Category: Cyber Security
Guy hacks UZ and allocates accommodation to students, netting US$3000 in the process
It’s fitting that on the day we are celebrating Computer Security Day we talk about the hacking of UZ. It is reported that one Martin Magomana (36) unlawfully gained access to the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) computer network recently. We are not sure how much access he had and so cannot know the full extent […]
As we celebrate Computer Security Day let’s remind each other of these good habits
Every single one of us relies on some computer for our daily activities. For some, work means sitting in front of a computer. And with the work-from-home shift, this number is quite large now. For some, entertainment is the goal in this era of social distancing and limited gatherings. So pocket computers have been a […]
IFC partners with Liquid Intelligent Technologies to improve Africa’s digital infrastructure
The IFC (International Finance Corporation) has partnered with Liquid Intelligent Technologies to expand data centre capacity and the rollout of fiber-optic cable on the continent. The partnership with Liquid Intelligent Technologies, Africa’s leading independent fiber and digital services provider, strives to increase digital connectivity and inclusion in Africa and to support the region’s growing digital […]
Big Brother is watching: the govt’s social media prefects are back
There truly is nothing new under the sun. Not even in a dynamic place like the little teapot we call home, Zimbabwe. It was only a few years ago that we were making fun of the former finance minister, Chinamasa, when he was made ‘social media prefect.’ Turns out his legacy lives on, the social […]
Liquid & Orange partner to expand network reach across Africa
Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Orange, today announced a new partnership to leverage each other’s existing networks in Africa, allowing them even greater access and opportunity to build their businesses throughout the continent. This partnership will give Liquid access to Orange’s extensive network in West Africa, including the new Djoliba network. Likewise, it will give Orange […]
Facebook sues hacker who scraped the data of 178 million users
On Friday Facebook filed a lawsuit against Ukrainian national Alexander Alexandrovich Solonchenko on allegations that he scraped the data of 174 million users. The hack/scrap according to a report by The Record was done by abusing Facebook Messenger’s called Contact Import. The feature basically allows users to synchronize their mobile phone contacts with Messenger to […]
Liquid named best African Wholesale Carrier for 10th year in a row
Liquid Intelligent Technologies was awarded the Best African Wholesale Carrier for the 10th consecutive year at The Global Carrier Awards ceremony in London last night. The annual awards are the most prestigious in the wholesale telecoms industry and the most prominent global celebration of the wholesale market. They recognise innovation, vision, and excellence to award the best companies, projects, and partnerships […]
[Download] MISA Report on Cybersecurity in SADC & its implications on human rights
The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) has released a report on Cybersecurity in SADC and the implications it has on human rights. The report focuses on established and proposed cybersecurity legislation in the SADC community and how they have impacted human rights. MISA also compares the regional cyber laws with what exists in other […]
Company that routes billions of U.S. SMS messages says it was hacked for five years
According to a report by Ars Technica, Syniverse a company that routes hundreds of billions of SMS messages was the victim of a five-year hack. Syniverse, in a disclosure to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), said that they noticed in May 2021 that someone had unauthorised access to its systems since 2016. After finding […]
Hackers are toppling Belarus gvt, let’s reassess Zimbabwe’s vulnerability to same attack
Earlier this month we discussed the story unfolding in Belarus. We read about how a hacker group called the Belarus Cyber Partisans in conjunction with current and former security officials (BYPOL) cyber-attacked their government. It’s a great story, read it here. In that story the conclusion I made was that the Zimbabwe government was safe […]
Dandemutande has more on the way on top of Facebook powered Wi-Fi hotspots
Dandemutande is probably the most soft-spoken internet provider in Zimbabwe. Most would be forgiven for thinking that the mobile internet, broadband and VSAT market only consists of ZOL and TelOne. This is of course incorrect because, in terms of market presence, Dandemutande is up there with the other players. The company yesterday held a launch […]
Apple releases important security patches for its devices in a bid to thwart the NSO group
If you are a regular reader of Techzim or just love to read and know about tech then you are probably familiar with the Israeli company known as NSO Group. No? This security company has a product known as the Pegasus suite which it sells to governments and authorities around the world. The software allows […]
UK government uses 9/11 anniversary to whine & complain about end-to-end encryption
This past Saturday was the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Despite all the time that has passed it seems these terrorist attacks on America are still a watershed moment and a rallying card that Western governments use whenever they want to frighten their citizens into giving them more powers in the name of security […]
Is the Zimbabwean Government Prepared to Thwart Cyber Attacks?
The cyber attack story that is unfolding in Belarus is destined to have a big budget HBO mini-series made about it. My goodness, the story has everything that makes a compelling thriller – mystery, danger, formidable villains and the unlikeliest of heroes. The story is one of hackers, or more correctly ordinary technology-sector employees, who […]
Bad news for South African looters as Samsung moves to block their stolen TVs
Last month there was widespread looting and chaos in South Africa as alleged supporters of former president Jacob Zuma protested against his incarceration over contempt of court charges. The protests disintegrated into chaos as people started looting shops and blowing up ATMs. Among the popular items stolen were smart TVs. Samsung South Africa has now […]
Cybersecurity Bill returns to Senate for a correction
The Cybersecurity and Data Protection Bill which recently passed through the Senate without any debate has been recommitted to the same body over some errors through Standing Order number 158. This basically means that there are some clauses to the bill that need further attention and after this phase has been completed the Cybersecurity Bill […]
The Cybersecurity Bill is the President’s signature away from being law
The much-debated Cybersecurity and Data Protection Bill sailed through the Senate on Wednesday this week according to a report by NewsDay. The legislation seeks to give Zimbabwe its first baseline where cybersecurity is concerned and is a subject we spoke of at length around this time last year. It has been a while since this […]
Govt officials with US ties were targeted by NSO’s Pegasus spyware according to WhatsApp
Israeli group NSO has been the talk of the town over the last week or so and for good reason. The company’s software Pegasus was reported to have been used to target devices used by activists and journalists the world over. Last week The Washington Post released details showing that the software was used to […]
How to check if your phone was targeted by NSO’s Pegasus software
In case you have been living under a rock somewhere in a remote jungle and missed it, your phone is not impenetrable. It doesn’t matter if it’s running the latest patched version of Android OS or if it’s an iPhone running the latest version of iOS that Tim Cook told you was solid. All one […]
Say hello to Gmail’s authenticated brand logos
The biggest problem with the internet is that anyone can claim to be anyone. When I was a boy all an organisation needed to prove that a piece of communication was from them was a stamp. They would write stuff on a piece of paper and at the end, someone with authority would sign and […]
Check out the BBC’s podcast about hackers who attempted to steal US$1 billion
In heist movies, the hacker is usually a dweeb who has a terrible sense of fashion, poor social skills and wears glasses with thick lenses. They are often presented as a necessary evil, by that I mean necessary to the mission but their roles are not exciting. Often movie producers try to spice up hacker […]
Dandemutande wins Sophos Synchronized Security Partner of the Year 2021
Local ISP and ICT technology company Dandemutande has been awarded the Synchronized Security Partner of the Year 2021 Award by Sophos (a British security software company). Dandemutande was able to beat out all of Sophos’ partners in Zimbabwe and was recognised for outstanding performance and commitment to securing its customers. Sophos is one of the […]
Minister loses US$44 000 to a sim card hijack
Deputy Minister for Sport Tinoda Machakaire, reportedly lost just under US$44 000 or R600 000 to hackers who hijacked his sim card. It’s things like this that remind me just how much power a tiny piece of plastic and metal has. Sim cards have gone from just being a communications gateway to now having access […]
The company POTRAZ got for call monitoring; here are similar deals it made in the past
Earlier this year the government ordered the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) to install a call monitoring system or Telecommunications Traffic Monitoring System (TTMS). The pretext or reason for this move was revenue assurance to keep mobile network operators (MNOs) honest. Now, as far as we know there is no reason for this because […]
Zim Startups, GSMA has opened applications for another innovation fund
Between US$140 000 and US$350 000 up for grabs!
Apple is apparently giving the Chinese govt control over local user data
Is Apple cozying up to the Chinese government?
“Sent my 6 digit code by mistake” text is from hackers trying to gain access to your WhatsApp
On your toes ladies and gentlemen. Vanhu vaya vatanga…
Screenshots: Twitter phishing attack on a Zimbabwean journalist
A Twitter phishing attack in action.