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Hacker cut internet access in Liberia

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Hacker cut internet access in Liberia

Liberia has been repeatedly cut off from the internet by hackers targeting its only link to the global network.

Recurrent attacks on November 3 flooded the cable link with data, making net access intermittent.

Researchers said the attacks showed hackers trying different ways to use massive networks of hijacked machines to overwhelm high-value targets.

Experts said Liberia was attacked by the same group that caused web-wide disruption on October 21.

Those attacks were among the biggest ever seen and made it hard to reach big web firms such as Twitter, Spotify and Reddit.

The attacks were the first to send overwhelming amounts of data from weakly protected devices, such as webcams and digital video recorders, that had been enrolled into what is known as a botnet.

A botnet variant called Mirai was identified by security firms as being the tool used to find and compromise the insecure devices.

The source code for Mirai has been widely shared and many malicious hacker groups have used it to seek out vulnerable devices they can take over and use to mount what are known as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.

“There’re multiple different botnets, each with a different owner,” security researcher Kevin Beaumont told the BBC. “Many are very low-skilled. Some are much better.”

For more than two weeks, my internet has not been working properly. At first I thought it was a problem with my internet provider, which often suffers from slow speeds. But this feels more serious.

Even when you do get online, the connection repeatedly cuts out. I’ve spent the past week trying to upload some photos and audio to send to London, without success.

A woman who runs a computer club for young people in the capital, Monrovia, tells me that they have been having trouble getting on to Facebook and that their connection has slowed in recent weeks.

The hotel I am staying at in the north-eastern town of Ganta is right next to the network tower of a company that provides my internet service, but the connection is still coming in and out.

The hackers behind the “huge” network that attacked Liberia, dubbed botnet#14, were “much more skilled”, Mr Beaumont said.

“The attacks are extremely worrying because they suggest a Mirai operator who has enough capacity to seriously impact systems in a nation state,” he wrote in a blogpost.

Network firm Level 3 confirmed to tech news site ZDNet that it had seen attacks on telecoms firms in Liberia making access to the web spotty. Other reports suggested mobile net access was affected too.

The attacks varied in length with some lasting only 30 seconds and the longest being sustained for a few minutes.

Net access in Liberia comes via an undersea cable whose capacity is shared with many other nations in West Africa.

“They’re trying a number of different techniques for short bursts, against the companies who own the submarine cable to Liberia,” said Mr Beaumont, adding that commands to botnet#14 seemed to originate in the Ukraine.

Mr Beaumont said the controllers of botnet#14 were refining their control of the attack system but it was not yet clear who it would be turned against next.

A Twitter account, called #Miraiattacks has been set up by a security company to monitor the many different attack targets hit by Mirai botnets. Earlier targets included computer security firms, schools, food-ordering services and gaming sites

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NASS amends NDLEA Act, okays life imprisonment for drug traffickers

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The Senate has concurred with the recommendation of the House of Representatives to commute the death sentence penalty for persons found guilty of storing, moving or concealing hard drugs and other illicit substances to life imprisonment.

The alignment of the Senate with the House of Representatives yesterday was a sequel to the amendment effected on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Act.

The amendment was considered at the plenary, presided over by the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, APC! Kano North, after majority of senators supported the harmonisation of the conference committee of the two chambers of the National Assembly on Section 11 of the NDLEA Act.

Recall that recently, the House of Representatives passed an amendment to the NDLEA law to prescribe life imprisonment for drug traffickers but the Senate version of the amendment prescribed death penalty for the offenders.

In order to address the differences, both the Senate and the House of Representatives needed to hold a conference committee on the amendment where they will conclude on a final amendment to the section.

The then Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator Tahir Monguno, had told his colleagues that the Senate would adopt the amendment of the House prescribing life imprisonment for drug traffickers.

Monguno, who is the chairman of the conference committee, explained that if the National Assembly adopted the death sentence, it meant over 900 accused persons behind bar on drug related cases would be executed.

He, therefore, urged his colleagues to support the resolution in order to reduce the effect of drug consumption and trading in the country.

After the presentation, the Deputy Senate President put the resolution to a vote and majority of the senators supported it.

Senator Barau, thereafter, approved the amendments to include life imprisonment for drug traffickers.

With the amendment, the section now reads: “Anybody who is unlawfully involved in the storage, custody, movement, carriage or concealment of dangerous drugs or controlled substances and who, while so involved is armed with any offensive weapon or is disguised in anyway, shall be guilty of an offence under this Act, and liable on conviction to be sentenced to life imprisonment.”

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‘He was never our member’ — IPOB disowns Simon Ekpa

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The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) says Simon Ekpa, the controversial Biafra agitator, was never a member of the group.

IPOB said Ekpa was not a registered member of the group’s chapter in Finland and cannot be the leader of the group.

On Thursday, Ekpa, a Finland-based secessionist, was arrested by law enforcement agents in the northern European nation.

He was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media”.

Ekpa was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.

The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) also arrested four other men over alleged terrorist offences.

In a statement on Friday, Emma Powerful, IPOB’s spokesperson, said Ekpa was a “destructive agent” paid to “infiltrate and destroy” the “peaceful movement” of IPOB.

Powerful accused the Nigerian and Finnish governments of shielding Ekpa from arrest.

“Simon Ekpa was never and is not an IPOB member, let alone being a leader in IPOB. IPOB has some family units in Finland, and Simon Ekpa is not a registered member of any IPOB unit in Finland or any other IPOB unit globally,” the statement reads.

“Mazi Nnamdi Kanu established IPOB as a peaceful movement to seek Biafra Independence via a supervised UN referendum.

“IPOB is a peaceful global movement that has never taken to violence or arms struggle in two decades of our self-determination struggle.

“It was unfortunate that some innocent Biafrans, being passionate for the restoration of the stolen sovereignty of the Biafran Nation, thought that Simon Ekpa was genuinely sympathetic to the Biafra cause.

“Sadly, they had to learn the hard way that he was a destructive agent paid to infiltrate and destroy the IPOB peaceful movement for Biafra self-determination. He recruited violent criminals to destabilize the South East Region in 2021.

“The Simon Ekpa-led group has no alliance, affiliation or relationship with IPOB family worldwide. He recruited his criminal gangs who have been terrorising the Biafran territory since 2021.

“The Nigerian government and politicians that contracted Simon Ekpa have been making strenuous efforts to tag the violent crimes of their agent on IPOB just to blackmail and demonise the genuine and peaceful Biafra self-determination struggle of the Biafran people led by the IPOB.

“On the purported arrest of Simon Ekpa, all IPOB members, Biafrans and lovers of Biafra freedom should remain calm and focused on our core objective which is the restoration of the sovereign state of Biafra.”

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Lagos state government seals Ile Iyan restaurant over waste disposal violations

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The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has sealed off Ile Iyan, a restaurant in the Sabo Yaba area of the state, for “non-compliance with waste disposal regulations”.

Lagos Waste Reporters, a publication focused on waste management, reported that officials discovered invoices and food waste from Ile Iyan at an illegal dumpsite.

The dumpsite is located near Aje Comprehensive High School, Yaba.

“Despite the establishment’s claims of registration with LAWMA, no corroborative evidence was provided,” the report reads.

LAWMA has now mandated Ile Iyan to formally register and comply with established waste management regulations.

“It is essential to maintain cleanliness in Lagos. Businesses must register with LAWMA and adhere to proper waste management procedures to prevent closure,” the report added.

Tokunbo Wahab, commissioner for the environment and water resources in Lagos, has ramped up enforcement of environmental regulations in the city, with markets, clubs and eateries often sealed over purported violations.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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