Author: Gugu Lourie

Consider this: right now, you are not where you think you are. In fact, you happen to be the subject of a science experiment being conducted by an evil genius. By Laura D’Olimpio Your brain has been expertly removed from your body and is being kept alive in a vat of nutrients that sits on a laboratory bench. The nerve endings of your brain are connected to a supercomputer that feeds you all the sensations of everyday life. This is why you think you’re living a completely normal life. Do you still exist? Are you still even “you”? And is the…

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Many undergraduates in Nigerian universities dabble in internet fraud. Nicknamed “yahoo-yahoo” after the international web portal and search engine, this perfidy has become a way of life for the young con-artists. Many of these fraudsters – dubbed “yahoo-boys” – have become filthy rich. By Oludayo Tade Some have been caught by the law. In April 2012, Olasaidi Dare, an undergraduate of the Olabisi Onabanjo University in Ago-Iwoye, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for an attempt to obtain money under false pretences in a cyber-café. On June 5 2012, a Federal High Court in Kaduna State sentenced Imonina Kingsley, of the…

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Cell C, the country’s third biggest mob ile phone operator supports the Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services Siyabonga Cwele’s plans to review ICASA’s decision to invite telecommunications firms to apply for the high demand radio frequency spectrum. On July 15, ICASA today officially invited telcos such as Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom, etc, to apply for 4G licenses to provide much-needed broadband services. Applicants will be vying to apply for the radio frequency spectrum licenses within the designated range: the 2.6GHz band and the 800 MHz band and the 700MHz band for the purposes of providing national broadband wireless access services. “After…

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The City of Johannesburg and Microsoft South Africa have joined forces to train one million disadvantaged residents, free, on digital skills and literacy over a period of five-years. By The NewsAgency The City’s Mayor Parks Tau announced this on Tuesday, in Johannesburg, saying registration commences early in August and the curriculum is expected to begin in September. The initiative is termed JoziMS1million. He said 800 000 of the one million to benefit from the programme will be youth between 18 and 34 years of age, and the rest will be those above 35 but still need to access the job market…

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IBM today announced the results of a global study which found that the average cost of a data breach in South Africa is R1 548. By Staff Writer The report analysed the financial impact of data breaches on a company’s bottom line. Sponsored by IBM and conducted by the Ponemon Institute, the study included a first time benchmark study on the cost of data breach incidents specifically for companies in South Africa. The study found the average cost of data breach is R1,548, with a total organisational cost of R28,6 million. Globally, cybersecurity incidents continue to grow in both volume and…

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More than half a billion people across Africa are now subscribed to mobile services as the continent continues to migrate rapidly to mobile broadband networks, reveals a new GSMA study. By Staff Writer ‘The Mobile Economy: Africa 2016’ report published today also highlights the increasing contribution of Africa’s mobile industry to the regional economy, including employment and public funding, and mobile’s role a platform for digital and financial inclusion. The report finds that there were 557 million unique mobile subscribers across Africa at the end of 2015, equivalent to 46 per cent of the continent’s population, making Africa the second-largest…

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South Africa’s Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago has forecast zero percent growth for 2016, 1.5% in 2017 and 1.7% in 2018. This spells disaster for the country, particularly the unemployed. The jobless rate is expected to rise from its current level of nearly 27%. What must be done to improve the economy? Sibonelo Radede, The Conversation Africa’s business and economy editor, asked Lumkile Mondi to share his thoughts. What company is South Africa keeping in the world? What are the main common drivers? We are in the company of some of our chosen friends in BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India…

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Technological innovation has – and continues to – transform the world we live and work in but can it potentially change the way we vote by streamlining and simplifying voting by completely digitalising the process? According to Mark Chirnside – CEO at local tech solutions company, ThisIsMe – the answer is a resounding yes. At a time when local municipal elections are top of mind, Chirnside highlights that this is a domain where technology could potentially offer a solution, simplifying the often admin-intensive process. “While a complete solution will require years of research, planning and testing, there are platforms currently…

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Fans of singer-songwriter Alicia Keys were greeted with a simple message earlier this year when they entered the Highline Ballroom, in New York, to watch her perform. By Brett Hutchins This is a phone free event. Their smartphones were placed in a lockable pouch distributed by the consumer electronics company, Yondr. They carried the pouch with them, only opening it when they exited the venue by tapping on a metal disc located at the main door. No mobile video or audio recording, live streaming, tweeting, status updates, texting or phone calls occurred while Keys performed on stage. Alicia Keys performing in…

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South Africa’s ZAdotCities domains of .capetown (‘dotCapeTown’), .joburg (‘dotJoburg’) and .durban (‘dotDurban’) have notched up impressive totals of over 4 500, 3 500 and 2 500 domain name registrations, respectively. This is as of today and according to the ZA Central Registry (ZACR), which first made these geographic Top Level Domains (gTLDs) available for public registration in July 2014. “The Internet presence of our three leading cities is rapidly becoming a South African online success story,” said ZACR CEO, Lucky Masilela. The exact statistics for these gTLDs are available on ZACR’s website, www.registry.net.za. “There is sustained local and overseas interest…

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