African elections under rising threat from online disinformation - ITREALMS

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In an unprecedented year for elections in Africa, the increasing use of digital disinformation poses a rising threat to democracy across the continent, researchers warn today.

New evidence shows that politicians have been undertaking increasingly sophisticated digital disinformation campaigns. Designed to intentionally disseminate false information on platforms such as Facebook and X, the campaigns are increasingly using tactics such as trolls, cyborgs and bots to disrupt debate and drown-out dissent.

Rising skills gap in telecoms, worrisome says Bayo Azeez - ITREALMS

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The need to bridge the rising skills gap in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and telecommunications sector precisely, before it escalates from an operating threat to an existential one, reports ITREALMS.

The Convener of Policy Implementation Assisted Forum (PIAFo), Mr. Omobayo Azeez, who doubles as Team Lead, Business Metrics Limited, made this call while speaking on the sideline of the 2nd edition of the Nigerian Telecommunications Indigenous Content Expo (NTICE 2023) hosted by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Lagos.

LACMON decries killing of Deborah, David and rising injustice - ITREALMS

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The Catholic Men Organization of Nigeria Lagos Archdiocese (LACMON) has decried the recent killing of Deborah Samuel by her fellow students in Sokoto over accusation of blasphemy, reports ITREALMS.

Deborah was a student of Shehu Shagari College of Education Sokoto and was killed and burnt for alleged blasphemy.

Nokia addresses rising security threats to network operators

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Finland-based Nokia is addressing rising security threats to telecom networks by launching its Security Risk Index (SRI) assessment service and Managed Security Service (MSS), reports ITRealms.

Together, ITRealms gathered, both the SRI and MSS form a unique, holistic approach to targeting security challenges across mobile, Internet Protocol (IP) and fixed networks in the digital transformation era, when new services and virtualized systems also introduce new vulnerabilities.

In addition to addressing their own security needs, ITRealms reports that operators could white label Managed Security Services to enterprises under their own brand, which offers revenue potential in the fast-growing enterprise security market and optimizes time to market.

Growing regulatory pressure and increasingly complex networks carrying sensitive data from Internet of Things (IoT), personal devices, and social and business applications have heightened the importance of data security for operators. Nokia is taking a unique, integrated approach that starts from assessing operators' security risks across various security domains, benchmarking against industry peers, and providing a 360-degree gap analysis and suggestions for performance improvements. This is the essence of the Security Risk Index.

After the assessment, a managed service, powered by Nokia NetGuard software, will complete the holistic security approach. Nokia experts design the network security infrastructure, information management and monitoring systems to ensure that critical information assets are adequately protected against known and unknown threats, and that the operator meets applicable security compliance standards and regulations.

Having secured their own networks, operators can go on to offer the Managed Security Services, or selected elements of it, to their enterprise customers. In partnership with Nokia, operators can easily implement a security portfolio to open a new revenue source and increase customer loyalty.

Patrick Donegan, principal analyst, HardenStance, said: "Telecom operators need strategic security partners that have a deep understanding of the unique aspects of their network environment and the threats that they and their customers face. Nokia's Security Risk Index and Managed Security Service propositions are an important contribution to addressing those challenges."

Friedrich Trawoeger, head of Managed Services at Nokia, said: "Operators must be prepared for a security breach. A dynamic, managed security proposition is needed to eliminate possible threats, so we are taking a comprehensive approach to security from assessing risks to managing and maintaining our customers' security infrastructure. This is the best approach to defend against attacks. In addition, the resale white label model will allow our customers to monetize the security opportunity."

Nokia's security services also utilize Nokia NetGuard, a complete portfolio of robust, end-to-end software solutions that detect, prevent and mitigate cyberattacks by securing traditional and cloud-based network architectures and protecting end-users and IoT devices.

Nokia's Managed Security Service and Security Risk Index provide a comprehensive backbone for telecom security. It is important to encompass all areas of security, including the assessment and protection of cross-technology networks operating in multi-vendor environments, as modern networks can be more easily exploited and carry higher risks.

Nonye Dom/GEE

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