Things an investigator must do upon arrival in a crime scene

Everyone would have seen a yellow tape line with the sign "do not enter or do not cross either in a movie or real life". 

The reason why those lines are there are to prevent human interference in a crime scene. If someone should interfere, vital evidence can be lost and a case can become inadmissible in a court of law

The same law that applies to a physical crime scene also applies to a digital crime scene. Evidence is very volatile and can be easily destroyed.

When an investigator is been called to a digital crime scene, there are some things that an investigator must do before handling any electronic or media devices in the crime scene.

Electronic evidences are volatile and once they are lost or changed, it is almost impossible to get it back to its original state. 

Let's take for instance , You own an organization and you suspect that a member of staff is using the organization's facilities(Computers, Internet) to commit crime or fraudulent activities online. So what do you?

Call an investigator and once he arrives, you show him the computer and he begins his investigation on the computer immediately searching all files to see if he can gather any tangible evidence?

Lets say the investigator gathers some implicating files and then turns around to you and say "yes, mr A is guilty." 

Sorry to tell you this, but the investigator has just set the suspect free. The case will be thrown out in court and the suspect will go home smiling.

In this article , I will be listing out things an investigator or first responder must do upon arrival in a digital crime scene.

1 Less People, Less Problem

One of the first things to do upon arrival is to move people away from the computers. The reason for this is because at the heat of the moment, someone that is doing something bad might want to delete some information once they spot people like you so it is advisable to move people away from the computers as soon as possible. Even possible, you can move them to a seperate room and then photograph the computers and devices exactly as you met them.

2 Take Pictures

Someone might ask why is this important?

This is important because as a Forensic Investigator, you will need to replicate whatever you saw in a crime exactly the way you saw it and you can easily forget if you decide not to take pictures. The pictures will help when it is time for investigations and also presenting to the court of law. You don`t want a situation whereby the judge is having doubts about the evidence. According to the court of law, before someone is found guilty, there must be no reasonable doubt. Don`t provide an option for the case to be thrown out.

3 Maintain a Chain of Custody

A chain of custody is a document that shows who had a digital evidence as at when and also showed how it was transported to a location. This is very important because this is the only way you can prove that the evidence was not tampered with. There have been some high profile cases that have been thrown away in a court due to the fact that a chain of custody was not maintained. So in any case, try to ensure that a chain of custody is maintained and also evidence should be properly stored in a faraday bag so that metadata should not be tampered with or any physical features of the device destroyed or smeared.

4 Never work on the original evidence

Upon arrival in a crime scene, never try to start digging up evidence on the original device rather use a write blocker to make an image of the original digital device. Any Investigations must be conducted on the imaged file. This will help preserve data integrity and metadata.

5 Thou shall not switch off the Digital Device

Digital devices should be left in its original state. Do not turn on or turn off any digital device especially computers. If you need to move the device e.g CPU, unplug the power source from the device and move the device. Do not shut down or press the power button because digital evidence is volatile and a touch of a button can change metadata and even delete important files that can never be recovered. There have been situations in the past whereby people program a particular script on their device that if the device should be touched in a particular way, the script will run automatically and delete files that can never be recovered or even destroy the entire system.

Thanks for reading and feel free to leave your comments

#DigitalInvestigations

#ComputerForensics

#Cybersecurity

#Informationsecurity

A day in the life of an Identity and Access Management(IAM) Security Administrator

My day typically starts with a cup of Coffee at around 7:45am. By 8:00am, I would have settled down and switched on my system ready for work.

I start by deactivating all users that are meant to go on leave(Sick, Maternity, Normal,) and also activate those that are coming back from leave. After this, I check my email for any mails that was sent the day before that were not responded to or during the earlier hours of the day(people send requests as early as 5am). After responding to all necessary mails, I start working on the various deliverable`s for the day.

Different requests should start coming in now by now and this will continue up until 2pm which is when i go for lunch. I resume my activities by 2:45pm and continue working up until 5pm.

By 5:30pm, I check for any tasks that needs to be completed on the day after and also set reminders using the calendar options on Microsoft mails. By 6pm, I check if the mails for staff exit has been sent and go about deleting users/suspending users from the various applications if they are meant to be suspended. By 7pm, I shut down my system and join other professionals going back home after a long day work.

The fun thing about my job is that no two days are the same. It is also fast paced as you need to be on top of your game to ensure that cases don`t expire and that the service level agreement is been met. It can be tiring sometimes guiding users on the phone and also via mails on how to do certain stuff especially when they are finding it hard to do but that is what the job entails and by doing this, I have learnt some soft skills such as patience and effective communication. The highlight of my day should be when i hear the "Thank you, I am fine" comment.

It gives me joy to know that i am part of a team that helps close to 10,000 staff solve their issues on a daily basis.

#Informationsecurity

#Cybersecurity

#IAM

x

Amaka speaks

Bike man is an elder. Late 50's. Widower. Father to 3 beautiful daughters. He has been my personal conveyor for a month now. 11 years without his wife has left him rather empty and adventurously seeking for a personal hole to crawl into. Journey to feel warmth once more. He actually confided in me that he has been celibate all this  years while still  waiting and hoping for the right woman. I scoffed when he brought to my hearing that; in his words, 'Ameka, you're the truth and I love the truth' Child abuse!
On the 9th,that  being Sunday, he came along with his 16 year old daughter. It's Bajaj so there's enough room to occupy a third-party. Settled in, we zoomed off to our various places of worship. Destination not anywhere in sight, I started a conversation. He's fluent in the French language and even though I am not so perfect at it, we still were able to converse.

Me: Monsieur, why tell me to be up before 6am only to arrive 2 hours post our agreed time?
Monsieur: Mulan; referring to his 16 year old, was the reason for the delay, he said. I had to wait for her to be done with hair and all you ladies stuff.
Me: { I chuckled } I complimented her looks already, I said. I got up way before 7 and still was able to get all dressed before your arrival.
Monsieur: Don't you know that you are a woman and as such, you're meant to be up on time. You're meant to wash the dishes. Get the broom and sweep.

Now, I see nothing wrong in one working with time. Completing whatever task he/she has to do albeit earlier and having the rest of the day to do as he/she pleases. Be it in a working environment, home chores and personal dealings, most people would beat the time frame awarded for a particular task. I believe it's a skill that is well appreciated, be it between a man and woman in any sort of relationship and in our place of work. Chukzy Onyekwelu you're one amazing brother!.

Me: Monsieur, I am not disputing the fact that I am a woman and all but when the woman/lady/girl  does all this, what do you advice or suggest that the men/boys  do?

Where he got his next response from I don't know but I was shocked!

Monsieur: Show me in the Bible where it's written that men/boys should do all this?

The Bible!

Seriously!

Help me explain this, he continues. 'A man eats and a woman clears the table'. Don't you know that women are naturally born slaves to their husbands!?.
  
Most men today don't really come to the understanding that it's only love that drives a woman to put up. Stick up. Tolerate. Belittle herself just so that he, her husband can be the king whereas his head doesn't fit any such crown and title.
Now, this is when the lady-like feminist spirit that must have been following and eavesdropping on our conversation felt she needed to be heard. It's a clear shade to women and misconception on the values of marriage. I went dumb so that she could speak through me.

Feminist: Des esclaves! Slaves! She was mad. You refer to a woman, a should be wife that decides to show immense love to her husband, a slave!

French failed so she made the switch to English;
       'A girl child would be raised in her family. So much love. Only to get married to one that sees her as just a slave'? A man that isn't ready to show as much love as she has received in her home? With her family?. A man that obviously got the patriarchal treatment. One that can't differentiate from being married and staying married, she fumed. Is it not the same Bible that says that a man would leave his father and mother. Clinging to his wife and together, they become one?( Mulane jeered me on). The same Bible also says, 'man love your wife and woman submit to your husband? Submission comes but after love. Submission doesn't in anyway refer to as being tagged a slave.......

I was able to get full control of my body as she was about to make a nasty comment on his late wife and how he must have treated her. You don't disrespect the dead. Her daughter was her after all. Respect her if you can't respect her ex husband. He went on to say;

Monsieur: I know a lady who shares same view with you and sadly, she has been married countless times.
Me: Well; when next you see her, please tell her that she shouldn't be in a hurry to accept the available just because the desirable isn't yet in sight. Marriage is meant to last until death comes in to put asunder. That desirable man exists. She should exercise patience while getting prepared for him.

With this, we all fell silent. No words exchanged. He got his daughter to her destination. 30 minutes to my stop, I told him;

Monsieur, to this very day I am sad I don't have my dad here anymore. Recovery hasn't really been easy.

I look forward to the man I would one day call mine but there's so much fear and uncertainties. If dad were to be here, he's sure to ensure that I don't fall prey to this unworthy men. Men that would only see me as a slave and tool just for sex and childbirth. But then, Monsieur, he left me in very good hands. I have my brothers and I guess it's his own way of reassuring me that I can never go wrong with them by my side. At the same time, I feel really sorry for your daughter, Mulan, and her sisters. I really hope you correct this error before it's late.

That being said, I got down from the bike and walked into the church premises.
So much said on a beautiful sunny Sunday.
@Amaka nwa Jalingo.
Follow on Instagram @miz_emelda
Facebook at Emelda Onyekwelu

Conclusion to A message to Igbo people

If you have not read the first part, please find the link here

GREED, IGNORANCE AND MONOPOLISM
Greed, Ignorance and Monopolism is another factor that puts the Igbo s at the bottom of the food chain. In order to understand better, I will be explaining how these three factors are a problem.

Greed according to my understanding can be defined as you having something  and you still not contended with that. You still want to take that which belongs to your neighbour even if it is little.

Compared to the other major tribes in Nigeria, the Igbo s stand out as greedy people. The reason is because an average Igbo man is not contended with he has. If you are to share something with an Igbo man, he will prefer taking the lion share of the item and giving you a lesser one because he feels he has done more work even if the work was done equally by both parties.
This is why most people shy away from doing certain deals with the Igbo s because they are not ready to be involved in a heated argument over who takes the higher cut. Please note that not all Igbo people are like this but some are.

Ignorance according to my definition is not fully understanding or not knowing how things work.

We Igbo s are very ignorant and because we don't want to know, we keep on remaining at the bottom of the chain. We don't spend time to read, to research, to integrate and socialize with other tribes.

Our youths don't want to go to school, they dont want to be involved in politics, they don't want to ask questions, they don't want to learn how to become solution providers to the world problem but prefer dropping out of school to go pursue a business and spend most of their youthful lives on alcohol and women.
An example of this is
Go to Lagos, you will see different companies, you will see businesses, you will see factories, you will see the headquarters of top firms all over the world in Lagos. Go to Onitsha, all you see is shops and beer parlours(Apologies).  Why can't we have big firms and top organizations having their head quarters in Igbo land ?
This is the type of question we need to ask ourselves if we really want to become the top dog in the Nigerian Food chain.

We prefer doing things in our own little way that has been in existence since the olden days. If someone should suggest a new way of doing things which can be beneficial to all, we quickly shun the person and continue with the old and tested method without giving thoughts to the suggestion.

There is an adage that says "change is constant " . It is generally accepted that if you wish to develop yourself, you have to adapt to new changes. Failure to do so will result in you doing things in an out dated way .

Monopolism is believing that you know it all and that you don't need any one's suggestion or input.

This has been a problem of the Igbo s for a very long time and one that always keep them behind. It is true that the Igbo s are good business men and women. But the issue of Monopolism is really affecting us.

If an Igbo man builds an organization from scratch and makes it turn into a multinational organization, your advice and suggestion does not matter to him. He prefers doing everything all by himself since he believes he knows it all.

This is common in the whole Nigeria but very common in our tribe. An example , A Igbo man that owns a company will make himself the director, the CEO, the Accountant and many others. The reason why he is doing that is because he does not trust anyone to handle the affairs of the company and believes he can do it all by himself.

This is very bad because in less than no time, that individual will surely break down . This individual can also be making bad decision that might favour him but not his organization and this will make the company to fall.

A case study in this case is Dangote. Dangote is the richest man in Nigeria and Africa. Mr Aliko is the CEO of Dangote but also hire professionals in different fields to increase the worth of his Company. He hires accountants to work in the company finances, engineers and IT specialists to work in the Engineering and IT department of his Company and many more.

He also have Board of Directors and their job is to brainstorm ideas in order to make the company move forward.
Any company that wants to be successful needs to allow different people with different skillset to be part of that company because nobody is a monopolist of Knowledge.

HOW CAN THE IGBO S HELP THE TRIBE
I was reading an article in a newspaper and it was an Interview and the person that was interviewed was a prominent Igbo man that is highly regarded in the whole of Nigeria. He was advising the Igbo s to go to school and stop agitating for Biafra.

The Igbo s can help the Igbo tribe by firstly educating themselves to the highest levels. By doing so,  we can wipe out the disease called illiteracy.

Secondly, we should start thinking of how to be problem solvers. The world really needs solution providers  at the moment and would respect anyone that provides solution to the world problems.

Thirdly, we should stop thinking about just ourselves and immediate families. We should start thinking on how to leave a mark on our generation.

Finally, since we are rich, there should be a balance of businesses and companies in our land. We should not only have businesses but also have factories, companies and many more.
By doing this, people will be forced to migrate to Igbo land for a better life and this will in turn bring about development.

Thank you very much for reading
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A message to Igbo People

The Igbo s are one of the major tribes in Nigeria. The Igbo s are also one of the most hardworking tribes in the whole of Africa. There is a popular saying that if you visit any country in this world and you don't find an Igbo person then you know that it is either the people of that land don't allow Foreigners or the Country itself is not profitable.

Every Nigerian would agree with me on the fact that Igbo s are very good in business and that is why businesses in all part of Nigeria is mostly owned and controlled by the Igbo s.
The reason why most Businesses are owned and controlled by the Igbo s is explained below.

The Igbo s started Entrepreneurship before it became widely known. An Igbo Man would open a store where he sells Television and then go to his village to bring a relative to come work for him. After seven years or so, he settles the relative with a huge sum of money and and the relative in turn opens his own store and go bring another relative and the circle continues. This is why most businesses are owned by the Igbo s.

There is an issue that really bothers me about the Igbo s and that is the reason why I wrote this article.
Before I continue, I would like to say that I am also from the Igbo tribe and this is just me sharing my mind. I apologize if this article might offend some people  but this is something that needs to be addressed and I think it is also one way the Igbo tribe could move forward.

We Igbo s think that we are very smart and cannot be deceived by ndi ofe mmanu(Yoruba s) and ndi na akpo isi na ala( Hausa s). The truth of the matter is that we are wrong. Within ourselves, we might think we are the smartest but the truth is that we are not that smart at all and I am going to prove it.

An average Igbo man defines smartness as outwitting others and smartness can only be achieved by deception. This is what we have believed for a while now and this has made us believed that our tribe is higher and better than the other two tribes.

If Nigeria was a food chain, Igbo s would be at the bottom of the chain. The reason i said so is this. If our tribe is higher as we claimed, why did we have to leave Igbo land and migrate to bigger cities in Nigeria such as Lagos, Abuja and the others?

Why did we not stay in our villages and develop them so that they can become mega cities and then people would migrate from all parts of Nigeria to our mega cities since we are higher and better?

Some people might argue that if not for the Igbo s who migrated, cities like Lagos and the rest would not be developed as they are. There is some sense in that but since we are higher and better, why did we have to leave igboland in the first place?

The answer to that question is this, we believed that they were better opportunities outside Igbo land and when we came and saw the opportunities, we had no other option than to stay.

In terms of development, it would be totally absurd and stupid if your business or your source of income is in Lagos and you don't have a house whether rented or owned  in Lagos  but prefer commuting  everyday from Onitsha to Lagos. It would be tedious and very stressful for the person involved.

Development is a necessity because the reason for development is to make things easier for you and your immediate family. Even our Colonial masters had to built railways, hospitals e.t.c .They never built for us, the reason why they built those stuff was to make life easier for themselves and this in turn brought development.

Now back to my topic,  the reasons why the Igbo s are at the bottom of the food chain are

👉 EDUCATION
When education came to Nigeria, the Igbo s were quite sceptical about education and  did not  start going to school as immediately as  their counterparts in the West and North did. In some families in Igbo land as of today, some families still don't see the value of education in a child's life and  don't want to train their Children in schools and the reason is because they see no value in it.
Some see it as a waste of money and time and that the highest they can train their Children to is to their secondary education level and after that, the Child can go learn a trade, or go serve a master in the city and after that, they become bosses of their own.
Learning a trade is good because you acquire skills that would be useful to you for the rest of your life. Serving a master is good because you become self employed.
What is the essence of all of this if you become a successful businessman tomorrow and you can't even write your own name? Or you learn a trade and you can't orally convince people that you know what you are doing?

I was speaking with a Friend from the Western part of Nigerian and he told me that in his state, If you don't have a Professor in your Family, People won't accord you with much respect. In Igbo land, the highest most peopel go for is Msc and Bsc. Most don't even use their degrees to work . it is either they get married and dump their degrees  or they start up a petty business of buying and selling.
There are those that do their PHD s as well but compared to the West and North, they are just few.

Now imagine a Family where everyone is a professor working at Universities all over the world, becoming political leaders, solution providers to the human race and all and another where everyone is a business man. In which of the two families do you think would have a better chance of life opportunities, personal development and world domination?

👉JEALOUSY AND HATRED OF BROTHERS
To the Nigerians reading this article, most of you know about Nollywood and you know that most story lines in Nollywood is built on the Igbo tradition. Most of the story lines always shows some guy leaving his village and going to the city to have a better life.
After becoming someone successful in the city, he comes back to the village to let his people know that he is now successful and he also starts helping his people.
Somewhere along the line, there would be a wicked brother or relative or even a member of his village that would not be happy that he is wealthy and this person will secretly start planning his downfall.
This person can go to any length to make sure that the successful guy becomes a pauper and come back to stay in the village.
The example above is a classical example of most Igbo story lines.

The reality is that most of those storylines is what truly happens in Igbo land. Nobody wants the other to be greater than him irrespective of the fact that the person might be more educated than him, have more technical and commercial awareness, have background support and all.  That is why they secretly plan the downfall of one another.

If someone in a community or family makes it in life, are the other people in the community and family not supposed to be happy with that person?
Of course they should because as long as one person is successful, he is going to help develop the community, and also support people financially and this in turn will lessen the number of people that live in abject poverty. This same person will also go pick one or two person s from the village and also train or teach them on how to be successful. By doing this, more families will become wealthy in no time and also pick others that are poor and help them the same way they have been helped.

But then most people don't see it that way. What baffles me is this, you are very poor, you don't have food to eat, your children don't go to school and then God blesses a relative and he comes to the village to give you money. Instead of you using that money to get food to eat or even train your children  in school, you prefer using that money to prepare charms that would lead to your relative's downfall. That to me is sheer wickedness, hatred of one another and this is another reason why we are at the bottom of the food chain.

I will be stopping here so that it does not become too long. The article will be concluded in the next part.

Thank you very much
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A story on my Nysc Journey Part 1

It all started on the 14th of November 2016 when I saw my call up letter.  I was in my house with my mum and checked the call up letter and saw
State of deployment: Adamawa.
Address: Unity grammar school karaye, Kano st. 

I was actually eating when I saw this. Once i saw the address, I dropped my spoon and did not feel like eating anymore.

My mum asked me what happened and I just showed her the letter.  She was shocked as well and she said and I quote "ugwu hausa"(meaning North in Igbo language) .
The reason why she was shocked was because we (my mum and I) thought that I would be getting Abuja since I am a Foreign student and all that.

I have also visualized Abuja in my mind and how I would put on my A game while coming out of the Domestic wing of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport with my swag and all.

I quickly went to Twitter because Nysc was trending to see if anyone was in the same boat as me. Every tweet was Lagos, Abuja and other states but not one tweet on Adamawa.

I quickly checked the map of Nigeria to find out where Adamawa is on the map because I knew Adamawa was in the north but i dont know its exact location and its neighbouring states. I saw that Adamawa was the last state before you get in to Cameroon.

 I called a flight agent to arrange a ticket for me to Adamawa. Immediately I dropped the phone, I went to Facebook to  see where my friends were posted. As I was about exiting facebook, I saw someone that posted Adamawa but camping in kano.

At first,I did not understand until I went back to my call up letter and saw Kano st. This was when I knew I would be camping in Kano as well. I quickly called  the agent and told her that I don't need a ticket to Adamawa but Kano.

After this. I quickly rushed down to the market to buy some stuff that would be needed in the orientation camp since I need to be in Kano before or on Thursday which is just three days away. I got all my stuff and the next day which is a Tuesday, My agent called and said she has a ticket for Kano on Thursday Morning by 11. I quickly thanked her and patiently waited for Thursday.

Thursday finally came and I got to the Domestic wing of Murtala Mohammed International Airport very early.  After check in and all other necessary procedures, I proceded to the departure area where I waited for my flight.  The flight was delayed until 1:30pm before it left. The route was Kano via Abuja so we left for Abuja. When we got to Abuja, some passengers dropped and then the plane was refilled and also  more passengers boarded from Abuja and we took off for Kano.

While waiting for the plane to be refilled at Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport Abuja

While I was seated inside the plane, I realised that almost everyone inside were all young and all going to Kano. I quickly concluded that we are all prospective Corp members and since we are all going to Kano, it would be a good idea to start making friends as soon as possible.

After Fifteen minutes, an announcement came from the cockpit and the content of the message was that everyone should be seated that the plane is ready to land. I quickly looked out from the window in the plane and all I could see was just  sand. I was disappointed.There were no skyscrapers, no beautiful houses, just sand. I was perplexed and the next question that came into my mind was "Are there no houses in Kano"?

The plane landed and the next information from the cockpit was "Welcome to Mallam Aminu Kano International airport".  Immediately I alighted  from the plane, A heat wave quickly engulfed me. I looked around and I did not feel as if I was in an airport not to even talk of an International Airport.

The runway was deserted and the buildings in the airport looked so small. I followed the people making their way to a building with the name Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport written in Bold letters.  When we got inside the structure, Our passport was checked and then we made our way to the baggage reclaim area we patiently waited for our luggage at the baggage carousel.

After about thirty minutes of waiting at the baggage carousel, I finally saw my luggage and picked it up and made my way to the arrival area.

On getting to the arrival area, I saw many young people. Some were making calls, probably calling their family and loved ones to tell them they have arrived while the rest gathered around a lady who was putting on the Nysc Uniform. I quickly went to the the lady putting on Nysc Uniform.

I am part of the NCCF(Nigerian Christian Corpers Fellowship) the lady said and I am here to assist you get to your location. I was relieved. The lady quickly said that there are two camps, one for those that their orientation camp is Kano and those that are Adamawa but camping in kano. She quickly separated us. Those that are Adamawa on my right and those for Kano on my left.

After separating us, the lady went in search of cabs. The cabs  take four passengers. I was in a cab with two other guys and a female.

In the next part, I will be talking about my journey from the airport to the camp and the orientation course. Stay tuned.

Kindly subscribe to my blog so that you will be notified once the next part is out.

Thank you very much for reading.
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The ACPO principles

Good day everyone, As promised in my previous blog, I said I will be listing out some principles that Computer Forensics professionals need to adhere to. Without wasting much time, let's dive right into it.

PRINCIPLE 1- ACPO PRINCIPLES

ACPO stands for the a
Association of Chief Police Officers . This principles of ACPO are guidelines for handling digital  evidence in the UK and it is essential that they are strictly adhered to when investigating computers. There are four ACPO principles.

The principles are

Principle 1: An officer must never change data held on a device

Principle 2: In a situation when an officer has to change data held on a device, the officer must be competent to do so and also give evidence explaining the relevance and implication of his/her actions.

Principle 3: An audit trail of all the processes followed must be listed out such that when a third party follows it,  he/she must come out with the same results.

Principle 4: The case officer must make sure that all laws are adhered to.

Explanation of this principle
To explain this, what this simply means is that before investigation is been conducted on a media device, it is very important that a chain of custody is created for the digital evidence. I have explained what a chain of custody is and why it is important. You can find more about coc(chain of custody) here.

While investigating, it is also important to use a write blocker. A write blocker is a device that
allows acquisition of information on a drive the without creating the possibility of accidentally damaging the drive contents. 

Img src(https://bounga.id/content/tableau-t8u-usb30-forensic-bridge-write-blocker)

During investigations, Globally approved forensic tools should be used and all investigations are to be completed on a cloned copy of the media and not the original to avoid contamination such as changing of time stamps.

In a minority of cases, it may not be possible to obtain an image using a recognised imaging device. In these circumstances, it may become necessary for the original machine to be accessed to recover the evidence. With this in mind, it is essential that a witness, who is competent to give evidence to a court of law, makes any such access.

There are many other guidelines out there and the one listed above is a generally accepted one in the UK.

Many thanks for reading

Introducing my Family Business

Good day everyone, I am using this medium to advertise a Business that has been in existence for over twenty years.

The business I am introducing today is a Family run business that has been in existence for over twenty years.

Located in Benin Republic, We deal in high quality mattresses and pillows. We have single mattress(unplace), mattress for two people(Deuxplace), and even mattresses for three people(troisplace) all at an affordable rate.

Do contact us if you will be requiring our services.

We can be reached via the following ways
Phone: +22997862629, +22962637917, +22960739648.

To reach us via WhatsApp, message us with the first number above or use this one +2348159035246

Thanks in advance for your patronage

How to mine Bitcoins

Bitcoins is a cryptocurrency created by someone/something called Satoshi Nakomoto in the year 2008. Recently, Bitcoins has experienced an increase in its value. Because of this increase, Many people are now looking for ways to get Bitcoins. As of the time I am writing this blog, The price of Bitcoins is currently at $16,000 for 1 Bitcoin.

WHAT IS BITCOINS MINING?

One of the ways of getting Bitcoins for free is mining. Mining is the extraction of valuable mineral resources from the earth. So Bitcoins mining can be defined as the extraction of Bitcoins from a computer in a lay man term. In a more advanced term, Bitcoin mining can be defined as the process by which transactions are verified and added to the public ledger, known as the block chain, and also the means through which new bitcoin are released.(Investopedia, 2018). In order to mine for Bitcoins, one needs access to the Internet and also a good hardware device.The mining process involves compiling recent transactions into blocks and trying to solve a computationally difficult puzzle.  The participant who first solves the puzzle gets to place the next block on the block chain and claim the rewards.  The rewards, which incentivize mining, are both the transaction fees associated with the transactions compiled in the block as well as newly released bitcoin.

IS BITCOINS MINING PROFITABLE?

When Bitcoins was released, it was very easy to mine them. One could mine them at the comfort of his own home and using his/her  PC.  Presently, if you don't
own a specialized high powered machinery, it might be impossible to profitably  mine for Bitcoins. While mining is still technically possible for anyone, those with under powered setups will find more money is spent on electricity than is generated through mining.

In other words, mining won’t be profitable at a small scale unless you have access to free or really cheap electricity.

CLOUD MINING

Cloud Mining is the process of bitcoin mining utilizing a remote datacenter with shared processing power.This type of cloud mining enables users to mine bitcoins or alternative cryptocurrencies without managing the hardware. This is very useful for those who are not technically minded and those that do not want to run their own software or Hardware. If the cost of electricity is high in your country, it is advisable to outsource your mining to where electricity is cheaper.

STEPS IN MINING BITCOINS
The following are steps to take in order to mine Bitcoins
Step 1: Purchase custom mining hardware
Step 2: Obtain a Bitcoin wallet
Step 3: Secure your wallet
Step 4: Decide between joining a pool or going alone
Step 5: Download a mining program
Step 6: Run your miner
Step 7: Keep an eye on Temperatures
Step 8: Check your profitablility

Thanks for reading

Procedures in getting a UK student Visa

      Most people prefer studying abroad than in their own Country. Some of the popular Destinations people prefer to study in are The US, Canada, The UK, Australia, New Zealand, Germany e.t.c
       Studying abroad has many advantages such as experiencing diverse Culture, networking with fellow student's all over the world, Usage of state of the art Facilities, and many more.
       In our discussion Today, I will be listing out the steps/ procedures in getting a UK student Visa. Everything posted would be from my own personal experience that is to say that I will be listing out the procedures I used to secure a UK Student Visa.
       The United Kingdom is a Fantastic place to study for those considering it as a place for study. British Universities are considered among the best in the world and their degree is accepted and respected all over the world. The only problem I have with studying in the UK is that you only get four months after studying to get a Job and also the company must be willing to sponsor you as an International student. Failure to get a sponsor(which is very hard) will result in you been kicked out of the country.
Student Visas are awarded on a point based system. So you get points for having the required documents. You also need to have an International passport  that has more than six months before it expires.

The procedures in getting a UK student Visa are below
STEP 1: Write and pass either the TOEFL or IELTS exam with good marks. The purpose of this exam is to show that you can understand , write and speak English to an appropriate level. This is very mandatory even if English is your first language, with an exception to the US.

STEP 2: Apply for one of the UK universities.If successful, you will be offered an unconditional offer. This simply shows that you have been partially accepted. In this letter you will see the amount you have to pay for Tuition.

STEP 3: If you are buoyant enough, you can go ahead and pay the Tuition fees that was stated on your unconditional offer. If you are not, you are allowed to pay 50% of the Tuition.

STEP 4: If you will be studying outside  London, you need to have $1230 per month multiplied by your first nine months that you will stay in the country. That is
1230 ×9= $11,070 plus the remaining 50% of your Tuition fees if you did not pay all as mentioned in Step 3
If you will be studying in London, you need to have $1540 multiplied by your first nine months that you will stay in the country. That is
1540 ×9=$13,860 plus the remaining 50% of your Tuition fees if you did not pay all as mentioned in Step 3
Note: The cost of London is higher because the Cost of things and  standard of living is high in London compared to all other Cities.
The amount above should be kept in your account for 28working days. This will show that you can cover your Tuition fees, accommodation and any other living cost for the duration of your studies. After 28days, you can collect the statement from your bank and then you can remove the money if you want. The statement would be submitted along with the application.

STEP 5: After paying for Tuition,  tyou get a conditional offer and also a CAS number from the school. What this simply means is that the school is going to be sponsoring you and you are to include this CAS number when you making your application. This is very important and it is worth 30 points.

STEP 5: Apply for halls of Residence (accommodation from school) if you have no place to stay. Pay for the deposit for the halls and keep the receipt with you. It will be needed when going for the visa application.

STEP 7: Check that you have all required documents
Checklist of documents
✔ International Passport
✔Conditional offer
✔CAS letter
✔Four passport photographs with white background
✔Bank statement
✔Accommodation deposit receipt
✔IELTS/TOEFL result
✔Prayer

STEP 8: Print out the application documents and fill or fill them online. While filling, you will be required to pay 150 pounds for NHS as an inter national student and also so that the NHS will be able to treat you if you fall sick during your time in the UK.

STEP 9: Submit your application with all required documents and wait for an Interview.  Interview is quite easy, just research on your school and research on your course. You should be ready to answer questions such as
✅ Why did you choose the UK?
✅Why did you choose this Course?
✅What is the course all about?

If you require more information about the visa procedures, do visit the UKBA website.
Thanks for reading, Pls share and comment.

       
  

How Nysc has helped me

I came back to Nigeria on the 1st of October 2016. Funny date because that was the date that Nigeria gained her Independence from the British. After coming back to Nigeria, I stayed for a month and some few days and was among those that went for the compulsory NYSC scheme. I will be listing how this scheme has been beneficial to me.
1 Travelling
Thanks to this Scheme, I have been able to go to states that I would not have been to if not for Nysc. I have been opportuned to visit Kano, Kaduna(passed through), Abuja(passed through), Edo.
2 Culture
Nysc has made me learn different cultures from different tribes of Nigeria. I will be listing out one of them and that is in Ekiti state (Yoruba land), when marrying a girl, you have to sit on your /your wife' s father and mother lap to show that you are now their Child. I can't remember if that is the reason why but I think so.
I have also learnt and seen physically the rich cultural heritage of the Benin kingdom.
3 Skills
Prior to NYSC, I never had any teaching experience and would get tense whenever I am speaking to a crowd. But thanks to NYSC, I can now fully say that I now know how to get a crowd 's attention, communicate fluently without any fear of intimidation or shyness.
4 Contacts
Nysc has made me meet like minded individuals from all part of the federation and this would be very beneficial to me.( That I am sure of)

It has not been all fun, it has been stressful, annoying, demanding but if you should look at It from a different angle, you will realize that the aim is to serve and that is why it is called Youth service.  You have to serve your fatherland and I am happy I have done it. Am also greatful to God because many started the journey but could not make it. I am not better than them, it is just God 's grace and his love upon my life. Now Nysc is done, the question that still remains is this what next to conquer?

Tribalism, the biggest threat to Nigeria s greatness

  My country Nigeria, The biggest black nation in the face of the earth,  member of OPEC(organization of petroleum exporting countries) and also one of the richest African countries. Quite an achievement one would said and I agree with it.
      There is a major problem affecting Nigeria and every Nigerian and those that have had the oppurtunity to stay with Nigerians from different tribes would understand. This problem is the issue of Tribalism.
       This issue has eaten very deep into the Nigerian system that it is ranked on the same level as corruption or even greater. It is quite sad that after fifty-six years of independence, we still have not gotten  over this issue.
      Expressions like and I quote "Na Igbo people, they too like money,  Na Yoruba people, they too dey smell" and so on and so forth are quite common words you hear from the mouth of Nigerians. Let me share a personal experience of what I witnessed in Nigeria.
        Sometime last week, I was travelling from Benin to Lagos and I boarded one of those inter state travelling buses and I had this guy sitting behind me who had a low battery so he asked me to pass his phone to another guy that was sitting in the front close to the driver so that the guy can help him charge his phone using the  in car charger. I did as I was told but the guy at the front told me that he was using the charger to charge his phone. I passed the information back to the guy and what happened next surprised me.
       The next thing I heard was " Na Igbo people, they too greedy, even if him battery don full, e no go still allow me charge"  The guy was saying that the man sitting at the front is Igbo and   that Igbo people are  greedy and even if his phone was full, he still won't allow him charge. This guy said this to me and was waiting for me to say something to support him or contradict him which is quite common in Nigeria when you having a discussion or argument but I kept quiet because I have learnt from past experience that you don't respond to everything.
        Throughout the rest of the Journey, I could not stop thinking of what the guy said. How did he know that the guy sitting at the front was Igbo? Have they met before for him to know he was Igbo or was he judging from physical appearance?  How certain was he that the guy s battery was full and he did not want him to charge? All this and many more was all I could think about throughout the duration of my Journey.
       The example above is a classical example of what is wrong in Nigeria. Most times in Nigeria, you are not judged as an individual rather you are judged based on your tribe especially if you do something wrong and this is so wrong. People in Nigeria loose contracts, help and all other stuff just because they are not of the same ethnic group as the person awarding the contract. If a Nigerian finds himself in a public office, Most times, he only helps those that are from the same ethnic group as him. This does not happen all the time but most times .
       Another way of breaking the barriers of tribalism  is by Marriage but there are some people that have sworn that none of the Children must get married  to someone that is not of the same ethnic group and any of their Child that goes against  their wishes will be disowned.  And we claim we are one Nigeria?? Frankly speaking, I think we are deceiving ourselves because we are just like a pastor that preaches but don't practice what he preaches.
         The Igbo s which is my tribe have a strong hatred for the Hausa s and they don't consider the Yoruba s as people which is not right. I have been in a gathering with Igbo people where they say things like " I can never associate myself with Yoruba people". This is quite sad because these people are youths that are well enlightened and educated. In Nigeria we are taught by our parents that "United we stand and divided we fall".
       Nigeria as a country is very influenced by the western countries. Nigerians love emulating the western countries.We dress like them,  Some of us even speak like them, Hollywood  has a big audience in Nigeria,  Almost all Nigerian men watch the English primer league and so on and so forth.            
          Even the western countries know the Importance of Diversity because there is strength in Diversity. I have been opportuned to have studied in the United kingdom and I can happily say that my time there was one of the most enjoyable moments of my life and I really enjoyed my student experience. The reason for this was because of the diversity of the country. I had the opportunity to meet with people from all part of the world and also learnt about the cultures of other people. In the UK, you see people from all part of the world peacefully co-habiting together. I have also been to a marriage ceremony between a black guy and an Asian lady.  Things like this strengthens ties among countries and also makes the world a better place.  The USA conducts a scheme known as the Visa lottery whereby certain individuals from most countries in the world are randomly  selected to come and work and stay in the US permanently. This reason for all of this is because these countries believe in the strength of Diversity.
      If Nigeria wants to be great, then Tribalism needs to go. This is the most important thing to do to make this country great like the people we emulate.

Thanks for reading, pls share

Advice on money and investment

         So the other day, I was looking at a Fifty Naira note and It made me to start thinking about some certain things. Money answers all prayers but it is also the root of all evil. I was pondering how this world has turned into this stage or phase whereby an individual is being respected based on the amount of paper money he/she can accumulate during his/her life time. Sad Isn't it was the thought that came to my head. The day that  paper finishes in your hand then that's the day all respect is gone. And the funniest thing about that particular paper money I was holding was that it looks so old and the reason for this was because that particular paper money has changed hands. Upon the time of printing, it was quite new but due to the fact that this particular note has changed hands, the note has no order choice than to start detoriating.
        This same law applies to everyone, you have some little amount of money today and you feel as if you 've arrived. Some even go as far as oppressing others because they can afford what that particular person cannot afford. A popular Nigerian musician named fela sang one song titled water no get enemy. I can also say that money no get friend so while you are there showing off with that money you have, always remember that money is not your friend and it might not be with you for the rest of your life. It will start changing hands and very soon will leave your hands and go to another and might not come back if you don't invest wisely.

Thanks for reading
 

Word for the day

Get up each day feeling content and happy.
Some people wish to see today but they are not alive.
So wake up happy and be ready to fight the challenges of life.
You should be able to make a lemonade out of the lemon that life gives to you.
So make very good use of any opportunity you get and be ready to wow people for the rest of your life.
If life was a human being, it would certainly be black because life is not fair.
But also remember that you can never ever get a second chance for a first impression.
So live life to the fullest but remember there is a future out there waiting for you to conquer.
And the sooner you start, the better it is for you and your future.

Children s day at Iguobazuwa, Ovia South west, Edo state

The 27th of May is a public holiday in Nigeria and it happens to be Children day. As you guys know, I am a serving Corp member and the school in which I teach in has been invited for a marching ceremony at the local government council and I am the co-ordinator of the marching ceremony in my school. 

 Some pictures of the event can be found below

My school when they started marching 

When they were marching towards the officials

Marching continues

The students of the school performing a cultural dance

Unfortunately, my school came third in the marching competition and first in the cultural dance.  It was a good day for the kids and one they would not forget in a hurry.

Thanks for reading

Youths of Nigeria, where are thou??

So I was having a chit chat with my fellow Corp members in our lodge. We were all discussing about how social media s like Facebook has influenced our life and an idea came to my mind.

Now if you look at the population of Nigeria, Nigeria has a population of more than 191million plus as of my time of checking and half of this population are youths. A country with this high number of youths and workforce still cannot boast of producing mere tooth pick. We import everything. To me, it is a thing of shame and disgrace. We claim to be the giants of Africa but that's a big lie because I believe that in order for one to be a giant, you must have a strong economy that manufactures goods.

Countries with high population like The United states, China and India all use their population to their advantage and that's why these countries  have some of the strongest economies. We claim we are rich but the day oil dries up in this our land, that's the day we will realize we are actually poor.

Some people might be saying that it is the Government fault which I partially agree with but we youths can't leave everything for the Government . I was reading some article online and I read something that caught my attention "Do not always say what has the country done for me rather it should be what have you done for the country". We youths are creative but our creativity ends on social networks. We spend countless number of time on social networks and many has become addicted to it.

If you look at Facebook, the owner dropped out of school to pursue his dream, he was not that smart, he was creative. Creativity is the key factor. We have many youths that are creative as Zuckberg but they channel their creativity towards the wrong medium. We youths have a huge role to play in order to make Nigeria great because at the moment, we are just a bunch of losers and a laughing stock to the international community.

Every youth has a role to play unless you want your kids to suffer what you suffered which is the highest regret a parent can have.

So while  you are slaying on Fbk, clubbing, joining all the gangs( pepperthem, onionthem and crayfishthem), remember that time does not wait for anyone and the sooner we start doing something about our future, the better for us.

From a citizen of Nigeria that truly cares

Thanks for reading, pls share and comment.

I0 Important factors noticed in the community where I serve

Hi everyone. As you guys know, I am currently obeying the clarion call by doing my National youth service in Nigeria and I am serving in a secondary school in Iguobazuwa, Edo state, Nigeria. In this article I will be listing out some few things I noticed about the community and it's people based on the area that I stay in which is Iguobazuwa.

1 Everyone knows each other
In the conmunity that I am staying, everyone literally knows each other. Just show them a picture of the person and they can tell you his life history including when the person moved to the town, the profession of the father and mother, the name of his/her siblings and what they do.  That is for indigene s .

2 Everyone looks up to the weekend
I know some people might not agree on this one but this is something that I have noticed here. You will certainly hear music blasting out from a speaker almost every weekend and also people dressed nicely going to a ceremony.  It could either be   naming ceremony, burial, remembrance, someone powerful died or a baby was born. Whatever occasion it is, Music blasting out from speakers is something that reminds you that is weekend already.

3 Rain is a precious commodity that you get once in every blue moon.
I have stayed in Iguobazuwa for close to four months now and in my stay there, I can literally count the number of times rain fell. Although we not in raining season, but the number of times rain falls is pretty low compared to states in the same geographical location.

4 Everyone seems to have a sibling, friend or even parents abroad.
Nigeria is suffering from brain drain and it is all over the country but I think the brain drain in this part of the country is high. The amount of people abroad from this part of the country is very high and everyone seems to know someone that had left the shores of the country in exchange of a better life abroad which is certainly not guaranteed.

5 Almost all youth both male and female have mastered or still learning a handwork.
In my stay in this community, I have seen young boys and girls striving hard to make ends meet. Most of them are students but after schooling, they also go to their various shops where they are learning a handwork. Majority of the handwork s been learned are tailoring, hair dressing, catering, barbing. Majority of this kids would end up being entrepreneurs in the future and this would help them to contribute postively to their society and the country as a whole. In Nigeria , Edo people are known for their tailoring and hair dressing skills.

6 The market women don't like it when you bargain with them on their goods.
One important thing I ve noticed about the market is that the market women just hate it when you bargain with them on their goods. They expect you to just pay whatever they tell you and find it very offensive when you try to bargain with them. I am speaking based on my personal experience. This happens with majority of the women in the market place but not all of them. They are still some that are quite alright when you bargain.

7 Infrastructural maintenance is a no go area.
In the community where I stay, there is a school that was funded and built by the European Union, Federal Government and the local government. The standard of the building is very high compared to some government secondary schools that I know of but the problem is maintenance. The buildings are not been maintained properly and this has caused the buildings to detoriate immensely.

8 Electricity is top notch
In my stay here so far, I have been quite impressed with the electricity supply. One advantage of this place is the constant supply of electricity which is something I thought might be difficult but the power holding company keeps on proving me wrong. The only downside of this is when the electricity equipment becomes faulty. It might take some time before it becomes fully stable again.

9 Getting water can be quiet stressful
As a corper serving in this community, I become very tired whenever I have to get water and it is not because of laziness because I am not lazy. The problem is the stress involved before you get water. Firstly, one has to look for a truck and after searching and getting one, you have to push the truck to the borehole, get the water and then push the truck back to your house. The process involved is the reason why getting water can be stressful.

10 Corpers are not respected.
This final factor is one that makes me sad. As a corper, I expect  the community that I serve in to fully accord me with my due respect and this is far from true in this community. There are still some that respect corpers but not even up to majority.  Many people see corpers as cash cows and would jump at every opportunity they get to milk the corpers.

This are some of the factors that I have noticed in the community where I serve. Thanks for taking your time to read this. Pls comment and share to support me. Many thanks.

Different codes used to transfer money in Nigerian banks

*Bank transfers.*
*Knowledge is Power*.....And I thought someone might need this.  You can thank me later

How to transfer money and recharge  phone from your bank account. (All banks)

1. Access Bank:
----*901*amount#

2. EcoBank:
----*326*amount#

3. Fidelity Bank:
----*770*amount#

4. FCMB:
----*389*214*amount#

5. First Bank
----*894*amount#

6. GTB:
----*737*amount#

7. Heritage Bank:
----*322*030*amount#

8. Keystone Bank:
----*322*082*amount#

9. Sky Bank:
----*389*076*1*amount#

10. Stanbic IBTC:
----*909*amount#

11. Sterling Bank:
----*822*amount#

12. UBA:
----*389*033*1*amount#

13. Unity Bank:
----*322*215*amount#

14. Zenith Bank:
----*966*amount# or
----*302*amount# (for MTN users)

15. Diamond Bank (Yellow Acct. only):
----*710*555*phone no*amount*pin#

To know your BVN, dial
----*565*0#.

Good morning 😀

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ICCID, IMSI AND IMEI

            Majority of the world population use and own a mobile phone. If one should compare the amount of people using mobile phone now and those using it like ten years ago,  You will realize that the number of mobile phone users have increased greatly and it is likely to increase more.
         About 60% of the world population use and own a mobile phone in the year 2014 and there is a forecast that the number of mobile phone users will reach 67% by the year 2019 which is about five billion individuals in numbers.
         Most mobile phones make use of a  little card which is inserted into it called a sim card. Sim stands for subscriber identity module and it consists of processor and storage. It is a very useful and important card that is used in Gsm networks.  
         Sim cards digitally contains ICCID, IMSI which this article will be discussing about shortly. There are four sizes of sim cards and they are
 Plug in
 Micro sim
 Nano sim
 M2m sim( machine to machine form factor 2).
The types of Gsm sim cards are
 2G sim cards which is just a sim
 3G sim cards which is a usim
 The multi application card which is used in most smartphones and has the sim and usim capabilities.

                     ICCID
ICCID stands for integrated circuit card identifier. It consists of 19 to 20 digits and it is always stored digitally on the card. It cannot be changed on a normal sim. ICCID can be used to determine the country which a sim card belongs and also the issuing service provider.

            STRUCTURE FOR ICCID
ICCID is grouped like this
 First two digits is known as industry Identifier
 Second two is the issuing country code
 Third two is the network identifier
 And the remaining numbers has no labels
An example of this can be found below
22       23         24          01234567890123

                         IMSI
IMSI Stands for international mobile subscriber identity. As the name implies, it is used to  know the identity of the subscriber. It consists of 15 digits and it is digitally stored on the sim card and cannot be changed on a normal sim.

               STRUCTURE FOR IMSI
IMSI is grouped like this
 First three digits is known as mobile country code
 Second two is known as mobile network code
 The remaining ten digits has no labels
An example of this can be found below
            234     80         1234567790

                        IMEI
IMEI stands for international mobile equipment identifier. The make and model of a phone can be derived from this number. In order to get the IMEI from a phone menu, all you have to do is dial (*#06#) and the number will be shown on the screen. This number is 15 digits in length and stored digitally on the handset.

              STRUCTURE FOR IMEI
IMEI is grouped like this
 First nine digits is known as the type allocation unit
 Second seven digits is known as the serial number
 The last digit is known as the check digit.
An example of this can be found below
012345678           0123456               4







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