Child maintenance recipients warned of payment delay after cyber attack on justice department systems

The Justice Department will ensure all child maintenance money is kept secure for payment to the rightful beneficiaries.

The Justice Department will ensure all child maintenance money is kept secure for payment to the rightful beneficiaries.

Published Sep 13, 2021

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Child maintenance recipients will have to wait a few days longer for payouts following a ransomware attack on IT systems at the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

"Child maintenance payments will be delayed due to departmental systems, including MojaPay, not being currently accessible. MojaPay is the system the department utilises to administer maintenance payments," explained DJCD spokesperson, Steve Mahlangu.

He said while the department is not able to determine the exact date when the required systems will be restored, the department will ensure all child maintenance money is kept secure for payment to the rightful beneficiaries when the systems are back online.

Mahlangu said the current system challenges do not affect the receipt of child maintenance money from the maintenance paying parent or employers who deduct these from the paying parent’s salary.

"The monthly child maintenance deductions will go ahead as scheduled. IT experts from the department, industry partners and selected organs of State are working together to urgently restore the systems affected by the ransomware attack, including MojaPay. The MojaPay system will be given the utmost priority to ensure that any inconvenience to maintenance beneficiaries is minimised," he said.

The department's IT experts have thus far managed to come up with an alternative email system for better co-ordination of the department’s crisis response plan.

Mahlangu said staff members at various levels have been migrated into the new email solution.

"The departmental website had also been restored, so as to be able to publish updates regarding services to the public.

“The Masters Offices are currently, as an interim measure, using a manual process to provide bereaved families, in exceptional cases, where there is a need to access funds from the deceased's banking account for burial costs. No manual letters of executorship or authority will be issued in this crisis period," he said.

Mahlangu added the department would once again like to extend its profound apologies to all users of justice services who have been negatively affected by the current system challenges.

"More updates on progress in restoring the IT system will be provided as soon as they're available," he said.

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