Sciencetechnology

As discussions continue, stakeholders are focused on ensuring that policy decisions are both technically sound and operationally feasible, with full implementation expected in November 2026.

WhatsApp is rolling out a new security feature that warns users about unknown contacts before a chat is opened, helping them identify potential scams, impersonation attempts, and suspicious messages before engaging.

Noting that cybercriminals are already exploiting AI to automate attacks and generate disinformation, she called for joint action among African governments, policymakers, innovators, researchers, industry leaders, cybersecurity practitioners and development partners to ensure a secure digital Africa.

The regulations require manufacturers to implement audited safety management systems covering the full life cycle of an automated driving system.

The allegations, outlined in a letter sent to US legislators and White House officials, claim that operators linked to Alibaba's AI division, Qwen, conducted approximately 28.8 million interactions with Claude between April and June this year.

A Florida teenager said YouTube's addictive design contributed to depression, anxiety and sleep loss. Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok are also facing similar allegations about their impact on young users.

The report showed that most cyber offences reported in Nairobi involved intentionally withholding electronic payment delivered erroneously, unauthorised access to computer systems, computer fraud and cyber harassment.

Social media has become the centre of Kenya’s news ecosystem, with many people receiving information through feeds, short video clips and forwarded messages instead of visiting news websites directly.

He succeeds Will Cathcart, who has led WhatsApp since 2019 and played a crucial role in expanding the platform's global reach and business services. Industry analysts believe Shah's appointment signals Meta's intention to accelerate growth in payments, digital commerce, and AI integration across WhatsApp's ecosystem.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said the move is aimed at protecting foundational learning skills and ensuring children develop core academic abilities before relying on AI.

The most remarkable growth has been recorded by TikTok, whose use for news consumption surged from 38 per cent in 2025 to 58 per cent in 2026, representing a 20-percentage-point increase within a single year.

President William Ruto formally created the agency as an autonomous regulatory and technical body mandated to oversee national cybersecurity matters and support the security of Kenya’s growing digital ecosystem.

From NTSA highway systems to smart city pilots, from retail analytics to biometric identity platforms, surveillance is evolving into a continuous, automated, and intelligent network.

Digital identity is increasingly becoming the foundation of modern life. Whether accessing healthcare, sending money, ordering food, boarding a plane, or interacting with government services, identity verification is moving from physical documents to digital systems.

Since its launch in 2018, the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa programme has supported over 190 startups across 17 African countries, helping them collectively raise hundreds of millions of dollars and create thousands of jobs.

Under the new feature, creators can add unique text to each slide, providing context, commentary, product information, or storytelling elements that appear alongside specific images.

TikTok users are increasingly posting reactions, tactical analysis, memes, and commentary, turning football into an ongoing online conversation rather than a 90-minute event.

According to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS), maternal healthcare access remains uneven, shaped by distance, cost, and unequal service availability, particularly in rural and low-income settings.

The suspension was imposed after allegations that leaked examination materials linked to the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) were being circulated through channels on the platform.

The new rules set 15 as the minimum age for social media access, with stricter verification and safety controls introduced for teens aged 15 and 16.

While the move will not directly affect how users interact with Claude or other Anthropic products today, it represents an important signal that AI companies are beginning to address the environmental consequences of their rapid growth.

The update specifically targets TikTok shopping livestreams, where creators and sellers must now rely on real-time human interaction rather than automated or pre-recorded audio systems.

In Kenya, this distinction is becoming clearer. WhatsApp remains dominant across the general population, but Telegram is steadily growing as a niche platform for specific user groups.

Apple is reportedly considering adjustments that would limit how easily users can create and reuse these masked email addresses across different services.

Google says selected devices will receive Gemini Intelligence later this year, introducing features designed to help users complete tasks proactively rather than simply respond to commands.

The petition is based on Article 53 of the Constitution of Kenya, the Children Act 2022 and the responsibility of the State to protect children from harmful influences.

The restriction, imposed under Section 69A of India’s Information Technology Act, will remain in place until June 22, covering the day of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination and its immediate aftermath.

The issue has since been addressed by Microsoft through server-side mitigations, and researchers say there is no evidence that the vulnerability was exploited in the wild before being patched.

While AI legislation might be a promising step forward in filling the regulatory void, this effort appears to be restricted only to a few countries whose approach is yet to move past European parameters.

Kenya’s ranking is partly attributed to the throttling of the Internet during youth-led protests on June 25, 2025, as was confirmed by the global internet observatory, Netblocks, which reported a sharp drop in access to platforms such as Telegram.

The United Kingdom is set to follow the example of Australia and Indonesia by banning teenagers from social networks. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said platforms like Instagram and TikTok make youngsters "unhappy."

According to Peta Pixel, DJI fired the opening salvo on June 11 by filing two lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, alleging that Insta360 copied both the design and core technologies of its Osmo Pocket cameras.

For now, Fable 5 and Mythos 5 remain offline pending further review. While debates continue over how far regulators should go in intervening in frontier AI systems, and what qualifies as a genuine security threat in an era of rapidly evolving model capabilities.

Outage tracking platform Downdetector has recorded more than 80,000 user reports globally within a short span, indicating a large-scale technical disruption rather than isolated network or device issues.

Mobile phone importers, distributors, and retailers are now assessing how the two tax measures will interact and whether consumers will ultimately pay less, more, or roughly the same amount for handsets.

The rollout comes as Bluesky continues to refine its long-term vision of decentralised social networking built on the AT Protocol, where users have greater control over how they interact and form communities.

The transition marks one of the most significant changes to the Chrome extension ecosystem in years, affecting millions of users who rely on browser extensions to block advertisements, trackers and malicious content.

Under the new system, users will be able to link their Visa cards to ChatGPT and authorise the AI assistant to make purchases within pre-defined limits.

Government introduces standalone cybersecurity funding under the Digital Superhighway programme to strengthen protection of digital infrastructure as online public services expand.

All ministries, departments and agencies will be required to process procurement exclusively through the Electronic Government Procurement system starting July 1, 2026, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency, efficiency and accountability in public spending.

ICT spending falls to Sh8.6bn as Treasury trims infrastructure-heavy projects and boosts digital economy and cybersecurity priorities in 2026/27 budget.

Companies that fail to comply could face significant financial penalties, while a newly established Digital Safety Commission of Canada would oversee enforcement and determine which services qualify for exemptions.

The expansion marks another major step in Google's efforts to integrate artificial intelligence into its products and services.

Google maintains that creators who upload content to YouTube agree to a broad licensing arrangement that allows the company to reproduce, distribute and create derivative works from uploaded material.

The change affects popular applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote, and is being triggered by the expiration of a digital certificate required for the software to run in full mode.

One of Claude Fable 5's defining features is its ability to remain focused on complex problems for extended periods without requiring constant supervision. Anthropic says the model can independently manage multi-step projects and maintain context over long time horizons.

The update brings Telegram closer to delivering a smartphone-like messaging experience on wearable devices as they become more powerful and widely adopted.

Under the updated guidelines, Apple says it may reject or remove outdated apps, rarely used apps, or those that largely duplicate functionality already available through existing applications.

Much-discussed examples include emotional dependency on chatbot companions, compulsive engagement with them, and the loss of real-world acquaintances and friends.

If approved, the licence would allow Amazon to build and operate communications infrastructure, including satellite network facilities, and directly provide broadband services in the country.

While Instagram has not fundamentally altered how posts are published or distributed in the main feed, the profile view now includes an editing mode for grid layout. In this mode, users can drag and drop posts to new positions, reshaping the visual arrangement without affecting timestamps or engagement metrics.