SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
The head of Kenya's Communications Authority, Francis Wangusi, announced a new set of regulations on Tuesday aimed at combatting cybercrime in the country. The new rules would require all users of devices with wireless networking capability to register their devices with the Kenya Network Information Centre (KENIC)—much in the same way that some US states require registration of assault rifles and sex offenders.
Yesterday, in a speech before the annual general meeting of the Association of Regulators of Information and Communications for Eastern and Southern Africa (ARICEA), Wangusi said, "We will license KENIC to register device owners using their national identity cards and telephone numbers. The identity of a device will be known when it connects to Wi-Fi." He also said that the Communications Authority would set up a forensics laboratory within three months to "proactively monitor impending cybersecurity attacks, detect reactive cybercrime, and link up with the judiciary in the fight," according to a report from Kenya's Daily Nation.
The registry will enable Kenyan authorities to "be able to trace people using national identity cards that were registered and their phone numbers keyed in during registration" if the devices are associated with criminal activity on the Internet, Wangusi said. The regulation would apply to anyone connecting to a public Wi-Fi network. KENIC would maintain the database of devices; anyone connecting to a public network at a hotel, café, or other business would be required to register before accessing it. If businesses providing Wi-Fi fail to comply with the regulation, they could have their Internet services cut off.
Original Submission
(Score: 4, Informative) by kaszz on Thursday July 02 2015, @04:55AM
WiFi MAC addresses is never faked in Kenya? ;-)
Some countries aren't just technology backwaters. They make sure everybody knows it too..
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Adamsjas on Thursday July 02 2015, @07:49AM
Was thinking the same thing.
There are mac address change programs in the market for Android.
This scheme will collect so much information that the real perpetrators (if there actually are any) will be lost in the clutter.
Their forensic labs are going to exist where? Are they going to cover every restaurant and coffee shop?
They said something phone numbers keyed in during registration. Seems silly. I know lots of people who use wifi capable phones with no sim card, just to make voip or Skype calls from public libraries or other free wifi.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 02 2015, @12:25PM
Actually it provides a new way to harm someone.
Step 1: Find out his MAC (not hard; his device is broadcasting it all the time).
Step 2: Set your device's MAC to his.
Step 3: Do something illegal on the internet. The MAC recorded will be that of your victim.
Step 4: Make sure the police finds out about that activity.