technology news
Are University’s Doing Enough to Address the Cybersecurity Skills Gap
Sourced from International IDEA A global shortage of cybersecurity professionals has become so severe that companies are increasingly at risk from hacking and industrial espionage. Protecting data and defending corporate networks is poised to be one of the most in-demand careers of the future. Yet companies are already struggling to fill job vacancies, and the problem is accelerating. “Every company is going digital, and the first thing they have to ask is how secure are their networks and data,” says Doros Hadjizenonos, the Regional Sales Director at Fortinet. The danger is that cybercrime has grown so huge and lucrative that without enough good guys to keep them safe, businesses and individuals alike are in jeopardy. “If a company doesn’t have the right skills it’s increasing its risk to...
African’s Reluctant to Leave WhatsApp Despite Increase in Cybersecurity Concerns
Africa’s mobile users are increasingly concerned about the mobile risks and the potential for digital identity theft; however, this is not stopping them from using their favourite messaging platforms and applications. This emerged in new research carried out by KnowBe4 among smartphone users in Nigeria, Mauritius, Egypt, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Morocco and Botswana. The survey gauged the opinions of Africa’s mobile users on the recent decision by WhatsApp to update their terms and conditions, sharing metadata with the rest of the Facebook group of companies. The survey found that not only did the majority of the respondents across Africa intend to continue using WhatsApp; but also, that their favourite alternative to WhatsApp was Facebook Messenger. Anna Collard, SVP Content Strategy &...
Huawei FreeBuds 4i Officially Available in South Africa
Huawei’s latest addition to the FreeBuds series, the FreeBuds 4i, are now available in South Africa. The all-new True Wireless Stereo Bluetooth earphones offer users high-quality sound with long-lasting battery life, active noise cancellation and intuitive controls. With the help of customized internal components such as its 10mm dynamic, the Huawei FreeBuds 4i is capable of providing users with high-quality audio with balanced sound across various frequency ranges. Audio output is tuned professionally and the wind noise reduction structure ensures crystal clear audio at all times, even in noisy environments. The earphones also offer users 10 hours of battery life on a single charge with Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) off and 7.5 hours with ANC on. Together with the charging cas...
The 3 Real Challenges of WFH
It used to be called “telecommuting”. Already the term sounds archaic and has been rapidly displaced by the broader “Work from Home (WFH)” phrase that caught fire in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses all over the world have been experimenting with telecommuting for decades, but the pandemic has woken them up to the fact that it need not remain an experiment. A Practitioner’s View Sujoy Chatterjee, VP of Infrastructure Services at ITC Infotech, says, “WFH can be a wider reality, resulting in interesting, pleasant and desirable upsides. Forward-thinking CIOs and business leaders are already working on long term strategies to support a distributed workforce, not just for full-time employees, but for part-time employees as well.” One such leader Sujoy is working with is Sibus...
How to Add Stickers to Fleets on Twitter
Image sourced from Mission Statement Academy Twitter is making it possible for users to add stickers to their Fleets. In a new update, both Android and iOS users will be able to add stickers by simply tapping the smiley face icon on the bottom row of their screen. “Fleets just got an upgrade,” reveals Twitter in an official tweet. “Now you can express yourself in the conversation with stickers. Add GIFs and Twemojis to a Fleet by tapping the Slightly smiling face icon, on Android and iOS.” Your Fleets just got an upgrade. Now you can express yourself in the conversation with stickers. Add GIFs and Twemojis to a Fleet by tapping the 🙂 icon, on Android and iOS. pic.twitter.com/Ihh9ZZh70a — Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) March 31, 2021 Twitter is Testing a New Way to Post Imag...
Dimension Data Acquires Cloud Solutions Company to Fast-Track AWS Capabilities
Dimension Data has announced its acquisition of cloud implementation company – Acacia Cloud Solutions. The company believes this move will cement its commitment to invest in cloud services and solutions that meet the digital transformation and hybrid cloud requirements of organisations in the Middle East and Africa region in an increasingly competitive and digital business operating landscape. The acquisition is expected to expand Dimension Data’s AWS capabilities and provide its clients with innovative cloud managed services solutions that deliver relevant optimisation tools and speed to market. This will see both Acacia Cloud Solutions and Dimension Data building more capacity and skills to effectively meet client demand. “Our acquisition of Acacia Cloud Solutions, and our global re...
How Mobile Technology could Provide Food Security for Rural African Communities
Climate change combined with unsustainable farming practices has exhausted African soil — leaving much of the ground unfarmable. In the future, a major reduction in crop yield and productivity is likely to be seen as a consequence of the extreme weather conditions and unviable farming techniques. In fact, the production of maize could decrease by as much as 10%, even if no climate adaptation actions are taken. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_560.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_560.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } According to the African Development Bank (ADB), this is not only unsustainable but unaffordable as the continent spends close to $65 billion importing food — a number that is expected to grow exponentially within the next decade. In addition to the growing lack...
Telkom Introduces New Data-Inclusive Prepaid Plan
Image sourced from Bandwidth Blog Telkom South Africa has introduced a new tariff plan – Thola More – that will include data and extra SMS and calling benefits upon recharging. The telco revealed that this new plan will replace its voice-focused offering – SIM Sonke. Telkom Thola More is a prepaid tariff plan that offers prepaid customers additional free benefits including data, SMSs and Telkom-to-Telkom voice call minutes when they recharge their account with R5 airtime or more. The benefits apply to new and existing customers who migrate to the tariff plan. “Essentially, customers be will rewarded with free all-network data, on-net minutes and SMSs as specified in the product offer, every time they recharge with R5 or more,” explains Andrew Dawson, Executive of Mobile Products and S...
Free Healthcare Webinar: Patient Journey and the Digital Twins
Delivering high-quality care for patients starts by connecting data from admissions to discharge. By transforming live data into actionable metrics, the healthcare sector can make more insightful decisions to streamline and digitise workflow throughout the patient journey. On 14 April 2021, Zebra — a leading healthcare technology solutions provider — will introduce MotionWorks™ Healthcare and virtually demonstrate how to streamline workflows and significantly reduce costs in healthcare facilities as well as identify patterns to enable intelligent predictions. Under the theme “Patient Journey and the Digital Twins” this free and innovative webinar will empower the healthcare sector with technology solutions that enable them to instantly connect, collaborate and communicate with colle...
Telkom South Africa Awarded Mobile Communication Services Contract by National Treasury
Telkom has been appointed as one of the official service providers, under the RT15-2021 Transversal contract, to provide government institutions with Mobile Communication Services for the period commencing 1 April 2021 and ending 31 March 2026. The Transversal Contract RT15-2021 is a 5-year tender that offers the successful mobile service providers the opportunity to service the South African government with all its mobile and enterprise solutions including hardware and software as well as accessories. “We couldn’t be prouder to be selected as a worthy partner by the National Treasury to back our country by being its enabler in excellent and secure communications and empower the National Treasury in fulfilling its social and economic duties efficiently; all the while also contributing to t...
Huawei Mate40 Pro Officially Launches in South Africa
Huawei’s newest flagship smartphone – the Mate40 Pro – is officially available in South Africa. The device incorporates Kirin 9000, the world’s first 5nm 5G SoC; Ultra Vision Cine Camera technology and user-friendly AI. The Mate40 Pro comes with the Huawei 88° Horizon Display, an ultra-curved display featuring an 88-degree arc. The practically invisible edges allow for a wider perspective that lends itself to a more immersive visual experience. The streamlined display fills the frontal view of the device, and extends beyond the edges, sitting flush with the mid-frame to produce a more comfortable hold. The smartphone sports the highly advanced 5nm Kirin 9000 flagship SoC, which packs more than 15.3 billion transistors. The cutting edge 5nm Kirin 9000 is manufactured with one of the industr...
5 Things to Do After a Ransomware Attack
In South Africa, 42% of ransomware victims pay the ransom to restore access to their data. Yet for 19% of those, paying the ransom did not guarantee the return of stolen data. However, as public awareness of potential cyber threats grows there is the reason for optimism in the fight against ransomware. Ransomware is a type of malware which criminals use to extort money. It holds data to ransom using encryption or by locking users out of their device. According to a report from Kaspersky, whether they paid or not, only 24% of victims were able to restore all their encrypted or blocked files following an attack. 61% lost at least some files, 32% lost a significant amount, and 29% lost a small number of files. Meanwhile, 11% who did experience such an incident lost almost all their data. “Thi...
