Technology

25% South Africa, 40% Kenya and 38% Nigeria’s Kaspersky Users Are Attacked by Malware Hiding Within Their Devices

Published

4 years ago

March 23, 2021

There is a common misconception that the most dangerous threats to encounter on modern users’ digital journeys are likely to appear during Internet surfing. The reality however, based on the most recent analysis of cyberattacks in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria within 2020 by Kaspersky experts demonstrates that users are in fact more likely to face malware related attacks hidden within their devices.

Such threats are classified as ‘local’, which means they are detected either on users’ devices or on portable data storage devices, such as flash drives. In 2020, 25% of Kaspersky private users in South Africa, 40% in Kenya and 38% in Nigeria were attacked by such threats. To provide a comparison, web attacks only affected 9% of users in South Africa, 11% in Kenya and 8% in Nigeria.

When looking at corporate users in these regions, the numbers are similar: 23% of corporate users in South Africa, 29% in Kenya and 35% in Nigeria encountered such local threats within 2020.

Unfortunately, there has been an increase in the sophistication of such threats – which may be hiding on the user’s device within a seemingly legitimate file for a while, to fly under the radar, and only strike later.

“The cyber threat landscape across Africa is constantly evolving,” says Denis Parinov, a cybersecurity expert at Kaspersky. “A few years ago, there were much more drive-by attacks – cases when different malicious software is downloaded and being run while the user simply browses the Internet. Nowadays, most of the web-threats “stays in browser”: they specialise in content replacement, browser locking or clickjacking, online-skimming, cookie stuffing, etc. Now the situation when a user could download a malicious file directly is not too often. It’s more common for a malware to be disguised as something else to hide from the security solutions, remaining an unseen threat to users. The good news however is that modern security solutions are too advanced for such malware to fly under radars – it is more likely to be blocked either during the initial scan of the file by a security solution that happens by default, or within the very moment such programs attempt to launch.”

To protect against cyber threats including malware, Kaspersky recommends keeping to the following guidelines:

Do not follow dubious links from letters, messages in instant messengers or SMS
Regularly install updates for the operating system and applications
Install applications only from official stores
Use complex and different passwords for accounts
Regularly copy important data from your device to the cloud, to a USB flash drive or hard drive
Do not give applications access to those functions that they do not need
Install a reliable security solution such as Kaspersky Internet Security (https://bit.ly/3168MCA)

In addition, companies are encouraged to provide training to improve cyber literacy among their employees. For example, the automated platform Kaspersky ASAP (https://bit.ly/3cZ8frF) helps to develop safe behaviour skills and form sustainable cybersecurity habits. The solution allows the company to assess the current knowledge of an employee in the field of cybersecurity, and in accordance with this, determine the set of skills that the employee needs, depending on job duties and risk profile, and build a timetable for the program.

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Samed Olukoya

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Technology

EU Raises Tariff on Chinese Electric Vehicles by 35%

Published

1 week ago

October 4, 2024

Samed Olukoya

In an effort to slow down Chinese infiltration of the European market with more affordable options, the European Union has hiked tariffs on electric vehicles from China by 35% to 45% from the usual 10%.

According to people familiar with the situation, ten member states voted in support of the new tariff while Germany and four others voted against it. The remaining 12 states reportedly abstained.

Last month, the former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi warned that Chinese state-sponsored competition was a threat to the European Union and could leave the region vulnerable to coercion.

The bloc had claimed that China unfairly subsidized its industry to have an edge over EU businesses, a claim Beijing denies and has threatened retaliatory action on European dairy, brandy, pork and automobile sectors.

However, given the size of trade between the bloc and China, €739 billion or $815 billion in last year, it’s believed the two parties will continue negotiations to find an alternative to the tariffs.

Technology

OpenAI’s Valuation Soars to $157 Billion After $6.6 Billion Funding Round

Published

1 week ago

October 3, 2024

Samed Olukoya

OpenAI, the company that owns Chatgpt, has raised $6.6 billion in a new funding round to boost the company’s valuation to $157 billion as it looks to strengthen its lead in generative AI technology.

Thrive Capital led the funding round with $1.3 billion, while Microsoft invested an additional $750 million, bringing its total investment in OpenAI to $13.75 billion.

According to a source familiar with the matter, Khosla Ventures, Fidelity Management & Research Co., and Nvidia Corp., the chipmaker whose powerful processors are driving the AI boom—were also among the investors.

Apart from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd, this deal ranks as one of the largest-ever private investments.

The ability of OpenAI to raise such a substantial amount despite heightened global risks demonstrates the industry’s confidence in the power of AI.

Other investors included Tiger Global Management, which contributed $350 million, and Altimeter Capital, which invested at least $250 million.

SoftBank Group Corp. and the new Abu Dhabi-based tech investment firm MGX also participated, with SoftBank’s investment totaling $500 million, according to one source who requested anonymity. Venture firm Coatue was another participant.

In a statement, the company said it plans to use the funds to advance AI research and expand its computing capacity. “AI is already personalizing learning, accelerating healthcare breakthroughs, and driving productivity,” said OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar. “And this is just the start.”

Fintech

Kazang Pay Launches Card Acquiring Service in Zambia

Published

1 week ago

October 2, 2024

Samed Olukoya

Kazang, the prepaid value-added services (VAS) and card acquiring business within JSE-listed fintech Lesaka Technologies, has launched its Kazang Pay card acceptance solution for merchants in Zambia. Kazang Pay makes it affordable for merchants to accept card payments on the same Kazang terminal they use to sell prepaid products and services.

The Kazang Pay enabled terminal in Zambia accepts VISA debit and credit cards as well as mobile wallet payments. Payments are settled to the merchant’s Kazang wallet on the same day. It’s as easy as letting the customer tap or insert their bank card and enter their PIN on the secure scramble PIN pad.

Kazang operates around 12,000 VAS terminals in Zambia. The goal is to enable the majority to accept card payments over the next six months. Benefits to merchants include low transaction fees and no monthly terminal rental fee for those that meet a modest monthly transaction threshold as well as the opportunity to grow their business through card acceptance.

Kazang is Zambia’s largest VAS point-of-sale terminal provider, enabling mobile money payments, bank and mobile money cash in and out, bill payments, airtime, Zesco, and many other prepaid services on one platform. The addition of card acceptance makes the platform even more comprehensive for merchants and consumers alike.

The launch of Kazang Pay in Zambia follows the introduction of the solution in South Africa, where around 60,000 small and micro merchants use Kazang Pay to accept card payments. In Zambia, there are around 3.8 million debit, credit and ATM cards in issue and 41,000 point of sale (POS) terminals in place. The value of POS transactions has grown to K 111.4 billion by 2022 from less than K 20 billion in 2018, according to the Bank of Zambia.

Says Leon de Wit, managing director at Kazang Zambia: “Zambia has made enormous strides in terms of financial inclusion, with card usage and penetration growing at a rapid pace. With Kazang Pay, merchants can now easily accept card payments on the same all-in-one terminal they already use for vending of VAS products.

“Card transactions help merchants to grow basket sizes and potentially attract more customers, and at the same time, reduce the risks and costs of handling cash. Moving towards digitalised payments will also enable merchants to track sales, manage cash flow, and create a footprint that could make it easier for them to access loans.”

Ashley Naidoo, director of Kazang Pay in South Africa says: “Our Zambian merchants have eagerly embraced our card acquiring service as a valuable part of our one-stop solution. Following the launch of Kazang Pay in Zambia, we have seen higher VAS sales across our merchant base and much-improved merchant retention and with our card acquiring solution we now appeal to a broader merchant base.”