Connect with us

E-Business

Sidmach Concludes 3-Day UN Influx Hackathon in Lagos

Published

on

un sidmach.jpg
Kindly share this post

In furtherance of United Nations activities towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a three-day UN Influx Global Hackathon was held in Lagos.

The camp for was hosted at Sidmach Technologies head office in Alausa Ikeja.

Co-incidentally the Day 1 of the Hackathon event was also the same day Sidmach launched its “Cloud Solutions”, however, not overwhelmed with the asperity of the Cloud launch, the Hackathon event commenced later in the afternoon at about 4:00 PM.

Speaking on the Hackathon event, Mr. Peter Arogundade, managing director of Sidmach Technologies, said that it was a privilege for the Company as a notable brand in the tech space in Nigeria to host the Lagos session of the event holding simultaneously in nine regions, across five continents, with over 100 young programmers with unique solutions from all over the country (Nigeria) in attendance.

“It was one of our defining moments because we are always looking forward to promoting entrepreneurship and technology startups.

“The UN Influx hackathon held in Lagos was indeed a success, as part of our corporate social responsibilities (CSR) we (Sidmach) supported the event with every resource required from us to ensure it was impactful and laudable. The event featured different tech startups with transformative and disruptive solutions, each of these startups also had the opportunity to pitch their solutions during the competition.

“As part of our contribution to the UN-Influx Hackathon, we also offered six-month internship to any of the developers (participants) who is willing to join the Sidmach team and learn from experienced software developers and programers. What this meant for the participants is that those who are not part of the winning team can leverage on the internship platform to fine-tune their skills and grow.

“One of our goals at Sidmach is to provide support and build capacity in every area we can to facilitate developmental transformation in the country especially in the area of technology. We are always evolving, developing solutions that are capable of transforming lives. It is in line with our corporate values that we find the UN Influx Hackathon an event that will engender growth and development in Nigeria technology space,” he said.

For a few decades now, the United Nations and the people they represent have felt disconnected from each other. In 2012, Max Kalis, founder of Influx Trust, felt it was time to re-instate the UN’s identity as the middle man between the people and the government.

It was then that Influx Trust, a community that supports better engagement between the UN and the public using innovative technology, was born.

Since then, Influx Trust has actively been connecting people from all over the world with the United Nations, and the United Nations with the people they represent.

The UN-Influx Hackathon is aimed at creating a network of movers and shakers around the world to connect, create and collaborate for more impactful solutions to local and global challenges.

The annual hackathon held in Nigeria for the first time focused on ninth (9) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN: ‘Industry Innovation & Infrastructure’ and intended for young Nigerians to kick-start their entrepreneurial journey and receive the resources to become social entrepreneurs that really makes difference to the world.

 

 

 


Kindly share this post

Nigeria CommunicationsWeek believes that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. So since 2007, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and how they affect lives.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Comments

E-Business

Kaspersky Brings AI-driven Context to Cloud Workload Security

Published

on

Kindly share this post

Kaspersky has updated its Cloud Workload Security (CWS) offering, introducing AI-powered workload analysis, enhanced integrations and performance optimisations designed to help organisations better secure complex cloud and hybrid environments.

The latest update brings integration with OpenAI API in the Kaspersky Container Security (KCS) part of the offering, also resulting in the creation of a new Advanced Pro license within the product.

The new capability provides contextual descriptions of detected vulnerabilities and potential risks, helping accelerate investigations, reduce knowledge gaps and support faster decision-making.

Designed for modern DevOps and hybrid cloud environments, Kaspersky CWS provides centralised visibility across workloads, Kubernetes clusters and cloud platforms, while supporting runtime protection, shift-left security practices and regulatory compliance requirements.

AI-driven visibility and improved workload protection

The update allows organisations to enrich container image scanning results with automated explanations and risk context generated by third-party large language models integrated via OpenAI API. By transforming technical scan data into actionable insights, the feature helps teams prioritise remediation and streamline security operations.

Additional improvements include single sign-on (SSO) integration and multi-domain Active Directory support, enabling more seamless deployment across distributed enterprise environments.

To optimise performance, Kaspersky CWS now also enhances image scanning efficiency by skipping oversized images when needed and avoiding rescans of identical images within a predefined timeframe. Expanded security policy capabilities and UX/UI updates further simplify workload protection and policy management.

Enhanced protection across cloud environments

The new release also updates Light Agent components, now leveraging the latest versions of Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Windows (version 12.12) and Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Linux (version 12.4) to improve overall security and integration capabilities.

“As AI adoption accelerates across industries, organisations are increasingly relying on containerised environments – placing additional pressure on security teams.

“To help ease this burden, we introduced AI integration within Kaspersky Cloud Workload Security that enables security professionals, including those just beginning their journey in container security, to make faster decisions and gain deeper insight into potential risks and vulnerabilities,” comments Anton Rusakov-Rudenko, Senior Product Marketing Manager, Cloud & Network Security at Kaspersky.

“Combined with performance optimisations and expanded integration capabilities, the solution helps organisations to protect cloud environments more efficiently while maintaining operational resilience.”

 


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

E-Business

SARS Denies Being Hacked by Nullsec Nigeria, Hacker Group

Published

on

Kindly share this post

South African Revenue Service (SARS) has dismissed claims that its systems were breached, following allegations by a hacker group that it had compromised the tax authority’s digital infrastructure.

SARS Denies Being Hacked by Nullsec Nigeria, Hacker Group

The controversy emerged after Nullsec Nigeria, a threat actor  also known as Anonymous Nigeria, claimed to have breached both SARS and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA).

The hacktivist group allegedly posted links to download what it claimed was compromised data on the Breached hacker forum on Saturday, 23 May 2026, sparking concerns over a possible cyberattack targeting government systems.

However, SARS said it had conducted a thorough investigation into the claims and found no evidence that its systems had been compromised.

“SARS continuously monitors its systems for any suspicious activity and has conducted a thorough investigation in response to these reports. These claims are false and unsubstantiated,” the revenue service said in a statement.

“At this stage, there is no evidence that SARS’s systems have been compromised. SARS wishes to reassure the public regarding the integrity of its systems.”

The tax authority stressed that safeguarding taxpayer information remains one of its core responsibilities and forms part of its broader efforts to maintain public confidence in South Africa’s tax administration system.

SARS said the “protection of taxpayer information and the security of its digital platforms” is treated as “sacrosanct”.

The agency also urged South Africans to avoid sharing unverified claims and instead rely on official channels for accurate information.

“Members of the public are urged to verify information before sharing and not to circulate unverified claims or rely on information from unofficial sources,” SARS said.

At the same time, SARS warned taxpayers to remain vigilant against phishing scams and fraudulent messages falsely claiming to be from the tax authority.

For guidance on identifying scams and phishing attempts, SARS directed the public to its official online resource page: SARS scams and phishing guidance

SARS said it would continue monitoring its digital environment and communicate any developments through official platforms should the need arise.


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

E-Business

Pope Calls for ‘Disarming’ of AI, Warns of “New Forms of Slavery”

Published

on

Kindly share this post

Pope Leo XIV called Monday for the “disarming” of artificial intelligence in his long-awaited manifesto on the rapidly developing technology, and warned of “new forms of slavery” behind its rise.

Pope Calls for ‘Disarming’ of AI, Warns of “New Forms of Slavery”

Leo, warned against “a race for ever more powerful algorithms and larger datasets, driven by the desire to secure geopolitical or commercial dominance”.

He presented his first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity) in person at the Vatican, alongside AI experts including Christopher Olah, co-founder of US giant Anthropic.

Anthropic is embroiled in a legal battle with the US military after opposing the use of its technology for lethal autonomous warfare and mass surveillance.

At the presentation, Olah said AI companies operate “inside a set of incentives and constraints that can sometimes conflict with doing the right thing”.

He welcomed input from outside actors like the Catholic Church, to “push events in a better direction” saying that “the questions raised by AI are bigger than the AI research community”.

In the encyclical, Leo also sounded the alarm over AI-directed weaponry, saying it was “not permissible to entrust lethal” decisions to tech.

Leo has repeatedly clashed with the White House over the Iran war and its use of religion to justify conflict.

The “just war” theory — espoused recently by the Trump administration — was “outdated”, Leo wrote, adding that “no algorithm can make war morally acceptable”.

AI could be worth up to $4.8 trillion by 2033, a 25-fold increase in a decade, while concentrating its profits in the hands of a limited few, according to the United Nations.

“Disarming AI means freeing it from the mentality of ‘armed’ competition,” the pope wrote.

“To disarm does not mean rejecting technology, but preventing it from dominating humanity,” Leo wrote.

AI should be “human-friendly”, accessible to all, and open to discussion and debate, he added.

The head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics has made the hot-button issue a cornerstone of his papacy by dedicating to it his first encyclical — a document that lays the basis for Church teaching and longer-term debate.

The manifesto references a range of cultural giants, from Greek philosopher Plato to Beethoven and his Ninth Symphony, even citing a character from JRR Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”.

“Magnifica Humanitas” was signed on May 15, the 135th anniversary of an 1891 encyclical by Leo XIII, which laid the foundations of the Church’s social doctrine during the Industrial Revolution.

 

 


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

Trending