Telecom
NITDA, Airtel to Provide Digital Literacy Through Corporate Social Responsibilities
In line with the National Data Protection Regulation, NDPR, the National Information Technology Development Agency NITDA, is going into partnership with AIRTEL Nigeria to provide digital literacy platforms through joint Corporate Social Responsibilities.
Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, the Director-General of NITDA, proposed this initiative while receiving Mr. Surendran Chemmenkotil, the Managing Director/CEO of Airtel Nigeria and his management team on a courtesy visit to the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja.
Inuwa explained that NITDA’s regulation is not to stifle innovation or to be a constraint to businesses but to level the field for innovations to thrive. “IT is dynamic, it is changing; new things are coming; we must be innovative in the way we regulate because our regulation is not to put unnecessary stumbles in the business environment but to make it easier’’, he said.
“Government’s role in business is to intervene in terms of policy, infrastructure in the unserved and underserved communities. We all know the key role data plays today and what is happening globally around campaign on data privacy, surveillance capitalism and so on, explained the NITDA DG.
He stated further, that it is not only about collecting the data but how it is utilised matter the most. “The focus on data privacy is to let people be conscious and have ethical values, with the realization that these data belong to human being and should be adequately protected”.
While intimating his visitors on possible areas of partnership, Inuwa disclosed that NITDA have a lot of initiatives that are targeted at igniting activities in the technology ecosystem to create more demand for Airtel services.
“We are doing a lot around digital literacy and digital entrepreneurship that enables the use of digital devices to increase revenue for the data providers,” he explained.
He stated that at NITDA the focus is to bring innovation into traditional, as well as emerging resources, identify new market, create non consumer market values, so that there would be shared incentives that keeps both parties in business.
The NITDA boss averred that the partnership, through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can promote the implementation of digital literacy, an ambitious target of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration projection of achieving 95% by 2030.
Mr. Ibrahim Umar, the Agency’s Director of Finance, commended Airtel for its compliance in remitting its annual levy of 1% profit before tax to the Information Technology Fund that is usually collected by the Federal Inland Revenue Services.
In his speech, Dr. Vincent Olatunji, the National Commissioner, Nigerian Data Protection Bureau (NDPB), affirmed that the issue of data is key globally, he added, “there is hardly anything we can do now without going online. Every aspect of our life is being digitized and the core of it is data.”
He further revealed that the NDPR gave birth to the Bureau. Mr. President graciously approved the creation of based on the recommendation of the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, about three weeks ago.
He noted that stakeholders would be seeing a lot of actions from the Bureau soon especially in area of capacity building which is key to the development of IT.
He reiterated that data protection is a global issue, and whatever capacity we have here in Nigeria will be the same in any part of the world.
He advised Airtel to have its data protection team that would oversee data and advise management on what to do in terms of awareness, capacity, organizational and technological measures that need to be put in place, to ensure that the data of Nigerians are adequately protected.
He finally implored the Airtel management to report any breach in data protection to the Bureau within 72 hours.
The Managing Director/CEO of Airtel Nigeria excitedly said that he is amazed with the extent of work carried out by NITDA, especially in compliance with the NDPR.
MTN Uganda is seeking input from stakeholders on a plan to structurally separate its mobile money service, MoMo, from its core telecoms business.
According to the company, the proposed change will be discussed at the upcoming extraordinary general meeting on July 2.
If approved, the telco’s fintech business will be run by a new company controlled by MTN Group Fintech Holdings B.V. and a trust benefiting minority shareholders following a merger.
Additionally, the restructuring also aligns with MTN Group’s ambition 2025 strategy which aims to unlock value, attract new investors, and strengthen regulatory compliance by creating standalone fintech entities in Uganda, Ghana, and Nigeria.
The company’s fintech division has over 13 million customers, with an 18.4% revenue increase in the first quarter of 2025, driven by 19.0% growth in mobile money services, 19.8% growth in transaction volumes, and a 31.4% increase in transaction value.
Reports say the decision is part of the telco’s compliance with the National Payment Systems Act 2020, which mandates mobile money businesses to operate as standalone entities, and to align with MTN Group’s regional fintech strategy.
MTN Uganda, which is led by CEO Sylvia Mulinge, highlighted that the implementation of the proposed transaction will be subjected to a number of conditions and regulatory procedures.
“The implementation of the proposed transaction shall be subject to a number of conditions, including the company and MTN MoMo receiving all required regulatory approvals and no-objections and complying with any regulatory conditions,” said MTN Uganda in notice.
Netflix has announced plans to invest more than €1 billion in Spanish film and television productions over the next four years, reinforcing its commitment to Spain as a key creative hub in Europe.
The announcement was made by co-chief executive Ted Sarandos at an event held at Netflix’s production studios near Madrid, celebrating the company’s 10-year presence in the country.
Sarandos emphasized that the investment would contribute significantly to Spain’s economy, create jobs, and enable the streaming platform to produce more local content. He was joined by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in unveiling the initiative.
Netflix first established its international production studios in Madrid in 2019, following the success of the Spanish-language hit series Money Heist.
Since then, its 22,000-square-meter facility has become one of Netflix’s major production centers within the European Union.
The company currently supports over 20,000 jobs in Spain, highlighting the nation’s growing influence in global entertainment.
The investment reflects Netflix’s ongoing strategy to expand its presence in European markets through original content and local talent.
Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team (ngCERT) has raised alarms over a new wave of advanced cyberattacks targeting Android mobile phones through a malware campaign dubbed Tria Stealer.
The malicious software is designed to infiltrate Android devices, hijack messaging accounts, intercept One-Time Passwords (OTPs), to steal sensitive personal and financial data.
According to ngCERT, Tria Stealer spreads primarily through deceptive tactics, such as fake event invitations distributed via popular messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram.
Unsuspecting users are enticed to download an infected (APK) file, often disguised as a harmless system application, to evade detection.
Once installed, Tria Stealer requests extensive permissions, including access to SMS, call logs, and app notifications.
It immediately commences data harvesting activities, sending stolen information to a Command and Control (C2) server operated via Telegram bots.
This trojan spreads through fake links, usually disguised as wedding or event invites, and tricks users into downloading malicious APK files
“Account takeover of messaging platforms. Impersonation of victim for fraudulent money transfer requests. Compromise of banking and financial applications. Identity theft and credential harvesting.”
In plain terms, if your phone is compromised, the consequences could be catastrophic.
Your financial apps are vulnerable, your reputation could be ruined by impersonation and even simple personal messages could be twisted into tools for scams.
Here’s what users should be doing now:
Don’t download apps outside the official Play Store.
Be suspicious of random invites or links, even from people you know.
Turn on 2FA for everything—banking, emails, social platforms.
Get a reputable antivirus and keep it updated.
If you run an organisation, you should already be taking this seriously.
ngCERT’s guidance says you should raise awareness, monitor mobile devices, and not let your team click on unverified links.
“Deploy network monitoring for suspicious outbound connections to known C2 domains,” it said, meaning, keep an eye on every digital door in and out.
This isn’t one of those cases where you wait to see if it affects you. By the time you realise it, it may already be too late.
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