Legal

Internet users in the European Union will benefit from greater control over their personal data if new proposals to reform the Data Protection Directive are implemented.  read more »

A United States consumer group has written to the European Commission asking it to block Google's Motorola deal and to launch an investigation into the Internet giant's alleged anti-competitive behavior.  read more »

Robert Butyka, a 26-year old Romanian man accused of hacking into multiple NASA servers, received a three-year suspended prison sentence on Tuesday after admitting his guilt.  read more »

Mocality, a Kenyan-based online business directory has accused Google of malpractice and misrepresentation while trying to woe businesses into the Getting Kenyan Businesses Online program (GKBO), a service that Google launched just over three months ago. With GKBO, Google gives businesses free websites and a domain. In an effort to list such businesses, Google has hired agents who call up businesses with the offer of a free webiste.  read more »

Early this year, the U.S. Congress appears likely to move forward with two controversial copyright enforcement bills, even with vocal and widespread opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act in the Internet community.  read more »

In reaction to rising cybercrime incidents in both public and private sectors, some African governments have set up incident reporting and early warning bodies with the support of AfriNIC (Africa Network Information Center).  read more »

As Chinese-made counterfeit mobile handsets continue flooding the African market, the Zambian government has become the first country in the region moving to close all outlets selling the phones around the country.  read more »

Three years ago Internet connectivity was a major concern in Kenya, until the undersea optical fiber cable linking the country to the world was installed. This connectivity has enabled business to collaborate with overseas partners among other benefits, though the super highway has brought yet another problem - Cyber security. This has shifted the priority of the Kenyan government to create awareness and secure virtual systems operating in the internet ecosystem.  read more »

A cybercrime gang that primarily targets companies from the chemical industry has launched a new series of attacks that involve malware-laden emails purporting to be from Symantec, the security vendor responsible for exposing its operation earlier this year.  read more »

Nigeria's lawmakers have given the go-ahead to a joint committee of police, public procurement, debt management and IT officials to investigate China's ZTE over a $470 million contract for the Nation Communication Security System.  read more »