IT teams at risk of being caught unawares by new OT threat, according to Microsoft’s latest threat intelligence

IT teams at risk of being caught unawares by new OT threat, according to Microsoft’s latest threat intelligence

New research from Microsoft reveals that attackers are increasingly making use of operational technology to gain new entryways into company networks.

Microsoft’s latest Cyber Signals report highlights how cybercriminals are using Operational Technology (OT) as gateways into an organization’s network. This comes at a time when IoT connections in the region are growing with the GSMA predicting that 1.1 billion IoT connections are expected by 2025 in MENA. It’s this growth in OT and IoT that has given cybercriminals more opportunities to breach an organization’s network.

Microsoft’s Cyber Signals report is a regular cyberthreat intelligence brief spotlighting security trends and insights gathered from Microsoft’s 65 trillion daily security signals and 8,500 security experts. The latest edition has found that converging IT, Internet of Things (IoT) and OT systems pose a wider risk to critical infrastructure.

For CIOs in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), the impact of a possible security breach is top of mind in an increasingly complex threat environment. This can be seen in the 11.2 percent rise in cybersecurity spending in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for 2022.

The growing rate of digital transformation within the African region is facilitating the emergence of new attack vectors and opportunities for cybercriminals. The Kenyan government has identified cybersecurity as a key enabler for digital economy. Kenya faces increased cybersecurity challenges and risks that threaten national security and the country’s digital transformation agenda. Cybersecurity statistics indicate that the number of cyber threats detected in Kenya has significantly increased in the last three years. The Communications Authority of Kenya reported 278,030,354 threats detected in the period from July to September 2022, an increase of 99.478% from threats detected between April to June of the same year.

The increase in digital transformation across the region has enabled organizations to manage their buildings, emergency systems and access control with smart devices connected to a network. In addition, we have seen an increase in IoT devices in the workplace to better enable hybrid work such as smart conference rooms with microphones and cameras. 

As the threat landscape continues to expand and become more complex, organizations need to rethink their cyber risk approach to stay one step ahead of would-be attackers. Cyber Signals found that there are currently over 1 million connected devices publicly visible on the Internet running Boa, an outdated and unsupported software still widely used in IoT devices and software development kits.

“Organizations are more connected than ever before. From the humble Wi-Fi router to the everyday office printer, IT teams need to view their IoT devices differently and secure them as they would any company laptop to prevent security breaches,” says Phyllis Migwi, Country Manager for Microsoft Kenya. “Gaining complete visibility of an organization’s OT systems and protecting its IoT solutions will go a long way in preventing cyberattacks.”

Check out other Microsoft stories making the news across Africa and the Middle East region.

Microsoft launches student hackathon, targets solutions for the health sector

Microsoft launches student hackathon, targets solutions for the health sector

University students from across Kenya and some parts of Africa can now apply to participate in season 4 of the Microsoft Africa Development Centre’s (ADC) Game of Learners (GOL) student hackathon competition. The GOL initiative provides an opportunity for African university students, aspiring software engineers, and solution builders to improve their technical and coding abilities while creating solutions to current challenges facing the continent and the world.

GoL student hackathon Season 4

In this year’s student hackathon competition, participants will be working to develop possible technology solutions that can address different health challenges, including how to improve healthcare service provision in their localities or other parts of the world. The program runs as a 5-week hackathon with teams captained by Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors crafting the innovations while receiving technical training from Microsoft’s professionals.

student hackathon gol microsoft

Since we launched Game of Learners four years ago, we have seen incredible development in the learner’ skills through each season as they create incredibly clever solutions to some of Africa’s pressing problems using Microsoft technology,” said Ruth Ferland, Senior Program Manager at ADC, and the founder of the Game of Learners Program. “This year’s theme will allow the participants to plug into an area that has enormous potential to impact lives across the continent and indeed around the world.”

The students will benefit from the instruction of 32 coaches and more than 20 advisors who will guide them through the process of learning new technologies and building their solutions. The coaches, mentors, judges, speakers, and trainers will consist of volunteers from Microsoft and partners, who for season 4 will include PSI and AMREF Health Africa.

Winning teams

At the end of the season, the winning team will be eligible for awards, including collaboration with GOL Season 4 partners to advance their solution and entry into the Microsoft Imagine Cup, where they will present their innovation on a global stage.

student hackathon Game of Learners hackathon logo

This partnership with Microsoft is part of a larger initiative to increase the talent pool of individuals working in Digital Health across Africa”, said Martin Dale, Population Services International’s (PSI) Global Director of Digital Health. “There is so much talent graduating from our universities and Game of Learners is a great opportunity for students to dig in and create solutions that make health care more accessible to all.”, he continued.

Speaking about the initiative, Samuel Weru, AMREF Health Africa Group ICT Director, challenged students to apply for the program and be part of the drive towards creating home-grown solutions for Africa’s challenges.

As a continent that has historically had serious healthcare challenges, we need the kind of ideas that can only come from the youth to revitalize healthcare service provision. There are myriad opportunities ranging from health informatics and telemedicine to big data analysis and system security for the learners to explore. We are eager to work with the teams to create solutions that have the potential to change Africa and the world,” said Weru.

GoL Season 4

In total, Season 4 will have 16 teams, each made up of 4 learners, 2 men and 2 women, drawn from all over the continent. The virtual student hackathon competition is open to students of accredited universities and colleges in sub-Saharan Africa, who will be vetted as per the requirements after submitting an online application.

The program is designed to provide a fun, hands-on learning experience while creating a virtual environment that transcends borders to allow young minds to collaborate and drive the advancement of Africa into a global innovation hub. Having gender-balanced teams further ties into our mission of promoting diversity and inclusion within the tech industry,” explains Ferland.

Like a sports league, each 5-week season of Game of Learners follows up with a month-long season of GOL Clinic and GOL exhibitions to accord individuals seeking deeper hands-on technical experience and specialized training from Microsoft and GOL partners.

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Check out other Microsoft stories making the news across Africa and the Middle East region.

Sell Harvest wins N2.5M at Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon NG

Sell Harvest wins N2.5M at Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon NG

Sell harvest, an agritech solution by Team Software Chasers emerges winner of the first Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon in Nigeria. The team wins two and a half million Naira as prize money, mentorship and technical support from Microsoft. It will also join the Microsoft Global Social Entrepreneurship program to develop into a unicorn.

Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon NG is an initiative of the Microsoft African Transformation Office (ATO) in partnership with Sterling Bank, Ted Prime Hub and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). To identify and develop sustainable and inclusive digital solutions for agro-products and services in Nigeria.

Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon

Microsoft says seventy thousand Nigerians applied to participate in the hackathon. With two thousand being shortlisted for the first phase of the hackathon. Which was then filtered down to fifty and then thirty teams. The teams went through virtual skill-up sessions on technology and cloud services, emerging issues on agricultural value chain process, start-up ecosystem and idea scaling and product testing.

The final event featured 10 solutions by teams from Abuja, Benue, Enugu, Jos, Kaduna, Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Oyo and Sokoto states competing for the top three positions. Farmsquare came in second winning N1.5million while third place winner Farmers’ Market got N1 million.

Olatomiwa Williams, Microsoft Country Manager Nigeria and Ghana affirmed Microsoft’s commitment to working with both the private and public sectors to accelerate digital transformation in African agriculture. As well as harnessing the potential of the youth by helping support homegrown start-ups in critical sectors.

Muhammad Mukhtar, Albany Muhammad, and Sa’adu Abubakar of Team Software Chasers expressed their delight in the product development experience. They added, “It has been an interesting journey with wide experiences from varying degrees”.

Watch the Microsoft Agro-Tech Hackathon grand finale

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Microsoft pledges agritech support in Africa to increase food security

Microsoft pledges agritech support in Africa to increase food security

Microsoft is promising its commitment to working with both the private and public sectors to accelerate digital transformation in African agriculture in order to increase food security for the continent.

Speaking during a virtual roundtable panel discussion on the topic, Microsoft Kenya Acting Country Manager Kunle Awosika said the organisation is committed to continuing investing in agritech on the continent, with the goal of developing agritech that enables data-driven, precise and connected farming that optimises yields, boosts farm productivity and increases profitability.

We understand that these important issues will not be solved by one company, but through partnerships with the private sector and our partners in government for maximum impact and benefit to the farmers of Africa,” he said.

food security africa microsoft agritech

Speaking at the same forum, ATO Coordinator, Agriculture Transformation Office, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives Thule Lenneiye, said: “Through partnerships such as the one with Microsoft, we can offer our smallholder farmers valuable services that help them modernize and digitize age-old farming practices, increasing productivity and boosting food security for our communities and country.”

One way in which agritech changes the face of agriculture is through democratising information. In partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Microsoft is investing in the Kenyan National Agriculture Platform as a key initiative to drive digitalization in agriculture. As part of this investment, a developer team based in Kenya has developed an Agri chatbot, which provides extension and advisory services to smallholder farmers using either feature phones or smartphones, via SMS, WhatsApp and Telegram.

The AgriBot provides a key platform that farmers can use to access all the relevant information from the Ministry of Agriculture and other government institutions, as well as services from the private sector. These services are invaluable to the over 400,000 farmers already on the platform who would otherwise not have access to such a resource.

Olatomiwa Williams, Microsoft Country Manager Nigeria and Ghana speaking at the forum said the organization is working with stakeholders to identify and develop sustainable and inclusive digital solutions for agro-products and services that seamlessly connect farmers, customers and other stakeholders in the ecosystem. Importantly to improve the economic situation of farmers in Nigeria.

Microsoft also recently announced that it is extending its partnership with the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). The initial collaboration between the two organizations started in 2019 when Microsoft and AGRA co-created the AgriBot as a digital solution for localized extension and advisory services for smallholder farmers.

The new phase of the relationship will promote digital innovation and technology as an enabler to connect the agriculture ecosystems, sustainably integrating stakeholders in the service of strategic value chains.

Our partnership with AGRA forms part of Microsoft’s ongoing investment in agritech across the continent as we support digital transformation in the sector. We’re excited to continue building locally relevant technology solutions that address the local farmers’ needs and deliver meaningful impact,” added Kunle.

On his part, John Macharia, AGRA Kenya Country Manager, said: “At AGRA, we realized early on that digital innovation is critical in advancing food security and poverty eradication in Africa. Our partnership with Microsoft will directly support governments, SMEs and farmers, by bringing the digital tools needed to build resilient food systems.”

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Tizeti, Microsoft bring affordable high-speed internet to Oyo State

Tizeti, Microsoft bring affordable high-speed internet to Oyo State

Solar-based internet service provider, Tizeti, has partnered with Microsoft to roll out affordable high-speed broadband internet infrastructure in Nigeria starting with Oyo State. The service comes with an introductory N2,222 or $5 offer for monthly fixed broadband and installation costs.

Through the Microsoft Airband Initiative, Tizeti and Microsoft will leverage low-cost wireless technologies. Making it easier and cheaper for people in underserved communities to access the internet and get connected to the digital economy. The internet in Oyo State will empower more Nigerians, stimulate economic activities, and widen the broadband envelope in Africa.

Communities need reliable, affordable internet access in our increasingly digital world,” said Microsoft Airband General Manager, Vickie Robinson. “That’s why Microsoft is working with providers like Tizeti to connect the unconnected, expand opportunity, and close the global digital divide.”

internet oyo state nigeria microsoft tizeti

Microsoft’s Airband Initiative is focused on advancing digital equity—access to affordable internet, affordable devices, and digital skills—as a platform for empowerment and digital transformation across the world.

Speaking on the partnership, Tizeti’s Chief Executive Officer of Tizeti, Kendall Ananyi, said that Microsoft Airband collaboration will complement Tizeti’s existing initiative in Oyo State and lay a foundation for a robust and thriving digital ecosystem for the large population of vibrant, young people in Oyo State. “We are happy to work with Microsoft on the Airband Initiative as it extends our mission of bringing affordable and reliable internet to more Nigerians outside the digital envelope,” Ananyi said.

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