January 2012 - KICTANet

Government Websites Hacked :- What next?
by Barrack Otieno 19 Jan '12

19 Jan '12

Dear Roy et al, I am miffed at all the hullabaloo caused by the hacking of the 100 websites. Late last year CCK hosted a workshop at the Nairobi Safari club which was widely publicised that brought together stakeholders to discuss this issues in fact the immediate former Chair of ISACA Kenya Chapter made a very elaborate presentation. In the first place the workshop was not a news item despite the efforts made by the organisers to bring in Cyber Security experts from George Mason University and the creme de la creme in the local Cyber Security community. To me this is a non issue because we are aware but somebody somewhere is aware of what needs to be done and should be held accountable, if you don't lock the door to your house at night and thieves come in , do you blame the police? We must shun mediocrity. Best Regards On Wed, Jan 18, 2012 at 12:17 PM, Walubengo J <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > --- On *Wed, 1/18/12, Walubengo J <jwalu(a)yahoo.com>* wrote: > > > From: Walubengo J <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: [kictanet] Government Websites Hacked :- What next? > To: jwalu(a)yahoo.com > Cc: "kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Date: Wednesday, January 18, 2012, 12:07 PM > > > > *Government Websites Hacked :- What next?* > > > It has been all over the social network. Most government websites hosted > on the .*go.ke* domain were hacked by some Indonesian cyber-security > student. Apparently after several hours of teaching, the lecturer > encouraged the students to test their skills on selected government sites > and what better target than Kenya? After all Kenya is reputed to be the hub > for ICT technologies in East and Central Africa. Better still, with the > recently implemented multiple undersea fiber cables, Kenya present high > quality internet speeds that are necessary for launching sophisticated > attacks from within and the outside world. > > > With that hindsight or profiling, the hacker must have made a good > choice of a target - a target that has its technological development way > ahead of its cyber security advancement. Within hours over one hundreds of > governments sites including the not so lucky http://www.treasury.go.ke/, > http//www.lands.go.ke and www.roads.go.ke just to select a few. By the > time of going to press, twelve long hours after the attack, most of these > sites continue to be down. > > > Think about it, if Vision 2030 is to be believed, most Kenyans will be > engaging governments e-services through these sites. Think of what would > happen if this type of attack is repeated 5years from today. Ever seen the > hue and cry when MPESA is down for 10minutes? Think of that and then think > disaster when Ministry of Lands, Roads (electric trains?) and Treasury get > shut down in future - by a local university student doing her security > practicals on government sites. > > > The Social network is abuzz with chants of whom to blame. Is it > eGovernment Directorate, is it the Converged Regulator who runs the > National CSIRT (Cyber Security Incidence Response Team) or should it be the > security agent, NSIS - with its mega-billion funds to invest in security? > For ISACA-Kenya, we think it is a wakeup call for everyone, to realize that > Cyber Security is not a one-man or woman show. Just like the ongoing > "Linda-Nchi" initiative in Somali where we are all affected - each and > everyone must contribute to the overall safety of the other. Security is > indeed not entirely the Chief of General Staff's problem, but rather a > collective problem requiring a collective approach. > > > > > So in conclusion, a safer digital environment is going to take a lot > more and deliberate exercise to involve and educate each stakeholder. Most > notably ofcourse the Telecommunication Operators, Hosting and Content > Managers, Regulators, Law Enforcement, Judiciary, the ICT professionals and > Users. The cyber-security of our country is going to be as good as the > weakest link in these and possibly a wider group of stakeholders. This is a > wakeup call for a concerted and holistic look at how such an National > Cyber-Security program could be achieved. > > > Signed > > Roy Akalah > > *President* > > *ISACA-Kenya Chapter* > > > -----Inline Attachment Follows----- > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke<http://mc/compose?to=kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform > for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and > regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT > sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors > online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, > share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do > not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. > > > _______________________________________________ > ke-internetusers mailing list > ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net > http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers > > -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno

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Cyber Attacks on GoK - Rough Road towards Knowledge Economy
by Matunda Nyanchama 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

Rough Road towards Knowledge Economy ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Agano Consulting Inc.; www.aganoconsulting.com; Twitter: nmatunda; Skype: okiambe ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Be prepared to face ICT Security failures & know how to respond when they happen! Call: +1-888-587-1150 or info(a)aganoconsulting.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a workstation…" - Anonymous ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail, including attachments, may be privileged and may contain confidential or proprietary information intended only for the addressee(s). Any other distribution, copying, use, or disclosure is unauthorized and strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply e-mail and permanently delete the message, including any attachments, without making a copy. Thank you.

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Imagine a World Without Free Knowledge
by Victor Kapiyo 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

Hey Listers, Wikipedia has blacked out its English Website as part of a campaign to stop the US House of Representatives and Senate from passing legislation (SOPA and PROTECT IT respectively) which may harm the free and open Internet and inhibit people's access to information online. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page It is interesting to note that while the US has been at the forefront of opposing Chinese censorship of the internet, it is now considering legislation that makes it not so different from the Chinese. -- Victor Kapiyo, LL.B ==================================================== *“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude” Zig Ziglar *

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National & Private School Crisis
by robert yawe 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

Hi, The following reminded me of the posturing going on between the GOK and the private primary school owners association (note that the private secondary schools are silent as they are competitors with the national schools) concerning the quarter system for National school places. http://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/10/world/africa/south-africa-stampede/index.… Last year when this same issue came up I asked a friend (whose children are in private primary school) if national schools do well because of the physical location i.e. specific latitude and longitude, if it was then I fully support the argument but if it is not then private schools have no leg to stand on. Griffin left & Starehe faltered, Khaemba left and Alliance faltered which means that the issue is not the teachers but the administration. If the government with its wanting pay grades can produce excellent school administrators shouldn't better pay in private schools do even better? The government therefore came up with an interesting strategy, thanks to a former herds boy, where they have increased the number of national schools spread across all counties, private primary school parents are already complaining. On the stampede in South Africa what the universities did to resolve similar gerrymandering was to operate the selection process like a pre-Michuki matatu where the students rush in to claim their places, survival for the fittest, maybe the ministry of education should use the same procedure for admittance to national schools then lets see how many parents with children in private schools will participate. Regards Naomba seri kali inisaidie, haki yetu, Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya

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(Govt website) Hacker thanks CIO East African writer for exposing his blog to traffic
by Francis Hook 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

http://www.techweez.com/2012/01/18/hacker-thanks-cio-east-african-writer-fo…

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Government Websites Hacked :- What next?
by Walubengo J 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } Government Websites Hacked :- What next? It has been all over the social network. Most government websites hosted on the .go.ke domain were hacked by some Indonesian cyber-security student. Apparently after several hours of teaching, the lecturer encouraged the students to test their skills on selected government sites and what better target than Kenya? After all Kenya is reputed to be the hub for ICT technologies in East and Central Africa. Better still, with the recently implemented multiple undersea fiber cables, Kenya present high quality internet speeds that are necessary for launching sophisticated attacks from within and the outside world. With that hindsight or profiling, the hacker must have made a good choice of a target - a target that has its technological development way ahead of its cyber security advancement. Within hours over one hundreds of governments sites including the not so lucky http://www.treasury.go.ke/, http//www.lands.go.ke and www.roads.go.ke just to select a few. By the time of going to press, twelve long hours after the attack, most of these sites continue to be down. Think about it, if Vision 2030 is to be believed, most Kenyans will be engaging governments e-services through these sites. Think of what would happen if this type of attack is repeated 5years from today. Ever seen the hue and cry when MPESA is down for 10minutes? Think of that and then think disaster when Ministry of Lands, Roads (electric trains?) and Treasury get shut down in future - by a local university student doing her security practicals on government sites. The Social network is abuzz with chants of whom to blame. Is it eGovernment Directorate, is it the Converged Regulator who runs the National CSIRT (Cyber Security Incidence Response Team) or should it be the security agent, NSIS - with its mega-billion funds to invest in security? For ISACA-Kenya, we think it is a wakeup call for everyone, to realize that Cyber Security is not a one-man or woman show. Just like the ongoing "Linda-Nchi" initiative in Somali where we are all affected - each and everyone must contribute to the overall safety of the other. Security is indeed not entirely the Chief of General Staff's problem, but rather a collective problem requiring a collective approach. So in conclusion, a safer digital environment is going to take a lot more and deliberate exercise to involve and educate each stakeholder. Most notably ofcourse the Telecommunication Operators, Hosting and Content Managers, Regulators, Law Enforcement, Judiciary, the ICT professionals and Users. The cyber-security of our country is going to be as good as the weakest link in these and possibly a wider group of stakeholders. This is a wakeup call for a concerted and holistic look at how such an National Cyber-Security program could be achieved. Signed Roy Akalah President ISACA-Kenya Chapter

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Government website Hacking incident a crying shame
by Brian Munyao Longwe 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

The fact that a student on a hacking/computer security course could hack into and deface more than 100 Government of Kenya websites* in one night(!)*is a crying shame. In addition to that, the fact that it seems all or most of these sites were hosted on a single server is a travesty of best practice. Is it so difficult for GoK to invite (readily available) information security experts to design and implement a suitable online information framework for public government websites? Shaking my head, Brian -- Brian Munyao Longwe e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com cell: +254715964281 blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com

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Google's Antics on Mocality
by Matunda Nyanchama 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

I am wondering what Google's aswer is to this clear case of dirty tricks. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Agano Consulting Inc.; www.aganoconsulting.com; Twitter: nmatunda; Skype: okiambe ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Be prepared to face ICT Security failures & know how to respond when they happen! Call: +1-888-587-1150 or info(a)aganoconsulting.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a workstation…" - Anonymous ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail, including attachments, may be privileged and may contain confidential or proprietary information intended only for the addressee(s). Any other distribution, copying, use, or disclosure is unauthorized and strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply e-mail and permanently delete the message, including any attachments, without making a copy. Thank you.

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Re: [kictanet] 103 Government of Kenya websites hacked overnigh
by Matunda Nyanchama 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

Friends This should be of great concern to all of us. In the past we have reached out to offer help (at the very least) from an awareness, strategy and governance perspective for this is our expertise domain. We haven't succeeded. Government needs to have a clear information protection framework that is overarching and one that addresses all aspects of information protection: people, process and technology. As we have found out, often technology is acquired and deployed without the requisite knowledge/skills, protection framework and ongoing caring/feeding necessary to maintain security. Our doors remain open. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Agano Consulting Inc.; www.aganoconsulting.com; Twitter: nmatunda; Skype: okiambe ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Be prepared to face ICT Security failures & know how to respond when they happen! Call: +1-888-587-1150 or info(a)aganoconsulting.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a workstation…" - Anonymous ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail, including attachments, may be privileged and may contain confidential or proprietary information intended only for the addressee(s). Any other distribution, copying, use, or disclosure is unauthorized and strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply e-mail and permanently delete the message, including any attachments, without making a copy. Thank you.

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Fw: The African Executive Issue 352
by Matunda Nyanchama 18 Jan '12

18 Jan '12

FYI. ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: The Editor <editor(a)africanexecutive.com> To: mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Sent: Tuesday, January 17, 2012 10:34 PM Subject: The African Executive Issue 352 18 - 25 January 2012 Articles in this Issue Write to the Editor Subscribe Now! Unsubscribe Our Contacts - ADVERTISEMENTS - ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE Global Energy Security: Africa’s Strategic Importance Observers indicate that rivalry is slowly leading to militarization of policies by energy importers towards the continent. Libya became the first casualty of this rivalry in 2011. [Read More] Nigeria: The Fuel Subsidy Dilemma No matter what happens, Goodluck Jonathan will be the biggest loser at the end of the day. [Read More] Vibrant Economy: Is Africa on Track? Lack of clear stipulated employment and investment policies in Africa has made many foreign investors to repatriate a big percentage of profits back to their home countries [Read More] Gabon: Aman Resorts Invests in Green Tourism By 2020, Gabon aims to attract 100,000 tourists per year from the mid-range and high-end sectors. [Read More] Leadership: Why Can't Kenya's Middle Class Deliver? Kenya, with confronted with global challenges, has no choice but to produce a leader who will defend her national interests. [Read More] Uganda LRA: Who is Fooling Who? For Museveni, the Northern Uganda conflict is but an extravaganza bonanza. [Read More] Ghana:Sekondi Industrial Estate May Endanger CDB Loan An alert on serious matters that come up on the China Development (CDB) loan facility in Ghana. [Read More] African Farmers Must Dump Organic Farming With 60% of the World’s untilled arable land, low uptake in farming technology gives wealthy nations the excuse to grab land on the continent.... [Read More] About Eastern Africa Sister Cities Mission: To promote peace and economic prosperity in Africa through mutual respect, understanding, cooperation and city twinning. [Read More] Significance of China's Construction of the African Union Headquarters China will report lengths and breadths of its infrastructural projects and exchange programs among others. Will an African report simply have a "thank you" note? [Read More] ICTs and Environmental Safety Human wildlife conflict in Amboseli National park has been reduced drastically by the use of information and communication technology [Read More] Risk Governance in Banking Risk management has a direct impact on performance. A bank needs to be both profitable and well risk-managed. Its level of profitability matters as much to the public as its profile of risk management. [Read More] WRITE TO THE EDITOR We are always glad to hear from you and our team takes the contents of the letters we receive seriously in order to ensure that the magazine is beneficial to you. Do not hesitate to write to us and make our services better. You can do this through editor(a)africanexecutive.com. SUBSCRIBE NOW! Subscribe to The African Executive magazine now to start your business relationship with us by CLICKING HERE UNSUBSCRIBE We use your feedback to improve our magazine so that it is beneficial to you. However, should you still want to unsubscribe, please CLICK HERE OUR CONTACTS The African Executive - P.O. Box 135-00100 G.P.O Nairobi KENYA Phone: 254202731497 - Cel: 254733823062 - Fax: 254202723258 - Email: editor(a)africanexecutive.com

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