- KICTANet - KICTANet

Fw: [alac] Big holes in net's heart revealed
by alice＠apc.org 01 May '06

01 May '06

Big holes in net's heart revealed > By Mark Ward > Technology Correspondent, BBC News website > > Simple attacks could let malicious hackers take over more than > one-third of the net's sites, reveals research. > > The finding was uncovered by researchers who analysed how the net's > addressing system works. > > They also found that if the simple attacks were combined with > so-called denial-of-service attacks, 85% of the net becomes > vulnerable to take-over. > > The researchers recommended big changes to the net's addressing > system to tackle the vulnerability at its heart. > > Site seizing > > When you visit a website, such as news.bbc.co.uk, your computer often > asks one of the net's address books, or domain name servers, for > information about where that site resides. > > But the number of computers that have to be consulted to find the > computers where that site is located often makes sites vulnerable to > attack by vandals and criminals, found Assistant Professor Emin Gun > Sirer and Venugopalan Ramasubramanian from the Department of Computer > Science at Cornell University. > > Professor Sirer told the BBC News website that, on average, 46 > computers holding different information about the components of net > addresses are consulted to find out where each dotcom site is > actually hosted. > > But, he said, this chain of dependencies between the computers that > look after the different parts of net addresses creates all kinds of > vulnerabilities that clever hackers could easily exploit. > > "The growth of the internet has caused these dependencies to emerge," > said Professor Sirer. "Instead of having to compromise one you can > compromise any one of the three dozen." > > All the information gathered and analysed by the researchers has to > be publicly available to keep the net's addressing system working. > The research analysed information about almost 600,000 computers. > > The research also revealed that 17% of the servers that host the > net's address books are vulnerable to attack via widely known > exploits. > > "Because of these dependencies about one-third of the net's names are > trivially compromisable by script kiddies," he said. > > One site vulnerable in this way was run by the FBI, said Professor. > Sirer. Although the five computers that act as the first reference > point for the fbi.gov domain were secure, one of the five that > connect to these has yet to install a patch for a well-known bug. > > That computer was fixed after the Cornell team reported its findings > to the FBI, but hundreds of thousands of sites suffer from similar > problems. > > The most vulnerable net domain found by the survey was that of the > Roman Catholic Church in the Ukraine. > > Criminals such as phishing gangs would be interested in re-directing > traffic from well-known sites so they can grab key login and personal > details that would help them de-fraud web users. > > [snip] > The research had exposed a big problem that net administrators need > to tackle, said Professor Sirer. Thought should be given to using a > secure version of the system used to pass around information about > net addresses. > "The domain name system has been incredibly successful so far but it > is showing its age," he said. "We need to re-think the entire naming > infrastructure of the internet." > > The hierarchical structure of the net's address books could be > replaced with a more resilient system, he said, that uses a > peer-to-peer type structure that would be harder to compromise. > Story from BBC NEWS: > <http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/technology/4954208.stm> > > Published: 2006/04/28 13:58:07 GMT

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KICTANet Monthly Meeting April 28 4pm Jacaranda
by Andrew Karanja 29 Apr '06

29 Apr '06

Dear Members You are all invited for a network monthly meeting, which will take place on Wednesday at 4.00p.m. at the Jacaranda hotel. The meetings proposed agenda will be as follows: .Update on the setting up of the secretariat .Feedback on the Analysis of the ICT Bill 2005 . Planning for the Open Policy Forums at Constituency Levels (10 Constituencies), slated for May-August . An update on the KICTANet registration . Finalized MOU between AeRC and KICTAnet . Review of proposal to IDRC for institutional assessment and strengthening . fundraising activities . A.O.B Kindly confirm attendance Regards Andrew Karanja

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Fw: KICTANet OSIEA Proposal
by alice＠apc.org 29 Apr '06

29 Apr '06

----- Original Message ----- From: "Florence Etta" <feanywhere(a)yahoo.co.uk> To: "Warigia Bowman" <warigiabowman(a)hotmail.com>; "FEMNET FEMNET" <communication(a)femnet.or.ke>; "'Alex Gakuru'" <gakuru(a)mail.co.ke>; "Bill Kagai" <billkagai(a)gmail.com>; "Lizette Kraft" <lkraft(a)idrc.or.ke>; "Brian Longwe" <brian(a)pure-id.com>; "'Brian Longwe'" <brian(a)inhand.co.ke>; "Joseph Mucheru" <mucheru(a)wananchi.com>; "Wainaina Mungai" <wainaina.mungai(a)oneworld.net>; "Alice Munyua" <alice(a)apc.org>; "Muriuki Mureithi" <mureithi(a)summitstrategies.co.ke>; "'Dorcas Muthoni'" <dmuthoni(a)kenet.or.ke>; "'Grace Mutung'u'" <nmutungu(a)gmail.com>; "charles nduati" <charlesnduati2002(a)yahoo.co.uk>; "james Nguo" <james(a)alin.or.ke>; "Lucy Njogu" <luchiru(a)yahoo.com>; "Ben Sihanya" <innovativelawyer(a)wananchi.com>; "'Tony Wafula'" <twaf78(a)yahoo.com>; "'John Walubengo'" <jwalubengo(a)kcct.ac.ke>; "Rebecca Wanjiku" <rebeccawanjiku(a)yahoo.com>; "'Tim Wanyonyi'" <timwanyonyi(a)kenyanparaplegic.org> Sent: Friday, April 28, 2006 7:34 PM Subject: Fw: KICTANet OSIEA Proposal > Hi all, > I am sorry that I could not attend today's meeting as planned. Could you > please deal with this OSIEA offer as seen fit? > Cheers, > FE > > > Florence Etta PhD > Tel: + 254-733-621851(Mobile)/254-20-7121506 > Email:feanywhere@yahoo.co.uk > > ----- Forwarded Message ---- > From: Florence Etta <feanywhere(a)yahoo.co.uk> > To: Kerry Shapleigh <kshapleigh(a)sorosny.org> > Sent: Tuesday, 25 April, 2006 2:11:41 PM > Subject: RE: KICTANet Proposal > > Dear Kerry, > Thank you very much for this welcome news. I just got back to Nairobi > after about three weeks in West Africa. There will be a KICTANet meeting > at the end of this week and I will table this information there and will > therefore be in a better position to give you an update etc. > > In the meantime do give our warn regards to Binafer if you are in touch > with her. I was not aware that she is away on medical grounds. > > Cheers, > FE > > Kerry Shapleigh <kshapleigh(a)sorosny.org> wrote: RE: KICTANet Proposal > Dear Florence, > I hope my message finds you well. As you are probably aware, Binaifer is > currently on medical leave and will be returning to OSIEA in about one > month. In the meantime, I have been tasked with guiding proposals through > the review process. We recently brought the KICTANET proposal to our > committee, presenting the attached workplan. > The committee has approved the proposal for 2 disbursements of $36,500 > each and $31,000 as a matching grant. Essentially, OSIEA will issue a > grant of US $73,000. If KICTANET is able to raise an additional US > $31,000, OSIEA will also match that amount. Please consider this > arrangement and let me know your thoughts. > Best, > Kerry > > <<Work plan 2005.doc>> > > Send instant messages to your online friends > http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com > > >

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Gazettement of the Kenya National ICT Policy
by Muriuki Mureithi 28 Apr '06

28 Apr '06

Hi colleagues The Minister has gazetted the National ICT Policy and therefore conforms to the requirement of Kenya Communications Act 1998 as a policy notification to Communications Commission of Kenya. CCK may therefore implement the policy A copy is available at Government Printer at Ksh 50 Rgds Muriuki Mureithi --------------------------------------- Summit Strategies Ltd - Strategic information for decision support in infocommunication business ICT Consultancy & Research in Eastern & Central African markets Contacts : Tel +254 (20) 3875824 , Cell + 254 (722) 520090, email: <mailto:mureithi@summitstrategies.co.ke> mureithi(a)summitstrategies.co.ke

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Media Workshop Report -Mombasa, 10th-13th March 2006
by alice＠apc.org 27 Apr '06

27 Apr '06

Dear KICTANet members Attached the media and ICT policy workshop report. The workshop took place in Mombasa in March with Media editors from the mainstream media and alternative media thank you and best alice

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Do you or your organization want to influence decisions that shape the Internet?
by alice＠apc.org 27 Apr '06

27 Apr '06

Apologies for cross posting --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Do you or your organization want to influence decisions that shape the Internet? If you do, why not apply to be designated "At-Large Structure" and participate in the Internet Cooperation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) decisions critical to the Internet's end users? ICANN's Interim At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) is now accepting applications from existing or new groups that involve (or want to involve) individuals in Internet issues. Go to <http://alac.icann.org/> for more information. A new mechanism for individual Internet users participation in ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) has been launched for people who want to be involved in issues that affect individuals use of the Internet's domain name system. ICANN is involved in shaping the Internet and is dealing with issues such as privacy protections for your personal domain registration information (called the WHOIS database), the implementation of internationalized domain names (use of non-ASCII characters), trade mark and domain name disputes and related matters, and how new top-level domains (i.e. .info, .name, .museum, etc.) are introduced. These are but a few ICANN issues on which the end-users voice needs to be heard. Groups throughout the world that deal with individual Internet users' interests are encouraged to register and participate in ICANN by submitting a simple application form. Groups that meet the minimum requirements will be designated as "At-Large Structures." The ALAC is an Advisory Committee to ICANN's Board charged with providing advice on activities of ICANN that relate to the interests of individual Internet users, and helping to organize At-Large groups throughout the world for structured involvement and informed participation of the individual Internet user community. Why become an At-Large Structure? By being designated an At-Large Structure, your group gets: a.. A recognized role in forming the policies that affect how individuals' use the Internet (ICANN is listening. Make sure your voice is heard!); b.. Quick and easy access to first-hand information on what's happening in ICANN and why it matters to end-users; c.. Opportunities to provide your members education on ICANN's work and Internet developments; d.. Participation in building your region's At-Large organization (RALO), and opportunities to network with other groups in your country and region as At-Large grows; e.. Representation in ICANN at the regional and international level, plus your group's members will be eligible to serve on important regional and international decision-making bodies in ICANN; f.. A free web page and other Internet-based mechanisms to support your group's work; and g.. Opportunities for funding to support some of your group's activities (ALAC is applying for grant funding). What type of groups can be At-Large Structures? Any group that supports individuals' ability to share their views on ICANN issues, and that meets the few simple criteria listed on the ALAC's website, can apply to be an At-Large Structure. Types of groups that have expressed interest in being designated At-Large Structures include: a.. Professional societies (e.g. engineers, attorneys, etc.) b.. Academic and research organizations c.. Community networking groups d.. Consumer advocacy groups e.. Internet Society chapters f.. Computer user organizations g.. Internet civil society groups Where can I get more information? Send an email to <als(a)alac.icann.org>, or go to the ALAC website at <http://alac.icann.org/>. We look forward to working with you, and hearing from you. ~ The Interim At-Large Advisory Committee

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Fw: [APC Forum] Digital Divide narrowing...
by alice＠apc.org 27 Apr '06

27 Apr '06

Is this a good example of why the term 'digital divide' is misleading? > Technical vs education discouses? > > Maybe not. > > Frédéric Dubois > APC information coordinator > > Source: http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/26/business/lost.php - > Reuters, International Herald Tribune > World's digital divide gets smaller > Reuters > > WEDNESDAY, APRIL 26, 2006 > > > BERLIN The digital divide is narrowing as citizens in emerging markets > get online via computers and mobile phones, > with some regions now on a par with developed nations, a ranking of > Web-savvy countries showed Wednesday. > > "Encouraging is the apparent narrowing of the digital divide," the > annual study, published by IBM and the intelligence unit > of British magazine The Economist, said. "This is particularly evident > in basic connectivity: Emerging markets are providing > the vast majority of the world's new phone and Internet connections." > > Within China and India, regions like Shanghai and Bangalore have almost > the same level of Internet and > mobile phone connections as developed nations, said Peter Korsten, > European director at IBM's Institute for Business Value. > > "This is the first time we see a level playing field between developed > and developing nations in terms of > connectivity," he said. "It's up to governments to take advantage with > education and other initiatives." > > The survey looks beyond basic connections and also studies how the > Internet is being used to > improve productivity and reduce costs, including online access to > public services. > > "Virtually all countries have improved their scores over the past > year," the study said. > "The improvement is greater in the lower tiers of the rankings than at > the top. > As a result, the distance separating the best from the rest has > declined." > > > > > ======================================= > APC Forum is a meeting place for the APC community - people and > institutions who are or have been involved in collaboration with APC, and > share the APC vision - a world in which all people have easy, equal and > affordable access to the creative potential of information and > communication technologies (ICTs) to improve their lives and create more > democratic and egalitarian societies. > > _______________________________________________ > apc.forum mailing list > apc.forum(a)lists.apc.org > http://lists.apc.org/mailman/listinfo/apc.forum

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Fw: AGREEMENT BETWEEN KICTANET AND AeRC
by alice＠apc.org 26 Apr '06

26 Apr '06

Dear members Find draft MOU prepared by Innovative Lawyering for hosting of KICTANEt secretariat. Any comments alice

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Uganda: Country Soon to Jump Onto the Outsourcing Bandwagon
by Dorcas Muthoni 26 Apr '06

26 Apr '06

Uganda: Country Soon to Jump Onto the Outsourcing Bandwagon East African Business Week (Kampala) April 24, 2006 http://allafrica.com/stories/200604240920.html Edwin Nshuti--Kampala Since independence, Uganda has been actively engaged in the outsourcing industry, offshoring the refining and value-addition processes of most of her raw materials to Europe and America - to her disadvantage. This sad spectacle is, however, set to change and the country is set to realise its first positive benefits out of outsourcing. InterGlobal Services (IGS), a U.S. call centre operator in conjunction with the Busoga Kingdom are in the final stages of setting up a 150-seater world-class call centre in Jinja, 80 kilometres east of Kampala. "We are about one month behind schedule," the prime minister of Busoga Kingdom, Mr. Martin Musumba revealed to Business Week, "but it should be up and running by the end of May." The call centre will employ 450 operators, working 3 shifts everyday, and 7 days a week earning an estimated salary of about US$1,000 every month. However, the groundwork for equipping the population to work in the intricate offshoring industry had started earlier. The government through the ministry of education entered into an agreement with Global Management Consortium-Trade Information Network (GMC-TIN) and Serebra Learning Corporation (Canada) to provide low cost and affordable education in ICT, professional development courses including call technologies and call centre management through a programme known as EasyLearning. This programme will, according to Mr. Godfrey Seruwagi, the EasyLearning national project coordinator, go a long way in "bridging the digital divide through access to ICT education and provide Ugandan's with outsourcing job opportunities." Serebra, which owns the courseware has over 3,000 courses in its library but only 400 of those have been negotiated into EasyLearning and are accessible at a cost of Ush12,000 (US$6) per course. Ms. Rossette Serwanga, the EasyLearning programme manager says that since its launch on January 17, 2006, over 600 people have sat and passed the online courses. Busoga Kingdom set up an e-Learning centre in Jinja called IT Synergies, where they have been training the future call centre operators and managers and are now set to run the first outsourcing centre in the country. Outsourcing is the process through which one company hands over part of its work to another company, making it responsible for the design and implementation of the business process under strict guidelines regarding requirements and specifications from the outsourcing company. In this age of globalisation, in a world where Information Technology (IT) has become the backbone of business, very many huge companies like IBM, General Electric, Microsoft, etc are beginning to move some of their vital but peripheral operations like low-end software development and help-desk services to low cost labour countries. This phenomenon has mainly emerged due to stringent labour laws in developed countries and the need to cut costs to remain competitive. Over the last decade, India has been the leading offshore destination for global IT and Business Process Offshoring (BPO) industries because of its huge pool of highly educated, English speaking workers who are willing to work for just a fraction of what their counterparts in Europe are paid. These industries have played a major role in transforming India from a slow-growth economy with recurring balance of payments problems to a fast-growth economy generating ample foreign exchange surpluses. India's offshoring industry earns foreign exchange revenue of about US$6billion and employs about 350,000 people. However, India could soon lose its leading position as the world's 'back office.' According to a study conducted by McKinsey & Company, a U.S. consultancy firm and the India IT body Nasscom, India's outsourcing industry will face a short fall of 500,000 workers in the next few years. With Indian universities churning out 3.6million graduates every year, how can it be short of workers? The problem in India, according to experts, has always been the quality of its workforce, not quantity. US companies that operate call centres in India have continually complained the call centre agents' English accent being heavily influenced by their mother tongues. This has been India's biggest setback. Fluency in English aside, employers also complain that the majority of India's IT graduates lacked computer skills, inability to reason clearly and think critically _______________________________________________ incom-l mailing list incom-l(a)incommunicado.info http://mail.kein.org/mailman/listinfo/incom-l

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Press release... Bootstraps, slingshots and angels: Engaging the private sector in Africa - the CATIA experience
by alice＠apc.org 25 Apr '06

25 Apr '06

Learning to working together: > civil society, the private sector and ICT advocacy in Africa > > April 21, 2006 > > For nearly three years the Catalysing Access to ICTs in Africa programme > (CATIA) has worked towards strengthening the context for the vibrant > adoption and use of ICTs in Africa. The programme has been set up with > nine > components, each with its particular advocacy aim, in countries as diverse > as Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Senegal. As components have found, the > private sector is crucial to the success of their interventions. > > To document its experience in engaging the private sector, CATIA has > produced Bootstraps, slingshots and angels, an article that looks at the > successes and challenges the programme has had over the past > two-and-a-half > years. The article is the result of interviews with CATIA participants > from > both civil society and private sector backgrounds. > > Some of the key findings of the interviews are: > > * The private sector has been crucial to the success of a number of > the CATIA advocacy drives. In countries such as Kenya, a multi-stakeholder > approach, which has included the media, has had a startling impact, > including playing a major role in the development of the country's ICT > policy strategy; > > * In many instances, the relationship between civil society and the > private sector is seen to be mutually beneficial. Working with the private > sector means that collective expertise can be leveraged, and a common > advocacy goal forged that neither sector could have developed on its own; > > * By collaborating with civil society, private sector activity begins > to be formulated and articulated in the context of broader socio-economic > issues, such as job creation, poverty eradication and consumer awareness; > > * Through its engagement with the private sector, civil society has > learned to work more efficiently, and be more decisive in its advocacy > strategies and actions. Collaboration with the private sector has, in some > instances, made its work more acceptable to government, and therefore more > influential in encouraging ICT policy change; > > * Winning the private sector's trust has been a major hurdle for many > ICT advocates. This includes dealing with a natural sense of competition > between private sector participants. Components have found that it is > important to create a fora where each sector's needs can be understood and > where disagreements can be expressed; > > * The best advocacy approach tends to depend on the balance of power > between the private sector, civil society and the state. Often a > dependence > on the government for contracts (as in Ethiopia) means that the private > sector is reluctant to directly confront the state in an advocacy drive. > At > the same time, an 'unofficial' relationship between some private sector > players and the government can hamper advocacy initiatives. Businesses > sometimes need to be encouraged to cut back on "personal political space"; > > * While some multinational IT companies have been reluctant to be > involved in ICT advocacy initiatives, those that have suggest that the > relationship has been beneficial and in line with its own business aims. > > To read the full article, visit www.catia.ws. > > _________________________________________________ > Claire Sibthorpe > Programme Manager > Catalysing Access to ICTs in Africa (CATIA) > Atos Consulting > www.catia.ws > > Tel: +27 11 881 5910 > Mobile: +27 82 895 4603 > Fax: +27 11 881 5481 > > Postal Address: P O Box 785553, Sandton, 2146, South Africa > Physical Address: Nelson Mandela Square, 2nd Floor, West Tower, Sandown, > 2196, South Africa > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > _______________________________________________ > Catia_team mailing list > Catia_team(a)catia.ws > http://catia.eyecon.co.za/mailman/listinfo/catia_team >

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