Telecom
5 Steps to Protect Yourself from Cyberattacks While Working Remotely during Summer 2023 – Sophos
With the arrival of summer, teleworking becomes the priority option for many workers, but it is necessary to take into account the risks and threats involved in moving the workspace to a new location.
Before the pandemic, cybersecurity started to be considered as a fundamental area in a company. But it’s really after the implementation of teleworking during confinement and the cyberattacks that many companies suffered, due to the exposure of their devices, that IT teams are increasingly focused on raising awareness among their workers. The objective is clear, shield each access point to the business network and monitor it to avoid active threats, making remote work a secure and flexible option.
“At the time the health emergency arose, companies had to apply various measures to continue operating from home, but, although the crisis passed and companies returned to normality, teleworking has remained in many cases. In the first instance, it is the companies that are taking measures to increase their levels of cyber protection, but in addition to that, users can also take measures that accompany them and that allow them to telework from wherever they want while maintaining protection”, explains Chester Wisniewski, Field Sophos CTO.
Flexibility or family reconciliation are some of the advantages offered by this modality, so it is not surprising that it is an option that many workers choose for the summer season. Although at an operational level changing workplaces seems simple, it is important to take into account a protocol for prior actions. Cybersecurity experts at Sophos, a global leader in innovation and delivery of cybersecurity as a service, offer five steps to take to avoid risk and concern in what should be a happy and pleasant time:
1. Previous preparation. Just as you must prepare your devices and materials to establish your office in the new destination, you cannot forget to condition them internally, for this, check that your devices have the appropriate security software installed and that they comply with the compliance policies and security of your organization. solutions are patched and protected.
2. Training. Most cyberattacks start with a vulnerability in the weakest link in the chain, that is, the users. Workers can be the gateway used by attackers to access the rest of the company’s devices. This makes it necessary that, as a worker, it is important to acquire basic knowledge to know how current and identify in time if you are being attacked, either by your company or by your own account.
3. Double check. If you receive an unexpected communication from a coworker or business that seems out of the ordinary, don’t respond directly, rather contact the person or organization using another communications method like phone or SMS to ensure they are who they say they are.
4. Apply updates as soon as they are available. This is easiest on our phones and computers as we are usually prompted to update them, but don’t forget your internet router and smart home things. It is a good practice to check them all for available updates at least once a quarter.
5. Don’t forget to keep the “essentials”. Finally, despite carrying out all the previous steps, we must not forget the most basic protection measures that represent the entry barrier. First, set unique passwords for all your accounts and use a password manager to help keep them long and secure. Ideally, use multi-factor or “two-step” authentication wherever available to provide additional protection.
“Today most devices are used when connected to the internet, so you have to maintain a mindset where devices are considered to be in a hostile environment at all times. The idea that the safe space is inside offices and the insecure one outside is outdated. Now, anywhere you can suffer an attack, but it is true that sometimes when we move along with our workplace we do not take the necessary tools with us, so it is important to be vigilant”, adds Chester Wisniewski.
Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN) has dragged Tunji Bello, executive vice chairman, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), before the Federal High Court in Lagos over alleged disobedience of a subsisting court order in a legal dispute involving telecom-based lending services.
Tunji Bello, EVC, FCCPC
Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria initiated this in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/760/2026 pending before the court.
According to court documents, Bello was issued a Form 49 Notice to Show Cause, directing him to appear before the court on 22 May 2026 to explain why an order of committal should not be made against him for allegedly failing to comply with interim orders issued by Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa on 15 April 2026.
The court had earlier granted interim injunctions restraining the FCCPC, its officers, agents and privies from enforcing provisions of the Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations 2025 against members of WASPAN, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
The restraining orders specifically barred the commission from interfering with services rendered by WASPAN members, including airtime lending, data advances and other mobile value-added services.
The orders also restrained the FCCPC from imposing sanctions, penalties or directives connected to the disputed regulations.
In the Form 49 notice dated 18 May 2026, WASPAN alleged that despite being aware of the court orders and having been served with Form 48 — the statutory notice warning against disobedience of court orders — the FCCPC and its Executive Vice Chairman allegedly continued actions contrary to the directives of the court.
The notice stated that the alleged contemnor refused to comply with the orders and had continued to deliberately defy the orders of the court.
An affidavit of service filed before the court disclosed that Form 48 was served on Bello at the FCCPC headquarters located at 23 Jimmy Carter Street, Asokoro, Abuja, on 6 May 2026.
The latest development followed earlier proceedings in which Justice Lewis-Allagoa declined an application by the FCCPC seeking to vacate the interim injunction.
The court instead directed that the substantive suit and the commission’s preliminary objection be heard together.
WASPAN is challenging the FCCPC’s authority to regulate telecom-based lending services, arguing that certain provisions of the DEON Regulations encroach on the statutory powers of the Nigerian Communications Commission to regulate telecommunications services in the country.
Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria, is the primary self-regulatory body and trade association for licensed Value-Added Service (VAS) providers and aggregators in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector
Lagos State government has raised alarm over the growing misuse of its emergency hotlines, and warned that fake calls are delaying response times and putting lives at risk.
According to the state, fake emergency calls or prank calls, account for a massive majority of distress communications—nearly 70 per cent.
This severe misuse dangerously delays response times for real emergencies like fires, crimes, and medical crises, and wastes critical first-responder resources
Olugbenga Oyerinde, commissioner for Special Duties, called the numbers (nearly seven out of every 10 calls made to Lagos emergency hotlines) deeply troubling.
The scale of the disruption has significantly affected emergency response operations, with the government disclosing that 5.47 million incoming calls went unanswered during the period under review.
The abandoned call rate climbed sharply from 9.3 per cent in January 2025 to 37.6 per cent by April 2026, suggesting worsening pressure on operators handling emergency traffic.
Officials warned that if the current trend continues, more than 7.2 million calls could go unanswered before the end of 2026
The Lagos State Command and Control Centre serves as the central coordination hub for emergency response agencies across the state, including the fire service, ambulance services, traffic management authorities and neighbourhood safety operatives.
According to the report, the sheer volume of fake and misdirected calls has forced the system to devote significant operational resources to filtering non-emergency traffic before genuine distress cases can be handled.
To address the growing burden, the ministry said it plans to introduce artificial intelligence-driven call screening technology designed to detect and filter nuisance calls before they reach human operators.
The proposed system, expected to be introduced before the end of 2026, is projected to reduce operator handling time by 35 per cent.
Other reforms outlined in the ministry’s strategic response plan include expanding agent capacity by 40 per cent, deploying automated callback systems for abandoned calls and establishing a real-time analytics dashboard for emergency response monitoring.
Yet one of the most striking figures in the report was not the 16.39 million nuisance calls, but the fact that only 39 calls were officially categorised as hoax calls requiring legal follow-up during the same period.
Google and Blackstone (BX.N), said they will form an artificial intelligence cloud business venture aimed at capitalising on an insatiable demand for AI computing services.
Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, will invest an initial $5 billion in equity to help bring 500 megawatts of data centre capacity online in 2027, with further expansion planned over time.
The U.S.-based venture will provide data centre capacity along with Google’s custom AI chips, known as Tensor Processing Units, or TPUs, through a compute-as-a-service model.
The total investment value could reach $25 billion, including leverage, according to Bloomberg News.
Both companies did not immediately respond to a request for comments on the Bloomberg report. Blackstone has appointed Benjamin Sloss, a long-time Google executive, as CEO of the new venture.
Thomas Kurian, chief executive of Google Cloud, said the venture would help address growing demand for TPUs by offering organisations additional ways to access computing capacity.
Analysts and investors have said Google is taking a sizeable share of new AI-driven computing demand, supported by its business tools and custom chips that have attracted customers such as Anthropic.
“This isn’t the biggest headline number we’ve seen. But it’s a high-quality bet on sustainable growth in AI infrastructure,” said Brittain Ladd, AI and supply chain consultant at Florida-based Chang Robotics.
Blackstone has stepped up investments in AI-related infrastructure, including data centres, power generation and transmission assets.
Those investments are valuable as the AI boom pushes operators to secure long-term energy supply deals.
The new partnership reflects rising demand for AI infrastructure and the need for large-scale capital deployment, Blackstone President Jon Gray said.
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