Nigeria announces talks with Twitter after ban

Nigeria said on Monday it was in discussions with Twitter after it suspended the US social media giant’s services in the country, branding its use as “unpatriotic”.

The Twitter suspension has provoked an outcry from the international community and rights groups who denounced it as a threat to freedom of expression in Africa’s most populous country.

Nigeria announces talks with Twitter after ban, as Ecowas court bars government crackdown on users,

Nigeria said it was halting the platform’s operations indefinitely on Friday, two days after Twitter deleted a comment from President Muhammadu Buhari’s account referring to civil unrest that the firm said violated its rules.

“There are discussions ongoing with Twitter, we will see how that progresses, so I cannot say for now the duration of the suspension,” Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama said after a meeting with diplomats on the issue.

“There are conversations, yes, with our partners. We want to use social media for good.”

Twitter has not yet commented but said earlier that it was “deeply concerned” by Nigeria’s move and that it would work “to restore access for all”.

The announcement also coincided with a ruling by West African regional bloc ECOWAS barring the Nigerian government from arresting and prosecuting Nigerians and corporate bodies for circumventing the Twitter ban.

Nigerian authorities had ordered federal prosecutors to commence legal action against violators of the ban after many Nigerians continued to send tweets using a virtual private network (VPN).

Twitter’s suspension and the planned government crackdown on users of the social media platform were swiftly challenged at a local court by a human rights body, SERAP.

SERAP and a group of journalists and non-governmental organizations also approached the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, describing Twitter’s suspension as well as threats to prosecute Twitter users as “arbitrary” and “unjustified.”

In a ruling Tuesday, Justice Keikura Bangura of the ECOWAS Court ordered “the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and its agents to refrain from imposing sanction on any media house or harassing, intimidating, arresting and prosecuting the Applicants, concerned Nigerians for the use of Twitter and other social media platforms,” pending conclusion of the suit filed before the court by the applicants, according to a statement by the ECOWAS.

Also read Twitter operation suspended in Nigeria

Safeguarding Internet Privacy: Supreme Court of Canada Upholds Protection of IP Addresses

In a recent ruling, the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed the significance of privacy rights concerning internet addresses. The court declared that police cannot simply obtain a suspect’s IP address without a court order, emphasizing the expectation of privacy that Canadian residents hold for such information. The court's decision stemmed from a case in 2017 involving Calgary police investigating fraudulent online activities at a liquor store. Initially, police demanded IP addresses from a credit card processor, which eventually led to obtaining subscriber information from Telus. This information was pivotal in making arrests and securing convictions in multiple offenses. Despite previous convictions, the accused contested the legality of obtaining IP addresses without proper authorization. The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, asserted that IP addresses carry a reasonable expectation of privacy, necessitating judicial approval before access. The ruling emphasizes that obtaining jud

Signal Introduces Usernames for Encrypted Messaging: A Secure Way to Connect

Signal, the encrypted messaging service, is launching a new feature in the coming weeks: support for usernames. This beta feature allows users to establish unique usernames, enabling connections without divulging phone numbers. source: Signal Blog To create a username, navigate to your settings and select "Profile." Once you've chosen a unique username, generate a QR code or link to share with others. Recipients can connect by entering your username into the chat bar. Usernames can be changed at any time, though previous usernames may be claimed by others. Signal began testing usernames last fall. Unlike social media platforms, Signal usernames do not serve as logins or public handles. They offer a discreet means of communication without revealing personal phone numbers. While a phone number is required to register for Signal, sharing it is optional. Usernames remain private and do not appear on profiles or in chats unless shared explicitly. As Randall Sarafa, Signal'

Apple approves single letter name for twitter IOS app

In a series of noteworthy updates, Twitter, the popular social media platform, has officially rebranded itself to a single-letter name "X" on the App Store, marking a significant change in its visual identity. This move came after weeks of alterations to its social media handles, interface branding, and even web redirects, generating quite a buzz among its users and followers. Interestingly, Apple usually maintains a policy against allowing developers to name their apps with just a single character. However, it seems that Twitter's parent company, X Corp., led by the renowned entrepreneur Elon Musk, managed to secure an exception from Apple, granting them the unique opportunity to use "X" as the app's name. This exception was particularly significant, as the App Store Connect portal typically displays an error when developers attempt to use a single character as the app's name. In conjunction with the name change, Twitter also revamped its App Store tagl

THEHACKCITY

Search This Blog