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VIMN Africa Hosts Panel with Top Industry Experts at Social Media Week Lagos

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L-R: Comedian/Actor Bright Okpocha (Basketmouth); CEO & Founder Blackhouse Media Group, Ayeni Adekunle; CEO X3MIdeas, Steve Babaeko; Country Manager, VIMN Africa, Bada Akintunde-Johnson; & Senior Channel Manager, Solafunmi Oyeneye at the VIMN Africa Social Media Week Session
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VIMN Africa hosted a remarkable panel session featuring Nigeria’s top industry experts tagged: ‘Music, Content and Consumer Experiences Changing The African Narrative’. Hosted by MTV Base VJ, Folu Storms at Africa’s largest digital media & tech event, the event kicked off with a keynote address from VIMN Africa’s country manager, Bada Akintunde – Johnson.

Speaking on the inspiration behind the theme of the panel, Bada said, “We at Viacom International Media Networks Africa are particularly keen on sharing the reimagined African story to the world, and we feel very strongly about starting conversations and actions that move us closer and closer to the realities we all desire.

“It’s the reason we have themed this session – Music, Content & Consumer Experiences, Changing The African Narrative.

With the reason behind the event shared, Bada went on to introduce the panel which included MTV Base Africa (ROA) Channel Manager, Viacom International Media Networks Africa, Solafunmi Oyeneye; Founder and Principal Consultant, Peaceville Entertainment Group, Ernest Audu; CEO and Chief Creative Officer at X3M Ideas Limited and X3M Music, Steve Babaeko; A-list comedian and actor, Bright Okpocha (Basketmouth) and Publisher of Nigerian Entertainment Today, founder of BlackHouse Media and ID Africa, Ayeni Adekunle.

In corroboration with the sentiments expressed in Bada’s address, PR veteran Ayeni Adekunle used the panel as an opportunity to thank Viacom for upgrading the quality of music content in Nigeria.

Veteran, Ayeni Adekunle, reminded the audience of MTV Base’s impact on Nigerian music videos. “Before MTV Base’s launch in Nigeria, most music videos were of low quality.

With the arrival of MTV Base, also came a standard that artistes had to meet before their videos could be shown on the platform.

This gave rise to a new generation of music video directors and this elevated the quality of music content which is still visible today.

MTV Base played a significant part in drawing the attention of Nigerians to what is possible, as well as opened a whole new vista of opportunity for Nigerian music to the rest of Africa in particular and the world in general.”

When discussing the comedy scene in Nigeria, Basketmouth appreciated the efforts of Comedy Central, a property of Viacom, in creating a platform not only for traditional stand-up comedians but also trendy one-minute skit comedians.
The riveting panel session had about 100 people in attendance and touched on everything from creating content in the evolving music industry to how content creators can position themselves to make profit from their craft.

A number of jewels were dropped at the African NXT stage where the forum was held which was apparent by the questions asked by the audience during the Q&A session.

At the end of the session, Solafunmi shared MTV Base’s approach to creating content with the audience and it was a great teaching moment for all who attended.

She said “We find out what our target audience wants and we find avenues for them to watch it. A simple yet underrated approach that delivers stunning results time and time again.”

It is apparent that MTV Base, as well as VIMN Africa’s other properties, are unrelenting in their efforts to take content creation in Africa to the next phase, as a way of ensuring that it positively impacts on the continent’s narrative.

Facilitating events like a panel session at the Social Media Week Lagos is only one of the many ways that they prove this.

With over 20,000 attendees across the week and an online social reach of 646 million, Social Media Week Lagos is now considered Africa’s largest digital media & tech event.


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Ugo Onwuaso is an ICT enthusiast. He believes technology should be used for general good. He holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the Lagos state University. Dear Reader, Your support matters. But we believe that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. That is why, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and finance and how they affect lives. Our incisive and analytical view of how technology news affects the daily life help individuals and organizations make up their minds. Quality journalism costs money. Today, we're asking that you support us to do more. Kindly support our effort to deliver technology and finance journalism to everyone in the world. Donate as little as N1,000. Bank transfers can be made to: UBA Plc 1017156876 Communication Week Media Ltd

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E-Business

Kaspersky Warns of a New Phishing Technique Leveraging Bubble, a no-code AI Platform

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Kaspersky has discovered a new phishing tactic used to evade traditional security controls that exploits Bubble, a platform that allows users to build web and mobile applications through a visual interface without writing code.

Attackers are increasingly adopting innovative tools designed for legitimate software development and repurposing them to boost phishing campaigns.

Traditional phishing attacks often rely on malicious links or obvious redirection techniques, which are typically flagged and blocked by modern security systems.

However, attackers are now leveraging Bubble’s no-code environment to generate intermediary web applications which are hosted on Bubble’s legitimate infrastructure and trusted domains such as *.bubble.io, which improves their credibility and helps them bypass security filters.

These applications function as disguised redirectors, silently forwarding victims to malicious credential-harvesting websites.

In the observed campaign, victims were ultimately redirected to a convincing imitation of a Microsoft login page, protected by a Cloudflare verification layer designed to further obscure malicious intent.

This technique is likely being integrated into broader phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) platforms and phishing kits. These kits enable a wide range of malicious capabilities with ready-made tools, including real-time interception of session cookies, driving phishing campaigns through legitimate services such as Google Tasks and Google Forms, and carry out adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) attacks that can bypass multi-factor authentication.

They also support the generation of phishing emails using AI, implement geo-filtering and anti-detection mechanisms to evade security crawlers and are often hosted on reputable cloud services like AWS to avoid blacklisting.

“The use of legitimate platforms like Bubble introduces a new level of trust abuse, making it harder for both users and automated systems to distinguish between safe and malicious content. This significantly increases the likelihood of credential theft, unauthorised access and potential data breaches,” comments Roman Dedenok, Anti-Spam Expert at Kaspersky.

 

 


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NITDA Takes Over National Digital Architecture System

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Nigeria has taken a major step toward strengthening its digital governance framework as the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) officially assumes control of the Nigeria Government Enterprise Architecture (NGEA) infrastructure.

NITDA Takes Over National Digital Architecture System

The handover ceremony held in Abuja, marks the culmination of a high-level partnership with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).

This transition signals a shift from fragmented IT projects to a unified, disciplined approach to national digital investment.

The NGEA initiative forms a core part of the e-Government Masterplan 2.0 (Ne-GMP 2.0), aimed at establishing a unified and structured approach to managing government IT investments and digital resources.

The framework is designed to ensure that technology deployment across public institutions aligns with national priorities while improving efficiency and accountability.

With the system now operational, government agencies are expected to adopt more integrated digital processes, allowing seamless data sharing and interoperability.

This is anticipated to reduce duplication, strengthen risk management, and translate policy objectives into measurable digital outcomes.

Over the past two and a half years, Nigerian technical experts worked closely with their Korean counterparts to develop the architecture framework, create reference models, and execute pilot programmes in key institutions.

These include the National Identity Management Commission, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service, and NITDA.

Officials say the NGEA represents a shift from fragmented digital efforts to a more coordinated, citizen-focused system.

The infrastructure is hosted by Galaxy Backbone Limited, providing a secure and reliable platform for nationwide deployment.

Looking ahead, NITDA is expected to work with government stakeholders to expand and sustain the system, while the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy will provide policy guidance to ensure its adoption across the country.

 

 


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FG Shifting Focus to “Meaningful Connectivity” to Drive Inclusion  – Minister

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Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, has said the government is shifting focus from expanding access to ensuring “meaningful connectivity” that drives economic growth and inclusion.

FG Shifting Focus to “Meaningful Connectivity” to Drive Inclusion  - Minister

Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy

The minister made the statement on Friday while addressing stakeholders at the inauguration of board members of the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) in Abuja.

He said that although Nigeria had made significant progress since the introduction of GSM services, millions of people, particularly in rural and underserved communities, remain either unconnected or unable to fully benefit from digital services.

Dr Tijani highlighted ongoing investments in digital infrastructure, including plans to deploy 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic network and nearly 4,000 telecom towers nationwide.

He said initiatives under the USPF had improved access through projects such as rural connectivity and digital facilities in schools but stressed that the next phase must prioritise effective usage.

“It is not enough to connect a community. We must ensure that schools can teach with digital tools and that small businesses can access market opportunities,” he said, citing a pilot project in the Kura community where connectivity has enhanced access to communication, education and healthcare.

Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) also called for a shift towards meaningful connectivity, noting that while data usage had grown significantly, it remained concentrated in urban areas.

According to him, recent data shows that telecom usage has increased by about 160% over the past two years, largely driven by urban demand.

“When we drill down, we see that a lot of that growth is actually in urban centres. So, the gap between those who are not connected or not meaningfully connected is growing,” he said.

Dr Maida added that the trend underscored the need for the USPF board to intensify efforts to bridge both access and usage gaps across the country.

Both officials emphasised the importance of collaboration, sustainable investment models and improved digital literacy to ensure that connectivity translates into real economic benefits for Nigerians.

 

 


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