His Excellency Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., President of the Republic of Liberia, has nominated and appointed additional members of Government affecting the Ministry of Information Cultural Affairs&Tourism, the Office of War Crimes Court, National Disaster Management Agency, and Lofa County University.

These appointments, where applicable, are subject to confirmation by the Liberian Senate.

The institutions and those nominated and appointed are:

I. Ministry of Information Cultural Affairs&Tourism

1. Mr. Daniel O. Sando, Deputy Minister for Press&Public Affairs 
2. Mr. Nat Bayjay, Deputy Minister for Technical Services
3. Mr. Rufus Paul, Assistant Minister for Technical Services
4. Ms. Maylouisa Noel Hill, Assistant Minister for New Media&National Branding 
5. Ms. Angel M. Morris, Assistant Minister for Culture

II. Office of War Crimes Court

1. Cllr. Jonathan Massaquoi, Executive Director

III. Board of the National Disaster Management Agency   

1. Representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Chairperson
2. Representative of the Ministry of Health, Co- Chair
3. Representative of the Ministry of Justice, Member
4. Representative of the Ministry of Finance, Member
5. Representative of the Ministry of Public Works, Member
6. Representative of the Ministry of Defense, Member
7. Representative of the Ministry of Agriculture, Member
8. Representative of the Ministry of Mines&Energy, Member
9. Representative of the Environmental Protection Agency, Member
10. Representative of the United Nations Country Team, Member
11. Representative of the Liberia Maritime Authority, Member
12. Ansu V.S. Dulleh, Executive Director of the Agency, Secretary

IV. Board of the Lofa University

1. Bishop G. Victor Padmore, Chairman, Representative of the Visitor
2. Minister of Education, Member, Ex Officio, Statutory Member
3. Representative of the National Commission on Higher Education, Statutory Member
4. Sen. Momo Cyrus, House of Senate, Statutory Member, 
5. Hon. Julie Wiah, House of Representatives, Statutory Member, 
6. President of the Alumni Association of Lofa County, Statutory Member
7. Madam Finda Boakai, Member, Lofa Marketing Association
8. James A. Cooper, Member, Cooperatives
9. Mrs. Annie Markelee Flomo, Member, Civil Society
10. Joseph K. Kabbah, Member, Representative of the Community
11. John Selma, Member, Voinjama District
12. Mohammed Kanneh, Member, Vahun District
13. Cllr. Lavela Koboi Johnson, Member, Zorzor District
14. Hon. Brownie J. Samukai, Member, Foya District
15. Mamassa Kamara, Member, Quardu-Gboni District
16. Cllr. Viama Blama, Member, Kolahun District
17. James L. Yolkmolo, Member, Salayea District

These appointments supersede any previously published in similar agencies and positions.

President Boakai further calls on all those nominated to continue to demonstrate diligence, commitment, integrity, professionalism, and loyalty in service to country.  

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of Liberia: Executive Mansion.

There can hardly be a better motivation for the Blitzboks and their haphazard season than winning the World Rugby Sevens Repechage in Monaco this weekend. Victory at Stade Louis II means joining the Rugby Sevens event at the 2024 Paris Olympics and that, according to Head Coach Philip Snyman, is exactly what they plan to do in what he calls ‘their most important tournament in the last two years’.

Snyman took over the coaching role halfway through a dismal HSBC SVNS season and although it was too late to steer the team to qualification courtesy of a top-four SVNS log position (like the previous two Olympics), they do however have one more opportunity to do so.

“We are facing some really good teams this weekend, but we are also playing ourselves and I believe that our lead-up preparation has settled the mindset,” explains Snyman.

“We worked hard, especially on defence, and I have faith and confidence in the team that we selected for this massive task. A spot at the Olympics will give the season so much meaning,” reckons Snyman.

For Snyman, himself an Olympian bronze medalist in Rugby Sevens, the lure of Paris is huge, but he is not looking past Mexico which is the first hurdle to overcome on Friday afternoon.

“We need to slog it out game for game. Mexico might not be a regular on the SVNS circuit, but we won’t underestimate them at all. Like us, they also have ambitions and we must respect that. We are just looking at ourselves and setting the tempo for Saturday and Sunday,” Snyman said.

The coach believes that the South African defence hold the key to a good weekend.

“We know what we can do with ball in hand, and our weakness was defence. That is a mindset, , something I think we managed to turn around over the last couple of weeks,” explains Snyman.

Team captain, Selvyn Davids, who played at the Tokyo Olympics, said a win in Monaco would salvage some Blitzboks pride and will of course put them in contention for a possible medal in Paris.

“This could be a massive turnaround for us. We did not reach our original target of a top-four spot, but now we have another opportunity, and we must use it. The squad is motivated, for sure. The Olympics are the biggest thing in sport and every sportsperson wants to be part of that. We have this big opportunity now and it will be silly to waste it,” he said.

The Blitzboks fixtures are (all matches on www.Rugbypass.tv):

Friday, 21 June
16h44: Mexico

Saturday, 22 June
13h44: Tonga
17h56: Chile

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of South African Rugby.

Note to editors: Audio notes of Philip Snyman and Selvyn Davids can be downloaded here (https://apo-opa.co/3RBzVbd).

For further information, please contact:
Andy Colquhoun
GM: Communications and Commercial
+27 (0) 21 928 7010
+27 (0) 82 926 0789
andyc@sarugby.co.za

De Jongh Borchardt
Communications Manager
+27 (0) 21 928 7021
+27 (0) 82 999 9979
dejonghb@sarugby.co.za

Rayaan Adriaanse
Junior Rugby Media Manager
+27 (0) 21 928 7013
+27 (0) 82 999 0022
rayaan@sarugby.co.za

Sindiswa Ximba
Media Operations Coordinator
+27 (0) 21 928 7011
+27 (0) 60 504 1069
sindiswa.ximba@sarugby.co.za

Zeena Isaacs
Springbok Media Manager
+27 (0) 21 928 7020
+27 (0) 82 357 3112
ZeenaI@sarugby.co.za

JJ Harmse
Sevens and Women’s Rugby Media Manager
+27 (0) 21 928 7014
+27 (0) 71 480 4570
jjharmse@sarugby.co.za

In June 2024, Kaspersky (www.Kaspersky.co.za) experts conducted a large-scale study on the resistance of 193 million (M) English passwords, compromised by infostealers and available on the darknet, to brute force and smart guessing attacks. According to the research results (http://apo-opa.co/4cbmMOk), 45% of all analysed passwords (87M) could be guessed by scammers within a minute. Only 23% (44M) of combinations turned out to be resistant enough – cracking them would take more than a year. Furthermore, Kaspersky experts have revealed which character combinations were most commonly used in passwords.

Kaspersky telemetry indicates more than 32 million attempts to attack users with password stealers in 2023. These numbers show the importance of digital hygiene and timely password policies.

The results of the Kaspersky study demonstrate that the majority of the reviewed passwords were not strong enough and could be easily compromised by using smart guessing algorithms. Here is the breakdown of how fast it can happen:

45% (87M) in less than 1 minute.
14% (27M) – from 1 min to 1 hour.
8% (15M) – from 1 hour to 1 day.
6% (12M) – from 1 day to 1 month.
4% (8M) – from 1 month to 1 year.

Experts identified only 23% (44M) of passwords as resistant – compromising them would take more than 1 year.

Furthermore, the majority of the examined passwords (57%) contain a word from the dictionary, which significantly reduces the passwords’ strength. Among the most popular vocabulary sequences, several groups can be distinguished:

Names: “ahmed”, “nguyen”, “kumar”, “kevin”, “daniel”.
Popular words: “forever”, “love”, “google”, “hacker”, “gamer”.
Standard passwords: “password”, “qwerty12345”, “admin”, “12345”, “team”.

The analysis showed that only 19% of all passwords contain signs of a strong combination – a non-dictionary word, lowercase and uppercase letters, as well as numbers and symbols. At the same time, the study revealed that 39% of such passwords could also be guessed using smart algorithms in less than an hour. 

The interesting thing is that attackers do not require deep knowledge or expensive equipment to crack passwords. For example, a powerful laptop processor will be able to find the correct combination for a password of 8 lowercase letters or digits using brute force in just 7 minutes. Modern video cards will cope with the same task in 17 seconds. In addition, smart algorithms for guessing passwords consider character replacements (“e” with “3”, “1” with “!” or “a” with “@”) and popular sequences (“qwerty”, “12345”, “asdfg”).

“Unconsciously, human beings create ‘human’ passwords – containing the words from dictionary in their native languages, featuring names and numbers. Even seemingly strong combinations are rarely completely random, so they can be guessed by algorithms. Given that, the most dependable solution is to generate a completely random password using modern and reliable password managers. Such apps as Kaspersky Password Manager can securely store large volumes of data, providing comprehensive and robust protection for user information,” commented Yuliya Novikova, Head of Digital Footprint Intelligence at Kaspersky.

In order to strengthen passwords, users can follow these simple tips:

Use a different password for each service. That way, even if one of your accounts is stolen, the rest won’t go with it.
Passphrases might be more secure when unexpected words are used. Even if you are resort to common words, you can arrange them in an unusual order and make sure they are unrelated.
It’s better not to use passwords that can be easily guessed from your personal information, such as birthdays, names of family members, pets, or your own name. These are often the first guesses an attacker will try.
It’s nearly impossible to memorise long and unique passwords for all the services you use, but with a special solution, such as Kaspersky password manager (http://apo-opa.co/3XuZDlm), you can memorise just one master password.
Enable two-factor authentication (2FA). While not directly related to password strength, enabling 2FA adds an extra layer of security. Even if someone discovers your password, they would still need a second form of verification to access your account. Modern password managers (http://apo-opa.co/3XuZDlm) store 2FA keys and secure them with the latest encryption algorithms.
Using a reliable security solution such as Kaspersky Premium (http://apo-opa.co/4cbAC3o) will enhance your protection. It monitors the Internet and Dark Web and warns if your passwords need to be changed.

Additional information can be found in the research material on Securelist (http://apo-opa.co/3Rzi5pj) and Kaspersky Daily post (http://apo-opa.co/4cbmMOk).

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Kaspersky.

For further information please contact:
Nicole Allman
INK&Co. (http://apo-opa.co/4cbmRBC)
nicole@inkandco.co.za

Social Media: 
Facebook: https://apo-opa.co/4c5vHRx
Twitter: https://apo-opa.co/3RAdRO4
YouTube: https://apo-opa.co/4caqlUS
Instagram: https://apo-opa.co/4cdMqlx
Blog: https://apo-opa.co/3RC4CNw

About Kaspersky:
Kaspersky is a global cybersecurity and digital privacy company founded in 1997. With over a billion devices protected to date from emerging cyberthreats and targeted attacks, Kaspersky’s deep threat intelligence and security expertise is constantly transforming into innovative solutions and services to protect businesses, critical infrastructure, governments and consumers around the globe. The company’s comprehensive security portfolio includes leading endpoint protection, specialized security products and services, as well as Cyber Immune solutions to fight sophisticated and evolving digital threats. We help over 220,000 corporate clients protect what matters most to them. Learn more at www.Kaspersky.co.za.

Malagasy president His Excellency Andry Nirina Rajoelina visited patients and volunteers on board Mercy Ships’ hospital vessel (www.MercyShips.org) to see for himself the lives being transformed.

On Saturday June 15, the president along with Minister of Health Professor Randriamanantany Zely Arivelo, accompanied by a delegation with His Excellency, visited the Africa Mercy ® hospital ship in Toamasina. This marked the first time the Malagasy president has visited the ship during its current mission.

Nathan Jansen, Managing Director of the Africa Mercy, said: “We were honored to welcome His Excellency aboard the Africa Mercy. We were encouraged both by his desire to bring health to all of the people of Madagascar, and for his expression of partnership with Mercy Ships. We consider it a privilege to serve as partners with the Ministry of Health to bring direct medical services and education training and advocacy to the health system.”

During the hospital tour, His Excellency had the opportunity to speak with several patients in the ward. He said: “We hope Mercy Ships can serve in Madagascar as long as possible”, to which everyone including the President’s delegation, the crew, and the patients in the ward, broke out in loud applause.

The president also explored various departments of the hospital, including the operating room and the CT-scanner. His Excellency remarked: “It is already impressive to have a hospital ship like this, utilizing advanced technologies.”

While walking through the ship’s corridors, the President took time to chat with some crew members. He showed particular interest in the onboard community, which currently consists of 336 individuals.  On the bridge, he received a briefing from the captain and enjoyed a stunning view of Toamasina’s coastline.

At the end of his visit, His Excellency affirmed that Mercy Ships supports the Malagasy government’s effort in healthcare.

The President stated: “Healthcare must be closer to the people. This is why we have built multiple hospitals. From 1990 to 2019, Madagascar had only 18 referral hospitals. Since the beginning of my mandate in 2019, we have constructed 30 additional hospitals nationwide.

“We now need partners to help those in difficulty. There are operations that Malagasy specialists cannot yet perform, especially for the most vulnerable. The actions and operations that Mercy Ships is undertaking in Madagascar are commendable, and we should continue in this direction to help our neighbors, particularly those in difficulty and suffering from illnesses.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Mercy Ships.

About Mercy Ships: 
Mercy Ships uses hospital ships to deliver free, world-class healthcare services, capacity building, and sustainable development to those with little access in the developing world. Founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon Stephens, Mercy Ships has worked in more than 55 developing countries, providing services valued at more than £1.3 billion and directly benefiting more than 2.8 million people. Our ships are crewed by volunteers from over 60 nations, with an average of over 1,200 volunteers each year. Professionals including surgeons, dentists, nurses, healthcare trainers, teachers, cooks, seamen, engineers, and agriculturalists donate their time and skills. With 16 national offices and an Africa Bureau, Mercy Ships seeks to transform individuals and serve nations one at a time. For more information click on www.MercyShips.org