technology news
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 Facial Verification Is Key to Ending Facial Biometric Software Bias
As the global need for inclusive biometric security in facial identification increases, developers need not overlook the burden of a non-biased solution. Teki Akuetteh Falconer, from the African Digital Rights’ Hub, says racial profiling is a major concern in terms of facial identification software. This presents a challenge for Africa because if an individual’s identity cannot be reliably processed by both the public and private sectors, their ability to function in a digital society is hampered. The World Bank and the United Nations anticipate that by 2030 all Africans will have some form of digital identity which will prove critical when it comes to accessing essential services such as housing, schooling, healthcare and banking, to name a few. Gur Geva, Founder and CEO of iiDE...
Riven: 10 Ways to Win the Game
Like any MOBA, League of Legends (hereinafter referred to as LoL) consists of casual and professional players. Casual players play for their pleasure and rarely choose ranked matches. Professional players hone their skills in ranked matches, for which they receive special rewards. Besides, they have the opportunity to get noticed and become a part of a team for eSports competitions. To do this, one needs strategic skills and an understanding of the mechanics of all available champions. As of February 2021, LoL has 154 characters. Each of them will have their unique play style and peculiarities of studying combat tactics. At the same time, most of the characters in the game mechanics may resemble more familiar LoL champions. This can be an opportunity to grasp strategy faster. Also, champio...
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; }...
The Shared Benefits of Connectivity Mean a Shared Effort of Providing It
As the need for connectivity becomes increasingly fundamental to our way of life, the need to deliver quality and cost-efficient connectivity and services by private communication services providers is of paramount importance. However, the cost of delivering quality services is relative to demand and use. Demand and volume of consumption of services play a significant role in determining the return profile of investments made by network operators in the infrastructure, platforms, product development and services that are required to deliver quality connectivity and digital services. While a lot of efforts have been made on the supply side, including policy, the licensing of new entrants and the release of spectrum, it requires equal or even more efforts on the demand side to enable the ado...
Mastercard to Support Cryptocurrency Transactions on its Network
Mastercard is preparing for the future of transactions by planning to support cryptocurrency transactions across its network. This comes at a time when these digital assets are becoming a more important part of the payments world, especially during Bitcoin’s recent surge in value. In a blog post, Mastercard says, “We are preparing right now for the future of crypto and payments, announcing that this year Mastercard will start supporting select cryptocurrencies directly on our network. This is a big change that will require a lot of work. We will be very thoughtful about which assets we support based on our principles for digital currencies, which focus on consumer protection and compliance.” The company goes on to say that its philosophy on cryptocurrencies is straightforward: It’s ab...
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...
5 Trends Shaping the Technology Industry in 2021
2020 was a disruptive year for the tech industry – accelerating developments that may have taken 3 to 5 years to implement to common use almost overnight. Given these developments, here are five tech industry trends we’ll see within the next 11 months: WFH culture sets off a renewed focus on smart collaboration and office set-up of the future As companies examine the functionality of the workplace, we’ll start to see more traditional office workspaces become periodic collaboration hubs, while home offices become the day-to-day workplace. The office will likely transform from many desks, conference rooms and shared amenities to a cooperative business centre supporting specific project-based priorities on an ongoing basis. As a result, employers will need to equip their full workforce with t...
Ericsson Appoints New VP and Head of People for MEA
Ericsson has appointed Sena Erten as Vice President and Head of People of Ericsson Middle East and Africa. In her new role, Erten is expected to guide the business towards a world-class employee experience that is people-centred, adopting the latest digital technologies, and leading the way in driving company culture. In a fast transforming industry, she will drive Ericsson’s people transformation in the region through innovative leadership, attracting and retaining the best talents and helping Ericsson create a compelling employee experience. “People are at the centre of everything we do at Ericsson. I am delighted to welcome Sena into her new role. Her extensive knowledge and experience will further strengthen our people function,” says Fadi Pharaon, President of Ericsson MEA. /* custom ...
7 Ways to be Safe while Gaming Online, According to Experts
Across the world, more than a tenth of gamers have had their ID stolen – resulting in costs of as much as $347 billion, according to global research by Kaspersky. This new research surveyed gamers spanning 17 countries. With this in mind, here are seven ways to be as safe as possible while gaming online: Buy from official sources. Always shop for PC games either on well-known platforms like Steam and GOG or on official developer sites. Save smart. Official stores often provide amazing discounts or even free games. But many email offers can be a scam – go to the developer’s or store’s website to see if the discount is mentioned there – if not, it’s not real. Check the return policy. Before buying, know the store’s rules for returning a game you don’t like or that doesn’t work on your comput...
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...
Solarise Africa Expands Footprint to Rwanda, Zambia and Uganda
Sourced from Saur Energy. Solarise Africa is set to expand to three new countries in Africa after signing a partnership agreement with Centennial Generating Co. This partnership will see the Pan-African energy leasing company add seven projects in Rwanda, spread across education, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, hospitality, and agriculture sectors, two additional projects in Zambia and one upcoming project in Uganda, to the Solarise Africa portfolio. The Solarise team is a customer-centric, responsive and predictable partner, which aligns with our company’s approach to working with customers”, says David John Frenkil, Founder and MD of Centennial. “By partnering with Solarise, we are offering both battery energy storage and solar projects to commercial and industrial facilities. These p...
