Kathmandu: Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Jagdish Kharel, assumed office today. 



He reached Singha Durbar to assume the office shortly after taking the oath of office and secrecy before President Ramchandra Paudel at the latter's office, Shital Niwas earlier today. 



The new Minister decided to manage free Wi-Fi services in public places of 10 cities including Kathmandu across the country in the next five months. This marked his very first decision at the office.

Minister Kharel assumes office, decides free Wi-Fi in public places of 10 cities

Kathmandu: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington has reached a “framework” agreement with China over the ownership of TikTok’s American operations, paving the way for US control of the platform.



Bessent told reporters the framework was agreed during trade talks in Madrid, adding that US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to finalize the deal on Friday. Beijing has not yet commented.



Trump said on Truth Social that the Madrid talks had “gone very well,” referring to “a certain company that young people in our country very much wanted to save.”



The deal comes as TikTok faces a looming US ban unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells its American division. In January, the US Supreme Court upheld a 2024 law mandating the sale, citing national security concerns. The US Justice Department has described TikTok’s access to American user data as “a national-security threat of immense depth and scale.”



ByteDance has denied the allegations, insisting TikTok’s US arm operates independently and that no data has been shared with Beijing. The company has also argued that the ban violates free speech rights for its 170 million American users.



TikTok briefly went offline in January after the law took effect, before Trump issued a 75-day postponement. The deadline for a sale has since been extended three times, with the current grace period expiring on 17 September.



Figures previously linked to a potential purchase of TikTok’s US business include Tesla owner Elon Musk, YouTube creator MrBeast, and billionaire investor Frank McCourt.



The TikTok announcement came on the second day of US-China trade talks in Madrid, part of efforts to ease tensions in the ongoing trade war between the two countries.



-BBC

US, China reach ‘Framework’ deal on TikTok’s US Operations

Kathmandu: Cyber criminals have stolen the private details of potentially millions of Balenciaga, Gucci and Alexander McQueen customers in an attack.



The stolen data includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, addresses and the total amount spent in the luxury stores around the world.



Kering, the parent company of the luxury brands, has confirmed the breach and says it disclosed the incident to the relevant data protection authorities.



It said no financial information, such as card details, were stolen.



The firm also says it has emailed customers affected but has not said how many, or made any public statements about the hack.



Legally, the company is not obligated to make any public statements about the breach as long as it has notified all individuals affected through other means.



The cyber criminal behind the attack calls themselves Shiny Hunters.



They claim to have data linked to 7.4m unique email addresses which suggests the total number of individual victims could be similar.



A small sample shared with the BBC as proof contained thousands of customer details which appear to be genuine. Once analysed the files were deleted.



One of the details in the stolen data is "Total Sales" which shows how much money a person has spent with each brand.



Some customers are shown to have spent more than $10,000 with a handful spending $30,000-$86,000 in stores in the small sample analysed by the BBC.



This information is particularly concerning for victims as it could lead to high spenders being targeted by secondary hacks and scams if the hacker decides to leak the information to other criminals.



Shiny Hunters appears to be acting alone and told the BBC over Telegram chat that they breached the luxury brands in April through Kering.



The hacker contacted the French company in early June and claims to have been in on-off negotiations with them over a ransom to be paid in Bitcoin. This is denied by the company which says it has not engaged in any conversations with the criminal.



The company says it has refused to pay the hacker in accordance with long-standing law enforcement advice.



"In June, we identified that an unauthorized third party gained temporary access to our systems and accessed limited customer data from some of our Houses. No financial information - such as bank account numbers, credit card information, or government-issued identification numbers - was involved in the incident," a Kering spokesperson said adding it has since secured its IT systems.



The data breach which happened in April came at the time of a wave of attacks on luxury brands including Cartier and Louis Vuitton also disclosed breaches to customers and the public.



It's not known if those attacks are linked to Shiny Hunters.



In June, cyber security experts at Google issued a warning about a trend of attacks linked to Shiny Hunters that the tech giant also subsequently fell victim to.



The hacker or hackers are known by Google as UNC6040 which have been stealing data through tricking employees into handing over their log in details for internal company Salesforce software.



-BBC

Gucci, Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen private data ransomed by hackers

Kathmandu: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has announced that several electrical infrastructures across the country, including in Kathmandu, have been damaged due to the recent adverse situation, forcing some feeders to be shut down.



In a public notice issued on Thursday, the NEA said urgent repair and maintenance work is underway to restore damaged structures. The authority urged the public to facilitate the movement of essential vehicles and ensure smooth operation of its offices so that electricity services can be restored as quickly as possible.



NEA has requested all stakeholders for necessary cooperation, stating, “We sincerely appeal to all concerned to assist in enabling maintenance works and office operations, so electricity supply can be resumed at the earliest.”



The authority further asked consumers experiencing irregular power supply for more than 24 hours to contact the NEA hotline 1150 or report to their nearest NEA office for updates.

Power structures damaged; NEA urges public cooperation for repairs

Kathmandu: Protesters set fire to the residence of Communication and Information Technology Minister Prithivi Subba Gurung in Sunakothi, Lalitpur, on Tuesday evening.



Police said demonstrators forced their way through security, hurled stones, and ignited the minister’s house. A team of security personnel was immediately dispatched to the site.



Valley Police spokesperson SSP Shekhar Khanal said efforts were underway to contain the blaze. “We have received reports of arson and vandalism,” he confirmed.

Protesters set fire to residence of communication minister

Kathmandu: The Supreme Court Bar Association has demanded that the government immediately postpone the decision to ban certain social media platforms. 



Issuing a statement here today, Supreme Court Bar Secretary Raman Kumar Karna has demanded the immediate postponement of the decision, citing social media as a medium of expression and communications for the common people. 



Similarly, the Bar has called to provide free medical treatment to all those injured during the protests and provide appropriate compensation to the families of the deceased. 



“The attention of the bar has been drawn to the unfortunate incidents that have occurred during the protests and agitations launched by ‘Gen-Z’ across the country today against corruption, irregularities, anomalies and aberrations, where protesters have been killed and injured,” reads the statement.

Supreme Court Bar for withholding social media ban

Kathmandu: The major ruling partner, Nepali Congress, has decided to talk to government on the latter's decision to block social networks. The government has blocked two dozens of social networks reasoning that they failed to get listed. 



The meeting of the central execution committee of NC decided to make its views public only after holding discussion with the government on restriction to social media. 



The committee meeting was held at the residence of Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, Budhanilakantha, according to Joint General Secretary of the party, Jivan Pariyar.

NC to discuss with govt on social media restriction

Kathmandu: The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MoCIT) has urged the public not to use Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to access unregistered social media platforms in Nepal.



In a statement issued on Sunday, the ministry said that, in line with the government’s decision, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority has already directed mobile and internet service providers to restrict access to unregistered platforms. It warned that using VPNs to bypass these restrictions is unsafe, unauthorized, and carries security risks.



According to the ministry, two companies — Smart Idea Pvt. Ltd. (Hamro Patro) and Global Diary Pvt. Ltd. — have already been listed and activated as of September 7 (22 Bhadra).



The ministry also informed that social media companies Twitter (X) and WeChat have requested details required for registration, and the necessary information has been provided to them.

Nepal govt urges public not to use VPNs for accessing unregistered social media platforms

Kathmandu: Prime Minister and CPN (UML) Chairperson KP Sharma Oli has said that while many things may be tolerated, disrespect towards the country cannot be accepted.



Addressing the closing session of the party’s statute convention in Godavari, Lalitpur, Oli stated that the UML has historically fought for freedom of expression and national sovereignty. He clarified that the party is not against social media platforms but emphasized that companies earning revenue in Nepal must comply with national laws.



“The thinking of so-called intellectuals is not independent,” Oli remarked, accusing some of attempting to spread negativity and influence society, particularly by invoking the younger generation. He stressed, however, that today’s “Gen G” youth love the nation.



The Prime Minister also recalled that the government has been urging social networking sites to register for the past year. He underlined that safeguarding sovereignty is more important than concerns over a few people potentially losing jobs, adding that both sovereignty and freedom are rooted in self-respect.

PM Oli says disrespect towards nation intolerable

Kathmandu: Internet service providers across Nepal have started blocking access to social media apps and websites that are not registered in the country, following a government directive issued on Thursday.



The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MoCIT) instructed the ban on unregistered social media and Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms, in line with a Supreme Court order requiring regulation of online platforms.



The Internet Service Providers Association of Nepal (ISPAN) confirmed the move, saying its members were directed to comply immediately. “The process of blocking URLs has already begun in accordance with the order,” ISPAN Chief Executive Officer Subash Khadka said.



WorldLink Communications, one of Nepal’s largest ISPs, said unregistered platforms will no longer be accessible on its network. CG Net has also started restricting access to certain apps, including Facebook. Mobile service provider Ncell reported that some applications, including Facebook, have already become non-operational on its network.



The decision to enforce the ban was made during a ministerial meeting chaired by Communication and IT Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung. The Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) subsequently instructed all ISPs to carry out the order.



The move follows an August 25 Supreme Court directive, in which Justices Tek Prasad Dhungana and Shanti Singh Thapa ordered the government to ensure that all social media platforms operating in Nepal be registered. The court stated the measure was necessary to regulate harmful content, hold companies accountable, and require foreign platforms earning revenue from Nepali users to obtain official permission.



As implementation continues, widely used apps and platforms in Nepal have already started going offline.

ISPs begin blocking unregistered social media platforms in Nepal

Kathmandu: The government has decided to integrate the records of non-profit organizations (NPOs) with the National Identity Card and Registration Department in a move aimed at strengthening oversight and transparency.



According to government spokesperson and Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung, the Cabinet meeting of August 29 endorsed the affiliation of the NPO Public Portal Software with the national ID system through an Application Programming Interface (API). The step is expected to create an integrated record-keeping mechanism for NPOs operating across the country.



The meeting also made key judicial appointments. Justice Munendra Prasad Awasthi of the High Court Tulsipur, Nepalgunj, has been appointed chair of the Revenue Tribunal Nepalgunj, while lawyer Kumari Kharel from Jhapa has been named a member of the Labour Court.



In addition, the Cabinet approved 58 officer-level temporary positions for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission for the Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons for the fiscal year 2082/83.

Nepal govt approves NPO record system integration with NID and Registration Department

Kathmandu: Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung on Sunday announced that 5G testing will begin in Kathmandu Valley and Pokhara Valley by mid-February.



Speaking at a program in Kathmandu marking the 25th anniversary of the Film Development Board, Gurung said the government is in the final stage of implementing the Digital Nepal Framework, which is awaiting cabinet approval. The framework aims to expand the use of technology in eight sectors, including tourism, education, governance and disaster management.



Highlighting the importance of next-generation technology, Gurung said fifth-generation telecommunication is essential for the effective use of artificial intelligence (AI). “For effective use of AI, 5G is essential. Therefore, we will start 5G testing in Kathmandu Valley and Pokhara Valley by Magh this year,” he said.



The minister added that the government plans to complete nationwide 5G expansion within a year and is preparing to set up IT data centers and AI hubs in all seven provinces.



Gurung also acknowledged the growing incidents of banking fraud and said the government has initiated the process of drafting new laws to curb such crimes.

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