Telecom
ESET Takes Safer Kids Online Campaign to Halifield Schools in Lagos
ESET, a global leader and multiple award-winning cybersecurity company, has taken up the challenge to educate parents, teachers and students themselves on the need to stay safe online.
The team from ESET Nigeria office on Monday visited Halifield Schools, Maryland Lagos, where they sensitized both students and teachers on how to leverage ESET Safer Kids Online platform.
The team led by Mr Olufemi Ake, country manager, ESET Nigeria / Ghana, also informed the participants about the full array of suite components, and some uncommon tools ESET has in stock to ensure that schools and their stakeholders are protected.
ESET recently launched Safer Kids Online platform, dedicated to enabling children to enjoy the full potential of the internet in a secure digital world, is launching these days and aims to make the internet safer for children around the world.
Mr. Ake told the participants that Safer Kids Online as ESET’s global initiative is targeted resources for children, parents and schools – all of which have been created in consultation with cybersecurity experts and a notable child psychologist.
He re-emphasized that the company will not rest on its oars until the mission is accomplished.
“We are keen to improve awareness and understanding around children’s online safety, and to ultimately build a safer online environment, by educating kids, as well as their parents and teachers, about child cybersecurity,” he said.
“While surfing the net may seem relatively harmless, the truth is that children and young people can be exposed to content and situations they are not prepared for”.
Mr. Ake recalls a 2018 report which revealed that a quarter of parents said they were worried about their children disclosing details to inappropriate people online, and another 23% were concerned about cyberbullying.
“Yet, while they may harbor worries, parents don’t always have enough awareness of the risks their children could be facing, or the signs of what to look out for when something is going wrong. Safer Kids Online is set to change that with a plethora of resources, all packaged together in an entertaining and inspiring way”.
He said that the Safer Kids Online website was carefully designed with contents/ resources suitable for younger children, teenagers and their parents – a three-pronged approach that aims to ensure greater societal awareness.
On his part, Mr. Olabanji Soledayo, marketing and retail sales manager, ESET Nigeria, said that education is the bedrock of staying safe online, especially for students.
According to him, kids are still being exposed to unwanted experiences online, but with adequate enlightenment they will be able to use the internet safely.
“In that report quoted by Mr. Ake it was found that there has been ‘an increase in parents of 12-15s and of 12-15s themselves saying that controlling screen time has become harder; however most 12-15s consider they have a struck a good balance between this and doing other things’”, he said.
“So, ESET understands that parental concerns about the internet are rising. In some cases, the parents are not even well equipped with regards to the skills to ascertain what their kids are doing online.
“This simple, easy to use Safer Kids Online platform by ESET will make life easier for these parents.
“For example, ESET Parental Control for Android includes the possibility of controlling inappropriate web content and managing the amount of time children spend on certain devices, while also analyzing the suitability of the applications they’re using.
“For the teachers, they should be able to learn and stay ahead of the children. We don’t want our children to suffer cyberbullying, cyberstalking and other vices that go on online at times,” Mr. Soledayo said.
Safer Kids Online platform:
Safer Kids Online will each month focus on a new topic, ranging from cyberbullying to protecting children from online predators, and will include a video series for kids aged 8-11, comics for older children aged 11+ and a more in-depth explanation of the issues for parents and schools through expert articles and vlogs.
Some of the confirmed monthly topics include selfies, and the potential risks around revealing sensitive information when sharing photos online, as well as the risks of children becoming online addicts and losing touch with the real world.
Other topics will provide advice on what children, as well as adults, need to be wary of when surfing the internet and downloading materials that may be bundled with harmful malware. Safer Kids Online will also tackle the topic of “haters gonna hate,” focusing on how to stay away from haters and online trolls.
The program will also include monthly quizzes and prize contests to keep kids entertained, as well as regular newsletters on key issues to help parents navigate the latest news on how to stay safe in the online world. All these materials can also be used in schools alongside the specific school resources that focus on topics such as social networks, online games and antivirus and malware protection.
He said that the campaign will continue in other schools in Lagos.
Students and teachers of Hailfield Schools while sharing their lessons from the pep-talks, thanked the ESET’s team for ultimately creating increased awareness, and the provision of more technical support in the form of advice on how software can help to keep children secure.
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Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) has named the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) among the top three Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government with the Best Ranking in Website Performance for 2025.
L-R: Head Special Projects, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Salamatu Andu; Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Engr. Abaraham Oshadame; Director General Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), Head Customer Support Service, Galaxy Backbone, Rosemary Ehize; Secretary to the ES. Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Tahir Aminu at the BPSR award ceremony for top four MDAs in BPSR Website Performance and Ranking 2025 at the BPSR office on Tuesday, 23rd December, 2025.
This is coming barely three weeks after the telecom regulator was recognized as one of the top five best-performing Federal Government agencies for 2025 by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) – a testament to the Commission’s consistency in investment in technology for ensuring efficient service delivery.
In the BPSR 2024/2025 scorecard ranking of agencies’ websites, the NCC came second in the ranking, trailing behind Galaxy Backbone Limited, which came first while the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) clinched the third position, from a pool of 235 MDAs, whose website were evaluated.
BPSR deployed 14 evaluation criteria in include MDA’s website compliance with .gov.ng domain name, appearance and aesthetics (look and feel) of the website, content, relevance to MDAs mandate/government policy and the website’ structure.
Others include website’s responsiveness (device compatibility), security, load time, usability/ease of navigation, availability/uptime, functionality, interactivity, accessibility and capacity building.
The recognition was announced at the official release of Federal Government 2024/2025 Scorecard Ranking for MDAs’ Website held at the Federal Ministry of Finance Auditorium in Abuja on Monday (December 22, 2025) while the award presentation took place at BPSR’s Office on Tuesday (December 23, 2025).
The award, which is an important index metric of the National e-Government Masterplan for determining the Nigeria e-Government Status, was received by the Commission in recognition of its commitment to maintaining a world-class website that enhances service delivery to the citizens.
Receiving the award on behalf of the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, the NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Abraham Oshadami, appreciated the BPSR for the recognition, describing the award as “another encouragement for the Commission to be a better public service institution leveraging digital platforms such as our web presence to enhance public service delivery to our various stakeholders, thereby implementing the Federal Government’s Ease of Doing Business policy direction.”
While presenting the award to the NCC, alongside other two agencies, BPSR’s Director-General, Mr. Dasuki Arabi, commended the top three for their proactive decisions in maintaining world-class websites, which are compliant with the Federal Government’s policy direction in effective and efficient service delivery to the citizens.
According to the DG, the 2024/2025 MDA’s websites’ ranking represents a collective effort of federal public institutions in Nigeria to be transparent, accountable and open in governance, as well as a confirmation to align with global best practices in service delivery to the citizens.
Developed about six years ago, Arabi said as a result of the annual ranking, more public institutions have indicated readiness to embrace reforms, and align with the policy direction of the current administration’s Renewed Hope agenda on improve governance for effective service delivery, as introduced by His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“The ideals of harnessing and deploying technological tools for service delivery has become imperative following the COVID pandemic, and distortions of socio-economic system of nations, culminating in the evolution of competitiveness, cost effectiveness, and agile governance.
“As engine room of governance, it behoves on us in the public service to perform our statutory duties and we must put in place technological innovations and standardized websites to operate services as well as deliver service needs to citizens,” he said.
The Scorecard exercise, he said, is part of the BPSR reform broader function of conducting research on reform implementation efforts and presenting ‘best practice’ models to the entire Public Service, and to among others, improve access to government information, facilitate seamless financial transaction, eliminate corruption and cyber theft, as well as facilitate access to government services.
Speaking on the rigorous nature of the exercise that produced the top three winners, the DG said “in the past few weeks members of the Scorecard Jury drawn from inter-Ministerial Agencies, had worked tirelessly to mill websites of selected MDAs through a rigorous process of enduring criteria for the ranking and the outcome had also passed through a quality assurance mechanism to validate the outcome.”
Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, has dismissed reports that bank accounts not linked to a Tax Identification Number (TIN) will be frozen or automatically debited from January 1, 2026.
Taiwo Oyedele
Oyedele described the claims as false and misleading, warning Nigerians against panic over misinformation surrounding recent tax and financial reforms.
In a post on his X handle Tuesday morning, he wrote: “Don’t let anyone manipulate you. Your bank account is safe. Misinformation makes you panic and fear a reform that is designed to help you.
“When they tell you that your account will be frozen or automatically debited from January 2026, ask them for the evidence in the new law. Be wise.”
He stressed that no provision in the new tax laws authorises the freezing of bank accounts, adding that the rumours are part of widespread misrepresentation of the reforms.
The committee chairman reiterated that the reforms are intended to simplify Nigeria’s tax system and ease the burden on ordinary citizens, not to impose punitive measures on bank customers.
US tech giant, Amazon has disclosed that it blocked more than 1,800 North Koreans from applying for jobs, amid growing concerns that Pyongyang is deploying large numbers of IT workers overseas to earn and launder funds.
Amazon
In a LinkedIn post, Amazon’s Chief Security Officer, Stephen Schmidt, said North Korean nationals have been attempting to secure remote IT roles with companies around the world, particularly in the United States.
He noted that the company recorded nearly a one-third increase in such applications over the past year.
According to Schmidt, many of the applicants operate through so-called “laptop farms” — computers physically located in the US but remotely controlled from abroad.
He warned that the issue is not unique to Amazon and is likely occurring at scale across the tech industry.
He added that common red flags include incorrectly formatted phone numbers and questionable academic credentials.
The issue has previously drawn the attention of US authorities. In July, a woman in Arizona was sentenced to more than eight years in prison for running a laptop farm that helped North Korean IT workers obtain remote jobs at more than 300 US companies.
Officials said the scheme generated over $17 million in revenue for both the woman and North Korea.
Last year, South Korea’s intelligence agency also warned that North Korean operatives were using LinkedIn to pose as recruiters, approaching South Koreans working at defence companies in an attempt to steal sensitive technological information.
“North Korea is actively training cyber personnel and infiltrating key locations worldwide,” Hong Min, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP.
He added that, given Amazon’s business model, the motivation behind such operations is largely economic, with a high likelihood of attempts to steal financial assets.
North Korea’s cyber warfare programme dates back to at least the mid-1990s and has since expanded into a cyber unit of about 6,000 personnel known as Bureau 121, according to a 2020 US military report.
In November, Washington announced sanctions against eight individuals accused of being state-sponsored hackers, alleging their illicit activities were carried out to fund North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme.
The US Treasury has also accused North Korea-linked cybercriminals of stealing more than $3 billion over the past three years, primarily through cryptocurrency-related crimes.
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