January 2013 - KICTANet

InfoSec: Red October cyber-espionage attack list includes 5 African countries
by Brian Munyao Longwe 16 Jan '13

16 Jan '13

In alarming news, Kaspersky's revelation of their discovery of the Red October (Rocra) cyber-espionage operation lists at least 5 African countries (South Africa, Uganda, Congo, Tanzania and Kenya) that have been victims/targets of the spy network's activities. The spy network, which largely focuses on international diplomatic service agencies, also targets governments and scientific research organizations. Red October allegedly rivals the sophistication of last year's Flame malware but is described a "more devious" as attacks can be handcrafted for specific targets. Part 1 of the full report is here: http://www.securelist.com/en/analysis/204792262/Red_October_Diplomatic_Cybe… The bad news is that the network is still active and can't seem to be taken down - is actively collecting data and transmitting to it's "owners" Anyway, just a heads up to the respective African countries on this list - be careful, be very careful.... Best regards, Brian

4 3

TV switch-off meetings to start by month end
by Grace Githaiga 16 Jan '13

16 Jan '13

Discussions between the communications industry regulator and a consumer lobby to come up with a new timeline for digital migration are set to begin before the end of this month. Communications Commission of Kenya director general Francis Wangusi on Tuesday told the Nation that the commission was setting up a team that would hold meetings with the Consumer Federation of Kenya (Cofek) to come up with an amicable deadline for the switch off of the analogue signal in Nairobi and other parts of the country. http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/TV-switch-off-meetings-to-start/-/100…

4 3

Treasury’s stake in Telkom Kenya dropped to 30 per cent in December
by Dorcas Muthoni 15 Jan '13

15 Jan '13

The Treasury’s stake in Telkom Kenya dropped to 30 per cent in December after it failed to inject Sh2.4 billion in the firm, but has option to return its stake to 40 per cent by June. http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Corporate-News/French-firm-gives-Treasur… >From this story, *I 100% support the government's decision to raise the ownership along improved **performance by the telco.* *I will tell you why:* April last year, after the onset of long rains, my two landlines went dead. We called and i even wrote on this list about this problem. I understand close to 3000 lines went down at the same time around Loita Street and very few if any have even returned to service. Our lines are still out of service. Simple maths, if each of the lines was making Telkom KES. 10,000 a month, we can easily claim that Telkom has lost more than KES 240 million in revenue (240,000,000), where only they can compete from this small group of customers in 2012. The Telkom officer who was responding to my complaint last year thought i was being skeptical. I wonder where Telkom will be in 10 year with this France Telecom? Muthoni

1 0

Re: [kictanet] Digital migration and mass ignorance
by meshack emakunat 15 Jan '13

15 Jan '13

Dear list I read this thread and all i see is the "the cart before the horse". I believe Mr gitahi was referring to affordability rather compatibility and adaptability. @Robert, don't you think Kenyans should be given enough time to migrate rather than have a paradigm shift in tech use. I think that we should ban the importation of analog TV as somebody suggested earlier then will have a gradual change till 2015 Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

29 66

Re: [kictanet] kictanet Digest, Vol 68, Issue 36
by Gideon 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

+1 Ndemo, Just to reiterate your point here, We are setting a bad precendence here that most people did not bother to ask why the entire world is migrating to Digital. No one seems to understand that we are behind schedule already. It took Britain and US eight years to fully migrate. Indeed the minimum time you need to fully migrate is five years. We have three years remaining before ITU switches off. Why does Africa always seek for extensions even where we do not need any. Gideon Rop, DotConnectAfrica. On Mon, Jan 14, 2013 at 10:50 AM, <kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>wrote: > Send kictanet mailing list submissions to > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > You can reach the person managing the list at > kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Digital migration and mass ignorance (bitange(a)jambo.co.ke) > 2. Re: Digital migration and mass ignorance (bitange(a)jambo.co.ke) > 3. Re: TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and Exchange Program - > 2013 Application Opens December 15! (Edith Adera) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 13 Jan 2013 23:43:27 +0300 (EAT) > From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke > To: "Lucy Kimani" <lkimani(a)yahoo.com> > Cc: Kictanet Mail list <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Digital migration and mass ignorance > Message-ID: > <db240b7f170adf714e48f8283452bd30.squirrel(a)mail.jambo.co.ke> > Content-Type: text/plain;charset=iso-8859-1 > > Lucy, > Cofek is not interested in consumer matters. Migration is not a consumer > matter (see my other post on what consumer matter is in a technological > change) it is a technological issue that aims to cater for all > communities. That will ensure the poor too can invest in broadcast and > give them a chance to create their own content. In essence we are out to > protect consumers from rich, expensive content and help them create local > content that they can relate to and change their condition. > > Wikipedia defines Consumer protection as consisting of laws and > organizations designed to ensure the rights of consumers as well as fair > trade competition and the free flow of truthful information in the > marketplace. The laws are designed to prevent businesses that engage in > fraud or specified unfair practices from gaining an advantage over > competitors and may provide additional protection for the weak and those > unable to take care of themselves. > > The consititutions dictates that we consult with stakeholders. We cannot > therefore have talks with Cofek which has non elected officials. We shall > however have consultations with all stakeholders. If we continue to give > latitude to Cofek, we shall one time regret because in my view they will > take up on everything. We have so much unfair trade (which is what Cofek > should be doing) in Kenya that we need more than 10 consumer organizations > but our current consumer groups have not understood their mandate. > > > Ndemo. > > > > Question is Arbitration an option? > > > > Sent from my iPad > > > > On Jan 13, 2013, at 12:57 AM, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke wrote: > > > >> Robert, > >> We are setting a bad precendence here that most people did not bother to > >> ask why the entire world is migrating to Digital. No one seems to > >> understand that we are behind schedule already. It took Britain and US > >> eight years to fully migrate. Indeed the minimum time you need to fully > >> migrate is five years. We have three years remaining before ITU > >> switches > >> off. Why does Africa always seek for extensions even where we do not > >> need > >> any. India whose per capita income is similar to ours is moving without > >> law suits. I am worried about us that even if God were to give us Jesus > >> time table of his second coming, we shall see people asking that we get > >> extra time. To be a competitive nation we must move with the rest. > >> > >> This hopeless agenda by cofek will delay our LTE initiatives and make > >> Kenya a laggard in matters ICT when we have become the envy of many > >> nations. > >> > >> > >> Ndemo. > >> > >>> Tanzania is definitely a progress nation that will definitely beat us > >>> to > >>> the industrialization finish line, now you understand why they are > >>> avoiding total market integration as this do not want regressive & > >>> litigious Kenyans going there to complicate a sys > > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Sun, 13 Jan 2013 23:56:51 +0300 (EAT) > From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke > To: "Neville Wattanga" <neville(a)adwest.co.ug> > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Digital migration and mass ignorance > Message-ID: > <cb374d1c68dfe255b901089cd9e2246e.squirrel(a)mail.jambo.co.ke> > Content-Type: text/plain;charset=iso-8859-1 > > Neville Wattanga, > There is no minimum FTAs. Indeed we should have as many as needed. > Broadcast has been the preserve of the rich but now we can change this and > create a new world order. Soon you will see the same in Radio Broadcast > where community radios suffer but with wider reach (hopefully National) > much can change. > > Ndemo. > > > > > Bw. Ndemo, > > > > It is good that it is law that each MUX operator must enable FTA. > > > > There are so many loopholes in that regulation. Knowing Kenyans to be > > arduous businessmen they will simply reduce to even 1 the # of FTA > > channels and demand a small ( almost negligible fee) for additional > > channels. > > > > It begs the question; Do we have minimum set number of FTA channels that > > must be provided? > > > > Best Regards. > > > > Neville Wattanga, PMP, CISSP > > > > > > > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: kictanet > > [mailto:kictanet-bounces+neville=adwest.co.ug@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On > > Behalf Of bitange(a)jambo.co.ke > > Sent: Sunday, January 13, 2013 10:45 PM > > To: neville(a)adwest.co.ug > > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Digital migration and mass ignorance > > > > By law each Multiplex operator must enable Free to Air channels whether > > you are a subsriber of conditional access or not. CCK is supposed to > > ensure that consumers do not unnecessarily be forced to subscribe. There > > are more than 20 FTAs channels that you need not pay for. > > > > If Raph Nader were to be Kenyan, he would have fought to see that > > consumers are not exploited when new technologies are introduced. We > > shall take up that position and ensure you get the correct set top box > > that gives you only FTAs that do not require monthly subscription. > > Further, the law requires that a neutral set top box must access FTAs in > > all platforms such that one does not need to buy a set to box for Signet > > then for Pan Africa. > > > > Ndemo. > > > > > > > > > >> Can someone please explain to me if there are FTA channels and if they > > are > >> encrypted or not. > >> > >> Think the way Tanzania has implemented there role out is not the model > > we > >> should use. Make FTA for the masses who can access them without having > > to > >> pass through any content provider, then if they do want they could > >> subscribe for premium content. That way everyone wins. > >> > >> Unless am being naive in my thinking finally we could have use for all > >> those channels in the Tv, seriously though I think initially there will > > be > >> many channels but after a while with competition for advertising there > >> those that will merge and disappear. > >> _______________________________________________ > >> kictanet mailing list > >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > >> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > >> > >> Unsubscribe or change your options at > >> > > > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/bitange%40jambo.co.k > > e > >> > >> 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. > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/neville%40adwest.co. > > ug > > > > 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. > > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2013 07:46:15 +0000 > From: Edith Adera <eadera(a)idrc.ca> > To: Catherine Adeya <elizaslider(a)yahoo.com> > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and > Exchange Program - 2013 Application Opens December 15! > Message-ID: <B62E14120536B14B81E328F4FF78AA99BB4060(a)hqvm24.IDRC.ORG> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Great Initiative. > > The two Muthonis and others should mobile Kenyan Tech women. Kudos! > > Edith > > From: kictanet [mailto:kictanet-bounces+eadera= > idrc.ca(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of Catherine Adeya > Sent: January 13, 2013 8:32 AM > To: Edith Adera > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > Subject: [kictanet] TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and Exchange > Program - 2013 Application Opens December 15! > > Greetings, > > Please share widely with your networks. We need more good applicants from > Kenya....it is the first time Kenya has been considered in this prestigious > Program. Kudos to Dr Ndemo who initiated this and wrote the letter/proposal > requesting for Kenya to be considered. The ball is now in our (Kenya's) > court. > > Best Regards, > > Nyaki > > ----- Forwarded Message ----- > TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and Exchange Program ? 2013 Application > Opens December 15th! > > The TechWomen program will identify approximately 80 women who are > emerging leaders and entrepreneurs working in STEM (science, technology, > engineering and math) from the Middle East & Africa for a five-week program > in the fall of 2013, including mentorships and professional exchanges at > leading companies in Silicon Valley, California, concluding with workshops, > networking events and meetings in Washington, D.C. > > For more information and eligibility requirements please visit: > http://www.techwomen.org/how-to-apply/. The application deadline is > February 10th 2013. > > Applicants from the following countries are invited to apply: Algeria, > Cameroon, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, the > Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tunisia, Yemen > and Zimbabwe. > > Please forward this announcement to your networks. If you have any > questions or need additional information, please visit our website: > www.techwomen.org<http://www.techwomen.org/>, including Frequently Asked > Questions: http://www.techwomen.org/faq/. Please feel free to reproduce > and distribute the attached flier. > > > About TechWomen > Harnessing the power of business, technology and innovation, TechWomen > brings emerging women leaders in technology sectors from the Middle East > and Africa together with their American counterparts for a professional > mentorship and exchange program at leading companies in the United States. > > Launched by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2011, TechWomen > builds on her vision of ?smart power diplomacy? embracing the full range of > diplomatic tools, including technology, to bring people together for > greater understanding and to empower women and girls worldwide. > TechWomen is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State?s Bureau of > Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)<http://exchanges.state.gov/>. The > Department of State is partnering with the Institute of International > Education (IIE)<http://www.iie.org/women> to implement this program. > Please contact us by email at techwomen(a)iie.org<mailto:techwomen@iie.org> > with any questions you may have. > > ?TechWomen introduced me to many role models for women working in the > technical field; I was so inspired when meeting with them. TechWomen also > gave me to opportunity to visit the US for the first time. It was so > different to visit the place, directly interacting with the people, rather > than hearing about the culture from a distance. Thank you TechWomen, I had > some of the happiest days ever in life because of you!? > ? 2012 Participant from Egypt > > > TechWomen on the web > TechWomen website: www.techwomen.org<http://www.techwomen.org/> > TechWomen blog: http://techwomenblog.wordpress.com/ > Twitter: http://twitter.com/techwomen > Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TechWomen > LinkedIn: TechWomen<http://www.linkedin.com/groups/TechWomen-3703501/about > > > > > > > >

1 0

TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and Exchange Program - 2013 Application Opens December 15!
by Catherine Adeya 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

Greetings, Please share widely with your networks. We need more good applicants from Kenya....it is the first time Kenya has been considered in this prestigious Program. Kudos to Dr Ndemo who initiated this and wrote the letter/proposal requesting for Kenya to be considered. The ball is now in our (Kenya's) court. Best Regards, Nyaki ----- Forwarded Message ----- TechWomen: Professional Mentorship and Exchange Program – 2013 Application Opens December 15th! The TechWomen program will identify approximately 80 women who are emerging leaders and entrepreneurs working in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) from the Middle East & Africa for a five-week program in the fall of 2013, including mentorships and professional exchanges at leading companies in Silicon Valley, California, concluding with workshops, networking events and meetings in Washington, D.C. For more information and eligibility requirements please visit: http://www.techwomen.org/how-to-apply/. The application deadline is February 10th 2013. Applicants from the following countries are invited to apply: Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, the Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tunisia, Yemen and Zimbabwe. Please forward this announcement to your networks. If you have any questions or need additional information, please visit our website: www.techwomen.org, including Frequently Asked Questions: http://www.techwomen.org/faq/. Please feel free to reproduce and distribute the attached flier. About TechWomen Harnessing the power of business, technology and innovation, TechWomen brings emerging women leaders in technology sectors from the Middle East and Africa together with their American counterparts for a professional mentorship and exchange program at leading companies in the United States. Launched by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2011, TechWomen builds on her vision of “smart power diplomacy” embracing the full range of diplomatic tools, including technology, to bring people together for greater understanding and to empower women and girls worldwide. TechWomen is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). The Department of State is partnering with the Institute of International Education (IIE) to implement this program. Please contact us by email at techwomen(a)iie.orgwith any questions you may have. “TechWomen introduced me to many role models for women working in the technical field; I was so inspired when meeting with them. TechWomen also gave me to opportunity to visit the US for the first time. It was so different to visit the place, directly interacting with the people, rather than hearing about the culture from a distance. Thank you TechWomen, I had some of the happiest days ever in life because of you!” – 2012 Participant from Egypt TechWomen on the web TechWomen website: www.techwomen.org TechWomen blog: http://techwomenblog.wordpress.com/ Twitter: http://twitter.com/techwomen Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TechWomen LinkedIn: TechWomen

2 1

Pesapal, the next big thing
by robert yawe 13 Jan '13

13 Jan '13

Hi, A great opportunity has presented itself for a truly home grown technology innovation in the form of Pesapal yet we continue backing up the wrong horses. http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/Orange-PesaPal-sign-airtime-deal/-/10… I wish KICTB (iHub) and Nation Media Group (the next big thing) could pull their resources to back something with a track record instead of rewarding compepreneurs. Safaricom has partnered with KopoKopo to turn MPesa into a point of sale payment platform but what is more important with this development is that the transaction fee can be reduced to a fixed cost in this case 1.5% and also the sharing of the revenue between Safaricom & Kopo Kopo an issue that was previously a no go zone at Safaricom. This new product is the second death kneel on the mpesa agent business model after the one of the banks, as an mpesa agent we are preparing for the inevitable death proactively. Like with the newly reduced voice interconnection charges we need a similar model for integrators like PesaPal so that the consumer is not overcharged when using such services as the integrators are forced to charge a fee over and above those already being charged by the mobile money provider which means that they PesaPal has proven they are not going away and what they need to take off into the stratosphere is a little local support, I am sure that Liko will soon be responsive to a buy out. I see PesaPal becoming the debit card of the mwanainchi where funding can be done from multiple sources. Let us support the "next big thing" Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

2 1

Farewell to Aaron Swartz, an extraordinary hacker and activist
by Gideon 13 Jan '13

13 Jan '13

Aaron Swartz, an Internet savant who at a young age shaped the online era by co-developing RSS and Reddit and later became a digital activist, has passed on. Aaron did more than almost anyone to make the Internet a thriving ecosystem for open knowledge, and to keep it that way. His contributions were numerous, and some of them were indispensable. When we asked him in late 2010 for help in stopping COICA<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combating_Online_Infringement_and_Counterfeit…>, the predecessor to the SOPA and PIPA Internet blacklist bills<https://www.eff.org/issues/coica-internet-censorship-and-copyright-bill>, he founded an organization called Demand Progress<http://demandprogress.org/>, which mobilized over a million online activists and proved to be an invaluable ally in winning that campaign. Read more about him here: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/01/farewell-aaron-swartz http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/12/us/new-york-reddit-founder-suicide/index.… Gideon Rop, DotConnectAfrica.

1 0

Thoughts on Kenya's National Broadband Strategy
by Brian Munyao Longwe 13 Jan '13

13 Jan '13

I had shared these thoughts in ISOC-KE and someone asked if I would mind sharing them with KICTANET. Well, here goes: ------------ Is it right to explicitly name a particular technology within the context of such a high level strategy? Pg 6 ¬† the immediate plan to further deploy broadband through a nationwide LTE system The language in principle 2 (pg 8) and principle 7 (pg 9) seem to be contradictory. While principle 2 emphasizes technology neutrality (a good thing), principle 7 in elaborating competitive use of technologies explicitly names fiber optic and wireless broadband. It is proposed that the language here be changed to distinguish between fixed and non-fixed media as alternatives for infrastructure Pg 21 - the relationship between a pacemaker (for heart conditions) and content & applications is not immediately obvious - could this be the wrong kind of example to use in this section? Pg 22 (Table 4) on the problem of an unstructured innovation chain; wouldn't it be better to aim at developing a National Innovation System - rather than simply seeking to "institutionalize the innovation value chain"? The current recommendations fall far short of *really* tackling the underlying issues and proposing sufficient interventions to address the problem in the medium to long term. Pg 23 the figures related to mobile penetration should be updated with latest market estimates and not figures from 2011. Current estimates are at 100% mobile penetration. Also the percentage of *youth* is questionable as it is based on a 2005 study. Should statistics that are 8 years old be used in such an important document? pg 26-32 Section 3.4 Policy, Legal & Regulatory Environment While CCK has over the past 13 years of it's existence facilitated massive transformation with the information and communication technology sector in the country and the region as a whole. It could be argued that the Commission's mandate has become bloated over the years, leading to a "too many eggs in one basket" problem. It could be recommended that specialized agencies be established to deal with essential issue that do not strictly fall under the regulatory mandate of CCK and may, in some cases create opportunity for conflict of interest. These include but are not limited to: Operation and Administration of the Universal Service Fund, Operation and Administration of cyber-security related units, consumer protection etc... While it is evident and obvious that CCK has served and may continue to serve as an ideal "incubator" for these types of services/agencies. It is true that they encompass a potentially vast amount of work, especially within a national context and could be better served by specialized agencies that can focus time and resources and deal with issues in a focused and timely manner. pg 33 Section 3.5.2 by specifically referring to a particular technology (in this case LTE) as a means to accomplishing the objectives of this strategy - it might appear that the strategy is biased towards particular vendors or operators and may not necessarily be taking the best interests of the marketplace and the greatest stakeholder - the citizen - into consideration. It is recommended that the language in this section be reworked to eliminate the mention of specific technologies. The section on Financing and Investment should include recommendations on various incentives to promote activity in the area. Tax breaks, concessions, PPP proposals, allocations from various existing (and new) funds etc... Section 4 Implementation once again, specific reference to LTE may not be in the best interests of leaving the strategy open enought to allow for competing and maybe more affordable technologies that can achieve stated objectives.

1 0

The National Broadband Strategy for Kenya
by Grace Githaiga 12 Jan '13

12 Jan '13

Listers CCK released for public consultation the Draft National Broadband Strategy for Kenya. For more pls see the link. http://www.cck.go.ke/links/consultations/current_consultations/The_National… RgdsGG

1 0