[kictanet] NSA Tapping into Google & Yahoo Networks? How is Kenya protected?

Thu Oct 31 11:10:31 EAT 2013

@Phares,

this line of thinking was has been explored recently at the IGF and I had a different angle to it and I quote:

>>
Whereas having each economy build its own email, social media and other web-based systems may provide national pride and a debatable sense of national security, it unfortunately goes towards balkanising the Internet along existing national geographic boundaries.

The final effect will be a diminished value for online services. Search engines will end up with only a localised or national view of data, as opposed to the more international view currently enjoyed by keeping the Internet open and global.
>>>

more 
@ http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/blogs/dot9/Lessons-from-the-Global-Internet-Governance-Forum/-/1959700/2051402/-/ouee6l/-/index.html

walu.

--------------------------------------------
On Thu, 10/31/13, Phares Kariuki <pkariuki at gmail.com> wrote:

 Subject: Re: [kictanet] NSA Tapping into Google & Yahoo Networks? How is Kenya protected?
 To: jwalu at yahoo.com
 Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
 Date: Thursday, October 31, 2013, 10:09 AM

 I’ll very selfishly
 advocate for an increased uptake of local cloud services,
 away from the NSA’s prying eyes, with locally established
 standards of encryption etc… 
 We’ve got capable
 universities that can assist in coming up with new
 encryption etc standards for the military &
 government. 
 Interesting article by
 Charles
 Obbo…. http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/Spy-more-on-your-friends-than-foes/-/440808/2053660/-/j8oy4g/-/index.html
  -- 
 Phares Kariuki
  From: Ngigi
 Waithaka Ngigi Waithaka
 Reply: Ngigi Waithaka
 ngigi at at.co.ke
 Date: October 31, 2013 at
 9:12:10 AM
 To: Phares Kariuki pkariuki at gmail.com
 Subject:  [kictanet] NSA
 Tapping into Google & Yahoo Networks? How is Kenya
 protected? 

 Listers,

 Just came across this http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-infiltrates-links-to-yahoo-google-data-centers-worldwide-snowden-documents-say/2013/10/30/e51d661e-4166-11e3-8b74-d89d714ca4dd_story.html?hpid=z1

 It looks like Google might have been caught by the NSA
 with
 their pants down since hacking into their Data Transport
 layer
 simply gives up all the secrets that encryption is supposed
 to be
 protecting.

 Now, moving on swiftly to the local setup, I am also
 concerned
 that even as we look to start pushing for National Standards
 of
 Encryption through the PKI project, whether we as a country
 have
 come together to review and see how to protect our countries
 intelligence and data.

 We also know for a fact that the US was busy tapping
 into
 World Leaders phones, and I can bet if there are a few
 presidents
 to be 'tapped' in Africa, ours should be way up on
 that
 ladder!

 However, more worrying would be, how protected are our
 internal networks from such tapping, even from locals? Could
 there
 be a guy who has tapped into Safaricoms internal network and
 is
 busy reading every email, chat that is flying through and
 perhaps
 selling such information to our erstwhile enemies the
 Al-Shabbab?

 I was once very surprised when a personal friend got a
 transcript of all his calls, and chat messages,
 word-for-word for
 the previous past 6 months, dug up from one of the local
 Telcos.
 The ease with which such information was availed appalled me
 as it
 clearly means that the Telcos clearly store all our chats,
 and such
 records in clear text months after we have used them and a
 guy with
 basic SQL knowledge just needs to hack into the network
 (easy) and
 call them up.

 So, as we continue with the PKI project, there are
 really very
 basic things on security of data that we as a nation
 haven't even
 dealt with.
 --

 Regards,

 Waithaka
 Ngigi

 Chief Executive Officer
 | Alliance
 Technologies | MCK Nairobi
 Synod
 Building

 T +
 254 (0)
 20 2333 471 |Office
 Mobile: +254 786 28 28 28 | M +
 254 737 811 000

 www.at.co.ke

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 The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a
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 interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The
 network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
 sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth
 and development.

 KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable
 behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect
 people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame
 or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do
 not market your wares or qualifications.