Digital Rights Weekly/Year 2/Issue 11

Mar 17, 2023

PMO Nepal Twitter Handle Hacked
The official Twitter handle of the Office of the Prime Minister was hacked briefly on 17 March, and two unauthorized tweets were reposted from it. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Twitter handle, @PM_nepal_’, was breached by hackers, and the account’s name was changed to ‘Blur’. This incident highlights the need for strong cybersecurity measures to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive information. Digital Rights Nepal calls on the government to take immediate action to improve its social media security practices and to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.

NTA Unveiled Draft Procedure on Operating Digital VAS
Nepal Telecom Authority (NTA) has made public a draft procedure on operation of Digital Value Added Services (DVAS), seeking suggestion and recommendations from public. According to the draft procedure, service providers must obtain permission from the authority to operate DVAS. The procedure has defined DVAS. as type of services other than the main telecommunications services (Voice, SMS, Data Pack, MMS) provided using telecommunication services (e.g. PSTN, mobile, internet). In the name of approval from the authority, this procedure has tried to introduce a licensing system.

Nepal’s New Record on Bandwidth Consumption
During the World Cup League 2 cricket match between Nepal and UAE at the Tribhuvan University Cricket Ground on 17 March, internet bandwidth consumption reached an all-time high. The Nepal Internet Exchange (NPIX) reported that bandwidth consumption tripled during the match and reached 60.180 gigabits per second at its peak, with Kantipur TV’s website experiencing the most traffic during this period. Typically, internet consumption is around 16 to 20 gigabits, Digital Rights Nepal commends the Nepali cricket team for its historic win and congratulates them for advancing to the World Cup Cricket Qualifier for the first time.

NTA Providing Smart devices to Schools in 100 Rural Areas
On March 8, in celebration of International Women’s Day, NTA announced that smart devices such as TVs, CCTV cameras, and laptops would be distributed to schools in 100 different rural areas. NTA aims to ensure accessibility to e-learning for rural schools, with smart devices also available to schools with existing smart infrastructure. Additionally, NTA has provided WiFi devices to 32 community schools in Badikedar Rural Municipality, Doti, to support smart learning in remote areas. These devices can utilize 4G SIM cards to provide high-speed internet. NTA is also providing free broadband services in educational institutions in many rural parts of Nepal through its RTDF broadband project.

Scam Alert!!!
Malware has been found to be spreading from a fake page using the name of the popular Nepali online news portal Online Khabar. The perpetrators created a fraudulent account on the Facebook page of Online Khabar’s English version, using actress Nisha Adhikari’s name and promoting a link to the malware. On March 7, the name of the page was modified to “OnlineKhabar in English” in an attempt to bolster a post connected to the malware. Prior to this, the official Facebook page of Online Khabar was hacked to disseminate the malware.

NT seeks Security Measures for Consistent Services Amid Damaged Telecom Equipment
Nepal Telecom (NT) has released a statement, drawing attention to the increasing number of incidents causing damage to its telecom equipment throughout Nepal. The company’s latest concern was prompted by a recent fire that severely damaged its telco gears. In addition, NT has urged the public to report any activities or behaviors that may have damaged or may damage its infrastructure, which is essential to ensure the consistent and reliable delivery of services to its customers.
The state-supported telco stated in its latest release that it employs a variety of equipment and infrastructure to provide various types of telecom services, and that such telco gears must be in optimal condition to maintain a consistent delivery of its services.

Law Kura Garau !!!

Law Kura Garau! (Let’s Talk Law) is a Mero Adda’s flagship program, which consists of Vodcasts/Podcasts as well as periodic panel discussion on contemporary Legal issues in an “easy-to-understand” casual format. Currently, Mero Adda is running a pod-cast series, supported by Digital Rights Nepal, with members of legal fraternity. This series has already featured Semanta Datal, Om Prakash Aryal, Prabin Subedi and Rukshana Kapali and discussed issues relating to digital rights such as online freedom of speech, data privacy, cyber security etc. You can enjoy the show on YouTube as well as Spotify, Apple podcast, Google podcast and Anchor.

Event!!!

Women in Data Conference 2023 happening on 17- 18 March!!!
Shequal Foundation is organizing Women in Data Conference (WIDC) in Kathmandu on March 17 and 18, with support from the Asia Foundation. WIDC has been organized since 2019 and the theme of 4th edition of the conference this year is “Transformation through the Integration of Women, Data, and Entrepreneurship”.
For more: Shequal Foundation

DRN Marked World Consumers Rights Day
On World Consumer Rights Day, Digital Rights highlighted the issue of online shopping and the need for e-commerce legislation to regulate online shopping. DRN emphasized the challenges that consumers face in the world of e-commerce, and advocated for proper legislation to protect consumer rights and ensure fair trade practices.

Digital Rights Weekly is a week-based update on Digital Rights and ICT issues, that happened throughout the week, compiled and analyzed from the digital rights perspective by Digital Rights Nepal (DRN). DRN is a not-for-profit initiative dedicated to the protection and promotion of digital rights, including the right to online freedom of expression and association, online privacy, access to information, and related issues such as internet governance, cyber laws/policies, and cyber securities in Nepal.