Online&Social
UberGo Launches in South Africa
Sourced from CNet. Uber has launched its low-cost ride-hailing service UberGo in South Africa. “Due to the successful launch of UberGo in Port Elizabeth in 2017, we have decided to change the name of UberNam to UberGo, in order to follow the global Uber standard and to easily expand this option across South Africa,” reads a statement from the company. “We also understand that the name led to some confusion regarding a ride-sharing product, which we do not have in South Africa. Therefore, when you open your Uber app, you will see UberGo. This product is in addition to the current suite of products such as UberX and UberBlack.” UberGo comes with smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles, with fares priced more affordably than before. Riders and drivers can expect the same door-to-door safety fea...
WhatsApp Explains its Privacy Policy Update
WhatsApp has offered to clear up ‘any confusion’ for its controversial privacy policy. The social platform has revealed users want more information; like whether or not WhatsApp and Facebook can read or listen to personal conversations, keep logs of who everyone is messaging or share contact lists with Facebook. “We’re going to include more information that people can read within WhatsApp and give people more time to review the terms and privacy policy at their own pace,” reads a statement from the company. Starting in a few weeks, some users will see a small banner that will invite them to check out these policies again. Tapping on “review” will bring up a deeper summary. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_874.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_874.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Users ...
YouTube to Introduce New Features in 2021
Sourced from Mobile Syrup YouTube will introduce a number of new features this year, including; Expanding to TV, TikTok rival Shorts and an Integrated Shopping Experience. “With a global audience of over two billion logged-in users coming to YouTube every month—more than ever, we know we have to build custom experiences and apps that respond to each person’s unique needs,” says Neal Mohan, Chief Product Officer at YouTube. Expanding to TV While the majority of YouTube videos are watched on mobile, the company’s fastest area of growth is the TV. That’s why it brought that same spirit of YouTube’s experience to TV content with YouTube TV. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_3e4.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_3e4.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } “And there’s more to come, including a new ...
Facebook Launches Climate Science Information Centre in sub–Saharan Africa
Facebook has launched its Climate Science Information Centre to sub–Saharan Africa, beginning with South Africa and Nigeria. This is expected to be part of the social platform’s “commitment to connecting people to accurate, expert advice and information about global developments that affect their lives”. The centre, available in 16 countries aims to connect people on Facebook with resources from the world’s leading climate change organizations. Modelled on the Facebook COVID-19 Information Centre—which has so far, directed more than 2 billion people to information from health authorities—the Climate Science Information Center offers facts about climate change and actionable steps people can take in their everyday lives to combat climate change. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_ef0.td-a-rec-img{ tex...
Huawei Unveils the New AppGallery in South Africa
Huawei Mobile Services has launched its latest version of Huawei AppGallery, featuring a new and enhanced way to discover content for users in South Africa. According to the company, the update “empowers users to smoothly discover an array of new apps, games, and resources on the platform and delve deeper into high-quality editorial content and more exciting updates and engaging features”. The new features are expected to provide users with the best discovery experience, as it currently boasts a global user base of more than 530 million monthly active users. Informed by its users’ feedback, this new version is more than just a new look; it provides tailored and localised topics based on users’ unique interests, while showcasing trending apps and games with striking visuals complemented by ...
FlySafair Unveils New Mobile App
FlySafair has officially launched a new mobile app for Android and iOS. The app has been designed to give users an easy way to search, book, and manage flights directly from their phone – while also adjusting to travelling in the New COVID-19 Normal. “We’ve been crafting an app for a while and now seemed like a great time to launch it because we were able to make a lot of adjustments to the features to ensure that they were relevant in this COVID-19 reality”, says Kirby Gordon, CMO at FlySafair. Aviation in South Africa took a massive knock after the announcement of level 3 restrictions in late December last year, with available seats on the market in January this year being a mere 45% of what they were in January 2020. “The aim of the app has been to make our customer’s experience with us...
Is the Clubhouse App Safe to Use?
Image sourced from Daily Express Clubhouse has become a wildly popular app across the world. The invitation-only audio-chat platform appears to be a reflection of the growing interest in sound-based products with the recent rebound of the podcast. Kaspersky researchers believe that the app can create a false sense of security, privacy, and closeness, in part because of how its registration works (it’s invitation-only at the moment). This creates several risks for the users, which are important to be aware of when using any public space on the Internet. One of the risks is privacy risks. This is often connected with the fact that people feel they are surrounded by like-minded individuals and friends, which allows them to behave more authentically than they would in front of strangers....
Twitter to Label the Verified Accounts of Governments and Officials
Image sourced from Mission Statement Academy Twitter is planning to label the verified accounts of governments and government officials. The social media network believes this will help users when interacting with these leaders and associated institutions by adding context to what people see on Twitter. According to an official blog post, Twitter says it will add labels to the following accounts: Verified accounts of key government officials, including foreign ministers, institutional entities, ambassadors, official spokespeople, and key diplomatic leaders. At this time, our focus is on senior officials and entities who are the official voice of the state abroad; Personal accounts of heads of state, from phase 1 and phase 2 countries. In a tweet, the platform reveals exactly what thes...
TikTok Oracle Deal is reportedly ‘Shelved Indefinitely’
Sourced from Cosmico Last year, Tik Tok’s parent company ByteDance and Oracle reached a “technical partnership” for the social media platform’s US operations. The deal was expected to address the national security concerns surrounding TikTok, raised by the Trump Administration. But now, it would seem that these efforts have been ‘shelved indefinitely’ while US President Joe Biden “undertakes a broad review of his predecessor’s efforts to address potential security risks from Chinese tech companies”. Spokesperson for the National Security Council, Emily Horne told the Wall Street Journal that “we plan to develop a comprehensive approach to securing US data that addresses the full range of threats we face. This includes the risk posed by Chinese apps and other software that operate in t...
Why Africa’s Youth Needs Access to Agricultural Knowledge and Tools
In recent years, Africa’s younger generation has begun to associate farming with bare sustenance and discard it as a viable career path. Despite farming being a fundamental part of society, training and education on sustainable agriculture in school curriculums is neglected and underfunded at government level. To unpack this further, IT News Africa’s Jenna Delport spoke to James Konde, Head of Farmer Training and App Development at the Haller Foundation in Mombasa, Kenya. Here’s what transpired: The Haller Foundation is a UK registered charity and Kenyan NGO that was set up to educate rural farmers. How is the foundation tackling the youth’s lack of interest in agriculture? /* custom css */ .tdi_3_dd6.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_dd6.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; }...
Top 10 Facebook Security Tips for Parents
Technology is often a lifeline for parents. They can ask for parenting advice in Facebook groups, share those special moments on their feed and connect with friends and relatives who might live far away. However, when it comes to kids, it’s important to ensure they’re safe online. To guide parents, here are ten tips to help you and your children stay safe on social media platforms: Start a conversation with your child early, before they are on social media Research shows that children as young as six have access to smartphones or tablets. Start talking to your children about technology, before they hit 13 when they are allowed on social media. If your teen is on Facebook or Instagram, consider friending or following them. Be mindful of age restrictions Facebook and Instagram require e...
How to Keep Hackers Out of Your Zoom Call
With the onset of the COVID-19 remote work exodus that has seen billions stuck at home, video conferencing apps have exploded in popularity. At the forefront is the service Zoom. However, with Zoom’s explosive popularity came a series of highly publicized security issues. To unpack this, ITNA’s Jenna Delport chatted with Gabe Goldhirsh, VP MEA at digital risk protection company, ZeroFOX. Here’s what transpired: Why is Zoom, in particular, the target platform of choice for dedicated cyber attacks? And was it about Zoom that made it so popular to users in the first place? The rapid movement to remote work as a result of the pandemic caused a near-overnight acceleration and adoption of all collaboration tools – especially to Zoom (due to its platform ubiquity, ease, and no/low cost licen...
