ecosystems. As one report puts it: "Organizations say they want to be secure, but not enough to actually fund security."

Cloud Teams Drowning in Complexity: 85% report increased cloud complexity in 2025, while 82% suffer from alert fatigue. The shocking truth? Only 11% believe their cloud security posture is mature, meaning 89% are quietly winging it.

TIME's AI Architects: For the sixth time, TIME's Person of the Year isn't a person but a collective: the small group of humans and systems shaping artificial intelligence. It's a recognition that AI governance has become as critical as cybersecurity itself, with "the world's future being negotiated by a few dozen labs."

ChatGPT's Adult Mode: OpenAI introduces age-restricted capabilities with smarter verification, responding to regulatory pressure for stricter controls on how minors interact with AI.

McDonald's AI Disaster: When McDonald's Christmas ad featuring distorted faces and haunted children went viral for all the wrong reasons, it became a masterclass in why you can't just press "generate" and call it marketing.

Plus: Your Essential Holiday Security Checklist: Ten critical steps to protect your organization while cybercriminals work overtime during skeleton-crew season.

This week we're unpacking five major stories that showcase just how intertwined technology, security, and regulation have become.

We kick off with Cloudflare's second major outage in less than a month—a 25-minute incident that impacted 28% of their global HTTP traffic. Ironically, this disruption occurred while they were implementing security improvements to protect against a React vulnerability. We'll explore why their promised resilience upgrades from the November outage still haven't been deployed.

Next, we examine the Airbus software crisis that required emergency updates to 6,000 A320-family aircraft worldwide. After a JetBlue flight experienced an uncommanded altitude drop injuring 15 passengers, investigators discovered that solar radiation could corrupt the aircraft's flight control systems. We discuss how airlines managed this unprecedented overnight response and what it means for aviation software safety.

YouTube's new AI deepfake detection tool sounds promising—until you learn creators must surrender government IDs and biometric face data to use it. We'll unpack the privacy concerns experts are raising about Google's policies and what happens when your likeness becomes your most valuable asset.

The European Commission just slapped Elon Musk's X platform with a €120 million fine for Digital Services Act violations. Musk's one-word response? "Bullshit." We break down the transparency violations, the free speech debate, and why this is becoming a transatlantic political flashpoint.

Finally, Netflix is acquiring Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion, creating a streaming giant with over 30% market share. What does this mega-merger mean for your viewing options, theatrical releases, and the future of entertainment?

Join Lyn, Stephen, and Kayla for all this and more on Priviso Live!