Cyber Law E-Magazine

By Gregory Tobi

Table of contents

• 4 Feature stories Story 2Story 3Story 4

Advice column on Cyber Law A fun game Trivia SectionFront CoverBack Cover

4 Feature stories Story 1Zambia Govt to Draft Internet Law to Control 'Gossip' in Online

Media

The internet has become permeated many areas of our lives. And now in a bid to monitor what goes in and out of their countries through this entity; many governments are coming up with laws to monitor what is going on with the internet content in their areas. The latest is a law set to be drafted in Zambia that seeks to control "gossiping" in the country's online media. This was reported recently by Global Voices Advocacy, a project of Global Voices Online that seeks to build a global anti-censorship network of bloggers and online activists dedicated to protecting freedom of expression online. "The Zambian government is drafting a law intended to address online media and tackle internet abuse and cybercrime" said Information and Broadcasting Permanent Secretary Bert Mushala while on a tour of media houses in the in the Copperbelt Province, about 400 km north of the capital, Lusaka. The PS made the announcement while in the company of Information Minister Dr Joseph Katema. Joseph Katema, Information and Broadcasting minister, on his apart said: "It's the intention of the PF government to broaden the information base to reach out to the public. Government is cognisant of the information gap, that is why we are putting policies in place that support media growth.“ But Musahala, the PS in the ministry spoke about involving the media with regards to finding a solution to what was considered a problem by the government. "There is a questionnaire that is being distributed, you will all be given to fill in before you are invited for the big indaba [national conference]," he told journalists. "We really have to address this situation.“ Global Voices Advocacy goes on to further state that. "The statement from the two government officials does not come as a surprise to Zambian media observers. Since the Patriotic Front (PF) took office in 2011, there have been attempts to muzzle citizen media website such as the Zambian Watchdog and Zambia Reports." It continues by saying, "both sites have been blocked within the country on multiple occasions, and authorities have openly expressed ire towards the Watchdog. A recent article on Zambia Reports announced that the government had unblocked the two websites, allegedly due to pressure from international bodies and co-operating partners."It is not clear how the pressure affected the government's decision, though, an anonymous source told Zambia Reports, "The warning from our international partners has been very strong so the authorities are trying to observe what will happen by unlocking the websites."

Story 2 Brazil's senate passes Internet legislation ahead of NETmundial conference

Brazil’s Federal Senate has passed a proposed Internet law that aims to guarantee freedom of expression and privacy to the country’s Internet users, and also requires foreign Internet service providers to fall in line with the country’s rules. The bill was passed Tuesday, a day ahead of the start of a global Internet governance conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and requires the assent of Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff. The president has backed the legislation after reports of spying by the U.S. National Security Agency on Internet users as well as top political leaders including herself. The Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance, also called NETmundial, opens in the wake of disclosures by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden about the agency’s surveillance activities. Activists are demanding that the meeting address squarely the issue of Internet surveillance including by the NSA. The meeting also follows an announcement in March by the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration that it will end by 2015 its oversight of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The Brazilian model can influence the global debate to find a path that will guarantee real rights in a virtual world, Rousseff wrote in a Twitter message on Tuesday. The legislation, known as the “Marco Civil da Internet,” was modified by legislators of the Chamber of Deputies in March to remove a provision that would have required foreign Internet companies to host data of Brazilians in the country.( U.S. Internet companies had protested strongly against the provision. Among the provisions of the Internet law are net neutrality, preservation of user connection data such as IP addresses for one year and the requirement to remove images and videos containing nudity and sex at the request of victims, according to a summary on the senate site. Internet service providers will not be responsible for content posted on their services though they must comply with judicial orders to remove certain content, according to news site Globo.com

Story 3 Nigeria: ISPON, Microsoft Team Up Against IP Thieves

There appears to be tough time ahead for software pirates in the Nigerian IT market as the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria, ISPON, in collaboration with Microsoft Nigeria are in fresh move for intellectual property protection. Intellectual property (IP) rights are the legally recognized exclusive rights to creations of the mind. Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary and artistic works; discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs Meanwhile, it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between genuine and non-genuine software unless consumers know what to look out for. Microsoft projections are that global intellectual property piracy, will hit a whopping $16.6 billion by 2016. If this happens, it will further hamper an already stagnated intellectual property industry. However, Microsoft says it is not lying low in ensuring that the menace is curbed to the barest minimum. Recently, its efforts saw to the recent arrest, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a suspect, Arewa Systems Limited, who allegedly specializes in the production of High Quality Counterfeit (HQC) software. The raid, according to Microsoft, followed a consumer tip-off and petition to the local law enforcement authorities. It was aimed at curbing unsafe play in the country, and addressing the harmful impact of pirated software to individuals as well as the Nigerian economy. Piracy kills innovation: According to the two organizations, if the software piracy menace is not curbed, it will drive the intellectual property industry to the ground, killing innovation and development.While reiterating the need to play safe, Microsoft urges consumers to ask questions, investigate the packaging, watch out for "too good to be true" prices and demand genuine software to ensure what they pay. These would help protect their families and businesses from the threat of malware associated with pirated or counterfeit software.Harping on the need for intellectual property protection, the President of ISPON, Pius Okigbo told Vanguard Hi-Tech during the Innovation forum held in Tinapa recently, that those who engage in piracy will not go free as law enforcement agents were on the look-out for culprits."Start-ups should be careful of IP laws. Anybody copying somebody's work must seek the permission of the owner. We must do this otherwise original owners of creative works will be losing money. The local economy will also be losing money. We cannot pretend that software piracy is not harmful to the local economy" he said.According to Okigbo, there was need to join hands in the fight against software piracy, adding that ISPON will continue to promote and encourage protection of intellectual property in the software ecosystem.Protect indigenous effort:For Okigbo whose key mandate is intellectual property on assumption as ISPON President, indigenous talents must be encouraged otherwise the country will remain digital colony of developed economies of the world.Speaking on the recent raid by the EFFC, Francis Chuka Agbu, Senior Advocate of Nigeria(SAN), Partner in the Law firm of Lexavier Partners and Microsoft's Anti-Piracy Attorney in Nigeria, said that,"The strident message that this intervention sends is that computer software albeit an intellectual property qualifies better as a literary work that must be protected from the exploitation of merchants of counterfeiting and crass opportunism."Additionally, the theft of such creative expressions fixed in a tangible medium of expression constitutes a serious economic crime in Nigeria under Sections 18 & 46 of the Economic & Financial Crimes Commission Act, Cap E1 LFN 2010 and Section 491 Criminal Code Act Cap C28 LFN 2010.To all the dealers in imitation and fake products, big or small, it is no longer business as usual."Government is not alone in this quest to tackle the menace as many organizations in the country are clamoring for a safer business space, and frequently org anise awareness workshops and enlightenment campaigns one of which is the Microsoft Play it Safe Day designed to drive global awareness across businesses, government organizations, and consumers of the increased risk of cyber security issues as a direct result of pirated software.

Story 4 A Byte Out of History$10 Million Hack, 1994-Style

It was hardly the opening salvo in a new era of virtual crime, but it was certainly a shot across the bow.Two decades ago, a group of enterprising criminals on multiple continents—led by a young computer programmer in St. Petersburg, Russia—hacked into the electronic systems of a major U.S. bank and secretly started stealing money. No mask, no note, no gun—this was bank robbery for the technological age.Our case began in July 1994, when several corporate bank customers discovered that a total of $400,000 was missing from their accounts. Once bank officials realized the problem, they immediately contacted the FBI. Hackers had apparently targeted the institution’s cash management computer system—which allowed corporate clients to move funds from their own accounts into other banks around the world. The criminals gained access by exploiting the telecommunications network and compromising valid user IDs and passwords. Working with the bank, we began monitoring the accounts for more illegal transfers. We eventually identified approximately 40 illegal transactions from late June through October, mostly going to overseas bank accounts and ultimately adding up to more than $10 million. Meanwhile, the bank was able to get the overseas accounts frozen so no additional money could be withdrawn. The only location where money was actually transferred within the U.S. was San Francisco. Investigators pinpointed the bank accounts there and identified the owners as a Russian couple who had previously lived in the country. When the wife flew into San Francisco and attempted to withdraw funds from one of the accounts, the FBI arrested her and, soon after, her husband. Both cooperated in the investigation, telling us that the hacking operation was based inside a St. Petersburg computer firm and that they were working for a Russian named Vladimir Levin. (See the sidebar for more on the San Francisco angle of the case from one of the agents who worked it.) We teamed up with Russian authorities—who provided outstanding cooperation just days after a new FBI legal attaché office had been opened in Moscow—to gather evidence against Levin, including proof that he was accessing the bank’s computer from his own laptop. We also worked with other law enforcement partners to arrest two co-conspirators attempting to withdraw cash from overseas accounts; both were Russian nationals who had been recruited as couriers and paid to take the stolen funds that had been transferred to their personal accounts. In March 1995, Levin was lured to London, where he was arrested and later extradited back to the United States. He pled guilty in January 1998. Believed to be the first online bank robbery, the virtual theft and ensuing investigation were a needed wakeup call for the financial industry…and for law enforcement. The victim bank put corrective measures in place to shore up its network security. Though the hack didn’t involve the Internet, the case did generate media coverage that got the attention of web security experts. The FBI, for its part, began expanding its cyber crime capabilities and global footprint, steadily building an arsenal of tools and techniques that help us lead the national effort to investigative high-tech crimes today.

Advice column on Cyber Law Parliament has been asked to operationalise cyber laws to improve security and integrity in the electronic business environment. “The purpose of these laws was to guide and regulate the information and communication technology sector so as to create a conducive environment for doing business using electronic means. “However, to date it is not operational,” Dr. Peter Ngategize, the investment strategy secretariat national coordinator in the finance ministry, said. In 2010, Parliament passed into law the electronic transactions and electronic signature bill to improve the regulations and security of electronic transactions and devices. “There is an increasing rate of online fraud because the electronic transactions and electronic signature bill is not functioning, which has affected the privacy and authenticity of information and communication users and beneficiaries,” Ngategize said at the Uganda Law Reform Commission Business Conference at the Commonwealth Resort, Munyonyo last week. The law will help in providing legal regulations for the use of electronic device . Also make sure that you never save your passwords on the browswers and make sure to clear your history everytime that your done with a public computor because people can come back and see and keep track of what you have been on to if its on credit cards for example. Aslo if you find yourself in some sort of victim of a cyber crime make sure that you report it to the right agentces because the longer a person waits the lharder the problem becomes to fix

A fun game

• Game time unscramble the words • Oysfgerpbonci 1Cyberspoofing • Arpyyccibre 2Cyberpiracy • Ilbrmkcalacbey 3Cyberblackmail • Mriyrrteoecsrb 4Cyberterrorism • Yaanrsmdlivecb 5Cybervandalism • Ebcmyregr 6Cybergerm

Trivia Section

• 1 crime falsely adopting the identity of another computer user; creating a false identity on a website in order to commit fraud is what

• A Cyberspoofing B Cyberblackmai C Cybervandalism• 2 involves transmitting computer viruses to destroy computer systems or files• A Cybergerm warfare B Cyberterrorism C Cyberpiracy• 3 using a computer to disrupt a part of the national electronic infrastructure• A Cybervandalism B Cybergerm warfare C Cyberterrorism• 1 A 2 A 3 C

Last page facts • According to a 2008 University of Toronto cyberbullying survey, nearly

one in five Canadian students surveyed reported having been bullied online in the past three months. In an Alberta study, one-third of students who had cyberbullied had also been victims of it. [2]

• Cyber-Bullying Facts state that almost 75% of Cyber-Bullying taking place occurred through the undertaking of abuse on the part of the Cyber-bully. The second most common form of Cyber-Bullying takes place through the exclusion or shunning from an online community.

• Almost 50% of children who have been victims of Cyber-Bullying have maintained that the illegal and unlawful access of personal information, including the online trespass into their personal accounts, has taken place. This includes the fraudulent usage of email addresses, passwords.