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Kenyan Chief Foils Robbery Via Twitter
PolygamousRanchKid writes with this quote from CNN:
"A Kenyan chief in a town far from the bustling capital foiled a predawn robbery recently using Twitter, highlighting the far-reaching effects of social media in areas that don't have access to the Internet. Chief Francis Kariuki said he got a call in the dead of the night that thieves had broken into a neighbor's house. Local residents, who subscribe to his tweets through a free text messaging service, jumped into action. They surrounded the house, sending the thugs fleeing into the night. In the town 100 miles from Nairobi, a majority of residents don't have access to computers, the Internet or smart phones. The sporadic cyber cafes strewn across the landscape charge for Internet access. However, almost every household has a cell phone and text messages are a major form of communication in the nation."
"They tried to steal our filing cabinet of birth certificates!"
Table-ized A.I.
He now needs your help moving the town's valuables out of the country, and would be willing to offer you 10% of the value as long as you deposit a cashier's check and make a western union transfer. God bless you.
Africa has more cell phones than toilets. http://blogs.worldbank.org/africacan/more-cell-phones-than-toilets The entire infrastructure was built on "e-waste", used cell phones were imported and hacked/jailbroken, which created enough subscribers for private sector companies to erect the towers. The free market bypassed the entire government-infrastructure track. Of course, there is evidence of a second crime here.... http://archive.basel.int/industry/mppi/gdfd30Jun2010.pdf Cell phones are labelled "e-waste" in Europe http://retroworks.blogspot.com/2011/09/new-world-order-interpol-calls.html and Africans who buy them have been declared "criminals" by Interpol.
Gently reply
Oh please, people, these "burglars" are clearly "White Hat" and were simply penetration testing. Is it their fault the homestead was so easy to break into? The owner should be grateful and offer these Security Researchers a job watching their house.
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
Local residents, who subscribe to his tweets through a free text messaging service, jumped into action. They surrounded the house, sending the thugs fleeing into the night.
Yeah, whenever I've tried spending any time following someone on Twitter - I usually end up fleeing into the night as well.
You can only take so much rambling about being unable to pop a pimple or photos of what they've eaten...
#DeleteChrome
Or rather, Tweetminster, who seem to be quite adept at planting PR stories in the news. Meanwhile on the ground - hardly anyone in Africa uses twitter. Those that have access to mobiles and/or the internet use MXit, despite what Tweetminster/Portland Communication's recycled press releases would have you believe
I'm guessing the chase scene looked like the New York City Marathon!
...text messages are a major form of communication in the nation."
After vacationing in South Africa two years ago I'd claim that mobile phones aren't just a major form of communication in Kenya, but in all of sub-Saharan Africa.
Rent a car, give them your mobile number; when you return it in you'll get a text confirming that they got it. Even if you handed the keys to someone in person and got a receipt, you'll still get a text. When you check out of your hotel you get a text. Etc., etc.
Pretty much anything you do, if you gave them your mobile number, you'll get a text of some kind. And South Africa is unquestionably pretty advanced compared to much of the rest of Africa.
It's a pity the cnn report doesn't make the connection between this occurrence and its normal reporting on flash mobs, which is basically that the initial flash mobs were fun and benign but were later used to orchestrate looting. Of course the technology doesn't know when it's helping to preserve or violate property law.
... but it might get you killed in others.
Perhaps this is how cellphones made their way initially, but the ICT revolution is built on sound business. There has been much investment from the Middle East and other telcom companies such as Vodafone. Cheap, low cost 'African' versions of phones are easily available for as little as $20. Cellphone services such as SMS, telephone banking, are revolutionizing hundreds of millions of lives. The great part is, this is still the beginning of the revolution, the next stage is to wire up everyone for highspeed internet, which is well underway, particularly in Kenya. I think, what you are really talking about is the shadow economy, or 'informal economy'. Laws are very flexible in many African nations, cargo containers full of all kinds of electronics make their way to the shores and docks of major African cities, e-waste included. However, most people would rather buy a store bought version if they can afford it, people like warranty after all. Indeed, there are thriving businesses for second hand cellphones, and even replacement parts and repair. Nothing goes to waste in Africa.
In this community, the neighbors all subscribed to the same twitter feed, so they all got the emergency call at the same time, and responded in strength to confront the thieves and catch them in the act. Quite the effective neighborhood watch if you ask me. Strength in numbers.
Thieves: "How'd you know we where the crooks?"
Community:"A little birdie told us."
Silence is a state of mime.
In a state with inadequate law enforcement, this is kind of inevitable... Turning them over to the authorities would probably just mean a bribe and a quick release with hardly a slap on the wrist. I assume that this would be the state in rural Kenya.
Forgive me if I don't have too much sympathy, though. I'm sure that's part of the understood cost of doing (nocturnal) business in that place...
I know the historical association is difficult to shake, but for billions of people on this planet, a cell phone will be their primary, and perhaps only computing resource. It's enough, however. With them, they can access the internet, send and receive text messages, and even in some classes of sub-smartphone devices, run applications. More than laptops, desktops, or any other computing factor, cell phones have lifted the standard of living for billions. With text messaging, literacy is promoted. With access to the internet, commerce, education, and knowledge of the world become available. Cell phones have changed the world, and IMHO, are one of the most powerful and transformative computing resources created to date.