14022018 - Workers flee as herdsmen overrun LG offices in Ondo

24—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
Cashless society: First certified Android PoS Terminal debuts in Nigeria
By Prince Osuagwu
Licensed payment terminal service provider, Global
Accelerex, says it is bringing Nigeria’s first single
unit android point of sale terminal to help push up the
country’s cashless society initiative.
The terminal to be known as NEXGO N5, would be
certified for payment in Nigeria.
The company claims that the newest device would be the
latest revolution in the nation’s payment system as it runs
on Lollipop 5.0 operating system and performs four times
faster than any other payment terminal available today.
The device is said to have efficient battery conservation
and high performance. It is loaded with better protection
against vulnerabilities and malware, giving users peace
and allows them to focus on running their businesses
effectively.
Commenting on the introduction of the new product, Mr.
Kayode Ariyo, the company’s Chief Operating Officer said
that the introduction of the terminal marks another milestone
in their quest to revolutionize PoS business in Nigeria with
the most efficient payment solutions. He noted that the company’s
bias for world-class technology, excellent service quality
and innovation resulted in bringing the technology.
Also, Chief Technical Officer, Mr. Stanley Peters, added: “We
remain committed in our determination to deploy the best
available PoS systems in the world into Nigeria. We will
leverage technology to make payment systems faster, safer
and more dependable. The unique terminal offers improved
network selection logic, limited interruption of connectivity
and standby power time of 120 hours, lasting up to five days
before the battery drains out”.
Packed with a Quad-Core processor, the smart terminal
enables users multitask, giving them the luxury to perform
multiple functions on the PoS terminal, without it
slowing down or freezing. The processor also encourages
lower power consumption and higher performance per
watt.
With its sleek and stylish design, the device has garnered
world-class certifications which include PCI - certification
of payment data security by international standards;
EMVco - evaluates the security of a payment card
before a transaction is approved; Visa - for smooth transition
of card and contactless transactions; Mastercard -
enhances functional reliability, interoperability and overall
security; and AmEX, which enables international card
acceptance and seamless transaction approval.
CALL MASKING:
Hammer may fall on interconnect
clearing houses this week
•Stakeholders warn NCC of hasty conclusions
•Affected operators demand thorough investigations
•NCC rules out license revocation
By Prince Osuagwu (Hi
Tech Editor)
Barring any last minute inter
vention, the hammer of the
telecom regulator, Nigerian Communications
Commission, NCC,
would drop on some interconnect
clearing houses this week.
This is following statement from
the commission, penultimate week
that no fewer than six internet exchange
operators in the country are
likely to lose their operating licenses
over call masking before end of
February.
The licensees involved
include Medallion Communications
Limited, Interconnect Cleaning
House Nigeria Limited, Niconnx
Communication Limited,
Breeze Micro Limited, Solid Interconnectivity
and Exchange Telecommunications
Limited.
The Nigerian Communications
Commission said it will impose the
maximum possible penalties on
any of its licensees implicated in
the practice of masking of international
telephone calls.
The commission says the operating
licenses of some of the interconnect
exchange and other licensees
involved in the practice
could either be revoked or suspended
this week.
The action was a fall out of the
Commission’s meeting with senior
operatives from the nation’s security
services and representatives of
the said licensees at the Commission’s
Abuja offices.
The commission said it confronted
the affected licensees with some
of the evidence at its disposal indi-
cating that they (the clearing
houses) have been masking
calls.
Call masking is when
a telephone number
making a call is disguised
or displayed
as a different
number.
It is typically
the
case
with
companies
that use what is known as
non-geographical numbers.
The Commission had over the
years warned that the practice is
illegal and that telecom companies
indulging in the practice would be
punished as it limits competition
and also portends dire security implications
for the country.
However, different stakeholders
have picked hole in NCC’s
planned action and called for a
broader investigation into the call
masking allegation to ensure the
right people are punished.
Some of the stakeholders feel that
the channels calls pass through before
getting to the final recipient
and should be properly scrutinized
before a wrong group is punished
for the sins of others.
One of the stakeholders, who
spoke to Hi-Tech on condition of
anonymity, specifically fingered the
telecom operators who he said are
the last to see the call before the
final recipient.
According
to him, “in
my little
knowledge
of the process
a call
travels before
the final consumer picks it, the
mobile network operators are the last
to see the calls and also have the
right to pass it to the final consumer
or not. If that is the case and of
course they have the wherewithal
to know a masked call, why would
they pass such calls to the consumer?
It is at this point, I want the NCC
to think through its action and know
whether to revisit the case with a
more thorough investigation. Much
as we would want the commission
to be firm in regulating the industry,
it would be a great disservice to
the entire sector if its actions are
based on hasty conclusions”
Some of the fingered interconnect
clearing houses told Hi-Tech that
they believe that NCC was acting
under pressure due to the precarious
security situation of the country
but would want the commission
to liaise with them to find out where
the problem was coming from rather
than hitting them with a sledge
hammer.
“The regulator is like a father to
all of us. There is a limit to how
confrontational you can be to your
father even if he is wrong, but personally,
I believe that it would be
more beneficial if the commission
would explore our knowledge of
•Prof Umar Danbatta
the industry to be able to get to the
root cause of this menace. Yes, I call
it a menace because I know that is
what call masking is, to the industry
and the economy of a nation”
one of the clearing houses told Hi-
Tech.
A top official of another clearing
house also fingered by the NCC
said: “It may interest you to know
that we have no power to tamper
with MNO traffic that passes
through our system. It is actually
the MNOs that profit a lot from call
masking and refilling, if there is one
Continues on page 25
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