By: Boland Lithebe - Security Lead for Accenture, Africa

Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming the engine room of South Africa’s economic future. Across sectors, from banking and insurance to healthcare and retail, AI systems are transforming how decisions are made, how services are delivered, and how organisations compete. Yet, alongside its potential, AI introduces new security risks that we can no longer afford to underestimate. As AI systems become more autonomous, the risks tied to their operation, governance, and resilience multiply exponentially. A future powered by AI will be only as strong as the security foundations we lay today.

The urgency is clear. South Africa must act now to ensure that as we embrace AI, we also embed security into every layer of its design, deployment, and operation. Security cannot be treated as an afterthought, a compliance checkbox, or a last-minute technical fix. It must be integral to how we innovate. Policymakers, technology leaders, and businesses need to work together to create governance frameworks that address AI-specific risks, invest in secure-by-design technologies, and build local cybersecurity capabilities at scale. Our future economic growth depends not just on the brilliance of our AI innovations, but on our ability to defend them against rapidly evolving threats.

Global trends show that attacks targeting AI systems are already growing. Malicious actors can exploit vulnerabilities in data inputs, manipulate model behaviour, and disrupt autonomous operations. In a South African context, this could mean AI-driven financial algorithms being manipulated to cause market instability, AI-based healthcare diagnostics being compromised with fatal consequences, or autonomous vehicles being hijacked remotely. These scenarios are not science fiction, they are very real risks that demand proactive planning and investment today.

Embedding robust cybersecurity into AI is complex. It requires a shift in mindset, not just a shift in tools. It means designing AI systems that are explainable, auditable, and resilient. It means putting in place continuous monitoring, threat detection, and rapid response mechanisms that are AI-aware. It means recognising that as AI systems learn and evolve, so too must the security measures protecting them. Static controls will fail in a dynamic environment. Adaptive, intelligent security must become the norm.

One of South Africa’s greatest assets in this journey is its people. Our country has a vibrant, growing cybersecurity community, as well as world-class research institutions. However, we need to scale our skills development efforts significantly. A thriving AI economy will require a deep pool of cybersecurity specialists who understand AI systems in all their complexity. This means expanding cybersecurity education, incentivising young talent to enter the field, and creating career pathways that keep our brightest minds at home, working to secure our digital future.

Private sector organisations also have a pivotal role to play. It is no longer sufficient for CISOs to focus solely on traditional IT infrastructure. Boards and executive teams must ensure that AI security is embedded into their enterprise risk management strategies. Technology vendors must prioritise the development of security-first AI products. And cross-sector collaborations must be fostered to share threat intelligence, best practices, and incident response frameworks that address AI-specific challenges.

Moreover, securing AI is not just a technical necessity, it is a trust imperative. Public trust in AI systems will be fragile unless organisations can demonstrate that these systems are safe, fair, and accountable. In a country like South Africa, where social inequalities are pronounced, ensuring that AI technologies are secure, ethical, and inclusive is critical to their long-term acceptance and success. Cybersecurity must be seen not just as a defensive shield, but as an enabler of innovation that earns and retains public trust.

The stakes are high. Failure to secure AI could result in catastrophic breaches, reputational damage, regulatory penalties, and worst of all, erosion of the very public confidence that the AI economy depends on. Conversely, getting security right could position South Africa as a global leader in ethical and resilient AI innovation, opening new markets, attracting investment, and creating jobs.

The good news is that we still have a choice. We can either approach AI security reactively, waiting for crises to force our hand, or we can be proactive, deliberate, and bold in building the secure AI future we all need. It is a choice between short-term convenience and long-term resilience. South Africa must choose wisely.

The future belongs to those who build it securely. By embedding cybersecurity at the heart of our AI journey today, we can unlock the full potential of autonomous systems tomorrow, ensuring that technology serves society safely, inclusively, and sustainably. Security is not a barrier to progress, it is the foundation of it.