News

Stories about the Upanzi Network

The Upanzi Network joins civil society and academia advisory group

The Upanzi Network at CMU-Africa has been accepted as a member of the civil society and academia advisory group within the Digital for Development Hub.

CMU-Africa expands digital public infrastructure initiative Opens in new window

The Upanzi Network will fund research projects in Morocco, Botswana, and South Africa, with plans for additional partnerships.

A honeynet infrastructure to battle SMS scammers

Bernard Odartei Lamptey from CMU-Africa's Upanzi Network hopes to combat mobile money scam transactions by collecting more data about smishing in order to develop ways that users can protect themselves.

Responsible research and innovation in Sub-Saharan Africa

A team from the Upanzi Network at CMU-Africa seeks to transform the practice of responsible research and innovation in the Global South.

The Upanzi Network and MicroSave Consulting (MSC) announce Digital ID Hackathon Africa

The Upanzi Network and MicroSave Consulting (MSC) have launched a series of regional hackathons for African university students to identify new and innovative use cases of digital ID across the continent.

Learn more about the hackathons

Navigating digital financial inclusion in Africa Opens in new window

As the presence of mobile phones becomes increasingly widespread in Africa, digital services have allowed for more financial inclusion among low- and middle-income countries within the continent. A group of Carnegie Mellon University researchers led by Karen Sowon, a postdoctoral researcher at CMU’s CyLab Security and Privacy Institute, investigated these issues and recently published a paper on "The Role of User-Agent Interactions on Mobile Money Practices in Kenya and Tanzania."

Fanti named Angel Jordan Associate Professor Opens in new window

With the approval of Provost James H. Garrett, CyLab core faculty member Giulia Fanti has been named the new Angel Jordan Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, effective July 1, 2024.

Protecting software secrets in medical systems

A team from the Upanzi Network found that 83 percent of digital square global goods used in the health sector included secrets that were at risk of being exposed.

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picoCTF-Africa inspires participants to learn cybersecurity

picoCTF-Africa, now in its third year, helps participants improve their skills in vital cybersecurity disciplines.

Carnegie Mellon celebrates CMU-Africa Week 2024

In its second year running, CMU-Africa Week welcomed students from the land of a thousand hills to the city of bridges.

Releasing private population analytics: How should we do it?

Population analytics is a concept that has important downstream applications, like determining funding allocations, but these analytics can leak sensitive data about individuals.

CMU faculty selected for UN-led working group on DPI safeguards

Assane Gueye and Giulia Fanti have been selected by the United Nations Office of the Secretary-General Envoy on Technology to be part of a working group for the DPI Safeguards initiative.

A centralized data portal about Africa

Researchers from the Upanzi Digital Public Infrastructure Lab have set out to make it easier to find and explore data about the African continent.

Understanding the security of mobile apps in Africa

Researchers from CyLab-Africa and the Upanzi Network recently partnered with the mobile security provider Approov to explore the security of common financial services apps used across Africa.

Stakeholder collaboration in Rwanda’s digital transformation

CyLab-Africa and the Upanzi Network, AfricaNenda, and Rwanda Information Society Authority jointly hosted a digital public infrastructure and digital public goods stakeholder engagement workshop. This workshop served as a catalyst for collaborative efforts aimed at advancing Rwanda’s digital transformation.

Op-Ed: Building digital infrastructure for Africa, by Africa

Co-director of the Upanzi Open Digital Technologies Network and CyLab-Africa shares how universities on the continent are well positioned to solve several key challenges on the path to a digital future.

Related Article Opens in new window

Five unique cybersecurity challenges in Africa

CMU-Africa’s Assane Gueye has identified five cybersecurity challenges that Africa faces on the path to a digital future.

Explore research from CyLab-Africa and the Upanzi Network

Get involved by partnering with CyLab-Africa

Connecting rural African communities one bus at a time

Ndashimye is part of a team of researchers from the Upanzi Network Lab hoping to bridge this digital divide between urban and rural communities.

picoCTF-Africa sees significant growth in competition’s second year

In just its second year, the cybersecurity hacking competition saw over 1250 students, as the number of female participants doubled, and the number of high school participants increased by more than 365 percent. Additionally, four teams finished in the top 50 on picoCTF’s global leaderboard, demonstrating the initiative’s immediate impact.

CMU-Africa Week showcases research and culture Opens in new window

The CyLab Security and Privacy Institute recently hosted CMU-Africa Week on CMU’s Pittsburgh campus. In its first year, the event aimed to build collaboration around research problems in Africa.

CyLab to host CMU-Africa Week in Pittsburgh Opens in new window

The CyLab Security and Privacy Institute will host CMU-Africa Week April 10-14 on Carnegie Mellon University’s Pittsburgh campus.

picoCTF aims to close the cybersecurity talent gap Opens in new window

CyLab's picoCTF is working to close the cybersecurity talent gap by introducing the future workforce to the field through its free annual hacking competition and robust learning platform.

Building an accessible digital model for malaria screening

Carine Pierrette Mukamakuza is creating an automated malaria screening tool that could revolutionize data accessibility and treatment in Africa.

Securing Africa’s cyberspace

In their first year, CyLab-Africa and the newly announced Upanzi Network have made deliberate strides toward improving cybersecurity in Africa.

A new initiative to drive financial inclusion in Africa Opens in new window

Funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will bring together academia, government, and the private sector to make digital financial services more accessible.