In the spirit of current effort at re-branding Nigeria, some Nigerian 419 operators recently targeted the British Justice Secretary, Jack Straw? What a way not to re-brand Nigeria and someone still says Dora Akunyili will succeed with her planned make-over of Nigeria? Where does this effort at re-branding Nigeria, really start? From a president who did not win an election but was imposed on the country by a cabal or a criminal 419 operator who is still scheming his next victim? And it does not matter whether the next victim is the chief law enforcement officer of the United Kingdom? Icheoku says, we do not envy Dora Akunyili as she is between a rock and a hard place in this her improbable effort to make Nigeria, lovable once again.According to sources, some Nigerian 419 criminal fraudsters sent out several hundreds of e-mails in the name of the Justice Secretary, asking for some money. The e-mails claimed Jack Straw had lost his wallet while on a charity-work mission in Africa and needed just $3,500 US dollars to enable him get back to London. The message read, "I would like you to assist me with a soft loan urgently to settle my hotel bills and get myself back home ". Such messages headed the Right Hon Jack Straw MP were sent to several council bosses, government chiefs as well as other British citizens. Secretary Straw confirmed that such e-mails were sent to a "significant number of people" in his address book but he said there were no security issues as it was his Blackburn e-mail address rather than his ministerial account that was compromised. According to him, "I started getting phone calls from various constituents asking if I was really in Nigeria needing 3,000 dollars. It was an issue for constituents, not the government". Icheoku says, whoever falls victim to such idiocy is an imbecile, knowing that there are channels for the Justice Secretary to re-coupe, assuming he is stranded while on foreign mission, other than letter for help to the British public. What is the British embassy in Nigeria or the Office of Foreign Relations in London doing, when a mere phone call or personal visit would have solved whatever financial difficulty the alleged loss of a wallet could have brought upon the Secretary? More-so, such a high State official does not personally pay for his affairs while on official state matters and the whole scam would have been disregarded but in order to throw additional searchlight on Nigeria's effort at re-branding? Even the Secretary acknowledged the stupidity of the emails, when he said "But I think it was so obviously ridiculous that I could go off trekking in Africa and I would lose my wallet." Icheoku says, these Nigerian criminal 419 operators should at least research their ploys better, to know that an official of state such as the British Justice Secretary has avenues of recouping a loss rather than an open letter to the British public. What a hydra-headed dumb and dumber these Nigerian 419 criminals are? With so many such similarly situated Nigerians still out there to prey on unsuspecting victims, Dora Akunyili has a very steep hill to climb with this her re-branding of Nigeria effort!
Straw, hackers and the rebranding Nigeria project
ReplyDeleteBy Juliet Bumah and Abimbola Adelakun
Published: Thursday, 5 Mar 2009
For the minister of Information and Communication, Prof. Dora Akunyili, her efforts to improve Nigeria‘s image in the eyes of the international community may have suffered a setback. With the allegation that the people who hacked into the e-mail of UK Justice Secretary, Mr. Jack Straw, are Nigerians, it seems to be one step forward and several steps backward for the energetic minister.
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Cheche
SUPER THUR ILLUSTRATION MARCH 5
According to a report by Alexandra Topping published in guardian.co.uk, on Wednesday 25 February 2009 titled, Jack Straw falls victim to Nigerian Internet hackers, ”…a gang of Nigerian Internet hackers had sent hundreds of emails to Blackburn MP‘s contacts, claiming that he had lost his wallet while on charity work in Africa and was in need of $3,000 (£2,000) to get home.”
It is really funny that the Internet fraudsters would choose Mr. Straw as their victim because in 2001 when he was the Home Secretary, he put together the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit to curtail the activities of Internet hackers. Though these faceless criminals who tried to swindle Mr. Straw may not have this information, it is also possible that they did it to show him that no e-mail is impregnable.
But then, up till now, there has been no official report on who the hackers are or the evidence to support that they are actually Nigerians, yet the story is being brandished all over the Internet, an attestation to the latest ingenuity of Nigerians - people who have been mislabeled as fraudsters and their country as a home of chicanery.
It would be even worse to ask the UK to produce evidence that the hackers were Nigerians and have it turn out that they are right after all. Needless to say, we will be embarrassed as a nation.
One thing, however, Internet hacking is not a new thing. In fact, a man like Straw should know that the Internet is a public and unsafe space and it can be hacked into by anyone who has the skills and the patience to do so. Nigerians are not the only ones who are into hacking. All over the world, there are incidences of hacking and Nigeria does even come up high on the world hacking ratings.
One thing that is worrisome about this, however, is that the hackers were not doing this to prove a point like many a psychopath has done. It was not meant to show the man who wanted to crack down on Internet hackers that he needs to buckle up efforts. Rather, it was to raise money - typical of the Nigerian yahoo yahoo boys. Unfortunately for the hackers, however, nobody had come to the aid of Straw until the bubble burst.
Perhaps, the approach of the fraudsters made people to think they are of Nigerian stock because the hackers mistook their culture for the white man‘s. In Nigeria, and Africa by extension, if one lands into trouble that needs a bailout, the first thing you think of is to look for a kinsman. It doesn‘t matter if the person has his own financial troubles, he looks for the money to get a brother out of the woods. In the UK, your problem is primarily yours and you are the best person to get you out. In an instance such as getting stranded in another country, the Justice Secretary, who was said to be in Nigeria for a project titled Empowering Youth to Fight Racism would have known better than to solicit personal loans from friends and constituents. The e-mail was said to have come under the official heading: The Right Hon Jack Straw MP and reads thus: ”I misplaced my wallet on my way to the hotel where my money and other valuable things were kept. I would like you to assist me with a soft loan urgently to settle my hotel bills and get myself back home.”
Of course, his constituents called to confirm the veracity of the story only to find it was a hoax. Even with all their hacking sense, the yahoo yahoo boys goofed.
This latest act, allegedly by Nigerian boys, has been hyped over the Internet and the foreign media as if hacking is a feat only Nigerians have achieved. Even though activities of hackers are common and can be carried out by anyone with skills, the foreign media touts the ‘Nigerian‘ identity of the hackers so self righteously, even though no evidence has been provided to confirm this. This, no doubt, will set back Akunyili‘s rebranding project by many paces whether she agrees or not.
Imagine if millions of naira had already been expended on the rebrand Nigeria project and this happens, do we need further evidence to prove that we will be made a laughing stock? Of course, the whole Nigerian reloaded or rebranded thing will not be believed for any reason. It seems that the foreign media is always quick to publish anything about us that does not look positive as proof of our being a retrogressive country and our fellow countrymen too will not stop supplying them with evidence. Yet, they will not hesitate to collect our advertising millions if we choose to rebrand on their medium.
The economic meltdown is partly as a result of unscrupulous activities carried on by Western businessmen but nobody is painting it to look like all their countrymen are crooks.
On the other hand, one should consider the yahoo yahoo boys and what they have been able to achieve with the minimum technology at their disposal. It is not clear whether they are based in Nigeria but if they are, then beyond hanging them for the crime of hacking, we should see it as a cry for help and attention. They must have skills, no doubt and it seems the only way recognition will come for them is through criminal activities. It is a shame, no doubt but a responsible government will take up this and find a better occupation for these yahoo hands. If they are allowed to continue like this, it is certain the whole country will not be able to contain the repercussions that will surely follow.