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Gartner Says Economics of Connections Will Fuel Digital Business

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Business and IT leaders must structure their business and technology investments in a way that will capitalize on the new economic realities of a digital economy, according to Gartner, Inc.
 
“In the flash of a digital business moment, a customer may become a partner or even competitor,” said Betsy Burton, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “Digital business requires an organizational architecture that seamlessly accommodates economic agents in different roles depending on context, and can cope with an exponential increase in interactions from many different things, people and customers.”
 
Gartner calls new economic models arising from digital business the “economics of connections.” This idea builds upon Metcalfe’s law, which was originally used to describe telecommunications networks and states that the value of an agent within a network increases exponentially as the number of connections increases. For example, a network of two telephones can only make one connection, but a network of five can make 10 connections, and so on.
 
“Digital business significantly changes this type of value calculation that guides investment decisions,” said Ms. Burton. “First, tens of billions of things will join the billions of people and millions of businesses online. Second, any of these agents will be able to play multiple roles: customer, partner, supplier, employee, competitor, or a combination of them.”
 
An example of this is London Theatre Direct. It enables any person or business to write apps or put information on its Web site in order to sell tickets. That same person or business might attend a theatre as a customer and/or support the theatre as a partner through donations or sponsorship. In the U.S., DigitalGov enables citizens to access all kinds of information, from government jobs to population data. In this respect, citizens are customers. Thanks to an application programming interface, they can also act as partners and suppliers by creating portals and services based on the DigitalGov platform. The more ways by which people, businesses and things can be connected to a store of information, the more value it will have.
 
The exponential increase in connections that digital business brings and the different roles each agent may take in the network are making the architecture of digital business less siloed. “People, processes, information and technology are more fluid and integrated,” said Ms. Burton. “To accommodate these dynamic connections among people, businesses and things, enterprise architect (EA) practitioners will have to design a digital business architecture to support them.”
 
In addition, EAs must create deliverables that help business and IT leaders engage agents beyond the initial transaction. Speaking with peers in digital marketing and customer experience would be a good starting point, but the scope of opportunity for interactions in the economics of connections must include partners, employees, suppliers and more.
 
“EAs need to start developing unified solutions to track dynamic contextual information about various agents in different roles, as well as what drives their behavior,” said Ms. Burton. “With this ecosystem, they can identify the critical agents in their digital economy and quantify their value in terms of money, goods, influence and reputation.”


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E-Business

CBN Affirms Alpha Morgan Bank’s Capitalisation

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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has affirmed the capitalisation of Alpha Morgan Bank, marking an important milestone in the bank’s growth journey and reinforcing its commitment to building a strong, resilient, and future-ready financial institution.

This affirmation reflects the bank’s adherence to regulatory requirements and its strategic focus on strengthening its capital base to support sustainable growth, innovation and improved service delivery to customers.

With this milestone, Alpha Morgan Bank is well positioned to continue expanding its footprint with its 14 approved branches across different states, while deepening inclusivity and enhancing the range of banking solutions available to individuals, businesses, and institutional clients nationwide.

Commenting on the development, the Managing Director of Alpha Morgan Bank, Mr. Ade Buraimo, expressed the readiness of the bank in ensuring compliance with regulatory requirement, good governance framework while delivering satisfying banking along the long-term vision of the bank to become the best bank to work and strong financial institution to reckon with.

He said: “Capitalisation is more than a regulatory requirement; it is an opportunity to strengthen the institution for the future. The affirmation of Alpha Morgan Bank capitalisation reflects the work we have done to build a solid capital foundation that allows us to support businesses more effectively, expand financial access and continue delivering the level of service our customers expect.’’

According to him, Alpha Morgan Bank remains committed to maintaining strong corporate governance standards, sound risk management practices, and prudent financial management as it continues to support economic development and create long-term value for stakeholders.

“As Alpha Morgan Bank enters the next phase of its journey, the institution will continue to scale its operation, invest in technology, expand its branch network and digital banking presence, whilst delivering reliable and satisfying banking experiences to its growing customer base,” Buraimo added.


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Police Says Victims Enable Cyber Attacks Out of Ignorance

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Mr Uche Ifeanyi, commissioner of Police in charge of the Nigeria Police Force National Cyber Crime Centre (NPF-NCCC),  said on Friday that most cyber attacks occur because victims act out of ignorance.

Police Says Victims Enable Cyber Attacks Out of Ignorance

He spoke in Abuja at the opening of an online cybercrime awareness campaign themed “Odogwu No Dey Hide Him Face,” organised to educate and empower communities about online safety and cyber hygiene.

“Studies reveal that the majority of cyber attacks are initiated or enabled by victims due to lack of knowledge.

“Personal information is invaluable and must be protected at all times.

“Just as we maintain physical health, we must also maintain a healthy digital lifestyle,” he added, stressing that simple cyber hygiene practices could greatly reduce the risk of becoming a victim.

He urged the public not to disclose confidential information to unauthorised persons and to use strong, unique passwords, enable multi-factor authentication, and apply security safeguards on digital devices.

“Keep personal information private, avoid suspicious links, and regularly update software or system patches,” he said, adding that antivirus programmes and firewalls were essential for online safety.

Ifeanyi warned against falling for “free gifts” online.

“If it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is fraud,” he said, advising caution with urgent or suspicious messages.

He also urged internet users to verify information before sharing to avoid spreading fake news, emphasising that cybercriminals could exploit everyone regardless of age, occupation, or social class.

Vincent Olatunji, director-general, National Data Protection Commission (NDPC), commended NPF-NCCC for its efforts and said the campaign theme was commendable.

He noted the importance of educating people on legitimate wealth and safe internet use.

Olatunji said that the fight against cybercrime required collective effort, warning that the risks were increasing daily as more people connected to the internet across Nigeria.


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Firm Enhances its Security Awareness Platform with SCORM and PDF Support

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Kaspersky has introduced an update to its Automated Security Awareness Platform, adding full support for PDF and SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model) – the industry-standard protocol for deploying and managing e-learning content.

The enhancement enables organisations to build fully customised cybersecurity training programmes that reflect their infrastructure, risk profile, and internal policies, while continuing to benefit from Kaspersky’s expert-driven security content and phishing simulations.

According to the Kaspersky report titled “Redefining the Human Factor in Cybersecurity”, employees responding to phishing attacks was one of the main causes of cyber incidents in companies worldwide, accounting for 21% of cases among other reasons.

At the same time, additional Kaspersky research reveals that social engineering attacks are predicted to increase more than any other type in the nearest future, with 87% of respondents believing that social engineering attacks will become even more effective due to the use of AI tools.

The new Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform (Kaspersky ASAP) update directly addresses several persistent challenges such as reducing the number of human-related incidents, cutting time spent on managing training programmes, decreasing regulatory and compliance risks, and minimising potential legal or reputational damage stemming from cybersecurity breaches.

With the new SCORM support, the platform becomes even more flexible: companies can now upload, track, and manage their own SCORM-based learning materials directly within the system. In addition, companies can accelerate their programmes by using easier-to-create PDF-formats.

This allows organisations to tailor training to their specific technology stacks and emerging threats targeting their industry or region. Businesses that have already invested in third-party SCORM courses or internal learning development can now seamlessly reuse their existing modules, protecting their prior investments while strengthening their cybersecurity posture.

The combination of Kaspersky’s embedded content built on real cases uncovered by the company’s world-class experts with customers’ PDF materials or SCORM modules enables a true best-of-breed approach to human risk management.

Organisations can supplement Kaspersky’s up-to-date cyberattack scenarios with internal policies, unique workflows, and industry-specific lessons, ensuring training resonates with employees and reflects real operational challenges.

“Human behaviour remains one of the most unpredictable elements in cybersecurity and also one of the easiest for attackers to exploit. By adding SCORM support to Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform, we’re giving organisations the flexibility to build training programmes that truly match their internal realities.

“Combined with Kaspersky’s expert-driven content and real-world attack data, this update empowers companies to create more adaptive, relevant, and impactful awareness programmes than ever before,” comments Svetlana Kalashnikova, Security Awareness expert at Kaspersky.


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