NITDA endows 3 Nigerian tertiary institutions with N6.5m for software devt

By Prince Osuagwu

Three tertiary institutions in the country have received a staggering N6.25 million financial aids from the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, for the development of local software in the country. The Institutions are Abia state Polytechnic Aba, Federal University of Technology Akure and Federal University of Technology, Minna.

NITDA DG, Angaye

NITDA gave the financial aids to redeem two separate promises it made in Calabar, Cross River state, at the Institute of Software Practioners of Nigeria ( ISPON) conference, October last year,  that three lucky tertiary institutions would benefit from its financial endowment for the development of local software in Nigeria.

The endowment, according to NITDA would run for five years.

The institutions, NITDA said, were selected based on their performance during a national software development competition for tertiary institutions held at the conference.

Abia State Polytechnic Aba received the NITDA endowment for being the winner of the Software Design Architecture at the competition. The Federal University of Technology Minna also received a NITDA endowment for Software development excellence conferred on the overall winner at the conference, while NITDA DG’s also gave his personal award for the Best Open Source Software of the Year. The award went to the Federal University of Technology Akure.

While presenting the financial awards to the recipients in Abuja last week, Angaye said the awards were given as part of NITDA’s measures of promoting the growth of the IT sector in the country as well as encouraging IT local content development for wealth creation. 

He also added that the gesture was in continuation of its public-private-partnership model of ensuring that Nigeria becomes a key player in the global IT industry.

Angaye said that “on a personal note, I decided to take up the sponsorship of the Best Open Source Software of the Year award due to my profession as a software practitioner and the need to encourage the discovery of globally competitive critical mass of other software engineers in Nigeria”.

 He noted that no country can develop and compete at the global level at this information age without adequate and sound software base adding that the software industry is no doubt of utmost importance to future competitiveness for economies across the globe especially with its halo effect in creating related business opportunities.

For him, a study of the economic impact of the software industry in Southeast Asia countries has discovered that there was a conservative multiplying economic effect of about 1.7 for upstream and downstream industries.

End-user industries also benefit enormously from reduced cost, increased productivity and increased business opportunities.

Angaye said the target of the stakeholders in the IT sector in Nigeria is to ensure that the sector contributes immensely to the growth of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as compared to the oil and Gas sector in the not too distance future.

NSE says NigComSat-1R, key to Vision 202020 success

By Prince Osuagwu

The Nigerian Society of Engineers, at the weekend said that part of the ways to achieving the Vision 2020-20 project was to ensure that Ministries, Directorates and Agencies of government and the private sector patronize the services of the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited’s replace satellite, NIGCOMSAT-1R.

Executives of the society who visited and toured the facilities of the satellite company last week, in Abuja, noted that with billions of naira already invested on infrastructure like NigComSat -1R which is now functional, the country was clearly on its way to joining the developed world in the race for vision 20.20.20.

President of Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE), Engr. Mustapha B. Shehu (right);  Immediate past president of NSE, Engr. Olumuyiwa Ajibola (2nd right); MD NIGCOMSAT, Engr. Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai (far left) and others during the visit of Nigeria Society of Engineers’ Exco to NIGCOMSAT ground control station in Abuja recently.

President of the Society Engr. Mustapha  Shehu said that the Federal Government would do the citizens a world of good if it puts in place policies that could encourage Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to leverage on what NIGCOMSAT has for the benefit of the people.

“The Federal Government which came up with this project means well and after spending huge sums of money, cannot allow this to go the Ajaokuta Steel way”, Shehu added.

He also called on the State Governments, Organised Private Sector, to patronise the NIGCOMSAT facilities if they must join the rest of the world in technology acquisition and economic emancipation.

The society has expressed absolute confidence in NigComSat’s resolve to bringing affordable broadband access to the Nigerian populace.

The delegation, expressed satisfaction with the knowledge transfer of technology by the Chinese people, after embarking on an extensive tour of the facilities where the operations of NigComSat-1R, the geostationary satellite launched in December 2011 is being closely monitored and sustained by Nigerian engineers.

Earlier in his welcome remarks, Managing Director of NigComSat Ltd, Engr. Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai told the group of the capabilities of the Micro-Electronic Centre(MEC) and the Direct to Home(DTH) satellite broadcasting platform which enables viewers to receive a minimum of 200 to 300 channels.

He  assured the engineers that when fully deployed, content providers would have an opportunity to ride on the platform and leverage its use to revolutionise the broadcasting media in Nigeria and contribute immensely to the improvement of broadcasting in general especially that we have a few year to migrate to digital broadcasting.

Nokia partners Microsoft, Dalberg on Innovation for Vision 20:2020

Nokia CEO- Stephen Elop

By Prince Osuagwu

Global phone manufacturer, Nokia polled resources together with leading Software maker, Microsoft and Global Development Advisors, Dalberg to organise a full day forum to discuss ways the ICT sector can impact agriculture, job creation and the power sector in achieving Nigeria’s Vision 20:2020 goals.

The forum tagged, ‘Innovation for Vision 20:2020 Forum’ stimulated discussion around how information and communication technologies and local innovations can be used for improving the performance of the agriculture, entrepreneurial and energy sectors and what barriers exist for unleashing creativity both within public and private domains for making these solutions a reality. Microsoft’s General Manager for Nigeria Emmanuel Onyeje pointed out that “it is important to build our understanding and knowledge about the power of ICT’s, but only action will allow us to reach our dreams. We need to move from policies to actionable programs that benefit the people.”.

 Speaking at the forum, Robin Miller, Manager and ICT subject expert for Dalberg explained that the primary criterion for choosing the agricultural, entrepreneurship and the power sectors is due to their unique ability to drive inclusive and sustainable growth.

‘’Nigeria is one of the fastest growing economies in Africa with potential for global competitiveness. As such, we must look beyond the traditional solutions and recognize ICT innovation as a cornerstone of the country’s development,” she said.

The forum highlighted the current global thinking about the role of technology and innovation in driving national competitiveness, economic growth and social development.

Ericsson laces Networked Society with music

By Prince Osuagwu

 Although Ericsson divorced it relationship with device maker Sony, there are indications the telecommunications backbone provider is not finished yet with music and other forms of creating world entertainment.

Now the company has just announced collaboration with world-famous DJ and producer Avicii to show how the Networked Society enables innovation and business transformation.

The Networked Society is Ericsson’s description of a world where real-time connectivity between people, places and things enables new ways of doing business and accessing entertainment. The entertainment industry has proven a success in embracing new models, beginning with digital distribution. This project is a prime example that now takes a further step into creation and production.  Ericsson says it will use this project as a proof point in conversations with other industries.

Avicii is a young, progressive artist who has already tested new ground in ways of working and creating music. His fan base grew from nothing to tens of millions on social media alone, with his two recent hit singles on label Universal Music Sweden.  He wa

The Youth sensation.....Avicii

s recently ranked as the second-most influential under-30 person in music by Forbes magazine.

The project begins with asking Avicii’s fans and producers from all over the world to contribute sound files over the internet.  The ‘Avicii x You’ project already kicked off Wednesday. The project will create the world’s first “crowdsourced” hit song, to be released on February 26, 2013.

Avicii says: “I am thrilled to ask my fans to be part of my creative process.  We’re taking music production and distribution  and probably performance  to the next level.”

Meanwhile, Ericsson’s Chief Marketing Officer Arun Bhikshesvaran said that “by 2018, we believe mobile data traffic will grow about 12-fold from its current levels, driven by entertainment experiences. In addition, according to our 10 Hot Consumer Trends for 2013, social entertainment, collaboration and creativity in city life and cloud-based services are key ingredients of the evolving Networked Society. We look forward to engaging with our customers and other key stakeholders to realize our vision of the Networked Society,"

Sony shows stuff with new waterproof Walkman MP3 player

By Prince Osuagwu

 Remember the Sony Walkman? It made a buzz among Nigerian youths some years back and helped in boosting market shares of the device maker. But this time around, when you see one, you can easily spot it on and dip into the swimming pool. Like they say ‘no shaking’ in Nigerian local parlance, there is nothing to worry about. The device gives you entertainment under the water and still remains active when you are done swimming. The new waterproof music player combines a pair of ear buds with an MP3 player in a single unit, with no external device required to play tunes.

The new device strips out all the excess cables and devices to leave a much more streamlined player that won't restrict movements either in water or when jogging or running.

On the surface, the new MP3 player looks like a pair of large ear buds, but the two boxes on the sides actually house the entire player itself. The device has been designed with fitness in mind, making it much more comfortable to work out, jog, or swim while wearing it. With its waterproof construction, swimmers can take the MP3 player in the pool, and other users won't have to worry about it being dama

The new waterproof Sony Walkman

ged from heavy sweat. The two ear buds are also held together with a tension band that wraps around the back of the wearer's head.

Sony designed the new Walkman in a way that users can load up to 4GB of music with a Personal Computer and get eight hours of playtime on a full charge. But even at just three minutes charge, the Walkman can play one hour of audio.

According to Sony the ear buds will produce exceptional audio, even while underwater.

For the user, there are easy controls and adjustment of the device’s volume output on the bottom of each side of the earbuds. Through the controls the user can also skip through tracks, pause or play songs. Sony's

Sony promises to make the device available March this year at an appromiate price of US$99.99.

Hyper introduces new line of iUSBport storage options for Wi-Fi devices

By Prince Osuagwu

Common complaint from users of iPhone or iPads, particularly in Nigeria, is the inability to either transfer files, documents from their USBs to the devices or vice versa. This inability is because the devices have always lacked USB ports.

The iUSB port

Although Apple provides alternatives with Dropbox, iCloud, and email to solve the problem of managing files many users still prefer external storage .

Perhaps that is why a new technology company, Hyper debuted recently with iUSBport. The new tech streams USB content to any Wi-Fi enabled device  over a local network. It takes only to plug in your favorite USB drive, join its Wi-Fi network, open the free app, and stream your own 1080p movie or any other files for that matter.

iUSBport2 is the second iteration of the device. The first iUSBport was originally called CloudFTP and adds a second USB port, microSDXC slot, backlit LCD, and 3,300 mAh battery. Hyper says that it streams data 50 percent faster than the original.

Hyper also gave iUSBport2 a couple of siblings. iUSBport HD is the largest model, rocking a 2.5-inch hard drive USB 3.0, 5,200 mAh battery, and all the perks of the iUSBport2.

iUSBport mini is, naturally, the compact version. Built like a flash drive, you can connect it to an actual flash drive, or  if connected to external power, it becomes a USB hard drive.

iUSBport2 will retail for US$150, iUSBport HD will be $160, and iUSBport mini will ring up for $70. All three models will launch in Q1 2013.

SECURE YOUR SYSTEMS: Symantec predicts increase in cyber conflicts in 2013

By Prince Osuagwu

Three big trends; mobility, virtualization and cloud computing which increased cyber threat, created changes and affected the way many organizations approached IT in 2012. Indications have also emerged that these trends may still continue to drive change in 2013.

Beware!  ...  hackers on the prowl

Experts are predicting that organizations will continue to grapple with a growing amount of information and an increasingly toxic and targeted threat landscape. These trends are giving IT an opportunity to rethink their approach to make their organizations more efficient, more scalable and more cost effective.

However, the effect according to internet security experts would be heavier on small- and medium-sized businesses SMBs.

Internet security giants, Symantec in its latest released predictions for 2013 specifically pointed out that “we don’t foresee that attacks against these smaller businesses will not let up, we’ll see SMBs fall victim to not only other cyber conflict but also of their own lack of preparation”.

Some of the predictions by Symantec included that in 2013, there would be increase in cyber conflicts between nations, which would lead organizations and individuals to play integral roles in the cyber world.

The prediction foresees Nations or organized groups of individuals continuing to use cyber tactics in an attempt to damage or destroy secure information or funds of its targets. “In 2013, we will see the cyber equivalent of saber rattling, where nation states, organizations, and even groups of individuals use cyber attacks to show their strength and send messages.”

Other predictions included that fake antivirus has begun to fade as a criminal enterprise, and ransomware, a new and harsher model has emerged. Ransomware infects a computer system and restricts access until a ransom is paid to the creator of the malware.

It goes beyond attempting to fool its victims; it attempts to intimidate and bully them. In 2013, attackers will use more professional ransom screens, up the emotional stakes to motivate their victims, and use methods that make it harder to recover data once compromised.

There is also the fear that monetization of social networks will introduces new dangers because as consumers place a high level of trust in social media. from the sharing of personal details, to spending money on game credits, to gifting items to friends.

Symantec says that this growing social spending trend will also provide cybercriminals with new ways to lay the groundwork for attack.

Meanwhile, there is also this strong belief that attackers will shift to mobile and cloud because as unmanaged mobile devices continue to enter and exit corporate networks and pick up data that later tends to become stored in other clouds, there is increased risk of breaches and targeted attacks on mobile device data.

According to Symantec, “some mobile malware duplicates old threats, like stealing information from devices, but it also has created new twists on old malware. Today mobile malware sends premium text messages to accounts that bad guys can profit from. In 2013 you can be sure that mobile technology will continue to advance and thereby create new opportunities for cybercriminals”.

....Know what to secure and how

Solutions:
Symantec says that for organisations to avert damages and apparent loss of data, when attacks happen, there are series of precautions to take, including to:

•Know what you need to protect: One data breach could have serious impacts on business financially including loss of time and damage to brand reputation. Look at where your information is being stored and used, and protect those areas accordingly.

•Enforce strong password policies: Passwords with eight characters or more and use a combination of letters, numbers and symbols (e.g., # $ % ! ?) will help protect your data.

•Map out a disaster preparedness plan today: Don't wait until it's too late. Identify your critical resources, use appropriate security and backup solutions to archive important files, and test frequently.

•Encrypt confidential information: Implement encryption technologies on desktops, laptops and removable media to protect your confidential information from unauthorized access, providing strong security for intellectual property, customer and partner data.

•Use a reliable security solution: Today's solutions do more than just prevent viruses and spam; they scan files regularly for unusual changes in file size, programs that match known malware, suspicious e-mail attachments and other warning signs. It's the most important step to protect your information.

•Protect Information Completely: It's more important than ever to back up your business information. Combine backup solutions with a robust security offering to protect your business from all forms of data loss.

•Stay up to date: A security solution is only as good as the frequency with which it is updated. New viruses, worms, Trojan horses and other malware are born daily, and variations of them can slip by software that is not current.

•Educate employees: Develop Internet security guidelines and educate employees about Internet safety, security and the latest threats, as well as what to do if they misplace information or suspect malware on their machine.