The South African government has cautioned people against scammers impersonating President Cyril Ramaphosa to request for funds from South Africans.

The president’s office, in a statement, said scam messages purporting to be sent by the president have gone viral, while warning that the “president does not request any funds or endorse any payments or contracts between third parties, whether through websites, adverts, social media, emails, letters, texts or phone conversations”.

The South African authorities have not provided any additional information on the nature of the frauds or how long they have been active.

A statement from the government said anyone who has received such emails from the president or the presidency should discontinue all future contact with the scammers.

It added that those who have already given money to the scammers should contact the police as soon as possible.

Cybercrime and impersonation are on the rise in the country, News24 indicated.

Report by Business Tech indicated that impersonation fraud increased by 356% in South Africa between April 2022 and April 2023.

South Africa’s cyber crime density – the percentage of cyber crime victims per specified number of internet users – grew by 8% between 2021 and 2022, placing the country fifth in the world.