July 2011 - KICTANet

Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 Policy Discussions Day 5 Cyber Security and Privacy
by Barrack Otieno 06 Jul '11

06 Jul '11

Thanks Ty, for the comprehensive response, you rightly mention the fact that there are many strategies but execution is the problem, I recently heard an interesting speech by his excellency the president at the military academy in Lanet where he urged the academy to equip itself against emerging threats through enhanced curricula , I assumed emerging threats include Cybercrime, what is the role of Universities and academic institutions in combating Cybercrime in view of the recent collaborative efforts between KU, Egerton and our uniformed forces? On 7/5/11, ty <tyruskam(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Barrack, See inline, > > On Tue, Jul 5, 2011 at 8:22 PM, Barrack Otieno > <otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com>wrote: > >> Dear Listers, >> >> · With Cyber Security threats increasing at an alarming rate, >> what strategies can we embrace as a nation to address and combat >> the threats? >> > > To start with, my biggest approach has been compliance. What do I mean? Some > 3-4 years ago, we had a debate on Kictanet and Skunkworks as well about what > measure companies and the Government should take to curb Cyberthreats which > include but arent limited to Identity Theft, online and mobile money > laundering, core infrastructure security etc etc. For starters, the biggest > threat comes from none other than we humans. Any deployment carried out > without a thoroughly thought out strategy will fail dismally in so many > fronts. > Personally I applaud the Govt for seeing the importance of having policies > in place but my fear and worry has always been execution. The Kenya Police > website hack is barely even the icing on the cake as to how far deep cyber > crime can root itself. Even more sad is that in certain instances some > corporate outfits boasting of offering Information Security awareness, > assessments etc do a piecemeal job at it. This is akin to someone assessing > your house and if he identifies that your door is the most vulnerable entry > point and proceeds to recommend you to repaint your door! > > My opinion would be to raise awareness via such forums. Initially when > skunkworks began, there was a very strong drive to hold talks over subjects > such as this (I thank the mods for offering me an opportunity to present on > one occasion). I would also encourage the Govt to see through the efforts in > place to ensure that compliance and standards revolving around the fast > growing world of IT are implemented and arent just white elephant projects. > > · What initiatives are needed to ensure there is sufficient >> awareness and education on Cyber threats? >> > Lets take social networking as a case study. Most people hardly think twice > when signing up or logging into any social network. The amount of > information you give away is an all too familiar subject which most people > either ignore or find too pedestrian to contemplate. Another front to think > about it online/mobile transactions. Do you trust whoever you are providing > your banking/credit card details? What level of compliance (ISO 27001/PCI > DSS) are they adhering to? A third front is the latest boy in the yard, > cloud computing. Do you feel safe relinquishing all your data to some cloud? > Who else is accessing that cloud. Like I always say, Cyber crime is like a > cancer, it slowly creeps and once manifested, the consequences are grave. > Case in point, the recent Lulzsec saga and HB Gary's incident. > > On a technical level, I would advocate for Red Teaming (google is your > friend) as a methodology to identify potential threats upto and including > physical penetration etc. For those in security (CISA, CISSP, CEH etc etc > etc), its time to stop with the mentality of "someone could break into > this". go ahead and show your clients how horrible the world can be. If you > are protecting against a static threat then security becomes a very easy > task for anyone. But that's not the nature of things. We have dynamic > threats which need continuous assessments, user training and awareness. > > I know the above goes against compliance. Saying you are compliant is > equivalent to saying you have bread in your cupboard and claiming that no > can break through into your house. > > > Strictly my opinion and I welcome anyone else's > > -ty > >> >> >> the floor is open, feel free to continue commenting on previous threads. >> >> Best Regards >> -- >> Barrack O. Otieno >> >> +254721325277 >> +254-20-2498789 >> Skype: barrack.otieno >> _______________________________________________ >> Skunkworks mailing list >> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >> ------------ >> Skunkworks Rules >> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >> ------------ >> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >> > -- Sent from my mobile device Barrack O. Otieno Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) www.afrire <http://www.afriregister.com>gister.bi, www.afriregister.com<http://www.afriergister.com> <http://www.afriregister.com>ICANN accredited registrar +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Barrack Otieno 06 Jul '11

06 Jul '11

Thank you Mich for the insightfull response coming at a time when we are looking forwad to the open data initiative at the end of this week, John welcome on board the thread is still open feel free to comment On Wed, Jul 6, 2011 at 12:56 PM, Maux <mauxdatabase(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Hi Guys, > My understanding of cloud computing is basically a shared/distributed > service that allows for the massive storage of data. > Through application interfaces a developer/entrepreneur can access this data > and make a business out of it and most importantly scale. > Using Google as an example it may not be able develop every niche product > out there so it opens up its platform to developers either through android > or chrome and plans to take a cut through its payment system google wallet. > In the case of Kenya, Government owns/holds most of the data available and > hence should lead the way in creating a Shared services and Cloud computing > policy. > That is why the Open Data Initiative is an idea whose time has come. > What is the most efficient way of managing this process? I think making > businesses out of it is probably the most sustainable way. > By the way I am John Karanja Founder of Whive.com and we too are offering a > SMS based cloud service for storing mobile contacts across web and mobile > platforms. > This is my first post on skunkworks and I hope to interact with you guys in > the future. > Best, > John > > On Wed, Jul 6, 2011 at 12:37 PM, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com> > wrote: >> >> Thank you Paul, Lucy and Aki for responding to issues raised by >> listers, i do hope we will all be available for the Face to Face >> meeting to cement our networks and look at how we can assist our >> governmnet since we are part and parcel of, feel free to continue >> contributing to the debate. >> >> Best Regards >> >> On Wed, Jul 6, 2011 at 8:29 AM, aki <aki275(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> > @Paul Kukubo, thanks for the input. Some of us very aware of the cloud >> > opportunities and applications. Whether we take virtualization of data >> > storage to creating terminal services, these environments exist. Whether >> > SME >> > or startups, they need cost cutting and affordable ways to maintain ICT >> > continuity without breaking the bank. >> > >> > You bring a key point about Govt being the driver of data storage and >> > management, yet there is a big disconnect between the private sector >> > such as >> > ISPs, Telcos, Developers and Govt. At this infant stage of clouding, in >> > whatever context we may look at, Govt support is key as a catalyst of >> > what >> > cloud services could become. I strongly insist that all Govt projects >> > should >> > be kept within the borders and systems of KE. We need this ownership and >> > aslo the ability to use the existing infrastructure. Govt needs to open >> > up >> > the world class data centre for private/public use and also its >> > infrastructure like fiber so that anyone planning a system or such can >> > know >> > what the options are, besides other networks and services. There is no >> > need >> > to put up many data centres, if we already core ones in place. >> > >> > As govt representative, you also need to comeup with a development >> > register >> > that will notify Kenyans of planned projects and those interested can >> > have >> > ample planning and resource time to engage in such projects. >> > >> > >> > Rgds. >> > >> > >> > _______________________________________________ >> > Skunkworks mailing list >> > Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >> > http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >> > ------------ >> > Skunkworks Rules >> > http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >> > ------------ >> > Other services @ http://my.co.ke >> > >> >> >> >> -- >> Barrack O. Otieno >> Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) >> www.afriregister.bi, www.afriregister.com >> ICANN accredited registrar >> +254721325277 >> +254-20-2498789 >> Skype: barrack.otieno >> _______________________________________________ >> Skunkworks mailing list >> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >> ------------ >> Skunkworks Rules >> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >> ------------ >> Other services @ http://my.co.ke > > > _______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke > http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > ------------ > Skunkworks Rules > http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 > ------------ > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > -- Barrack O. Otieno Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) www.afriregister.bi, www.afriregister.com ICANN accredited registrar +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 Policy Discussions Day 5 Cyber Security and Privacy
by Barrack Otieno 06 Jul '11

06 Jul '11

Dear Listers, · With Cyber Security threats increasing at an alarming rate, what strategies can we embrace as a nation to address and combat the threats? · What initiatives are needed to ensure there is sufficient awareness and education on Cyber threats? the floor is open, feel free to continue commenting on previous threads. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Barrack Otieno 06 Jul '11

06 Jul '11

Thank you Paul, Lucy and Aki for responding to issues raised by listers, i do hope we will all be available for the Face to Face meeting to cement our networks and look at how we can assist our governmnet since we are part and parcel of, feel free to continue contributing to the debate. Best Regards On Wed, Jul 6, 2011 at 8:29 AM, aki <aki275(a)gmail.com> wrote: > @Paul Kukubo, thanks for the input. Some of us very aware of the cloud > opportunities and applications. Whether we take virtualization of data > storage to creating terminal services, these environments exist. Whether SME > or startups, they need cost cutting and affordable ways to maintain ICT > continuity without breaking the bank. > > You bring a key point about Govt being the driver of data storage and > management, yet there is a big disconnect between the private sector such as > ISPs, Telcos, Developers and Govt. At this infant stage of clouding, in > whatever context we may look at, Govt support is key as a catalyst of what > cloud services could become. I strongly insist that all Govt projects should > be kept within the borders and systems of KE. We need this ownership and > aslo the ability to use the existing infrastructure. Govt needs to open up > the world class data centre for private/public use and also its > infrastructure like fiber so that anyone planning a system or such can know > what the options are, besides other networks and services. There is no need > to put up many data centres, if we already core ones in place. > > As govt representative, you also need to comeup with a development register > that will notify Kenyans of planned projects and those interested can have > ample planning and resource time to engage in such projects. > > > Rgds. > > > _______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke > http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > ------------ > Skunkworks Rules > http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 > ------------ > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > -- Barrack O. Otieno Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) www.afriregister.bi, www.afriregister.com ICANN accredited registrar +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Barrack Otieno 06 Jul '11

06 Jul '11

Dear Listers, 1. What role should the government play to promote cloud computing in Kenya? 2. What practical steps should we take as a nation that will move cloud computing from a lofty idea into a strategic commercial resource? -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Sam Aguyo 05 Jul '11

05 Jul '11

Hello Listners, Under the cloud business concept - Infrastructure as a Service - IaaS, there are private clouds – which Francis alluded to in an earlier posting. That is a dedicated, or leased, portion of a provider’s hosted facilities. Also, the public cloud which are designed as a multi-tenant environment. More regulatory compliance is required on public clouds since these clouds do not observe geographical boundaries. Therefore, industries which are concerned with the physical location of sensitive data may be reluctant to go public, they would not pass an audit. In terms of cost, public are less expensive due to its multi tenancy concept. Organizations do not buy, install, operate or maintain servers or other equipment. However, private are more expensive since the client has to transfer all the computing power and underlying software to the providers site. Considering these scenarios, it is imperative to define a niche and build policy frameworks that would spur the growth of either one or both. Regards, Sam ________________________________ From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com> To: saguyo(a)yahoo.com Cc: Skunkworks forum <skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Tue, July 5, 2011 2:23:23 PM Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing Note: Forwarded message is attached. Barrack Otieno (otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com) is not on your Guest List | Approve sender | Approve domain

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Barrack Otieno 05 Jul '11

05 Jul '11

You bring an interesting dimension to the debate Mich, i agree with your perspective as well. Best Regards On Tue, Jul 5, 2011 at 9:59 AM, Michuki Mwangi <michuki(a)swiftkenya.com>wrote: > @Aki, > > Am going to play the devils advocate here :). > > On 7/5/11 7:51 AM, aki wrote: > > > > Why would the govt promote cloud computing as a national importance when > > they gave out the digitization project to Google? Our data now sits on > > Google servers! > > > > Why not?. > > > > I believe that those interested in cloud services should shun these > > until the govt leads on such, > > Please tell me is there any local company in Kenya that can provide > services that can compete or match Google's cloud services?. > > > I also think that before we proceed on any further discussions, we need > > to know why the Govt choose Google as the cloud service. > > > > Maybe we should compare it to this. Why is the Govt going for VW Passats > yet we have the Nyayo Pioneer car idling somewhere or am i mistaken?. > > > But on a more serious note - has anyone build an infrastructure here and > am not talking about a Data Center with all the bells and whistles. Am > talking about a service framework that is scalable and robust enough to > make the GoK think twice about giving their services to that provider?. > Here am not talking about the scale of Google am talking small enough to > handle GoK but scalable to handle all of E.A Govts and more without > breaking. > > We are lacking in many extends from both technical expertise (and am > sure many folks will differ with me on this one) and more driven by the > $ than by the technology to care to know how to build it all together. > > We have been quick to say that why reinvent the wheel in so many of the > forums here (including myself). However, the downside of not reinventing > the wheel is we take the wheel and use it without understanding why it > was built that way - we just know that we need it and we use it (see > Joomla discussion). > > In conclusion, we have quickly to making revenues from a technology we > barely understand. As a result, those who understand it better will > always outcompete the rest of us. > > If you think about it - long before there was cloud folks had something > called rocketmail and hotmail. Then came yahoo and even then their > business model was a mystery to many in actual sense online advertising > was still a distant concept in 1997 - 2000. But see what they lead to > today. So basically they made the wheel and improved on the wheel and > now its no longer a wheel but a mirage of a wheel. > > My 2 cents. > > Michuki. > > -- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > > _______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke > http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > ------------ > Skunkworks Rules > http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 > ------------ > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > -- Barrack O. Otieno Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) www.afrire <http://www.afriregister.com>gister.bi, www.afriregister.com<http://www.afriergister.com> <http://www.afriregister.com>ICANN accredited registrar +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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How secure is mpesa
by robert yawe 05 Jul '11

05 Jul '11

Hi, I am writing this post with a heavy heart as it will likely reverse gains that have been made in the ecommerce and ebanking/mbanking environment. A client of mine, who shall remain unnamed for now in typical Kenya fashion, runs a site that accepts payments using the mpesa paybill system. Due to the close similarity in various paybill number there has been a tendency for people to send money to the account erroneously. As the errors have grown over time the client has had to come up with a way to manage the reversals so us to reduce the impact on their operations. Last week Safaricom accessed the paybill number's account and initiated reversals without notifying them. How sure is Safaricom that the person who indicated that they had sent the money to the wrong number had not already consumed services? As the post master general in waiting I am concerned that such action would have negative effect on ecommerce as reversal of a transaction based on the request of one party will definitely harm the other. The reversed transaction still incurs the owner of the paybill number a cost that is not reversed, this issue was previously raised with the former MD of Safaricom Mr. Michael Joseph who instructed one of the managers to look into and resolve. It has been over 2 years and the issue is yet to be concluded. This action also indicates the issue of Safaricom mistreating SME organisations, if the error was made with the KPLC or Co-Op Bank accounts would the staff have the audacity to make direct reversals on the system? I believe the term for such action is blatant impunity that can only be practised by a monopolistic player in an industry. With a heavy heart I send this post hoping that it will act as a wake up call both to Safaricom and the regulators (CCK & Central Bank) that we need better control and monitoring of the money transfer market otherwise we stand to scare the public which would result in its slow down. Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 ________________________________ From:Eugene Lidede (Synergy) [mailto: eugene(a)synergy.co.ke ] Sent: 04 July 2011 09:05 To: robertyawe(a)synergy.co.ke Subject: M-PESA irregularities Robert, As we spoke; i) Safaricom is now directly manipulating transactions in our M-PESA account without our consent or any manner of reference to us. Is this proper? (see red circle in picture below) ii) They never refund monies deducted from us resulting from the said reversals despite the fact that we are not party to initiating the “wrong payments” (see blue circle). These are wrong payments intended for co-op bank’s 400200 but instead sent to our 400100. iii) This issue has been outstanding since October last year during Michael Josephs days. Safaricom has refused to sort it out. Several emails to their M-PESA department regarding this issue have gone unanswered even those specifically addressed to the referenced Caroline lady. iv) With the deteriorating relationship, it might be time we considered PesaPal, ZAP and Orange money seriously as a payment platform for our retail subscribers Regards Eugene Lidede | Chief Technology Officer | Synergy Systems Limited 6th Floor, Phoenix House, Kenyatta Ave. | Cell: +254 721 289497/476367 | Tel: +254 20 2113163 live.mystocks.co.ke | www.propertykenya.com | www.mystocks.co.ke Outstanding Online Investment Content Provider 2009– Computer Society of Kenya

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Re: [kictanet] Kenya IGF 2011 List Discussions Day 4 Cloud Computing
by Barrack Otieno 05 Jul '11

05 Jul '11

@ Aki, thank you for your contribution , the same case applies to @ Lordmwesh, the threads are open for further discussions they are not limited to the days, i once saw a presentation in one of the KicTANET meetings which outlined some of the nodes, i hope we will be able to find it before the end of the debate should it still exist which could answer your question, i have gone through the Ministry of Information and Communication website and cant seem to find the statistics, IMHO this falls squarely within the mandate of Kenya ICT board and i do hope Paul Kukubo or one of the offices at the board will be kind enough to give the statistics. On Tue, Jul 5, 2011 at 1:11 PM, aki <aki275(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > @Barrack, as a final contirbute to this cloud discussion thread, Dr Ndemo > raised a very important point. That all government offices are connected to > Fiber. I believe this should be country wide? May we seriously have a list > of all terminations and capacity of the fiber country wide. Am also awaiting > the info on cloud services offered by Govt and the govt data centre. These > are important statistics. > > Rgds. > > > -- Barrack O. Otieno Afriregister Ltd (Kenya) www.afrire <http://www.afriregister.com>gister.bi, www.afriregister.com<http://www.afriergister.com> <http://www.afriregister.com>ICANN accredited registrar +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Local Content Perception survey
by dmbuvi＠gmail.com 05 Jul '11

05 Jul '11

If you have trouble viewing or submitting this form, you can fill it out online: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGxnQkdyVktKUn… Local Content Perception survey I, Dennis Mbuvi will be part of a panel at the upcoming AITEC Broadcast and Film Africa (BFA) [http://www.aitecafrica.com/event/view/71] conference. I will be discussing challenges facing content producers in Africa. I would like to collect your views on locally produced content, especially your commercial perspective. The questions below are all optional, but please assist by answering as much as you can. The survey covers digital content ie movies, music, animations, electronic books. Would you buy any locally produced content - music, video (movies,animation), literature Local Content refers to local music, local movies and local ebooks Yes No Have you ever bought any locally produced digital content? Yes No If you have purchased locally produced content, how much of it have you purchased in total 1 copy 1 - 5 copies 5 - 10 copies more than 10 copies At what price would you be comfortable purchasing locally produced music at? eg Kshs 50, Kshs 100, Kshs 500 At what price would you be comfortable purchasing locally produced video content at? eg Kshs 50, Kshs 100, Kshs 500 How would you rate the majority of locally produced content? High Average Below Average Do you believe content producers are doing enough to market their content in Africa? Why do you say so? Any additional remarks on locally produced content Powered by Google Docs Report Abuse - Terms of Service - Additional Terms

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