E-Business
Firm, NBplc Fight over Illegal Use of Intellectual Property

Evanpower Engineering Limited, an engineering firm has threatened to drag Nigerian Breweries, brewery giant to court over alleged usage of its Intellectual Property without pay.
The beer company in their response to the petition, said that there was no merit in the claim by the engineering company.
The beer company he said “rejects this claim in its entirety”
Evanpower Engineering is however claiming the usage of its “blueprint” by the Brewery in solving an important problem without pay, in addition to owing the firm outstanding contractual obligations.
The claim was contained in a petition by its Counsel A.U.G Ojinta to the Managing Director of the Nigeria Breweries Plc (NBplc) demanding for the payment of N750 million and N3, 744, 153.15 as fees for the Blueprint design and work done respectively at NBplc’s Ama plant 9th Mile Corner in Enugu State.
However, in a quick reaction, NBplc denied owing the firm any money insisting that whatever job the firm did was paid for.
But in the petition made available to journalists in Enugu, Ojinta, counsel to Evanpower Engineering Ltd alleged that NBL refused to pay the engineering company after using the blueprint it designed to solve a control system challenge at its Ama plant.
He said: “Our client instructs that sometime in the month of July 2014, your company’s Access Control System at Ama was struck by lightning and the Superterm Control Panel at the security room at the entrance gate 2 was damaged. Your company had advertised for the repair but because it was a highly specialist job, none of your registered vendors/contractors could handle or bided for it.
“As at that time, our Client was not registered as a Vendor/Contractor with your Company. She was sought for and she came. She repaired the broken down Superterm panel and got the panel to work with the Turnstile gate and that made history at your Ama plant as, from the information she got later, none of your Company’s registered contractors in Nigeria has ever been able to record such feat in your Access Control System. This particular service was paid for by your Company”.
Ojinta stated that following the repair, the NBplc asked his Client to apply for registration as vendor/ Contractor with the company, which she did and was registered on May 21, 2015, under the automation, instrumentation and Control System category.
Ojinta stated that his Client was issued with work permit after the registration and was instructed to work on Revamping the Access Control System at the company’s Ama plant, sometime in June, 2017.
“Our client was issued with work permits which covered the period June 4 to July 31, 2017 duly endorsed by the Automation Engineer, Engineering Manager, Safety Manager and Brewery Manager which actually was for revamping of the Access Control System and other ancillary work that included laying new cables at the Turnstile Gate at Ama plant. At the end PO was raised dated August 7, 2017 attesting to the fact that my client had been through with what my client was asked to do”, he stated
Ojinta added that, Evanpower Engineering Limited had before then developed a blue print for NBL which was used in solving the Access Control System at the demand of the beer company’s automation engineer
“The first part was made available to you through your said Automation Engineer in July 2017 while the second was in October 2017”, he said
Ojinta stated that the NBplc had gone ahead to ditch the services of his Client when it had not paid for the use of the Blue Print from him.
He stated that the NBplc acknowledged the receipt and use of his Client’s Blue Print vide her letter of June 14, 2018.
“Unfortunately, in the said letter, your company first claimed that our client never made it clear that she was to be paid for the use of the Blue Print, her intellectual property, by your company. That we consider very absurd to say the least. Secondly, she chose to confuse our client’s demand for payment of N3, 744, 153. 15 for services already rendered as contained in the technical report she had sent to you with her demand for payment for the use of her Blue Print.
“It is against the foregoing that our client has instructed us to demand and we demand that your company pay within 21 days from the receipt of this letter”, Ojinta said.
The NBplc, has however denied any liability to the Engineering firm, stressing that there was no record of any transaction of such documented with the company.
Mr Chidubem Aguguo, NBplc’s legal manager, Operations, stated in their response to the petition that there was no merit in the claim by the engineering company. The beer company he said “rejects this claim in its entirety”
He said: “We reiterate that at no time did we commit to pay your client for any document (Whether quotation, blueprint or any other document whatsoever) submitted by it in respect of the reactivation of the access control system at our Ama Brewery (“Project”). Moreover, your client was duly paid for the work it did for us, including the materials it supplied for the project.
“Thus we are not in any way indebted to your client to any amount whatsoever. We found the claim to be without merit and do hereby reject same in its entirety”.
E-Business
Microsoft Server Hack Likely Solo Actor, Thousands at Risk

A widespread cyberattack targeting Microsoft’s (MSFT.O) server software used by thousands of government agencies and businesses for internal document sharing was likely orchestrated by a single actor, a cybersecurity researcher said on Monday.
Microsoft issued an alert on Saturday warning of “active attacks” on on-premise SharePoint servers.
The company clarified that SharePoint Online, part of the Microsoft 365 cloud suite, was not affected by the exploit, which is considered a “zero-day” vulnerability due to its previously undiscovered nature.
“Based on the consistency of the tradecraft seen across observed attacks, the campaign launched on Friday appears to be a single actor. However, it’s possible that this will quickly change,” Rafe Pilling, director of Threat Intelligence at Sophos, a British cybersecurity firm.
That tradecraft included the sending of the same digital payload to multiple targets, Pilling added.
Microsoft said it had “provided security updates and encourages customers to install them,” a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
It was not clear who was behind the ongoing hack. The FBI said on Sunday it was aware of the attacks and was working closely with its federal and private-sector partners, but offered no other details.
Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Washington Post said unidentified actors in the past few days had exploited a flaw to launch an attack that targeted U.S. and international agencies and businesses.
According to data from Shodan, a search engine that helps to identify internet-linked equipment, over 8,000 servers online could theoretically have already been compromised by hackers.
Those servers include major industrial firms, banks, auditors, healthcare companies, and several U.S. state-level and international government entities.
“The SharePoint incident appears to have created a broad level of compromise across a range of servers globally,” said Daniel Card of British cybersecurity consultancy, PwnDefend.
“Taking an assumed breach approach is wise, and it’s also important to understand that just applying the patch isn’t all that is required here.”
E-Business
Flaw in Microsoft SharePoint Sparks Global Cybersecurity Concern

A Microsoft SharePoint server software flaw is causing widespread concern across the global cybersecurity landscape, exposing thousands of organisations to hackers exploiting a new vulnerability.
This critical vulnerability exposes government agencies, universities, and energy firms who are at risk of cyberattacks. The flaw, now being actively exploited by unidentified hackers, allows attackers to gain deep, remote access to on-premise SharePoint servers.
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has confirmed that the vulnerability can enable malicious actors to access internal files, change configurations, and even execute remote code, effectively giving them high-level control over compromised systems.
Microsoft has also acknowledged the breach and released a security patch aimed at stopping the ongoing attacks. The firm urged users to apply the patch immediately, saying it is working to roll out additional protections, according to a statement reported by Bloomberg.
Despite these efforts, cybersecurity researchers warn that systems may remain vulnerable if attackers have already infiltrated networks, stolen authentication keys, or implanted persistent backdoors before patches were applied.
The United States hosts the highest number of these vulnerable systems, followed by the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
The Washington Post reported that the breach has already impacted a range of institutions, including U.S. federal and state agencies, academic institutions, energy companies, and a telecommunications firm in Asia.
This latest incident adds to a growing list of cybersecurity challenges facing Microsoft. In March, the company revealed that Chinese state-backed hackers had targeted its cloud-based services to infiltrate both U.S. and international organisations.
Last year, the U.S. Cyber Safety Review Board sharply criticised Microsoft’s internal security culture as ‘inadequate’ after a separate breach compromised its Exchange Online mail systems and exposed communications of high-level officials.
E-Business
NIMC Enrolls 122m for NIN, Cuts Extortion by 40 Percent

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that it has reduced incidents of extortion and unofficial charges in the identity enrolment process by over 40 per cent.

Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general of NIMC,
Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general of NIMC, who disclosed this at an event in Lagos at the weekend, attributed the drop to improved transparency in fee structure at the commission.
The CEO was represented by Lanre Yusuf, director, Information Technology and Identity Database, NINC.
The workshop, organised by the identity regulator in partnership with the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, focused on repositioning Nigeria’s digital identity landscape and combating misinformation.
According to Coker-Odusote, the sharp reduction in illicit charges is a direct result of reforms introduced by NIMC to curb racketeering and unauthorised payments, which have for years plagued the national identity registration process..
“Enrolment for the National Identification Number remains free. We have standardised modification and authentication fees, and these are publicly disclosed. Our enforcement of a transparent fee structure has resulted in a 40 per cent drop in extortion and unofficial charges,” the regulator said.
She explained that prior to her assumption of office, complaints about exploitative fees at enrolment centres were widespread, fuelling public distrust in the system.
However, she noted that the commission had since prioritised transparency and stakeholder accountability, ensuring that Nigerians no longer have to pay above the legally mandated fees. “We are addressing deep-rooted issues that once undermined public confidence in the enrolment process,” she said.
The NIMC chief added that the commission had introduced digital tools to reduce human interference in the registration process.
These include the NINAuth mobile app, the Self-Service NIN Enrolment and Modification app, and Contactless Biometric Solutions, all designed to make the system more efficient, secure, and user-friendly.
Coker-Odusote also reiterated the commission’s commitment to inclusion, stressing that no Nigerian should be left behind in the country’s digital identity transformation.
According to her, over 7,167 front-end enrolment agents and partners have been revalidated and retrained to serve the public professionally, with strict monitoring mechanisms now in place.
In addition, NIMC has deployed grievance redress officers across all 36 states to handle complaints from Nigerians about enrolment centres and agents, with a 24/7 toll-free line available to report any misconduct.
The reforms are part of broader efforts by the Commission to build a unified, secure, and people-centred digital identity system that facilitates access to government services, financial inclusion, social protection, and national planning.
Coker-Odusote called on media partners to support the Commission in disseminating accurate information, countering misinformation, and raising awareness about the benefits of digital identity.
“We are asking our partners in the media to help us combat fake news and promote transparency in the identity ecosystem. We need to ensure every Nigerian understands their rights and knows that their identity is key to accessing opportunities and services,” she said.
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