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NITDA Woos Delegates to GITEX Technology Show 2014

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Peter Jack, DG of NITDA
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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has expressed expectations that Nigerians-individuals and organizations will seize the opportunities in participation at the forthcoming Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) and participate at the event.

GITEX is an annual consumer computer and electronics trade show, exhibition and conference which takes place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Nigeria is the official Country Partner for Gitex 2014.

Also, more than 35,000 visitors came from Africa in the 2013 edition of GITEX where Nigeria premiered its presence by setting up the Nigerian Pavilion which was promoted by the Nigerian Government through the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

This year, the country is revving up its last year’s presence as Official Country Partner to become the centre of thematic activities for the five day technology expo and conference in Dubai.

The LOC is tasked with ensuring Nigeria’s successful participation through pre-show work-plans.

While inaugurating the LOC in Abuja recently, Mr. Peter Jack, director general/chief executive officer of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), said NITDA has a new vision and the agency would genuinely pursue IT development aggressively to position Nigeria in the global society.

He said Nigeria’s presence at Gitex would offer the opportunity to explore international opportunities for collaborations and investments that would further advance Nigeria’s burgeoning IT sector.

He cited examples of countries like South Korea and India where IT alone contribute over $200 billion to the economy.

“The NITDA is determined to position Nigeria in that light, and would work through multilateral stakeholders approach to get everyone involved and achieve our core goals at NITDA,” Jack said.

Meanwhile, NITDA, at the weekend, showed its interest in having delegates from Nigeria at the event, by sending reminder message through the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) website.

The message reads: “The Federal Republic of Nigeria Invites you to join The Nigerian Delegation to GITEX Technology Show 2014 holding at the World Trade Center, Dubai from October 12-16, 2014”.  

2014 GITEX Features, Nigeria Pavilion to promote innovators, Entrepreneurs and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI); NITDA Knowledge Hub for Young Innovators; The Nigeria ICT investment Forum; The Nigeria ICT investment Dinner and Five Days of Business Connexions.

Dr. Vincent Olatunji, chairman of the LOC, had earlier noted that, it was important for all stakeholders to come together to drive Nigeria’s participation as the official country partner for Gitex 2014.

He said there was a need for all stakeholders to strongly get everybody who has something innovating to showcase at Gitex to use it as a global platform to show the world what Nigerians are doing.


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E-Business

Microsoft Servers Hacked by Chinese Groups

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Chinese “threat actors” have hacked Microsoft’s SharePoint document software servers and targeted the data of the businesses using it, the firm has said.

Microsoft Servers Hacked by Chinese Groups

 

China state-backed Linen Typhoon and Violet Typhoon as well as China-based Storm-2603 were said to have “exploited vulnerabilities” in on-premises SharePoint servers, the kind used by firms, but not in its cloud-based service.

The US tech giant has released security updates in response and has advised all on-premises SharePoint server customers to install them.

“Investigations into other actors also using these exploits are still ongoing,” Microsoft said in a statement.

The firm said it had “high confidence” the hackers would continue to target systems which have not installed its security updates.

It added that it would update its website blog with more information as its investigation continues.

Microsoft said it had observed attacks in which hackers had sent a request to a SharePoint server “enabling the theft of the key material by threat actors”.

Charles Carmakal, chief technology officer at Mandiant Consulting firm, a division of Google Cloud, told reporter, it was “aware of several victims in several different sectors across a number of global geographies”.

Carmakal said it appeared that governments and businesses that use SharePoint on their sites were the primary target.

A number of adversaries who stole material encoded by cryptography were then able to regain ongoing access to the victims’ SharePoint data, he said.

“This was exploited in a very broad way, very opportunistically before a patch was made available. That’s why this is significant,” Carmakal said.

Carmakal said the “China-nexus actor” was deploying techniques similar to previous campaigns associated with Beijing.

Microsoft said Linen Typhoon had “focused on stealing intellectual property, primarily targeting organizations related to government, defence, strategic planning, and human rights” for 13 years.

It added that Violet Typhoon had been “dedicated to espionage”, primarily targeting former government and military staff, non-governmental organizations, think tanks, higher education, the media, the financial sector and the health sector in the US, Europe, and East Asia.

Meanwhile, Storm-2603 was “assessed with medium confidence to be a China-based threat actor”.

 

 

 


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NIMC Warns Nigerians of Fake NIN Website

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National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has issued a public warning that it is not associated with NINcard.com.

NIMC Warns Nigerians of Fake NIN Website

According to the commission, the website has been circulating online to offer services for Nigerians seeking National Identification Number (NIN) services.

NIMC, in a post on its official X account on Wednesday, said, “NINcard.com is not in anyway affiliated to NIMC. Stay vigilant!”

The warning was accompanied by screenshots of fake payment receipts and OTP request pages from the website, both of which were boldly stamped “FAKE” by NIMC to alert the public.


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NITDA, API Partner Against Harmful Online Content

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National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), in partnership with the Advocacy for Policy and Innovation (API), has convened a one-day workshop in Abuja to advance dialogue on the draft Online Harm Protection (OHP) Bill to confront harmful online content.

NITDA, API Partner Against Harmful Online Content

The bill, a rights-based, locally rooted, and multi-stakeholder initiative, is aimed at addressing the challenges of the digital age.

The event, which held yesterday, brought together government officials, civil society, academics, digital platforms, and legal experts to shape a policy framework designed to combat online ills such as cyberbullying, disinformation, hate speech, digital exploitation, and gender-based violence, while safeguarding democratic freedoms and digital inclusion.

In his keynote remarks, Kashifu Inuwa, director general, NITDA urged a paradigm shift in the way society engages with digital technologies.

“For almost two decades, we have viewed digital technology through a consumer lens. But these technologies are not just products and services. They are transforming how we live, work, and interact. They shape our politics, our society, and our democracy,” he said.

Warning against unaccountable digital power in the hands of private corporations, the DG likened the digital journey to the tale of Alice in Wonderland, where initial fascination with innovation has given way to deeper concerns about privacy, autonomy, and manipulation by big tech platforms.

“We thought we were using Google, but now we realise Google is using us. Social media, once a tool of expression, has become a tool of surveillance and influence,” Inuwa noted.

He, therefore, emphasised the urgency of developing a democratic and accountable framework.  He explained that following the 2021 Twitter ban, NITDA facilitated dialogue between the government and platform operators, leading to a Code of Practice that stressed Nigeria’s sovereignty and legal standards.

According to him, the same process birthed the multi-stakeholder steering committee and the OHP White Paper in December 2024, laying the foundation for the current legislative push.

Earlier in her opening remarks,  Victoria Manya, co-founder, API, observed the moral and civic necessity of the bill.

Her words: “The internet did not break society, it merely revealed its unfiltered version. Every day, Nigerians are exposed to harassment, disinformation, exploitation, and even algorithmic violence. The OHP Bill is not a war on the Internet. It is a peace offering to its users, a social contract for a digital future that is safe, inclusive, and democratic.

“We cannot answer the question of algorithmic power with unchecked state control. We must answer it with shared, rights-based governance. This bill must not be written for the people, but with them.”


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