Author: Staff Writer

In 1988, a Cornell University graduate student named Robert Morris wanted to measure the size of the Internet. He wrote a program that could spread across a network, install itself on machines, and then Morris would count the instances. From that, the now-infamous ‘Morris Worm’ unintentionally became one of the first known widespread cyberattacks, infecting over 6,000 machines. In 2017, the Wannacry malware virus hit an estimated 1 million machines. According to a report cited by Statista, there were 305 million ransomware attacks in 2020, directed not by curious scholars but organised crime and malicious state actors. The scope and…

Agriculture provides significant opportunities for empowering women both personally and for society at large. About 80% of the world’s food is produced by small-scale farming, with women comprising on average 46% of this agricultural labour in sub-Saharan Africa. The potential for female farmers to thrive is potent but requires, the same skills and financial opportunities afforded to male counterparts. Transforming the face of agriculture Targeted initiatives are needed that secure livelihood and empower young South Africans to be better placed to not only provide economically for themselves but give them a route to a fulfilling and secure occupation and healthy…

Enygma Ventures announced today a R4 million investment into Brown and Ayo, an aspirational lifestyle hair brand, focused on natural hairstyles and trends for black women, in South Africa. “We are super excited about this investment as natural hairstyles and products are a fast-growing trend in an extremely lucrative industry” said Lelemba Phiri, operating partner & principal of Enygma Ventures. “Brown and Ayo have a proven track record of being steps ahead of the trend, whilst serving a powerfully growing yet often ignored consumer – the black woman.” Since 2019 Brown and Ayo have been providing a range of natural…

The ACE submarine cable is now live and available for interconnection at three of Teraco’s data centres across South Africa, expanding access to broadband connectivity and digital services in Africa. ACE is the eighth submarine cable system to connect at Teraco, highlighting Teraco’s position as the leading interconnection hub on the African continent. Spanning approximately 17,000 km along the West Coast of Africa, ACE lands in 19 countries before being backhauled by MTN South Africa, the landing partner, into Teraco’s data centre facilities. Michele McCann, Head of Interconnection and Peering, Teraco, says South Africa is a critical hub for access…

Etion headline earnings a share swell by 1171% to 9.32 cents a share for the year to end-March 2021, giving the JSE-listed tech group investors something to cheer as the turnaround effort shows progress. Headline EPS is South Africa’s main profit gauge. The group also reported that revenue jumped 20% to R692.1 million, and profit after tax soared by 245% to R52.4 million. Etion attributed strong growth in profit after tax of R52.6 million to a combination of revenue growth and cost realignment. The company’s subsidiaries Digitise and Connect underwent a significant restructure to align the cost base with their…

Vodacom has unveiled its much-anticipated VodaPay super app in South Africa, designed in collaboration with FinTech services platform Alipay. Developed by Vodacom Financial Services in partnership with leading global digital lifestyle services platform Alipay, VodaPay is an all-encompassing mobile payments solution that has been customised to meet the specific lifestyle and payment needs of consumers, businesses and tech developers. Vodacom Financial Services is inviting developers and businesses of all sizes to join the VodaPay ecosystem by building their very own Mini Programs. This allows them to leverage off world-class technology to accelerate digital engagement and increase access to the market.…

Africa’s telecom tower firm Eastcastle Infrastructure has secured $130 million (R1.8 billion) to pursue new build-to-suit telecom tower and related infrastructure opportunities initially in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Ivory Coast for their core existing MNO relationships. The company was established in 2020 by Peter Lewis, the former Group CFO and Pankaj Kulshrestha, the former Group COO of Eaton Towers. The funding has been made available by the African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM), one of Africa’s largest infrastructure-focused private equity fund managers, Adenia Partners (Adenia), a private equity firm investing in Africa, and IFC, a member of the…

In just eight months, contactless payment and loyalty solution Zapper has reduced time to exit for parking users by 43% at Cape Town’s busiest mall, Canal Walk. The parking solution has also shown a marked decrease in payment friction as well as reducing the centre’s cash requirements and associated costs. The Zapper system was launched at Canal Walk in partnership with Servest in August 2020. The QR code-based mobile payment solution now accounts for 6.3% of payments with credit card payments accounting for 14% and the remainder coming from cash. The solution has also shown faster time to exit data as…

Mining has played a crucial role in South Africa’s economy for the best part of two centuries. And while it may not play as big a role as it once did, it still contributed R400-billion to GDP in 2020 and employed more than 450 000 people. But if the sector is to remain competitive at a global level, it has to evolve particularly when it comes to embracing digital transformation. While South Africa’s unique circumstances should be taken into account, especially when it comes to factors such as the orebody depth and labour intensity of the country’s mining operations, that…

AirPop is bringing its expertise in creating high-performance air wearable products to South Africa, with the launch today of their new line of consumer face masks. Three AirPop mask models are available for purchase — the Light SE, the Pocket, and the AirPop mask for kids. These masks are part of a bigger category of air wearable products that AirPop pioneered to create better fit and more comfortable breathing for millions of mask consumers worldwide. Air quality has been a problem for decades, in fact, the World Health Organization estimates that 4.6 million people die each year from causes directly…