Anti-secrecy activists publish a trove of ransomware victims’ data
For years, radical transparency-focused activists like WikiLeaks have blurred the line between whistle-blowing and hacking. Often, they’ve published any data they consider to be of public interest, no matter how questionable the source. But now one leak-focused group is mining a controversial new vein of secrets: the massive caches of...
Zuckerberg to Trump: Go away quietly, don’t undermine law and order
As of Thursday morning, following a day in which a mob of the president’s supporters violently invaded the US Capitol, the president’s Twitter account was temporarily frozen. YouTube had taken down his latest video and most remarkably, Mark Zuckerberg had announced that Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts were suspended indefinitely....
Big relief for scientists as UK, EU sign Brexit trade deal
Researchers reacted with relief to the news that the United Kingdom and the European Union had reached a last-minute trade deal on December 24 – ending more than four years of uncertainty over what their relationship after Brexit would look like. The deal has wide-ranging impacts for scientists — most...
Egyptian bank hires tech firm Temenos to drive digital, financial growth
Egypt’s Arab Investment Bank has picked technology company Temenos Infinity to provide a range of digital customer experience and grow digital customer base. Temenos, a banking software company, confirmed entering the contract with AIB in the first week of 2021 with a promise “to power its digital customer experience” for...
Opinion: Marginalised groups were ‘mistreated’ by Wikipedia’s editing corps
More than decade ago, I wrote an essay comparing Wikipedia to a vibrant city, how it “can send you down unlikely alleyways” via the many links embedded on a single page: There are the links to articles about other people or places mentioned; links to categories of articles on similar...
Wikipedia’s major challenge: Reliability and sturdiness of its community of editors
Facts are stubborn things. And that stubbornness was a vital asset for Wikipedia in 2020, as it unapologetically banned from its pages disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic and the presidential election. The contrast was sharp with global digital platforms like Facebook and YouTube, which slowly, and often ineffectually, responded to...
Universal Music Group picks new team to oversee its business in Africa
World leading record company Universal Music Group (UMG) has strengthened further its position in the industry as a force in Africa by appointing an expansion team to oversee its business Sub-Saharan Africa. These appointments underscore UMG’s ongoing support for Africa’s domestic music ecosystems, while also creating new opportunities for African...
Ethiopia ready to build a 100mw wind power plant
Siemens Gamesa has signed its first wind power project in Ethiopia with state-owned electricity company Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) and in the process strengthened its leadership in Africa as the East African nation embarks on expansion of its green energy capacity to meet ambitious renewable targets. The 100mw Assela wind...
Equity Bank hits $9.3 billion capital base – the biggest in eastern Africa
Kenya’s Equity Bank has crossed the Ksh1,000,000,000,000 ($9,259,259,260) rubicon, becoming the first bank in East and Central Africa to cross this psychological barrier. Equity, Kenya’s largest bank by customer base, announced that it had reached the milestone following successful migration of Banque Commercial Du Congo (BCDC) to Equity’s Finacle core...
South Africa’s minerals council seals partnership with ‘Mining Indaba’
Minerals Council of South Africa has announced a strategic investment partnership with African Mining Indaba. The partnership comes into effect in February next year. The minerals council has long been a supporter, partner and participant in the annual in-person Mining Indaba. Mining Indaba in local language refers to annual mining...
