Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber has issued a stern warning to South Africans: you are at a higher risk of identity fraud and theft if you do not switch to a smart identity (ID) card.
“Research suggests that SA’s green ID book is the most defrauded in Africa, with identity theft costing our country north of R1.5 billion per year.
“If you want to fight fraud and corruption while protecting your family, switch to a smart ID card before criminals steal your life,” Schreiber posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday afternoon.
Home Affairs goes on an ID-blocking spree
Schreiber’s warning comes in light of the department nullifying identity documents (IDs) deemed to be fraudulent.
Last Friday, Home Affairs announced that it would be blocking IDs, urging South Africans to provide reasons within 30 days why their IDs should not be permanently cancelled.
“Through this move, Home Affairs aims to both resolve the decades-old issue of wrongfully blocked IDs while reducing the number of fraudulent documents in circulation.
“Some documents were originally blocked as far back as 2005 for a range of reasons, including because the biometric system flagged the documents as duplicates, held by illegal immigrants or because the ID holder had passed away,” Home Affairs said.
Schreiber has been on an aggressive clean-up drive of Home Affairs since being appointment minister as part of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s so-called government of national unity.
Since joining Ramaphosa’s executive on 30 June 2024, Schreiber has
