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Africa is already connected NOT by Facebook and Google
by Eric M K Osiakwan 23 Nov '20

23 Nov '20

http://blogs.harvard.edu/eric/ Eric here Eric M K Osiakwan +233244386792 www.ericosiakwan.com

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Fwd: Register Now! Data and Politics Workshop Series
by Grace Mutung'u 20 Nov '20

20 Nov '20

Dear listers, This may be of interest. Please register on the links provided. ----------- Good afternoon, As part of the Developing Data <https://developingdata.org> project, CIPESA in partnership with the University of Edinburgh, Centre of African Studies and the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT) are organising a workshop on *The Data Politics of Pandemics <https://developingdata.org/data-politics/data-covid/>, *which will explore the extent to which politics interferes with the collection and reporting of data on pandemics on the African continent. The speaker line up includes *Richard Ngamita, Human Rights Data Scientist, Facebook | Avani Singh, Director/Co-Founder, AltAdvisory Africa | Jean-Benoit Falisse, Lecturer, University of Edinburgh | Bernard Sabiti, Senior Strategic Partnership and Engagement Manager, Development Initiatives* The Data Politics of Pandemics workshop is scheduled to take place on Wednesday November 25, 2020 13.00-14.30 East African Time. To attend, register here <https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-data-politics-of-pandemics-tickets-12971…> . A second workshop on Data and Elections <https://developingdata.org/data-politics/data-elections/> will explore how data exploitation and micro targeting influence African elections. The speaker line up includes *Seema Shah | Boye Adegoke, Paradigm Initiative | Laura Lazara Cabrera, Privacy International.* The data and elections workshop is scheduled to take place on Wednesday November 25, 2020 15:30-17:00 East African Time. To attend, register here <https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/data-elections-workshop-tickets-128139194781> . Regards, Ashnah -- *Ashnah Kalemera*Programme Manager Mobile: +256 (0) 773 325 435|Office: +256 (0) 414 289 502 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA)* Plot 6 Semawata Place (Off Semawata Road), Ntinda | Kampala, Uganda www.cipesa.org | @cipesaug <https://twitter.com/cipesaug> | www.facebook.com/cipesaug -- Grace Mutung'u Skype: gracebomu @Bomu PGP ID : 0x33A3450F

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HACKBATTLE 4
by Gichuki John Chuksjonia 18 Nov '20

18 Nov '20

*HackBattle 4* Good Afternoon members, I tried to send this email earlier, and Kictanet Mail server had an error: *(This is a permanent error. The following address(es) failed: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> local delivery failed).* Anyway, with Information security changing across the globe and Information operations coming to life, nations across the globe are developing essential resources required for cyber defense and offensive in efforts to protect their critical assets. To contribute to the National Cyber Security Strategy, at OnNet we have started some free courses to help educational and academic institutions on Cyber Warfare as a means to develop skill-set for Kenyan teams in difference organizations Civilian and Military e.g Financial institutions, different Government Authorities and Telcos to defend themselves against well budgeted cyber operators and adversaries by use of offense and defense strategies. Some examples of these courses, www.onnetservices.io/Public/2020-ModernAttackSurface-InformationOperations.… http://www.onnetservices.io/Public/2020IntroductionToCnoToolingBeginnerClas… http://www.onnetservices.io/Public/MilitaryCNOTrainingForPublic.pdf *Hack Battle Version 4 Proposition* This year we would wish to host a Hackbattle Version 4 Competition that shows the resources required when hunting for an adversary who is planning for a terror activity against a country. This lab will showcase the need of rethinking Computer Network Operations for Government and other Authorities and effectively communicate the necessity to defend infrastructures used by Critical Services, Financial Sector, Intelligence, Data Storage, Aerospace, Utilities and Energy. If you are interested in sponsoring such an endeavor/event kindly reach me privately on email. Highly Appreciated. Gichuki Jonia -- -- OnNet CTO http://www.onnetservices.io

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Senators Grill Tech CEOs Again: The Information’s Tech Briefing
by Ali Hussein 18 Nov '20

18 Nov '20

Listers Internet Governance in focus. In this particular case the issue is America’s Section 230 of the Communications Decency act which states that:- "No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider" In short - Third Party Liability. How this will pan out will have a global effect as the main target of these hearings is #BigTech. Your guess is as good as mine as to how this will go. One thing though is becoming increasingly clear to me - Governments and #BigTech are all in it for the POWER. Who controls the data controls the citizens. Makes #GOT look like child’s play. > > > > Tech Briefing > November 17, 2020 > > Greetings! > > Another day, another congressional hearing for tech CEOs. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey (complete with that beard) were at it again, appearing before a congressional committee on Tuesday to discuss Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act—the law that gives internet platforms immunity from liability for what users post. But unlike the most recent hearing, before the Senate Commerce Committee, today’s hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee was a little bit less contentious. > > For the most part, there was less of the shouting—although Sen. Ted Cruz once again went on the attack about bias against conservatives, as did Sen. Josh Hawley. Democrats such as Sen. Richard Blumenthal, on the other hand, accused Facebook of caving to pressure from conservatives on not taking more action about conservative content. > > Sen. Lindsay Graham, the committee chair, helped lower the temperature with an opening statement that emphasized the aim to come up with standards that make social media’s content moderation more transparent to users. Whether that will lead anywhere remains the unanswered question.—Martin Peers > > Onto other news... > > ELLIOTT DEACTIVATES AT&T STAKE > You win some, you lose some. That might be the Elliott Management philosophy as it exits its stake in AT&T, 14 months after disclosing the $3.2 billion position. After pressuring AT&T to consider selling DirecTV, among other assets, and to improve its corporate governance, the outcome is mixed. It’s not even clear Elliott made any money on the investment. > > AT&T has reportedly tried to sell DirecTV, without success. It added a couple of new directors. But AT&T’s stock price is trading about 13% below where it was when Elliott first wrote to AT&T outlining its concerns. > > It may be that the media’s expectations of activist investors like Elliott are overblown. In some companies, such as eBay, Elliott had a big impact, triggering numerous asset sales and senior management changes. Sometimes, though, the activists appear to be coopted by the target. Nine months after Elliott took a stake in Twitter, reportedly unhappy about CEO Jack Dorsey’s part-time role, Dorsey has just been affirmed in his position by a board committee that includes an Elliott representative. Twitter shares are up 20%, though, which may satisfy the activist. > > Elliott has a position in Dropbox, securities filings show, another tech firm with tepid growth and a depressed stock price. Given the recent history of Elliott’s tech adventures, no one should bet on any miracles occurring there. > > DISCUSSING AIRBNB’S IPO > Airbnb became an iconic Silicon Valley company doing what many startups can only dream about. “They created a market that didn't really exist before,” said Tobias Wann, a former travel industry executive, during The Information's live video conference on Airbnb on Tuesday. > > But how tight of a grip does 12-year-old Airbnb still have on that market? The company stressed in its IPO paperwork that the No. 1 factor affecting its future performance, as the travel industry recovers, was its ability to attract and retain hosts. Before the pandemic, growth in active listings on the site had slowed from 33% in 2018 to 29% in 2019. As we reported recently, executives are worried those active listings could slip further in cities where hosts saw a decline in bookings. > > For now, potential investors should be heartened that the majority of its hosts list their homes only on Airbnb, the company said in the filing. "That's the secret sauce that makes Airbnb in my mind work," said Drew Patterson, executive chairman of short-term rental data firm Transparent Intelligence, in the video call. > > Interest in Airbnb's IPO is high, with twice as many potential investors showing interest in research on Airbnb compared with DoorDash, said Bernstein senior analyst Mark Shmulik.—Cory Weinberg > > ROBINHOOD’S IPO PLANS > Robinhood, the trading platform credited with bringing lots of new individual investors into the stock market, is discussing an IPO in the first quarter of next year, Bloomberg reported. > > That seems appropriate. Earlier in the year, when the stock market began to rally after the pandemic plunge, Robinhood was credited in various news reports with bringing new investors into the market and driving the market’s recovery. > > That role has been reflected in fundraising success. Robinhood raised $460 million in venture funding last month, following a $200 million funding round in August, with the most recent round valuing the company at $11.7 billion. Now all those retail investors trading through Robinhood may get a chance to buy shares in the company itself. > > IN OTHER NEWS… > Twitter will introduce vanishing tweets available to its users globally. The new feature, called Fleets, are fullscreen posts that disappear after 24 hours, replicating the Stories format pioneered years ago by Snapchat. > Amazon launched a prescription drug delivery service called “Amazon Pharmacy,” letting customers purchase prescription medicine and upload their healthcare insurance information to the website. > Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing unveiled an electric vehicle it co-developed with Chinese EV maker BYD. The new D1 electric car, custom-built for ride-hailing, is part of Didi’s effort to boost the supply of qualified vehicles that meet local government regulations that have become tighter in recent years. > SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said he has $80 billion in cash for investments and stock buybacks, Bloomberg reported. > NEW FROM OUR REPORTERS > > > AGoldman Sachs Goes on AWS Hiring Binge to Boost AI, Cloud Efforts > By Kevin McLaughlin > A little over a year ago, Marco Argenti, a top engineering executive at Amazon Web Services, left the cloud computing arm of the internet retail giant to join Goldman Sachs as co–chief information officer. READ STORY → > > > > OnlyFans Chief Talks Sports Ambitions and Role of Adult Content in Site > By Tom Dotan > One of the buzziest companies in tech today, OnlyFans, is about as far from a typical startup as is possible. READ STORY → > > > > Rental Startup Domio Plans to Shut Down After Failing to Raise Funds > By Paris Martineau > Domio, a short-term rental startup founded in 2016, plans to shut down and is looking to sell its assets, according to two investors in the company and documents viewed by The Information. READ STORY → > > Corporate Subscriptions > Get Team Access to Breaking Tech News > Empower your teams to stay ahead of market trends with the most trusted tech journalism. For group access to insider scoops on upcoming IPOs and startups, deep insights on the biggest tech competitors and more, visit here. > > WHAT WE’RE READING > America’s Zombie Companies Have Racked Up $1.4 Trillion in Debt: READ NOW → > The Substackerati: READ NOW → > Steve Jobs’ Last Gambit: Apple’s M1 Chip: READ NOW → > Uber and Lyft Are Going National With Prop 22 Concept, Despite Voter Complaints: READ NOW → > Sent to ali(a)hussein.me.ke | Unsubscribe from these emails | Help > The Information · 1 Post Street, Suite 1050, San Francisco CA 94104 >

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Fwd: Registration for the 9th virtual African IGF - (vAfIGF-2020)
by Keith Andere 18 Nov '20

18 Nov '20

Dear Listers, African IGF is holding from 24-27 November. It’s registration is now open. Please find the details below. Regards ANDERE K ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Information Society Division <ISD(a)africa-union.org> Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2020 at 01:12 Subject: Registration for the 9th virtual African IGF - (vAfIGF-2020) To: Cc: Joshua Joshua <joshuajosh59(a)gmail.com>, Bernard Brain-Cudjoe < BrainB(a)africa-union.org>, biraza gustave <birazagustave(a)gmail.com>, Secretariat of the African IGF <africanigf(a)gmail.com>, Mary Uduma < mnuduma(a)yahoo.com> <https://au.int/en/newsevents/20201116/africa-industrialisation-week-2020> *Dear members of African IGF community,* *We are pleased to announce that registration for this year forum is now OPEN. Please visit the link *2020.afigf.africa *to register for the Forum. Once you have completed your registration, you will be able to view the draft programme and create your own personal calendar. To participate in a particular session, click on the link associated with the session you wish to attend to add it to your personal calendar. Various zoom rooms have been availed to accommodate breakout sessions during Day 0 (25 November 2020). Day 1 and day 2 (26th & 27th of November 2020) will only have Plenary sessions. * *Find a few guidelines that can be used for the Event:* https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eTwbWsWIQ0LRFOZI16wpWTQma9ltwp-0C41UVkt… *Important Notes:* *1. **The Forum will be preceded by two pre-events, namely the African School on IG (AfriSIG) and the African Youth IGF to be held on the 23rd and 24th of November respectively, * *2. **Registration for the African School on IG is closed to AfriSIG Alumni and PRIDA trainers,* *3. **Please do share the registration link (2020.afigf.africa) with people in your network,* *4. **For further information / inquiries regarding the African Youth IGF please contact Keith Andere (*kephand(a)gmail.com*),* 5. *This year vAfIGF-2020 event is themed “**Unlocking Africa's Digital Opportunities During and Post COVID-19**”,* *6. **The main theme, plenary and breakout sessions were chosen by the African IGF MAG from the session proposals submitted by the community. * *Thank you,* *The AfIGF Secretariat* Information Society Division Information Society Division Infrastructure & Energy Department *Tel: * *Mobile:* *E-mail:* ISD(a)africa-union.org P.O. Box 3243 | Roosvelt Street (Old Airport Area) | W21K19 | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia www.au.int <https://www.facebook.com/AfricanUnionCommission/> <https://twitter.com/_africanunion> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/african-union-commission-addis-ababa> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/african-union-commission-addis-ababa> This e-mail and any attachments are confidential and intended solely for the addressee and may also be privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the addressee, or have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately, delete it from your system and do not copy, disclose or otherwise act upon any part of this e-mail or its attachments. -- Keith Andere Tech | Peace & Security | Sustainable Development | AfricaWeWant W: wa.me/254722565212 Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail or it's contents.

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Ajira : Tapping in to The Digital Space
by David Indeje 17 Nov '20

17 Nov '20

Lister's, Tonight on #TakeOnTech, we shall be hosting Ms. Maureen Mmbaka, CAS, Ministry of ICT, Innovation & Youth Affairs to share more on the Ajira Digital Program. The Program is a Kenyan government initiative driven by the Ministry of ICT, Innovations and Youth Affairs to empower over one million young people to access digital job opportunities. The program seeks to position Kenya as a choice labour destination for multinational companies as well as encourage local companies and public sector to create digital work. Where: KBC TV Time: 10:00pm, 17 Nov 2020 https://lnkd.in/dcXatev

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Fwd: [IGF2020] Register now for the IGF Closing Session
by Barrack Otieno 17 Nov '20

17 Nov '20

Listers, This might be of interest. Good to see one of the Kenya School of Internet Governance Alumni on the closing panel representing the Youth globaly. Well done Valerie. Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: IGF 2020 <igf2020participants(a)intgovforum.org> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2020, 4:07 am Subject: [IGF2020] Register now for the IGF Closing Session To: igf2020participants(a)intgovforum.org <igf2020participants(a)intgovforum.org > *Reminder! * *Register now for the IGF Closing Session* Dear participants, Thank you for your participation at the vIGF2020! As we head into the final day of the event, this is a kind reminder to register and join us for the official *Closing Session* <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2020-high-level-closin…> , featuring… - A Closing Keynote address by the United Nations Secretary-General *Mr. António Guterres* <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/antonio-guterres/> - Two high-level roundtable discussions moderated by *Mr. Jonathan Charles* <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/mr-jonathan-charles/>, former BBC anchor of Hard Talk, now Director of Communication at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), featuring contributions by: - H.E. Mr. Marek Zagórski <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-mr-marek-zagorski/>, Secretary of State at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Poland - H.E. Ms. Maria Del Pilar Garrido <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-ms-maria-del-pilar-garrido-gon…>, Minister of National Planning and Economic Policy, Costa Rica - H.E. Dr. Ahmedin Ahmed <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-dr-ahmedin-mohammed/>, State Minister of Innovation and Technology, Ethiopia - H.E. Mr. Maxim Parshin <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-mr-maxim-parshi/>, Deputy Minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media, Russian Federation - H.E. Mr. Toomas Hendrik Ilves <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-mr-toomas-hendrik-%e2%80%8e/>, Former President of Estonia - H.E. Mr. Ryota Takeda <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/h-e-mr-ryota-takeda/>, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan - Mr. Krzysztof Szubert <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/mr-krzysztof-szubert/>, Chairperson of Plenipotentiary for IGF 2021, Poland - Ms. Vera Songwe <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/ms-vera-songwe/>, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa - Mr. Fabrizio Hochschild <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/special-adviser-on-the-preparation…>, UN Under-Secretary-General, Special Adviser on Preparations for 75th UN Anniversary - Mr. Vint Cerf <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/vint-cerf/>, Chief Internet Evangelist, Google - Mr. Goran Marby <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/goran-marby/>, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), CEO and President - Ms. Anriette Esterhuysen <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/anriette-esterhuysen/>, IGF Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) Chair - Ms. Vallarie Yiega <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/ms-vallarie-bio/>, Youth Representative, Kenya - Mr. Mats Granryd <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/mr-mats-granryd/>, Director General of GSM Association - Closing remarks by *Mr. Liu Zhenmin* <https://www.intgovforum.org/vIGF/speaker/liu-zhenmin/>*,* Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Livestream via *UN WebTV* <http://webtv.un.org/live-now/watch/igf-closing-session/6127841122001> <https://www.youtube.com/user/igf>Visit the IGF Trello board *here* <https://trello.com/b/IGi07GUq/internet-governance-forum-2020> See the Internet Governance Forum schedule *here* <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/igf-2020-schedule> Subscribe to the Internet Governance Forum monthly newsletter *here* <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-communications-subscri…> Best regards, IGF Secretariat

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PROBE: Please ignore
by Odhiambo Washington 16 Nov '20

16 Nov '20

-- Best regards, Odhiambo WASHINGTON, Nairobi,KE +254 7 3200 0004/+254 7 2274 3223 "Oh, the cruft.", grep ^[^#] :-)

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2020 Digital Storytelling Workshop
by Lolyne Ongeri 02 Nov '20

02 Nov '20

Dear all, I hope this email finds you well. We, in partnership with the American Spaces, have opened applications for the 2020 digital storytelling workshop. As such, we will be targeting youth who have finished secondary school but have not yet enrolled in university. The program’s aim is to equip the youth in the intermediary stage with digital skills to craft online personal narratives, employing multimedia components of narrative, text, images, and sound, that foster dialogue and empowers vulnerable voices. Please find more information below: https://www.blog.bake.co.ke/2020/10/30/bake-us-embassy-digital-storytelling… Kindly share with your networks. -- Kind Regards, Lolyne Ongeri | Digital Communications Executive, Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE). Phone: +254 704090471, +254 733522229 Email: lolyne(a)bake.or.ke | Website: bake.co.ke |BAKE Awards: bakeawards.co.ke <http://www.bakeawards.co.ke/> Become a member: bake.co.ke/membership <http://www.blog.bake.co.ke/2015/09/09/how-to-become-a-bake-member/> Follow us: *Twitter*: @bakekenya <http://twitter.com/BakeKenya>, *FB*: fb.com/bakekenya <http://facebook.com/bakekenya> & *YouTube*: youtube.com/bakekenya

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Liberating user data from the platform monopolies?
by John Kieti 29 Oct '20

29 Oct '20

Dear Listers, Just a random thought. What if the law entitled users to a periodic (eg. quarterly) download of all data collected of them by large platform companies (including telcos); and the users could grant file access to the competitors as the user migrates? What if it was API-based data access that the user could grant to third parties including competitors? What if there was an automated data depository eg. for telcos; whereby I can invoke the right to access all the data the telco holds of me, and I proceed to grant the data depository access to my data, automatically retrieved from my telco A. That way my data *anonymized or otherwise permitted* can be accessible from the depository and aggregated with other peoples' to develop services on top of the data layer by third parties such as startups, data mining & research services, and even telco B which competes as an underdog with telco A. The assumption would be that the user owns the data held by the platform/telco which has already got its head start with appropriating my data by collecting it in realtime. It would also be assumed that access to my data in the depository is only by licensed entities under stringent rules that respect my access permission settings. What could go wrong with such an approach to user data? What could go well? Any thoughts? -- John Kieti Phone: +254-735-764242 // +254-722-764242 Twitter: @johnKieti <https://twitter.com/johnkieti> // Skype: jkieti Blog: gmeltdown.com <http://www.gmeltdown.com> // LinkedIn: https://ke.linkedin.com/in/*kieti* <https://ke.linkedin.com/in/kieti> The ordinary just won't do

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