Saturday, May 3, 2025
Home Blog Page 30

President Museveni Launches the National IP Policy and the SIMPO registry

By
Joel Osekeny
-
0
President Yoweri Museveni Launching the Launch of the National Intellectual Property Policy during the Launch of the National Intellectual Property Policy and Security Interest in Movable property Registry System (SIMPO)at State House Entebbe on September 23, 2020.

The President of Uganda, H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni yesterday, the 23rd September 2020 officially launched the National Intellectual Policy (IP Policy) that was released in May 2019, and the Security Interest in Movable Property Registry System (SIMPO) at the State House, Entebbe. The ceremony was organised by the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB).

In attendance of the launch were the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu and stakeholders from the different Ministries, Departments and Agencies involved in the intellectual property value chain and the financial services sector, and the private sector.

The African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) was also represented at the launch by Prof. Wilson K. Tarpeh, the Chair – Council of Ministers of ARIPO, albeit virtually, who in his speech expressed his impression with Uganda’s progress in the area of intellectual property.

According to a press statement URSB, the objective of the National IP Policy “is to stimulate and nurture innovation and creativity for socioeconomic development” and also “facilitate the integration of (IP) into national priority sectors are programs towards the realization of national development goals”.

SIMPO on the other hand was created by virtue of a new law, the Security Interest in Movable Property Act (SIMP Act) that was passed last year replacing the defunct Chattel Securities Act of 2014. SIMPO also replaces the Chattels Securities Registry and is intended to respond “to the pressing needs of the youth, women and SMEs who cannot access affordable credit due to lack of land”.

Under the long title of the SIMP Act, the law is intended to “provide for the use of movable property as collateral for credit” and according to the URSB statement, the SIMPO registry is in place to facilitate registration of collateral that is not land “which is the preferred collateral for financial institutions”.

Other collateral will therefore be at the disposal of borrowers and lenders as “SIMPO is intended to drive financial inclusion through facilitating access to affordable credits as guided by (the country’s) Vision 2040, the third National Development Plan 2020 – 2015, and the 2016 – 2021 NRM Manifesto.

The president at the launch stated that the government is committed to support all innovations that are aimed at increasing the profitability of Ugandans engaged in various enterprises and emphasised that the national IP policy “will give innovators the full protection of the law through patents, copyrights and trademarks”

He added that SIMPO will be able to “enable Ugandans user their movable assets as collateral to borrow money for their business and financial institutions” why citing the use of a herd of cattle valued at 1 million shillings to use it to secure a credit for investment.  

The minister for justice on the other hand said that the ministry was satisfied with the passing of the IP policy that has the power to arm creators with the power to make commercial gain from their works.

Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Kamuntu Ephraim marking his remarks during the Launch of the National Intellectual Property Policy and Security Interest in Movable property Registry System (SIMPO)at State House Entebbe on September 23, 2020.

“We in the ministry of Justice & Constitutional Affairs recognize that the national Vision 2040 cannot easily be achieved without formulating a National Intellectual Property Policy, a policy that would integrate Intellectual Property into national development plans” he said. He added that SIMPO would be able to help in the achievement of economic growth by facilitating financial inclusion when it comes to borrowers accessing credit.

URSB Registrar General (RG) Bemanya Twebaze said the policy would create a robust IP value chain that fosters innovation and creativity as pillars for sustainable development. He also added that under SIMPO, limited access to credit was a major challenge to Doing Business in Uganda.

Register General Bemanya Twebaze marking his remarks during the Launch of the National Intellectual Property Policy and Security Interest in Movable property Registry System (SIMPO)at State House Entebbe on September 23, 2020.

“The purpose of the IP policy is to provide direction and interventions that will enable IP stakeholders to work towards creating, protecting and commercially exploiting innovations and creative works” said the RG.

The RG urged lenders to use movable property as collateral to advance capital to the millions of Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises.

‘SIMPO encourages lending against movable property such as crops, bicycles, vehicles, intellectual property assets, among others’ Bemanya said.

South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria faced most Cyber Attacks in Africa in 2020 (so far)

By
Boses Muhinda
-
0
Photo by Michael Geiger on Unsplash

According to a report from Kaspersky, the African nations that fell victim of the most cyberattacks were South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya respectively. The report shows that there were over 28 million malware attacks and over 43 million Potentially Unwanted Applications (PUA) detections as per August of 2020.


Kaspersky security solutions have reported on 28 million malware attacks in 2020 and 102 million detections of potentially unwanted programs (pornware, adware etc.). These numbers show that it’s not only the malware that attacks users but also the “grey zone” programs that grow in popularity and disturb their experiences, while users might not even know it is there.

The report also shows that there is a rise of Potentially unwanted applications (PUAs). Potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) are programs that are usually not considered to be malicious by themselves. However, they are generally influencing user experience in a negative way.

Many African users and negligent with pre-installed software and PUAs in general. However early this year one of the most used phone brands (Tecno) was found to have pre-installed adware on users phones.

For instance, adware fills user device with ads; aggressive monetising software propagates unrequested paid offers; downloaders may download even more various applications on the device, sometimes malicious ones. While calculating interim results of threat landscape activity in African countries, the researchers noticed that PUAs attack users almost four times more often than traditional malware. They also eventually reach more users: for instance, while in South Africa, the malware would attack 415,000 users in 7-months of 2020, the figure for PUA would be 736,000.

A chart showing the cyber attacks in Nigeria;
A chart showing the cyber attacks in Kenya;
A chart showing the cyber attacks in South Africa;

Potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) are programs that are usually not considered to be malicious by themselves. However, they are generally influencing user experience in a negative way. For instance, adware fills user device with ads; aggressive monetising software propagates unrequested paid offers; downloaders may download even more various applications on the device, sometimes malicious ones. While calculating interim results of threat landscape activity in African countries, the researchers noticed that PUAs attack users almost four times more often than traditional malware. They also eventually reach more users: for instance, while in South Africa, the malware would attack 415,000 users in 7-months of 2020, the figure for PUA would be 736,000.

“The reason why ‘grey zone’ software is growing in popularity is that it is harder to notice at first and that if the program is detected, its creators won’t be considered to be cybercriminals. The problem with them is that users are not always aware they consented to the installation of such programs on their device and that in some cases, such programs are exploited or used as a disguise for malware downloads. This is why many security solutions, including ours, flags such programs to make sure users are aware of its presence, influence on their device and activity,” says Denis Parinov, a security researcher at Kaspersky.

By taking a closer look at PUA, it becomes apparent that they are not only more widespread but also more potent than traditional malware. Evaluating results over the same 7-month period in Nigeria, there were 3,8 million malware attacks and 16,8 million PUA detections – which is four times as much. Kenyan and South African threat landscapes have been more intense. In South Africa, there were almost 10 million malware attacks and a staggering 43 million PUA detections. Kenyan users faced even more malware attacks – around 14 million, and 41 million PUA appearances.

We have contacted Kaspersky on the possibility of them share more details on other nations. We will update you when we receive these

Google Drive Trash To Be Deleted After 30 days

By
Joel Osekeny
-
0
Google Notice

Google has today morning notified all Google Drive Users by email and similar alerts, that deleted files in the drive trash will not longer stay for perpetuity but will be deleted after 30 days with effect from the 13th October 2020, when the notice will come into force.

According to the email with the subject “[Update] Google Drive trash items will be automatically deleted after 30 days starting on October 13, 2020”, Google writes to let users know “that starting October 13, 2020, Google Drive is making a change so that its trash behaves more consistently with the rest of Google applications”. By consistent behaviour, google is trying to achieve uniformity with all its applications that have a trash alternative like Gmail, Google Photos where deleted files will stay temporarily on the servers for 30 days.

The files need to have been in the trash for 30 consecutive days.

The upside with this deletion is that the users will be given more cloud storage that is occupied by the deleted files in the trash. The deleted files occupy cloud space, but permanent deletion frees it.

In the email, it is further clarified that all files in shared drives trash will also automatically delete after 30 days and that the changes affect items that are trashed from any device and any platform.

Users are encouraged to restore the files in the trash that they do not want to lose before the expiry of the 30 days. They are also encouraged to update to the latest versions of the software (Google Drive) to enjoy the updates.

US Government Bans “Transactions” with TikTok and WeChat Starting Sunday

By
Joel Osekeny
-
0
Tik Tok/WeChat

The United States (U.S) Department of Commerce has released a press statement on its website banning a number of transactions with two Chinese companies from the country.

In the statement titled “Commerce Department Prohibits WeChat and TikTok Transactions to Protect the National Security of the United States”, the US has resolved to ban transactions with two Chinese companies Tik Tok and WeChat which it says is in response to the 6th August 2020 executive order in which the country’s president Donald Trump branded the companies threats to the national security.

According to the statement, these following transactions are prohibited starting 20th September 2020, this Sunday.

“Any provision of service to distribute and maintain the WeChat or   mobile applications, constituent code, or application updates through an online mobile application store in the U.S” and “any provision of services through the WeChat mobile application for the purpose of transferring funds or processing payment within the U.S” it reads highlighting transactions that involve downloading of the applications from app stores of any third party sources.

The other banned transactions with varying dates of commencement include 1) any provision of internet hosting services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the U.S, 2) any provision of content delivery network services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the U.S, 3) Any provision directly contracted or arranged internet transit or peering services enabling the function or optimization of the mobile application within the U.S and 4) any utilization of the mobile application’s constituent code, functions, or services in the functioning of software or services developed and/or accessible within the U.S.

The above are effective starting 20th September for WeChat, and starting 12th November for Tik Tok. The extension of the Tik Tok ban has been interpreted by Eamon Javers, a Washington Correspondent for CNBC covering the white house on his Twitter, as intended to “…allow Trump to avoid a massive backlash from users before voting” probably because of millions of users, about 100 million use the app on a daily.

However, the statement states that the extension for Tik Tok is to allow for the national security concerns posed by Tik Tok to be resolved. That resolution most likely includes the forced sale directive by Trump requiring that Tik Tok’s owner Bytedance sale the company’s US operations to a US company.

A suspect arrangement has already been announced in which the company instead of an outright sale announced that it will be partnering with Oracle, after rejecting a purchase offer by Microsoft. The new arrangement awaits the approval of the White House. It is possible that once approved, the new announced ban might be lifted, but already there are signs that it would be rejected as the president expressed his discontent with the arrangement. In the statement, the department also reserves the right to ban any other transactions as may be spelled out in the future, alongside any other measures that may be added should Tik Tok or other businesses try to indirectly offer those banned tra

Top Reasons to Purchase a Desktop Computer

By
GURU8 Staff
-
0

The digital world we live in today means that we have lots of different tech devices and services that we can access with ease. People have their own preferences with regard to the devices they use, and many of us rely on these devices on a day to day basis for all sorts of purposes. While some people these days prefer to invest in a laptop when it comes to their computer needs, there are also many reasons to consider a desktop when it comes to computers for your home or business.

There are many benefits that come with having a desktop rather than relying solely on a laptop. Of course, having a laptop in addition to your desktop is invaluable, as you then have a computer that is portable and can be taken out on the road. However, if you tend to use your computer in one place such as your home or office, it is well worth looking at a desktop. In this article, we will look at some of the benefits of purchasing a desktop computer.

What Are the Benefits?

So, what are the benefits of having a desktop computer rather than relying on a laptop all the time? Well, there are various key benefits you can look forward to, one of which is the fact that you get more for your money with a desktop.

When you purchase a desktop, you can get a higher spec model for your money compared to a laptop. You can also get things such as Lenovo coupons to help you to save even more on the cost of your purchase. There is a significant difference in price between desktop and laptop computers for the same or very similar specifications. So, if specs are important to you and you do not plan to move around with your computer, a desktop is a great choice.

Another benefit is the versatility and practicality of a desktop compared to a laptop. For instance, because your desktop is stationary, it is always plugged into your power supply, and this means that you will not have to worry about the computer running out of power at a crucial moment while working. In addition, it can be upgraded and customized with ease, as you can add all sorts of features which is something you cannot do with a laptop.

You will also be able to enjoy greater levels of comfort when you use a desktop computer, as you can choose the best mouse, keyboard, and monitor configuration for your needs. You can position them wherever you like to increase comfort levels, and you can change them or upgrade them whenever you wish. If you already have accessories such as a mouse, monitor, and keyboard, you can save yourself money because you will only need to purchase the desktop itself.

As you can see, there are many benefits that come with having a desktop computer, which is why they remain a popular choice.  

Users Can Now Access Samsung Apps on PC With “Your Phone Companion”

By
Joel Osekeny
-
0

Microsoft has now made it seamlessly easy for users to access their phone apps on computer using the “Your Phone” application installed both on PC and Android. It is either installed or it comes pre-installed in select devices.

According to a tweet by @MSYourPhone, Microsoft has announced that the option to use phone applications on computer is now available, however only on select Samsung devices after a partnership between the two was made.

“We are excited to announce that the Apps feature is now rolled out to everyone with supported devices” reads the tweet, promoting a feature that “allows you to instantly access you Android phone’s mobile apps directly from your windows 10 PC”.

The supported Samsung devices that support apps preview include Samsung Galaxy (Note 9, S9, S9+, Note10, Note10+, Note10 Lite, Ford, S10, S10+, S10 Lite, S10e, Note20 5G, Note20 Ultra 5G, A8s, A30s, A31, A40, A50, A50s, A51, A51 5G, A60, A70, A70s, A71, A71 5G, A80, A90s, A90 5G, S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, XCover Pro, Z Flip, Z Flip 5G, and Z Fold2 5G), and Microsoft’s Surface Duo.

To enable the feature on those phones, you will have to go to the settings of the phone, choose advanced feature, then look for Link to Windows to enable the feature, and for those that are not supported, they will have to download the application “Your Phone Companion – Link to Windows” from play store.

Before the new update, through the application, one was only able to see notifications, create and read messages, photos, make calls and check call logs, that appear on the android devices. The update to introduce the access to apps implies that the non – supported phones will still be able to access the other features above minus the option to use applications.

One fascinating feature with this application is the ability to “Continue on PC” that allows you to continue reading contents off a web page from the phone to your PC by simply opening the webpage on the phone, and clicking on share, then choose “Continue to PC”. You will magically see the web page loading on the same browser but on computer. For example, if you Chrome from phone opens the web page on Chrome on your PC.

In a select number of phones, users can also drag a file from the phone to the computer and vice versa, as opposed to sending the files via Bluetooth, data cable or email.

Your Phone app only works if your computer supports Bluetooth and so should your phone, as it is what will be used to pair the devices.

Services and Products Launched at the Apple “Time Flies” Event

By
Joel Osekeny
-
0

Apple yesterday in the highly anticipated and publicized virtual event dubbed the “Time Flies” launched a number of products and services for its collection.

These included Apple One, new software, Apple Watch (series 6), iPad, the iPad Air and the Fitness++ All these add to the value that Apple has continued to be as is evidenced by its performance on the stock market with an increase in the share price following the launch.

Apple One.

Apple One

Apple One is a subscription – based package allowing users to subscribe to Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Arcade and 50GB space on iCloud (for the individual package), an additional space totaling to 250GBs for the family package for up to six (6) members, and an additional News and Fitness packages on the Premier package and 2TB of iCloud space.

The services will be available with a 30 day free trial upon subscribing to the package at monthly fees of $14.95, $19.95 and $29.95 respectively for the different packages (individual, family and premier).

Spotify has already challenged the Apple One package accusing the company of anti – competition practices against its competition and has called upon the authority to act “urgently to restrict Apple’s anti-competitive behavior” stating that it “will cause irreparable harm to the developer community” reads a statement from the company that competes with Apple Music.

Software

Apple also announced the launched of the operating systems iOS14, iPadOS 14, watchOS7 and tvOS14 that are scheduled for roll out today.

A new digital fitness feature, “Fitness++” to use with Apple Watch. The feature comes with workout videos that can be accessed from the iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and any other screen where new videos will be added each week and in sync with Apple Music.

Other products

Apple Watch

The other products launched include a new Apple Watch (series 6), iPad, and the iPad Air. The redesigned iPad Air comes with USB C in the stead of the company’s proprietary lightning connector. It also comes with a 10.9-inch screen display with a smaller touch ID sensor for finger print unlock and the new A14 silicon chip whereas the iPad comes with an A12 bionic chip.

Redesigned iPad Air

iPhones will be launching later this year with rumours speculating a launch in October

Google Starts to Launch “Youtube Shorts”, Another Tik Tok Rival.

By
Joel Osekeny
-
1

Instagram recently launched Reels in select countries and subsequently made a global rollout of the feature, a competitor for ByteDance’s Tik Tok as an attempt to reduce the Chinese company’s global widening support. Already it is reported that the Chinese version of Tik Tok Douyin, has 600 million daily active users.

Google is also said to be launching Shorts, a Tik Tok like feature but within the You Tube App. The feature is already being tested in the Indian market before a global rollout can be made. However, only the beta version is available as of now.

It should be noted that both Reels, and Shorts seem to get their first testing in India, a country that at the start of the year banned Chinese apps including Tik Tok, accusing them of being threats to the country’s national security (as if to pave way for the influx of American business).

Chinese companies, like Tik Tok (and Huawei) are already fighting bigger wars with the US government. The launch of Youtube Shorts and Instagram Reels further adds to the list of challenges that the Tik Tok and similar Chinese companies have to overcome.

Tik Tok sale?

Trump issued an executive order compelling the company to sell its US business to an American company that will not have direct or indirect Chinese government control. A deadline to identify a buyer was set for the 15th September with Microsoft and Oracle as the only bidders.

Yesterday, it was revealed that Bytedance rejected making a sale to Microsoft and instead decided to partner with Oracle. The executive order by Trump required an outright sale with Bytedance in effect severing its connection with Chinese Bytedance. A deal with Oracle that is not an outright sale creates more uncertainty as to the future of Tik Tok in the US as there will be a likelihood that the Trump administration rejects the deal. The deal has to go through government approval.

It is possible that the decision for a partnership is in response to reports that the Chinese government rejects any idea of a sale and that it would rather see the application shut down, than a forced sale.

Reels and Shorts might not be a threat to Tik Tok for now, as it seems any attacks against the company have created more support and gotten more users installing the application like the saying, “any publicity is good publicity”.

Is Netsuite Worth an Investment for a Small Business?

By
Alison Lurie
-
0

Small businesses are the lifeblood of any economy. In Australia, the definition of a small business is a business that employs fewer than 19 people. These are your hole-in-a-wall establishments, mom-and-pop stores, coffee houses, and restaurants. 

According to government data, there are above two million of them Down Under, and they account for about 97% of the country’s businesses.

Netsuite’s front-office and back-office operations are geared toward helping growing businesses achieve their goals. While it is an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) program, Wild Tech Netsuite software solutions is an organisation that also includes customer relationship management, financial accounting, and business intelligence. 

Most Common Reasons Why a Business Fails to Grow

When you run a small business, you must know that the odds are not much in your favour. For example, in Australia, 6 in 10 businesses will fail in the first year. After ten years, only about 2-3 businesses will be able to sustain their operations. 

Many factors lead to the failure of a small business. Some of those factors are:● Poor financial management● Lack of capital● Lack of foresight● Failure to follow through with plans● Failure to study the competition● No online presence● No analytics

Data mining is crucial to map out your strategies. Data will provide you with a layout of your business, customers, as well as competition. You can generate leads, drive traffic to your website, predict customer behaviour, and also glean lessons from the successes and failures of competitors. 

Netsuite software solutions will centralise all data in one system, which means you can access them anytime you want. Machine learning capabilities also allow the technology to produce more accurate results. The more data you feed into the system, the more accurate the results would be.  

How Netsuite Helps Small Businesses

The software solution is perfect for small businesses for the following reasons:1. It reduces the cost of ownership – Wild Tech Netsuite software solutions are cloud-based, which means you don’t have to make an investment in costly infrastructure. You do not need to purchase hardware or install software. You leverage all its features without the need to allocate a budget for management, upgrading, support, and maintenance. 2. The solution integrates all business applications – The centralised operation and data storage mean that your personnel will have to input data across different systems. It also has the capability to integrate crucial business functions, such as purchasing, inventory management, supply chain, clearing tickets, and management of personnel.3. Be always on top of your business – The Netsuite program allows you to make an overall assessment of the health of your business. The key performance indicators will be viewed from the dashboard, such as your daily or weekly sales, number of leads generated, marketing trends, the top customers, and many more. With that data at your disposal, you will be able to make the necessary adjustments rapidly. 4. Remote management – The solution is also optimised for mobile, which means that you can run your business from anywhere around the globe. The only requirement is that you have an internet connection. You would be more confident about going to that investor’s meeting knowing that you can still monitor your personnel virtually. 

Finally, Netsuite solutions are affordable. The software solutions start at around $99 a month, which means your budget would not take the hit. It’s also easy to scale up to fit the needs of your growing business. 

NSSF Launches Online Platform for Benefits Claim Submission

By
Joel Osekeny
-
1

In order to be abreast with the times that the COVID 19 pandemic has placed Uganda and the world in, Uganda’s largest social security agency, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) or the Fund is innovating by taking the benefits claims submission online, in effect launching the funds “e-journey”, a system that has been in development since 2015.

In a press statement that Guru8 has received dated 8th September, 2020, the NSSF has launched an online system to facilitate the submissions of claims for benefits by its qualifying members through their mobile devices. Qualifying members for the benefits are those who meet the criteria for the Age, Withdrawal, Invalidity, Emigration Grant and Exempted employment benefits which are provided for under the NSSF Act.

The Fund is calling its upon members “who qualify for withdrawal of their savings… (to) submit and track their claims online and through their mobile devices”, reads the press statement in part, as part of the funds innovative means to make the Fund accessible to its members.

This innovation will save the members the hustle of having to make physical visits to the NSSF offices and branches.

“The innovation, part of the Fund’s NSSFGO Mobile & Web Application will enable qualifying members (to) conveniently submit required documentation directly to the Fund and monitor progress of their benefits claims without vising NSSF offices” says Barbra Teddy Arimi in the statement, the Head of Marketing & Communications of NSSF.

Arimi also believes that the innovation will take the Fund closer to its “benefits payment turnaround time target” which is to pay qualifying members within 24 hours as opposed to the current system where members are given their payments within eight (8) days. The Fund also believes that this new system will reduce on the congestion in the Funds 19 countrywide branches as a way to observe the “government’s COVID 19 standard operating procedures” from close to 600 clients the Fund receives from all the branches combined.

How to access the platform

In order to access the online platform, the statement provides that all the member has to do is to download NSSFGO Mobile and Web Application (nssfgo.app)

Once the app has been downloaded (both from Apple Store and Google Play Store), the user will have to scroll to “Benefits Application” where they will be prompted to enter the required information and upload the necessary documentation. After filling in the mandatory data, the user submits the application. After the submission, the user will be able to tract the progress of their application “until the payment is made” to them.

The introduction of the online benefits claim does not do away with the physical submission as both will be accessible, but it is preferable to use the online means given the speeds promised.

Other services available for the members via the platform include member and employer registration, payment of contributions, updating the members contacts, retirement benefits projections, and e-statements of contributions.

Arami in the press statement adds that the fund is committed to innovating in order to become relevant to its members.

“As part of our 10 year (2015-2025) Strategic Plan, we pledged to innovating, become more relevant to our members as well as excel in business processes to be more efficient. It is a journey that we are still committed to. The NSSFGO is our pathway to unlimited service efficiency and convenience,” she added.

Users can also access other self-service platforms like the E-collections portal that allows employers to remit their employee’s contribution directly to their NSSF accounts through the bank and the mobile money platform for contributions payment by the Fund’s voluntary savers. They can also access the NSSF Payway and the USSD *254# which are mobile platforms where members can access a wide range of services.

1...293031...105Page 30 of 105

LATEST POSTS

Follow GURU8

3,734FansLike
15FollowersFollow
1,046FollowersFollow
19SubscribersSubscribe

GURU8 is a Technology website showcasing the Latest News, Event updates, reviews and rumours in the Tech world while providing a platform for everyone to interact as well as gain information in reference to technology.
Contact us: info@guru8.net
+256771681909

©Hive Digital Ltd. GURU8 is a brand of Hive Digital Ltd