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☆ Nepal bans TikTok because of ‘disruption’ to social harmony
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Sugam Pokharel | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London/Hong Kong CNN —Nepal has decided to ban TikTok because the popular short video app was disrupting social structures in the South Asian nation, government officials say. “Considering how TikTok is disrupting our social harmony, and the impact it’s having on our family and social structures, the cabinet has decided to ban TikTok for the moment,” Rekha Sharma, Nepal’s minister of communication and information technology, told a press conference on Monday. Purushottam Khanal, chair of the Telecommunications Authority, has asked internet service providers to cut access to the app, the country’s state-run Nepal Television said in a Monday report. In February, the White House told federal agencies that they had 30 days to remove TikTok from all government-issued devices. Australia announced in April that the app would have to be removed from federal government devices.

Persons: ” Rekha Sharma, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, ”, Purushottam Khanal, TikTok Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Monday, CNN, Telecommunications Authority, Nepal, WorldLink Communications, Reuters, —, New Zealand, White House, Australia Locations: Hong Kong, Nepal, India, Bhaktapur, United States, — Australia, Britain, Canada, New

☆ Kenya panel urges shutdown of Worldcoin's crypto project within country
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Duncan Miriri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Worldcoin was rolled out in various countries around the world by Tools for Humanity, a company co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The project still has a virtual presence in Kenya and can be accessed via the Internet, even after the August suspension. It also called for the suspension of the companies' "physical presence in Kenya until there is a legal framework for regulation of virtual assets and virtual services providers." The panel also asked government ministries to develop regulations for crypto assets and firms that provide crypto services and called on the police to investigate Tools for Humanity and take any necessary legal action. Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Aaron Ross and Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Annegret, Sam Altman, Duncan Miriri, Aaron Ross, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Humanity Corp, Kenyan, Humanity, Communications Authority, Humanity GmbH, National Assembly, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, NAIROBI, Britain, France, Kenya

☆ Factbox: Scrutiny of iris-scanning crypto project Worldcoin grows
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Worldcoin has drawn criticism from privacy campaigners over its data collection. It has said the biometric data is either deleted or stored in encrypted form, and that it is "committed" to working with regulators. CNIL had previously said it was aware of the Worldcoin project and that the legality of its biometric data collection "seems questionable". GERMANYA German data watchdog has been investigating Worldcoin since late last year due to concerns over its large-scale processing of sensitive biometric data, it said. PORTUGALPortugal's data regulator, the CNPD, has inspected Worldcoin's local data collection operation and been in contact with the Bavarian data protection authority in Germany, a spokesperson said.

Persons: Annegret, Sam Altman, Altman, Worldcoin, CNIL, Elizabeth Howcroft, Tom Wilson, John Stonestreet Organizations: REUTERS, Agencia, Informacion Publica, Commissioner's, Communications Authority of, Data, Thomson Locations: cryptocurrency, Berlin, Germany, ARGENTINA, Argentina, Informacion, BRITAIN, FRANCE, Worldcoin's, GERMANY, Handelsblatt, KENYA, Kenya, Communications Authority of Kenya, PORTUGAL

☆ Hong Kong pro-democracy radio closes in face of "dangerous" pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Jessie Pang | Thomson Reuters | Jessie Pang Joined Reuters In After An Internship. She Covers Hong Kong With A Focus On Politics | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, June 30 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's pro-democracy online Citizens' Radio station will cease operations on Friday owing to what its founder described as a "dangerous" political situation and the freezing of its bank account. Tsang also said his radio station's bank account had been frozen, without giving specifics. Hong Kong authorities have repeatedly said that media freedoms are respected and enshrined in city laws. In 2019, four masked men wielding bats and hammers barged in to the radio station after smashing through its glass door. Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" agreement aimed a preserving its freedoms for 50 years.

Persons: Kong's, Tsang Kin, Tsang, Hong, Cédric Alviani, OFCA, Jimmy Lai, Hong Kong, Jessie Pang, James Pomfret, Robert Birsel Organizations: Citizens, Apple Daily, Radio, Media, Hong Kong, Communications Authority, Reuters, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Hong, China, Hong Kong, East Asia

Pamela Mukalasinga, 54, a small-scale trader and mother of five, would tune in religiously to Mackenzie’s Times TV channel. “The rescued child narrated the sufferings his two siblings underwent after being starved for some time before their mother suffocated them to death,” prosecutors said. Many of those found in the forest are believed to be followers of Mackenzie. This is extremism and brainwashing of the highest order,” Walid Sketty of Kenya-based human rights group Haki Africa, which has been involved in rescue operations at Shakahola, told CNN. Shibutse recalls that his mother started to observe some of Mackenzie’s doctrines denouncing healthcare and modern education for children.

Persons: Rodgers Shibutse, Pamela, Paul Mackenzie, Pamela Mukalasinga, Shibutse, Rodgers, Mackenzie, “, Paul McKenzie, ”, Malindi, ” Mackenzie, George Kariuki, Pastor Mackenzie, ” Kariuki, Kariuki, Titus Katana, GNI, Katana, “ Mackenzie, Yasuyoshi Chiba, I’ve, ” Walid Sketty, Johansen Oduor, ” Oduor, Oduor, ” Shibutse, Robert, Mackenzie’s GNI, Gideon Mung’aro, Mackenzie wasn’t, Moses Odhiambo, Kithure Kindiki, Ezekiel Ombok Odero, ” Kindiki, Jared Magolo, “ It’s, Pastor Odero, hasn’t, Odero, Odhiambo Organizations: CNN, Mackenzie’s Times, Good News International, Kenyan Red Cross, Police, National Police, Kenyan, …, Nation . Police, Workers, Getty, Government, Digital, Times TV, Citizen Digital, Prosecutors, New, Centre Church, Kenya’s Communications Authority Locations: Kenya’s, Bungoma County, Malindi, Kenya, Shakahola, Mombasa, AFP, Africa, ”, bodybags, Kenyan, Haki Africa, “, Kilifi County, Odero

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake on Feb. 6 killed more than 47,000 people, damaged or destroyed hundreds of thousands of buildings in Turkey and Syria and left millions homeless. In Turkey, 865,000 people are living in tents and 23,500 in containers, while 376,000 are in student dormitories and public guesthouses outside the earthquake zone, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday. Six people were killed in the latest earthquake to strike the border region of Turkey and Syria, authorities said on Tuesday. Turkey's internet authority blocked access to a popular online forum, Eksi Sozluk, on Tuesday, two weeks after it briefly blocked access to Twitter, citing the spread of disinformation. Information Technologies and Communications Authority (BTK) website shows the website was blocked late on Tuesday, without citing any explicit reason.

☆ Vodacom gets fibre boost as regulator approves transfer of DFA licences
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Andreas Rinke | Miranda Murray | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A branch South African mobile communications provider Vodacom in Cape Town is shown in this picture taken November 10, 2015. REUTERS/Mike HutchingsJOHANNESBURG, Nov 9 (Reuters) - South Africa's Vodacom (VODJ.J) moved a step closer to a considerable expansion of its fibre footprint after the country's telecoms regulator approved the transfer of Dark Fibre Africa's licences to the mobile operator. If approved, Vodacom will also transfer its fibre assets to MAZIV. The deal gives South Africa's largest mobile operator exposure to the country's biggest open access fibre players. DFA is a leading provider of carrier-grade dark fibre - unused optical fibre - specialising in building, installing, and operating a national metro fibre network spanning 13,000 kilometres.

☆ Kenya's Safaricom targets more fixed Internet users with 5G network
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Ayenat Mersie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Pedestrians walk on a sideway outside the Safaricom mobile phone customer care centre in the central business district of Nairobi, Kenya, November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Monicah MwangiOct 27 (Reuters) - Kenya's largest telecoms operator Safaricom (SCOM.NR) launched its 5G high-speed internet service on Thursday, becoming the first firm to deploy the technology commercially in East Africa. The company, whose internet provision business is one of its fastest growing, uses equipment from Nokia (NOKIA.HE) and Huawei (HWT.UL) to power its 5G network. While Safaricom dominates the mobile data market - commanding about a 65% share - it holds only about a third of the fixed data market, data from the Communications Authority of Kenya showed. Customers with compatible phones would however be able to use the network soon, the company said, when it starts selling 5G data packages.

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