tech news
Every Digital Business Needs a Data Strategy
Sourced from TTEC.com Even though data has become one of the most critically important assets in an organisation, most companies have yet to align this with their business strategies. Not doing so results in an inability to identify and prioritise the interventions needed for growth and effectively measure their success. But doing so is not without its complexities. For the most part, a data strategy comes down to identifying and understanding the data that is being worked with. Having this in place can improve the way a company acquires, stores, manages, shares, and uses data. The underlying processes and the governance involved in how all this is managed are all key components of such a data strategy. Even if this is in place, the biggest obstacle is still on how to best integrate it wit...
IT Teams Facing Cyber Threats in 2020 – 5 Vital Insights
Image sourced from CIO. “Around the world, 2020 was an unprecedented year for IT teams,” said Chester Wisniewski, principal research scientist, Sophos. IT professionals played a vital role in helping organizations to keep going despite the restrictions and limitations necessitated by COVID-19. Among other things, they enabled education institutions to move learning online, retailers to switch to online transactions, healthcare organizations to deliver digital services and care under incredibly tough circumstances, and ensured public entities could continue to provide essential services. Much of this will have been done at high speed, with limited equipment and resources available and while facing a rising tide of cyberattacks against the network, endpoints and employees. To say things were...
“Yellow Card” Seeks to Shake Up Cryptocurrency in Kenya
Image sourced from Kryptocurrency. /* custom css */ .tdi_4_770.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_770.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Yellow Card, a leading Africa-focused finance platform for trading cryptocurrencies has finally arrived in Kenya. The company claims it already has offices in 9 African countries, allowing customers from Nigeria, Botswana, Cameroon and South Africa, and others, to buy and sell crypto through its platform. “Yellow Card is a cryptocurrency exchange on which you can buy or sell supported cryptocurrencies with your local currency,” reads Yellow Card’s official website. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_776.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_776.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } The company “offers a secure cryptocurrency wallet with which you send,...
Ethiopian Government Selling a 40% Stake in Ethio Telecom
Image sourced from Africanews. The Ethiopian government has announced a new tender process to begin the sale of a 40% stake in the state-owned telecommunications company, Ethio Telecom. The sale is still in its very early stages with the selection of a successful bidder expected only at the end of a significantly lengthy process. According to reports, the government plans to retain a 55% stake in the operator while the remaining 5% will be offered to domestic investors through an initial public offering. This new proposed sale of a large minority stake in the telecom comes as part of the Ethiopian government’s plan to liberalise the country’s monopoly in its telecom sector. Another key piece of the plan is for two foreign carriers to be granted licenses to operate in the vast, nearly-untap...
Take Control of Your Company’s Digital Transformation – Register for #DTF2021
Join the DTF 2021 as an attendee – https://itnewsafrica.com/events/event/digital-transformation-congress-webinar/ Change is Inevitable Digital transformation is as inevitable as the passage of time. The new will replace the old, as the axiom goes. Business leaders and company executives must evolve their organisations, or risk extinction in the future when attempting to transform too late proves too little. One doesn’t need to go far for practical examples of this. In 2020, companies either adapted to the new normal or contemplated filing bankruptcy. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented and entirely unexpected event. Remember when “Remote Work” was just a novel idea? Time will continue to present these events – these unexpected drastic changes, and forward-minded l...
What are CFDs and How Can You Start Trading Online?
/* custom css */ .tdi_4_61e.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_61e.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } The use of Contracts for Differences (CFDs) continues to trend among retail traders, given these financial derivatives are ideal when market volatility is elevated and valuations have a directional bias. Understanding what are CFDs and some of the main threads linked to them is not difficult, even when it comes to people that are just getting started in the industry. The Basics of CFDs People will very often hear about the stock markets, FOREX, or commodities in the media. These are financial assets with a floating value, creating incentives for speculation. Retail traders and institutions all around the world are getting involved in these markets daily, based on changing economi...
MTN Deploys “First-of-its-Kind” Infrastructure Advancing Network Automation in Uganda
Sourced from TheTechieGuy (https://thetechieguy.com/) MTN Uganda and several members of the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) have signed an agreement that will advance network automation in the country and abroad using TIP’s Disaggregated Cell Site Gateway (DCSG). This first of its kind network deployment in Africa will see MTN evolve its Transport Network and turn it into a future-proof asset that will seamlessly enable its network transition to 5G. Transport Network transmits data traffic between points within a network that enable access to the internet. Through Ambition 2025, MTN’s strategic blueprint, Network-as-a-Service (Naas) is one of five scale platforms for growth that contribute to leading digital solutions for Africa’s progress. TIP’s Disaggregated Cell Site Gateway (DCSG) DCSGs ul...
4 Simple Steps Your Company Can Take to Protect ERP Systems from Cyber-Threats
Image sourced from Software ONE. Cybercrime taps into the vulnerability of business systems and can pose a real threat to a robust supply chain. A sophisticated ransomware attack recently targeted the world’s largest meat processor. Following the business system breach, operations in the US and Australia were disrupted, resulting in a knock-on effect. The meat processor had no option but to shut down nine beef plants in the United States and several plants in Australia. Several truck drivers who specialize in hauling livestock also had no choice but to drive hundreds of miles to pick up cattle from an alternative supplier. For the end-consumer, the long-term impact of the cyber-attack could mean inflated meat prices. Unfortunately, this is not the only instance of a cyber-attack on critica...
Using AI Will Always Require a Human Touch
Image sourced from Software One. /* custom css */ .tdi_4_096.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_096.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Decision-makers are concerned about how the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology can negatively impact their brand and result in a loss of stakeholder and customer trust. In fact, research has shown that 56% of executives globally have slowed down their AI adoptions because of such fears. These concerns have given rise to the concept of Responsible AI (RAI). It refers to the way organisations use AI technologies, and the adherence to certain principles that relate to the greater good, the protection of individuals and their fundamental rights, and generally the trustworthiness of the AI application. While everybody has a role to play in ...
AstraZeneca Partners with South African BrandMed to “Improve Treatment Outcomes, Patient Experience”
Image sourced from Market Watch. /* custom css */ .tdi_4_80c.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_80c.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } The COVID-19 pandemic and the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have compelled healthcare stakeholders to explore new ways of improving health systems, stimulating the advancement of healthcare ecosystems that focus on enhancing the patient experience, improving treatment outcomes, while at the same time reducing expenses and treatment timelines. AstraZeneca South Africa Partners with BrandMed AstraZeneca South Africa announced this week that it will be providing sponsorship to BrandMed towards the establishment of fifteen BrandMed Syntro-P Health Centres of Excellence as part of its commitment to work towards a future where all p...
Can Debt Consolidation Help Your Credit Score?
Image sourced from Focus Federal Credit Union. /* custom css */ .tdi_4_37e.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_37e.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } So, you have heaps of debt and finally decided to get help. You’ve settled on debt consolidation, but you’re worried about how the financial strategy might affect your credit. But can debt consolidation actually help your credit score? You may be pleasantly surprised. Why Consolidate Debt? /* custom css */ .tdi_3_d63.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_d63.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Let’s start there. In short, consolidating your accounts can save you cash. For instance, if you have cards with an aggregate rate of, say, 24%, you can try to consolidate your balances into a new credit card or loan with a lower interest...
Cybersecurity Is More than A Tech Problem – It’s a Business Problem Too
Image sourced from Finance Times. A concerning number of South African companies are not prepared for the inevitability of a cyberattack despite the significant financial and reputational risks, according to Ryan Mer, MD, eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee (KYP) platform provider. “Too few senior managers view cybersecurity as a business problem and not just a technology problem,” he says. “The reality is cybersecurity is very much a business consideration. CEOs and CFOs will eventually face critical questions such as: How much money do we spend on cybersecurity? Do we change key processes? How do we create awareness and change company culture? Do we put security ahead of operational functionality? What is the role of internal processes and staff on data security and integrity?.” Mer adds t...
