Israelis ‘spy’ deal: Macra pressurizes Malawi mobile companies for VPN installation
An Israeli company, SmartloT has been hired by the regime to instal a Virtual Private Network (VPN) at an IT office to be based as highly secured State residence in Lilongwe which will have capacity of monitoring calls and conversations of all mobile users in the country thereby interfering with Malawians privacy.
Insiders at eGovernment unit at Capital Hill in Lilongwe have revealed to Nyasa Times that the controversial three Israelis who were reported in the country as State House visitors were to implement the project.
The three Israelis – Aviv Osher using passport number 3901885, Barlev Omer on passport number 32212418 and Tsairi Marom travelling on passport number 39023709 – have since left the country after being exposed through an Immigration leaked letter on their visas which raised eyebrows on their visit.
The State has for the past five months pressuring two telecommunications network operators TNM and Airtel through Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra) to connect on the VPN at Kamuzu Palace.
Insiders said the two mobile companies have been refusing the move as it would be against the law and would compromise their customers’ private information to a third party.
The VPN will be used to access and intercept privileged and private information for all users from the mobile operators.
Some of the information to be accessed or intercepted over the VPN includes listening in to private conversations, historical and present location of all users on the network, calling and called party including time of call and also checking who is or was sending SMS to who and content of each SMS.
The VPN may also check who is doing other transactions and of how much like Mobile money transactions, mobile banking services and bill payments. The VPN will also access or intercept mobile devices doing data and internet transactions.
“The mobile operators have been challenging State House that they cannot do this as it is against the law. But State House is still pilling pressure on the operators and is geared to proceed despite the reluctance from the mobile operators,” said a high ranking official at eGovernment who complained that they have been overlooked to do the project.
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) witness in the famous presidential elections petition case Daud Suleman, who is also an IT geek, told a political rally that Macra was pressuring TNM and Airtel to feed information into the VPN at Kamuzu Palace.
“Macra you told TNM and Airtel to put VPN at State House. Suleman know this and what you want to do with these VPNs during these fresh polls will not happen, we are aware of what you are doing,” Suleman told an MCP victory rally soon after the Constitutional Court nullified the May 2019 presidential elections.
Insiders said with the pending election re-run, Macra is still pressurizing the operators to integrate their system via the VPN at Kamuzu Palace so they can spy on their political enemies.
However, the two mobile operators have maintained their stance that the move is illegal and they cannot do it.
- In our part 2 of this story, we will expose the role taken by Macra Director General Godfrey Itaye in pressurizing the mobile operators. Nyasa Times has emails, recorded phone conversations and videos that will expose Itaye and prove links with government officials on this matter.
Komanso how can you put VPN at State House when it’s Virtual? Sulemani ndi mbuli zake……..
Anotha Nyasatimes MEME…. Fools still believing this crap…. First it was Python now is VPN hehehe…. For the sake of ignorance Mukulimbana ndi Chipani politicising chilichonse…… Zafikapatu olo akazi anu akapanga mwano muziti Munthalika ndamene akupangisa…..
Babylon must fall!!!!
Please Dpp just leave gracefully, don’t waste our time, time is precious!
Only good thing is that these thugs will soon be kicked out of state house. Then all will come out in the open.
I pray that Peter Mutharika and Dausi must go to China quickly for official duties. Chinese are failing to implement their projects in Malawi because APM has not gone there to seal the deal and Chinese people are missing Mutharika big time!!! Please Malawians want development, go to china now before its too late!!!!
Hahaha koma guys, Anthu amene a kupanga comment kukhulupilira izi ndi mbulinso ngati omwe anapeka nkhani imeneyo. VPN yake itiyo imene ingamapange zonsezo? 🤣Ndipo ntchito ya VPN ndikuletsa zonsezo mwatchulazo that’s why people in China and Russia use VPNs to get away from their governments from tracking and spying on them. 😂
You Godfrey Itaye you are one of the corrupt stoogies of Peter Mutharika and as such that’s why you and your cohorts want to spy through Virtual Private Network (VPN) what peace loving Malawians are doing online. That’s a gangster type of life. Look at you hand gesture it shows that you are real gangster savage gesturing that you are shooting someone. A whole CEO or whatever you call yourself behaving like a street vendor pointing with a click clock gesture what its all about this? Your time is up Itaye and your crooked friends and families including the Nseulas… Read more »
Just a simple question? i thought i read on same Nyasatimes that the 3 Istaels are here for elections vote manipulation for DDP. Now its VPN. why not refure the earlier article before putting out a second article which has totally different objectives than the vote defrauding. So which objective did the 3 Israelis come to Malawi for? concerned reader
A daudi nawo awa. Kuyankhula ngati saulosi tsopano. Munali kuti mmene anabera zisankho Zina zija apa ndiye muoneke anzeru?
He was not there when the theft happened.
Anali alikuti?
Suleman was there and MCP had there own tally centre and the servers crashed big time, now you wonder they have teamed up with Saulos the thief they think it will work, if they have evidence that saulos was behind vote rigging in 2014 why not persecute him and truth be known??