Telecom
Cybersafe Foundation Launches Global API Security Training for Women Aged 20–40
CyberSafe Foundation, leading purpose-driven organisation working to bridge the digital divide by empowering underserved communities with transformative cybersecurity and AI skills, has announced that it will open up applications for its API Academy training.
The CyberSafe API (Application Programming Interface) Security Training Program is a 12-week intensive learning experience designed to equip aspiring cybersecurity professionals with the skills to secure APIs. Participants gain hands-on training in API fundamentals, authentication, encryption, and advanced penetration testing techniques. Through expert-led instruction and practical labs, learners build technical expertise and develop the confidence to thrive in global cybersecurity careers.
Speaking on the next Cohort, Executive Director, CyberSafe Foundation, Confidence Staveley, disclosed that, unlike the first Cohort, this next Cohort will accommodate, not only the CyberGirls Alumni Community, but all interested women.
She announced: “Looking ahead, this October, Applications will reopen for our API Academy. And for the first time, we will be admitting women, not only from the CyberGirls Alumni Community, but from anywhere in the world, from ages 20-40, who want to master the art of securing APIs. So keep an eye out for our Call For Applications, until then, stay Cyber Safe.”
She further noted: “At cybersafe Foundation, we envision a future where every woman trained at our API Academy, is not just skilled, but empowered to lead, innovate and transform the way APIs are secured across industries.”
Reflecting on past cohorts, Staveley disclosed that the programme has been highly impactful and successful, especially going by the testimonials of the participants from across Africa.
She said: “The journey has been nothing short of transformative. In fact, a participant shared that although she was employed in a GRC role, she was recently tasked with testing a web application with API calls. Thanks to the training we provided her, she identifies dozens of vulnerabilities that have now been remediated by her company.
Several other participants who had never touched API testing tools before, are now working at expert level proficiency, and some others have even decided to pivot their careers into application securities building on the solid foundation this programme has given them.”
According to Staveley, to achieve this result, students went through an intensive hands-on journey covering API security fundamentals, OWASP API Security Top 10, Authentication, Documentation best practices, securing API servers, Gateway Security best practices, PCI Compliance, APIs Security for connected cars and fleets, penetration testing, securing LLM and NLP APIs and API products management.
“This was, no doubt, a high pressure, high accountability programme where every participant submitted weekly technical reports on their security tasks.
So today, I am super proud to celebrate the incredible women who successfully completed the programme,” she concluded.
Also speaking, CyberSafe Foundation Trainer and CyberGirls Alumna, Damilola Abiona said: “Leading the CyberSafe API Academy has been a deeply rewarding experience. Watching women who started with little to no offensive security background grow into confident vulnerability hunters in just twelve weeks shows how powerful structured and hands-on learning can be. This program is not only breaking barriers in cybersecurity education but also positioning Africa as a hub for the next generation of API security leaders.”
Aside the CyberSafe API Security Training Program, CyberSafe Foundation also organises CyberGirls+, an advanced professional development program by CyberSafe Foundation, in partnership with the SANS Institute, designed exclusively for CyberGirls Fellowship alumni.
Other programmes in the Foundation’s kitty are:
- CyberGirls Fellowship, a free 1-year cybersecurity training, mentorship, and placement program for young African women, which has empowered 1500+ girls and women from 27 African countries with globally sought-after cybersecurity skills, positioning them to start a career in cybersecurity.
- The PCI DSS Academy, a flagship women practitioner bootcamp and capacity building hub across emerging markets, empowering businesses, cybersecurity professionals, and payment ecosystem stakeholders with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to achieve and maintain global payment security standards.
- The HerAI Fellowship, designed to close the gender and opportunity gaps in emerging tech fields, is an initiative aimed at equipping 5,000 underserved young women across Africa with advanced skills in AI and cybersecurity, including AI development and governance.
Launched in 2019 with its flagship initiative #NoGoFallMaga, CyberSafe Foundation has in recent past launched cybersecurity awareness campaigns reaching over 20,000,000 people, organised cybersecurity awareness training for over 4000 SMEs, educating over 11000 employees of these organisations, upskilled over 17,000 women and girls in 27 African countries, launched Africa’s first storified cybersecurity awareness handbook and possibly Africa’s first afrobeat cybersecurity awareness song. These, and many more contributions to technology education and empowerment, have earned it global recognition.
“Through hands-on training, strategic partnerships, and community engagement, we are building a safer, more equitable future, ensuring that no one is left behind in the rapidly evolving digital landscape. By equipping underserved communities with the knowledge and tools to excel in cybersecurity and AI, we are fueling local innovation, expanding career pathways, and strengthening digital resilience across Africa, Asia, and beyond,” a statement from the Foundation reiterated. The Foundation will announce the application and opening dates for the API Academy.
As Africa and MENA’s startup ecosystems transition from post-correction resilience into a new phase of disciplined growth, the Africa Startup & VC Landscape Preview (ASVLP 2026) will convene leading founders, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders on January 29, 2026, for its second annual, agenda-setting virtual forum.
Following a challenging global venture cycle, 2025 marked a notable rebound across the African ecosystem, with startups raising an estimated $3.2–$3.3 billion over the full year.
The recovery was accompanied by significant structural shifts: Kenya emerged as the leading destination among Africa’s “Big Four” markets for the first time, while Nigeria recorded a year-on-year funding decline, reflecting changing investor preferences, macroeconomic pressures, and a broader recalibration toward capital efficiency and sustainability.
Sectorally, fintech remained the most funded vertical, while climate & energy, AI-enabled solutions, healthtech, and infrastructure-adjacent businesses gained increasing attention. Across Africa and MENA, development finance institutions (DFIs) and family offices played a more pronounced role in anchoring funds, deploying catalytic capital, and supporting blended-finance structures, reshaping how early-stage and growth capital is mobilized.
ASVLP 2026 is designed to translate these data points into forward-looking strategy.
The forum will bring together venture capitalists, angel investors, LPs, DFIs, family offices, founders, corporate leaders, and regulators from Africa, MENA, Europe, and North America to assess 2025 outcomes and chart priorities for 2026.
The program will feature keynotes, fireside chats, panels, and deep-dive roundtables, including discussions on:
· The 2026 Africa & MENA FinTech Landscape, focusing on security, profitability, regulation, and growth frontiers
· Emerging Fund Managers, capital formation, and LP alignment
· Talent, operator depth, and institutional capacity as constraints to scale
· Regulatory evolution and cross-border market integration
A major highlight of ASVLP 2026 will be the Final DealRoom Pitch Session, where a curated group of high-potential startups will present to an experienced panel of investors.
• Founders can apply to pitch via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Founders
• Investors seeking DealRoom access can request entry via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Investors
Confirmed speakers for ASVLP 2026 include Khaled Ismail (HIMangel), Idris Ayodeji Bello (LoftyInc Capital), Zachariah George (Launch Africa), Tosin Faniro-Dada (Breega), Selma Ribica (FirstCircle Capital), Maha Mandour (COREangels MEA), Joe Kinvi (Borderless), Remi Prunier (Orange Ventures MEA), Karima El Hakim (Plug and Play Tech Center), Souheil Guessoum (President, The Confederation of Citizen Employers – Algeria (CAPC)), Remi Prunier (Partner, Orange Ventures, MEA), Maha Mandour (COREAngels MEA), Ali Hussein (President, Kenyan FinTech Association), Patrick Okebu (CIO, Interswitch Group) among other leading voices shaping capital, policy, and innovation across the region.
“The conversation has shifted,” said Uche Aniche, Convener of ASVLP. “It’s no longer about whether capital will return to Africa and MENA, but what kind of capital, deployed with what discipline, and in service of which long-term outcomes. ASVLP exists to help the ecosystem make sense of that transition.”
Participation in ASVLP 2026 is free but strictly by invitation.
Interested participants are encouraged to repost the official announcement on LinkedIn and comment #ASVLP2026 to receive a private registration link. They could also email [email protected] and request invite.
Major social media giants Meta Platforms, TikTok and Alphabet’s YouTube will face a landmark jury trial this week in Los Angeles County Superior Court over allegations that their addictive designs have fuelled a youth mental health crisis, marking the first such case to reach this stage.
Social Media
The pivotal personal injury lawsuit centres on a 19-year-old Californian woman identified as K.G.M., who claims her childhood immersion in Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and TikTok—engineered with endless scrolls, autoplay videos, notifications and algorithms—sparked severe anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts.
Dozens of similar suits have surged since 2022 from families, schools and states, accusing the firms of burying internal research on teen harms while prioritising ad revenue through youth-targeted engagement hooks, despite Section 230 protections for user content.
Plaintiffs seek damages and design overhauls, arguing platforms bypassed parents and preyed on vulnerable kids; defendants counter there’s no clinical “social media addiction” diagnosis, no proven causation—kids with issues often use less—and they’ve added safeguards like parental controls and time limits.
Echoing Australia’s under-16 bans, the trial will scrutinise thousands of internal documents, expert testimonies and K.G.M.’s story, potentially expanding tech liability amid debates where studies show complex links, not direct causation, between screen time and disorders like eating issues or self-harm.
A win could mandate warning labels, age gates or algorithm tweaks, reshaping global platforms as U.S. Surgeon General advisories and global scrutiny intensify pressure on Big Tech to prioritise child safety over profits.
Meta is gearing up to trial paid subscription services on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, aiming to diversify revenue streams beyond advertising while maintaining free core access for all users.
Meta
The subscriptions will offer enhanced tools tailored for everyday users, creators, and businesses, including advanced content creation, sharing, and workflow features distinct from the existing Meta Verified verification program. Unlike a uniform rollout, Meta plans varied testing formats per app to match diverse audiences, experimenting with feature bundles based on user feedback to refine the model.
A key element involves integrating Manus, the autonomous agent firm Meta acquired for $2 billion in December, into these apps alongside its enterprise sales. Manus enables complex task automation with minimal input, with early signs like Instagram shortcuts already spotted by reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi.
Video tools feature prominently: Meta’s Vibes short-form video generator in the Meta AI app shifts to freemium, where paid tiers unlock higher monthly creation limits beyond the free baseline. On Instagram, subscriptions could enable unlimited audience lists, non-follower tracking, and anonymous Story views, though specifics for Facebook and WhatsApp remain under wraps.
Drawing from Meta Verified’s 2023 launch—which provides badges, support, and protection mainly for creators—these broader plans target wider appeal amid industry shifts. Ad growth slows against TikTok competition, while Snapchat+ boasts 16 million subscribers at $3.99 monthly, proving demand for value-driven paid perks despite subscription fatigue risks from streaming and storage fees.
Meta will phase tests gradually, prioritizing feedback to shape long-term viability without alienating free users.
NITDA, NBC Explore Strategic Collaboration on Digital Transformation, Media Regulation
NDIC Seeks EFCC’s Support to Trace, Recover Assets of Failed Banks
Interpol Arrests over 570 Cybercriminals across Africa
NIGCOMSAT Adopts Government’s Performance System
ASVLP 2026: Africa, MENA VCs Gear Up as Tech Funding Hits $4.1bn Rebound
19 Nigerian Banks Meet CBN Recapitalization Targets Ahead of March Deadline
Jumia CEO says Black Friday Signals Nigeria’s E-Commerce Maturity
Galaxy Backbone Celebrates the Federal Government’s Paperless Civil Service Milestone
DStv Offers Instant Package Upgrade for Customers from January to February
Banks to Impose N50 Stamp Duty on Transfers of N10,000 and Above from January 1
News2 days agoLIRS to Invoke NTAA to Recover Unpaid Taxes from Bank Accounts, Others
News2 days agoAnambra Cuts Monday Pay to Kill Sit-at-Home
E-Financial2 days agoFirst Asset Management Receives Upgraded Ratings from Agusto &Co and DataPro
E-Financial2 days agoNIBSS, Others Flag 13,417 Nigerian Fraudsters on Person of Interest Portal
General News2 days agoNigeria Treats Religious Violence as Attack on State – NSA Ribadu
E-Financial2 days agoCBN Prepares Fresh Debit Card Rules to Improve ATM Services
News1 day agoTech Executives Double Down on AI, Talent and Adaptive Strategies to Lead in the Intelligence Age
E-Financial1 day agoCBN Upgrades Licences of Opay, Moniepoint, Kuda, Palmpay, Paga to National Status