Telecom
NITDA Urges Students To Be Responsible Online

Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency, (NITDA), has admonished students of secondary schools to always display high level of responsibility whenever they are online, in other to be protected from cyber risks.
The Director General who was represented by NITDA’s Head, Digital Technology, Adoption, Digital Literacy and Skill Unit, Dr Ayodele Bakare, gave this advice in Abuja at this year’s inter-school debate organised by the Junior Chamber International, (JCI), and supported by the Agency. The topic for the debate was ‘Should Social Media Be Encouraged Among Secondary School Students?’
Mallam Abdullahi stated that, as secondary school students, using the internet facilities, it is expected of them to behave responsibly in order to be protected from psychological and physical risks that are common online.
According to the DG, some of the psychological risks the children could suffer from, if they are irresponsible online are; fear, low self-esteem, promiscuousness, violence, poor academic performance, among others.
He added that; “among the physical risks you can experience online could be illness, injury, death, vandalization, and loss of finance.”
He stated further that, “your responsibilities online include; non-disclosure of personal information to strangers, avoidance of people or strangers that demand for too much information, turn down offer to meet online strangers, not opening of mails or files from unknown sources, and always inform parents or teachers whenever you feel concerned about strangers online.”
The DG advised children to limit the time they spend online in order not to affect other sphere of their lives, particularly their academic performance.
Mallam Abdullahi maintained that child online safety has become imperative in order to protect them from threats and risks because, children are easily influenced with online contents.
He said, as government agency, NITDA will keep on with advocacy and capacity building on online safety for minors.
“Another way government is trying to protect children online is in the area of policy formulation, regulations and guideline on child online safety”, he said.
The President of JCI, Ajalat Aminat Aweke, said the aim of the debate is to discover another set of young lads among students in Federal Capital territory.
She added that the topic for the debate captures the rave of the moment on the usage of social media among secondary school students. “The debate will form a robust discussion and form a framework for censorship,” she said.
About 10 Secondary Schools participated in this year’s debate where Government Secondary School Gwagwalada emerged first and was awarded with three laptops and 100,000 naira cash award.
Government Secondary School, Mabushi, emerged second and went away with 75,000 Naira, while Government Girls Secondary School, Dutsen Alhaji, became the third winner and received 50,000 Naira award.
In the same vein, the Coordinator, National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotic, (NCAIR), Mr. Ya’u Garba Isah, stated that the use of robotic would help to avoid obstacle in computing programming. He expressed this view during the second day of JCI programme supported by NITDA.
He said, mentoring the students on technological innovation would promote the motive of JCI which is in line with the mandate of the centre. The selected trainees hosted at the centre were the students that excelled at the inter school debate that JCI organised.
Telecom
ngCERT Issues High Alert to Nigerians Using Android Phones

Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team (ngCERT) has raised alarms over a new wave of advanced cyberattacks targeting Android mobile phones through a malware campaign dubbed Tria Stealer.
The malicious software is designed to infiltrate Android devices, hijack messaging accounts, intercept One-Time Passwords (OTPs), to steal sensitive personal and financial data.
According to ngCERT, Tria Stealer spreads primarily through deceptive tactics, such as fake event invitations distributed via popular messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram.
Unsuspecting users are enticed to download an infected (APK) file, often disguised as a harmless system application, to evade detection.
Once installed, Tria Stealer requests extensive permissions, including access to SMS, call logs, and app notifications.
It immediately commences data harvesting activities, sending stolen information to a Command and Control (C2) server operated via Telegram bots.
This trojan spreads through fake links, usually disguised as wedding or event invites, and tricks users into downloading malicious APK files
“Account takeover of messaging platforms. Impersonation of victim for fraudulent money transfer requests. Compromise of banking and financial applications. Identity theft and credential harvesting.”
In plain terms, if your phone is compromised, the consequences could be catastrophic.
Your financial apps are vulnerable, your reputation could be ruined by impersonation and even simple personal messages could be twisted into tools for scams.
Here’s what users should be doing now:
Don’t download apps outside the official Play Store.
Be suspicious of random invites or links, even from people you know.
Turn on 2FA for everything—banking, emails, social platforms.
Get a reputable antivirus and keep it updated.
If you run an organisation, you should already be taking this seriously.
ngCERT’s guidance says you should raise awareness, monitor mobile devices, and not let your team click on unverified links.
“Deploy network monitoring for suspicious outbound connections to known C2 domains,” it said, meaning, keep an eye on every digital door in and out.
This isn’t one of those cases where you wait to see if it affects you. By the time you realise it, it may already be too late.
Telecom
MTN and Ecobank Launch Chess Championship to Empower Nigeria’s Youth

MTN Nigeria is set to host the National Schools Team Chess Championship, Nigeria’s largest inter-school chess competition, scheduled to take place from June 26th to 28th, 2025, at the Ecobank Pan African Center in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The championship, organised in partnership with Ecobank and the Nigeria Chess Federation (NCF), aims to promote intellectual development, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills among young Nigerians, while also identifying and nurturing future chess champions.
The championship is open to primary, secondary, and tertiary level students, and this year’s edition will host an impressive 1,600 students from 400 schools across 36 states and the FCT.
The competition will feature team-based play, with each team comprising four players from the same school. A significant prize pool of over N40 million is at stake, with winning schools also having the invaluable opportunity to represent Nigeria internationally.
Onyinye Ikenna Emeka, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at MTN Nigeria, expressed the company’s commitment to the initiative, stating, “Our investment is driven by our commitment to fostering youth development, just as our shared value initiative.
“By supporting, we not only contribute to the growth but also engage with the younger demographic in a meaningful way, as we believe we are good together”.
MTN’s sponsorship of the National Schools Team Chess Championship is a natural extension of its long-standing dedication to empowering young people through various initiatives in sports, education, and skill development, including programs like MTN Champs and MTN Campus Invasion.
The company aims to establish itself as the leading driver of youth empowerment, education, and strategic thinking through chess in Nigeria.
The event will also feature the presence of Tunde Onakoya, a renowned chess master and inspiration, who will join the championship week to share his experiences and further inspire the young participants.
His involvement underscores the profound impact strategic thinking can have on transforming lives and building dreams.
Telecom
NCC and Stakeholders Unite to Bridge Nigeria’s Rural Connectivity Gap

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has collaborated with the Association for Progressive Communications and other institutional stakeholders towards addressing challenges confronting rural network connectivity in Nigeria.
The collaboration resulted in a two-day workshop hosted in Abuja from June 3-4, 2025, to explore policy framework for enabling community networks towards bridging the digital divide and accelerating socio-economic development in Nigeria’s underserved and unserved communities.
The forum brought together regulators, community leaders, technical experts and potential foreign investors, among others, to examine policy and regulatory barriers, explore innovative funding mechanisms, ensure sustainable renewable solutions and strengthen collaboration with stakeholders.
Addressing participants at the workshop, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, said the workshop is important to bridging the digital divide in Nigeria and foster inclusive social economic development.
“This workshop is an opportunity for all of us to harness the expertise, insights, and experiences of diverse stakeholders present here which includes the regulators, community leaders, technical experts and potential foreign providers to address the critical challenges such as affordable devices, access, licensing, spectrum allocation, infrastructure development, sustainability and institutional monitoring,” said Maida, who was represented by the Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, NCC at the event, Abraham Oshadami.
Maida said the workshop demonstrates the Commission’s commitment to advancing digital inclusion, particularly in underserved and unserved areas. “At NCC, we recognise the transformative potential of community center networks in achieving this important goal,” he said.
The EVC said NCC was committed to “this journey and views this workshop as a catalyst for meaningful change,” stating that the expertise, perspectives and commitments will shape the future where every Nigerian, regardless of his or her status, will have meaningful access to opportunities from digital connectivity.
In her remarks, Co-manager of the Association for Progressive Communications’ Local Network (LocNet) initiative, Kathleen Diga, noted that the collaboration was to tackle identified hindrances to digital inclusion. “This is a space where we can be open and exchange ideas of possibilities, opportunities that will remain in realising values of a diversified ecosystem.”
Diga said, “I believe this workshop presents a moment in time that we can explore the bottom-up approach in local communities, small social enterprises, corporative among others, which have the ability to fill some of the digital gaps that remain unfilled,” she said, adding emphasising the need to recognise that community centre connectivity exists and they are grow throughout the global south, which, she said, are a “strategic response to digital exclusion.”
The workshop featured presentations from the NCC, the Association for Progressive Communications and other institutional stakeholders such as the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) all geared towards exploring a joint policy framework to address rural digital divide.
The Association for Progressive Communications is a 35-year-old international network member-based organisation encouraging digital inclusion in the unserved communities, particularly with communities in the global south and the workshop, through its LocNet initiative aimed at crafting an enabling inclusive regulatory framework for community networks in Nigeria.
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