Jackie Phahlamohlaka

Globalisation and national security issues for the state: Implications for national ICT policies

The national security issues most impacted upon by globalisation are generally found to fall into three categories: the nature of security threats in a globalised world, the effects of the phenomenon of globalisation on the pursuit of national security, and the erosion of the exclusivity of the state as a provider of national security. In this chapter I examine the security risks associated with ICT, and in particular the Internet which is not constrained by territorial boundaries traditionally defining states and their sovereignty. Also, I point out the need for developing and implementing agile security related ICT policies to remain on the national security research agenda of all states.

ICT and Society

The theoretical understanding of online shopping behaviour has received much attention. Less focus has been given to the formation of the ethical issues that result from online shopper interactions with e-retailers. The vast majority of earlier research on this area is conceptual in nature and limited in scope by focusing on consumers’ privacy issues. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to propose a theoretical model explaining what factors contribute to online retailing ethics and its effect on customer repurchase intention. The data were analysed using variance-based structural equation modelling, employing partial least squares regression. Findings indicate that the five factors of the online retailing ethics (security, privacy, nondeception, fulfilment/reliability, and corporate social responsibility) are strongly predictive of online consumers’ repurchase intention. The results offer important implications for e-retailers and are likely to stimulate further research in the area of e-ethics from the consumers’ perspective.

An Approach to Governance of CyberSecurity in South Africa

A government has the responsibility to provide, regulate and maintain national security, which includes human security for its citizens. Recent declarations from the UK and USA governments about setting up cybersecurity organisations and the appointment of cyber czars reflect a global recognition that the Internet is part of the national critical infrastructure that needs to be safeguarded and protected. Although the South African government approved a draft National Cyber Security Policy Framework in March 2012, the country still needs a national cybersecurity governance structure in order to effectively control and protect its cyber infrastructure. Whilst various structures have been established to deal with cybersecurity in South Africa, they are inadequate and implementation of the policy is still in the very early stages. Structures need to be in place to set the security controls and policies and also to govern their implementation. It is important to have a holistic approach to cybersecurity, with partnerships between business, government and civil society put in place to achieve this goal. This paper investigates different government organisational structures created for the control of national cybersecurity in selected countries of the world. The main contribution is a proposed approach that South Africa could follow in implementing its proposed cybersecurity policy framework, taking into account the challenges of legislation and control of cybersecurity in Africa, and in particular, in South Africa.

Formulating the Building Blocks for National Cyberpower

Copyright: 2017 IGI Global. Due to copyright restrictions, the attached PDF file only contains the abstract of the full text item. For access to the full text item, kindly consult the publishers website.

A practise-based theory of SEIDET smart community centre model

South African communities are constantly being developed through new ICT projects and technologies which are initiated by individuals, government and private organisations. The problem with these developments is that they are implemented in isolation. This isolation causes limited sharing of resources, duplication, poor-governance of the resources, and in worse-case scenarios, failure of these projects is realised before their intended purposes. The smart community centre model that could be used to address these problems by focusing on the Siyabuswa Educational Improvement and Development Trust (SEIDET) community centre for experimentation purposes has been proposed. This model followed a descriptive analysis of ICT related work spanning over two decades performed within the SEIDET context, including the ongoing SEIDET Digital Village. The benefits of this smart community centre model include community and rural development through sharing of scarce ICT resources. It could further provide support for entrepreneurs through training interventions, action-based research for policy development as well as spawn local innovation and free-sharing of resources and services. This model can further be adapted to any local community, as it is designed using the international studies and theories. This paper presents the design of the smart community centre model. The design is described using Practice Theory concepts towards an empirical study that will be conducted using the General Morphological Analysis methods to corroborate aspects of practices. The scenario of how these theories could be practiced within the SEIDET centre is also presented.

Proposed Model for a Cybersecurity Centre of Innovation for South Africa

Most communications in the new era are dependent on Information and Communication Technology (ICT). In addition, infrastructure is becoming increasingly interconnected. This not only makes lives easier, but also leaves technology users more vulnerable. Cybercrime, digital espionage and other cyber disturbances dictate the news reports on a daily basis. In general, cyber-attacks are no longer confined to small-scale rogue hackers. Cyber-attacks are now a part of organised crime and the underground economy, posing a real threat to critical infrastructure; possibly with state actors driving these actions. The responsibility to protect ICT stretches beyond individual companies, sectors and even beyond nations. The authors of this paper propose a Cybersecurity Centre Of Innovation (CCOI) as a central point for the South African government, business and academia to create a secure cyber space for the country: a cyber space without crime that is resilient and resistant to disruptions; a cyber space that promotes innovation, helps the economy and enhances national security. The key driver of the proposed CCOI is collaboration; solutions to cyber risks require a combined approach. This paper describes the organisational structure, functions, activities and benefits of a CCOI.

ICT Critical Infrastructures and Society: Introduction to the HCC10 Conference Proceedings

For 40 years, the academics and business executives who have attended the Human Choice and Computers international conference series have discussed human choices and social responsibility in relation to information and communication technology (ICT). At this 2012 conference, the focus is on ICT critical infrastructures, and the challenges they pose to governments, businesses and people. Several topics have emerged as relevant in this conference: ICT developments at international and national levels; sustainable and responsible innovation; dilemmas involving ICT, peace and war; and the implications of ICT and social media for citizens’ involvement and citizens’ rights. What should national computing associations be doing to explore these serious issues? How should the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) itself respond? Responses are needed that are flexible and durable enough to face the challenges of the coming four decades.