Is Zscaler an Undervalued Cybersecurity Stock to Buy Right Now in October?

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Zscaler and What Rising Agentic AI Threats Mean for Local Investors

Strong cyber risks are boosting demand for security software, but South African investors should play this theme via USD/ZAR and select local banks.

Zscaler has caught attention as cybersecurity threats evolve, especially with AI-driven attacks becoming more common. While Zscaler’s cloud-based approach looks promising, it’s a US-listed tech stock with no JSE presence. For South African investors, the clearest play is to watch the rand-dollar exchange rate closely. Rising global tech demand and ongoing cyber risks put upward pressure on the USD, which typically weakens emerging market currencies like the ZAR. This makes USD/ZAR a key pair to watch—if the dollar strengthens on cyber threat fears, rand weakness could pressure JSE tech and banking shares like FirstRand or Standard Bank serving increasingly digital-savvy clients. However, the local market is also sensitive to domestic risks like policy uncertainty and power constraints, which could override tech-driven flows. Zscaler itself is likely overvalued from a SA perspective since currency and local factors are bigger drivers here than the direct tech trend. So, it’s more sensible to watch USD/ZAR and industry exposure in the local sector rather than buy foreign tech names directly. this is just our opinion and not financial advice