When a first-year student discovered someone had stolen his identity to claim a SASSA grant, he didn’t get angry… he got innovative. That moment of injustice sparked a story of purpose, impact and hope.
Western Cape, South Africa (21 October 2025) – When first-year Stellenbosch University student Veer Gosai discovered that someone had opened a fraudulent SASSA Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant in his name, he could have walked away frustrated… just another young South African caught in a broken system. Instead, he rolled up his sleeves and decided to do something extraordinary.
That one moment of violation became the start of a journey that would not only uncover one of the biggest fraud scandals in South Africa’s grant system but also inspire a wave of innovation, transparency and hope.
Veer and his friend Joel Cedras began by simply trying to protect themselves from identity theft. But their curiosity, and integrity, led them much further. Using publicly available data, the pair uncovered massive security flaws in SASSA’s SRD system that allowed for widespread fraud. Their findings showed that thousands of grant applications were being processed for people who had never applied, including them.
“When we started, it was just about fixing our own situation,” Veer says. “But as we investigated, we realised this was happening to hundreds of thousands of South Africans, many of them young people. We knew we couldn’t just ignore it.”
Unable to reach SASSA directly, the two students went public through GroundUp and the story went viral overnight. Their work exposed a system failing the very people it was meant to help and it prompted SASSA to admit that large-scale fraud was indeed taking place.
But for Veer, it wasn’t about scandal. It was about solutions.
That same determination to use his skills for the greater good has become the foundation of his company, Taptic, and its education platform, SA Papers. What began as a small idea to make study resources more accessible has now grown into a tool used by thousands of learners across South Africa.
“I’ll never forget the moment it hit me,” Veer says. “It was a Sunday in November 2022, and I checked our site analytics, we had 200 visits that day. It might sound small now, but it was massive for us. It meant that students out there were finding value in what we built.”
Today, Taptic has over seven million visits, 10,000 app downloads, and a new project on the horizon… a WhatsApp-based chatbot designed to deliver learning materials to more than 100,000 students by 2026.
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For someone so young, Veer carries wisdom beyond his years. He credits his parents for keeping him grounded, offering both emotional and financial support through his toughest moments. He also acknowledges those who helped him channel his passion ethically, including Nathan Geffen, editor of GroundUp, who “taught me how to report ethically and use my skills for the good of people.”
The impact of his work is deeply personal too.
“We get hundreds or students reach out with stories but there was one specific person I recall that really defined.,” he tells us. “In April of 2024, I was sitting in OR Tambo waiting to board my flight when another First Year student approached me to ask about what I was doing on my laptop since he noticed the SA Papers Logo on one of the internal documents I was typing. When I told the student I started SA Papers he was amazed and said ‘he wouldn’t be able to pass without us’. We get stories like this come through all the time and its people like this that make us want to continue doing what we are doing.”
In 2025, Veer was named one of the Mail & Guardian’s 200 Young South Africans in the Editors’ Choice category, an honour that he describes as both surreal and humbling.
“It’s not just about recognition,” he says. “It’s a reminder that the work matters, from the SRD grant recipient to the high school student using my platform. It’s a celebration of what’s possible when you use technology to make a difference.”
Looking ahead, he plans to expand Taptic beyond South Africa’s borders, with the goal of reaching 15 million visits across 12 countries by the end of 2025.
When asked for his message to South Africans, Veer’s optimism shines through:
“Live every day of your life to make your impact. South Africa is a land of great promise, and our people are capable of doing big things. Every new day is a chance to make a difference in your home, your community, your country.”
Veer’s journey is proof that change doesn’t always come from those with power or money, sometimes, it starts with two students and a laptop, determined to make things better.
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