Tech

Kenyan govt bans use of Telegram to curb exam cheating

Published

4 weeks ago

November 12, 2024

Concerned authorities in the East African country of Kenya have ordered a ban on the use of cloud-based, cross-platform, social media and instant messaging (IM) service, Telegram, to curb exam cheating.

The Communications Authority (CA) of Kenya has requested that telecom providers temporarily prohibit Telegram on all major networks in an effort to prevent students from exchanging exam answers.

Disruptions on Safaricom were confirmed by Netblocks, an Internet monitoring outfit, which claimed the blocks were in line with previous Telegram limitations. A similar prohibition was implemented in Kenya in November 2023, resulting in significant losses.

The CA wrote to the executives of Safaricom, Telkom Kenya, Jamii Telecom, and Airtel Kenya on October 31. The authority pointed out that Telegram has been less receptive to measures to avoid misuse, although other social media platforms have been working together.

For the duration of the exam, which is from 7:00 to 10:00 am and from 1:00 to 4:00 pm on weekdays, the CA has asked that Telegram be temporarily banned until November 22.

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