South Africa's Intelligence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu on Sunday apologised for sex-life questions raised in security testing for journalists who wanted to attend the new presidential press corps.

This statement followed press reports that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) had been questioning full details of journalists' sex lives, including whether or not they had ever practised homosexual sex, as part of the security clearance process.

Sisulu's spokeswoman Lorna Daniels said that the department noted the reports "with regret", and had ordered to review the instruments used in the security competence test, to withdraw any embarrassing questions.

Daniels said the NIA director-general had already explained to Sisulu that the incident could be attributed to "an over zealous" official who might "have gone overboard" during the non-standard interview.