I think the point is, if scammers are forced to use a home connection, then it is far easier to trace them via their IP address. I believe this is a short term solution which might work to an extent.

Mariory:

I think the point is, if scammers are forced to use a home connection, then it is far easier to trace them via their IP address. I believe this is a short term solution which might work to an extent.

big STORY

You cannot trace scammers via their IP address because most ISPs use dynamic IP addresses. Each time you connect, you get a different IP address. Ironically, The only ISPs that use fixed IP addresses are those that serve cyber-cafes.

So you need extra software to link the ip address to a phone number. Even then, can someone trace you with your phone number?

I'm very sure there are applications/software that can easily determine the ISP and exact location of any computer used to send spam emails.
I am also sure all email clients display sender information, some even down to the system config. of the originating PC.
Why chase shadows when there are easier means to police the online 419 menace in our country?
If the EFCC put a system in place where spam can be reported to them, I'm sure that would be a good beginning as it would narrow down the hunt to ISP-> Cybercafe/home user, and of course, if the time the email was sent can be determined, it narrows the search down to customers who were browsing at that time, at that particular cybercafe.
If the Cybercafe has a CCTV system or monitoring system of any kind, I'm quite sure we could be on to the main culprits faster than you can say "search".

It is even easier in the case of home internet users. You just get the info. from their ISPs and go after them.

I don't know that putting a system like this in place could cost more money than not putting one in place.
Why can't we invest in simple technology for once, instead of deliberately trying to make life a living hell for the rest of us?

Seun:

You cannot trace scammers via their IP address because most ISPs use dynamic IP addresses. Each time you connect, you get a different IP address. Ironically, The only ISPs that use fixed IP addresses are those that serve cyber-cafes.

So you need extra software to link the ip address to a phone number. Even then, can someone trace you with your phone number?

But it is not the EFCC that will actually make the trace. All they will need is evidence showing an IP address has been used to send a fradulent email for example. Usually, the EFCC would then obtain a court order that forces the ISP (through their logs) to identify the number, address, and name of the account that used the IP address.

its a stupid idea to stop night browsing, i think the government is just shying away from the solution of scammers.

it however makes sense to to censor the activities of cyber-cafes and all these scammers.its like every cybercafe user is seen as a scammer
i remember browsing one evening at a cafe in Abuja and this strange guy was asking me if i was being smart, it took me a while to get what he was saying.

I do not browse at night becos of the risk i fill is involved, u nerver can tell who is in the room with u. But a ban on night browsing will be ridiculous.

senseless decision

i don't know what is popping down there but i shld think the purpose of they banning it is to get rid or reduce the amount of people that do doggy stuffs on-line at night.

You can get traced if you use ur home computers which makes it easier but if u use the cyber cafe it is difficult to trace "criminals". i shld guess that most cyber cafes in Nigeria do not have CCTV cameras.

If i may ask what time does Cyber-Cafe closes in Nigeria?

@ osteen

osteen:

I do not browse at night because of the risk i fill is involved, u nerver can tell who is in the room with u. But a ban on night browsing will be ridiculous.

Does it matter who is in the room with you.

I do appreciate and commend the efforts of EFCC but the truth is that stopping commercial night browsing won't have any effect on crime, it will only increase the unemployment rate of the nation. while other countries are trying to make their nation a 24/7 envt, we are trying to supress ours. I don't need to go to a cyber cafe to commit crime, I can do it from the comfort of my home or just hook my laptop to any unsecure network and browse for free. I wonder if EFCC will get back to us in 6 months with statistics on the effectiveness of this ban.

As bad as 419 is to the image of Nigeria, it is important to state that most of the victims are greedy people who thinks Nigerians lives on trees. The contents of some of the intro letters is enough to know that this will lead to ground zero, but the victims are too greedy to think twice, comm'n how can someone you don't know promise you a windfall from nowhere.

On his part, David Oladele declared: “It is only in Nigeria that we use the most silly approach to cover our ineptitude. A Yoruba adage says you don’t cut off your head as solution to a headache. I feel all the people involved should re-examine their stand on this issue. Most cyber café operate in the night to cover cost for which an upfront payment has been made. No doubt, some individuals are engaged in this practice but it does not imply anyone who patronise cafes are fully involved.”[color=#000099][/color], culled from thisdayonline

Fair point. However, let me ask a question. How many of us will see someone sending out scam emails or making scam calls and will report such to the authorities? Be truthful now. 

The debate is over. Once a cyber-cafe is registered it can resume might browsing.

The debate is over. Once a cyber-cafe is registered it can resume night browsing. It's just a way to make them register. The EFCC is not under the illusion that such a ban will eliminate cyber-crime.

Ah I see. See they aren't all vindictive idiots at the EFCC afterall.

Seun:

The debate is over. Once a cyber-cafe is registered it can resume night browsing. It's just a way to make them register. The EFCC is not under the illusion that such a ban will eliminate cyber-crime.

well that sounds good ,but seun do u have a link to some official statement from the efcc about that ?

Sorry, I'm relying on a statement goodguy posed from his cyber-cafe:
https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-23105.0.html#msg604625

It seems as if they initially planned to ban night browsing entirely. Let's wait and see.

Here's something I just found on the EFCC website:

In most parts of Lagos, the Nigerian Tribune gathered that the cost of internet browsing per hour is now N200 as against the N100 that was previously charged, while 30 minutes now attracts N100 or N120 as against the previous N50 or N60.

Hurray to EFCC!!

It is really not good at all
Everyone Is Affected because of 'one person'.
Bad for me too, especially the one of 200naira for an hour!
The cafe i usually go as started this, because of that its been long i stepped into a cybercafe.
InAll: Not Good At All!!!

seun if the statement from goodguy is true ,then its unfortunate ,most stuff in those conditions are ok,but there are three of them that can only be allowed in north korea or burma and i would like to discuss them now ;
1,That there is no more privacy for any internet user in the cybercafé.

2,Should allow a view of the client's desktop from the server.

3,Every cybercafé must expose all computers used in browsing; the era of hidden computers for browsing is hereby closed.



so seun if my brother in america wants to send me money via western union,i still have to use pc that is open to all in the cafe where someone might copy the number from my chat with my brother or from my inbox while am copying the number ?
if the admin of the cafe should be able to see my desktop from the network server ,then he would be able to see such info too ?
what if i am chatting with my fiancee ?that info should be seen by the admin through the network server too ?have ribadu forgotten that email i9s like letter ,if someone send me letter should i read it in the open ,does it matter to anyone if i read under my bed ?
ribadu is turning this country into nuttin but a police state ,in this modern time where information technology is taken countries like india (where i live)china,brasil and even parkistan to greater heights,we are being set back in our own efforts ,does this ribadu udnerstand that his actions are restricting many nigerian youths from making resonable researches that would help them become something that this nation would be proud of ?does he understand that he cutting us off from the rest of teh world and therefor making us lack behind in the information age .
i do not support 419 ,but its clear to every reasonable mind that this decision is a blind and stupid one,nigeria will lose more than it intends to gain by this action of ribadu .
he claims this is to stop 419 ,but this will nto in anyway stop 419 ,it will only make them to innovate ,yeah it will make them to find another way of doing there work instead of browsing in the night ,
countries like america,india ,brasil,japan parkistan and most eastern european countries are involved in online fraud in very bigger scale than nigeria ,yet this countries despite being advanced in internet usage and techonology have not used this kind of stupid,useless,senseless and backward laws .
how many virus programmers have been tarced to nigeria ? how many bank hackers have been traced to nigeria ? the later is just very few that can never be compared with what we have in many other countries ,yet these countries have never seen it wise to bring this kind of laws .
the destructive virus called sasser was programmed and launched by an 18 year old german,and theer are many like him in germany ,so why have the germans not come up with same law like this one ?
am sure that ribadu have internet connection at his home and that his klids have access to it ,so naturaly he cannot understand the bakcwardness and negativity of this action .
the goverment should find other means to tackle this problem and not this senseless generalisation .why wont the governent invite internet security experts from nigeria and outside and ask them for some advice ? why not contact companies like microsoft,nortn,macafee and so on ,when the goverment does this it will see that there are better ways to deal with this than this shit they have come up with .

scammers would look for a way out the ban na just story

A yoruba adage says a good and well brought up child will not be found night crawling. Doing what ? brrooowwwwsssssiiiiiinnnnnnngggggggg.

I beg lets face reality, night browsing is bad, anything one has to do, let him do in the day or the weeekend.

Another Yoruba adage says that people tend to misuse Yoruba adages they don't understand.

Na wa o, is this law for real? Does it only operate in Lagos cos i hav not heard of it around here

Seun,

The ban on night browsing will not expunge frausters from cybercafes, and you don't have to be a cybercafe owner to know that EFCC's ban on night browsing is not the best solution. Go to Accra Ghana and you will see a cybercafe there called Busy internet that is open 24/7 - for the convenience of those that are unable to use the internet from their office or simply because they just can't afford to take the time out during the day to search the internet for information they need. What if someone is taking online classes after work. How does EFCC's ban on night browsing accomodate that person. If you travel to Nigeria for business and need to get in touch with your home office - say in the U.S. by IM and you want to do it in the early hours of the morning when your office opens - you just will not be able to do so.

Is this the kind of action progressive countries take when they want to solve cybercrime? Of course not. Like someone said on this forum, sure the EFCC's objective is a noble one, and I support them in their effort to fight cybercrime, but it seems they need to take a technological approach. An approach that does not punish the small cybercafe owner who is barely eking out a living.

If any of you have watched some documentaries on CBS or ABC television about how the chats of child molesters are being monitored online by both police and non-profit organizations you will see that there is a way to solve this problem. Has the EFCC thought about setting some of these 419 people up? They can respond to some of these letters, play the role of the victim and set them up to where they can arrest these 419 folks in large numbers.

Don't punish small businesses who do not have the tools to properly monitor the people using their computers for who knows what. What about the privacy factor. If I am in Nigeria and I want to check by bank account in the U.S. or do a transfer and I choose to use a cybercafe to do it at night - do I want a cybercafe owner hanging around me to see what I am doing?

The EFCC should consult those that fight cybercrimes in the U.S. and the U.K to find out how to best tackle this problem. If you keep the fraudster out of the cybercafe at night, he or she will find a way to still commit the same crime at night or better yet, get internet service at his home or place of business (the one he uses as a front) and still carry on with his 419 . Don't through the baby out with the bath water. Nigerian cybercrime fighters need to find smarter ways to fight crime instead of instituting laws that punish the innocent. Just my own two cents.

@Seun

You cannot trace scammers via their IP address because most ISPs use dynamic IP addresses. Each time you connect, you get a different IP address.  Ironically, The only ISPs that use fixed IP addresses are those that serve cyber-cafes. 

So you need extra software to link the ip address to a phone number.  Even then, can someone trace you with your phone number?

You might not be able to trace scammers by their IP addresses, but the ISPs concerned can be traced, and then the ISP will trace the customer who used what IP.

With correctly configured Proxy/Caching servers in place, all things are possible. Mac address locks/tags can be implemented, and regardless of how many server cascades might be in place, everything done in those cafes can be seen. Its the will to do it that is the problem.

@Seun

The debate is over.  Once a cyber-cafe is registered it can resume night browsing.  It's just a way to make them register.  The EFCC is not under the illusion that such a ban will eliminate cyber-crime.

I will consider the idea of Cybercafe a way the EFCC has come up with to make extra cash for themselves. Cmon think of it, how many cafes in Lagos state alone. Perhaps they are hard on cash and have to put a couple of things together. Besides, with internet access getting cheaper and cheaper by the day, these 419ners will soon get their things in their own homes, and if they can't be traced from cafes, what happens in their own confines.

If Nigeria can have a National gateway, where all internet traffic passes through(forget VSATs, radios or whateva), with proper content filters implemented,,,,,just like it is in China, then things can be put in place to combat internet crime.

And even the EFCC, I dont think they know where they are going in the first place. Yes, there are a whole lot of yahoo boys who do their stuff at night, also there are another lot who do theirs in the day. Cybercafe owners make a major part of their profit at night, coz their ISPs traffic are majorly reduced and therefore, connectivity is much faster and better, than in the day time especially at peak hours, Will the EFCC assist these cybercafe owners financially, or will they come in as a middle man to convince ISPs to reduce their tariffs?

kimba:

@SeunYou might not be able to trace scammers by their IP addresses, but the ISPs concerned can be traced, and then the ISP will trace the customer who used what IP.
With correctly configured Proxy/Caching servers in place, all things are possible. Mac address locks/tags can be implemented, and regardless of how many server cascades might be in place, everything done in those cafes can be seen. Its the will to do it that is the problem.

@kimba
seun is right when he said since most phone companies use DHCP, well i work for a phone company and we use dhcp so each restart the ip address reassigned them self

it is not that u can't place mac address tag, but the question is are u now interfering with customers right to use what ever computer he wants to use at any time because u have pegged his browsing to a particular network card?

even if u decide to give each customer a CPE that u can lock its addess to, it is as simple asbuying a fixed wireless phone of the street and taking it home, how will the phone company know your the guy using it? and most CPE's are xpensive.

the best thing to do it to talk with your isp and they can come out with a solution for u.
for instance what we did was to disccuss with our isp in the USA and they filter every mail, and any illegal stuff don't pass through, no peer to peer software, if u like download 1 million kazaa and imesh it just wont work.

and like i always say 419 is a function of greed. both the conned and the cornee' are both greedy.

u know some solutions are easier onpaper than onthe field. maybe u should try some any other time u can before u assume it is that easy.

when we talk of cyber crimes do we only talk of 419, what about credit card fraud and new ATM wave dontu think smart nigerian guys can hack into these?

one thing i love about developed countries is that if your involve in cyber crimes either by creating a virus or hacking a system or the other, after u do your 2 to 6 months time in jail u become the highest paid software programmer inthe field until some else beats your record

lets stop killing the talent of our youths.

Kaecy5,

Some of your comments just don't seem to proffer any real solutions. How can you possibly say that we are trying to kill the talents of our young people. It does not take any talent to lie or dupe people on the internet, does it? So please spare us the same old backward thinking that has kept our great country mired in corruption. We want fresh ideas and using the example of hackers in developed countries who later become computer security consultants does not make 419 right by any means. Two wrongs never make a right.

We want our young people who are very smart to apply their smarts in positive things that will feed them and their families for generations. If we allow them to keep engaging in cybercrime, we will be doing them a great injustice and quite frankly preparing them for years in jail in the long run. If we don't channel their energies into productive projects (those things that will teach them skills, educate them) that will add value to Nigeria. I am quite sure that we have future lawyers, doctors, engineers, scientists wasting away among the so called yahoo boys. What good will they be in the long run to themselves and to society if we keep encouraging them (no matter how tough things are at home) to swindle people online.

So please, leave that old way of thinking (you are more intelligent than that) and bring fresh ideas to the discussion - Ideas that will give us a solution to the banning of Night browsing or help us eradicate 419. We want a new Nigeria, and we want people that will contribute positively to it.

And please don't think I am directing my comments only to you, or that I am angry (no way bro). I am sure if we were at a Suya Joint I will buy you a beer and still tell you how I feel. Nothing personal. Thank you.

Wow!! well whats happening now,is not a suprise, cos Nigeria can never change from any bad dids that is happening now.
  I will Say EFCC is trying but they should go after Atiku and OBJ before going after the young boys and men in town,this fraud we are talking about is from the head,and you have to start from the head before you get to the bottom.Our leaders are all fraudstars,i cant start to mention Names cos if i start i wont end.There was a fool that was talking about YAHOO-YAHOO BOYS!!! i wonder where that asshole is from,tell me:- YOU DONT YAHOO? or you dont have a hand in fraud?Ribadu himself has tested from Fraud money,and he is quilty of the crime also,but no one will want to judge him,why? cos he is among the head.They said no one is Above the law" BUt Ribadu is above the Law why??tell me, dont Basket mouth Yahoo??or dont he has hand in fraudstars money.all the shows he features,most of the people who sponsor the shows are fraudstars and they will pay him out of the scam money.when OBJ give Ribadu money to shout is mouth are you there?when Ribadu take billion of money to his village who is there?the house Ribadu is building where did he get such money from?can a legal working man get such house?tell me?does Nigeria live without Scam? NIGERIANS FIGHT CORRUPTION YOURSELF, This people are fooling us.FROM THE PRESIDENT TO THE SENATES.
     Bleep ALL YOUR.

Just Don:

Wow!! well whats happening now,is not a suprise, because Nigeria can never change from any bad dids that is happening now.
  I will Say EFCC is trying but they should go after Atiku and OBJ before going after the young boys and men in town,this fraud we are talking about is from the head,and you have to start from the head before you get to the bottom.Our leaders are all fraudstars,i can't start to mention Names because if i start i wont end.There was a fool that was talking about YAHOO-YAHOO BOYS!!! i wonder where that asshole is from,tell me:- YOU DONT YAHOO? or you don't have a hand in fraud?Ribadu himself has tested from Fraud money,and he is quilty of the crime also,but no one will want to judge him,why? because he is among the head.They said no one is Above the law" BUt Ribadu is above the Law why??tell me, don't Basket mouth Yahoo??or don't he has hand in fraudstars money.all the shows he features,most of the people who sponsor the shows are fraudstars and they will pay him out of the scam money.when OBJ give Ribadu money to shout is mouth are you there?when Ribadu take billion of money to his village who is there?the house Ribadu is building where did he get such money from?can a legal working man get such house?tell me?does Nigeria live without Scam? NIGERIANS FIGHT CORRUPTION YOURSELF, This people are fooling us.FROM THE PRESIDENT TO THE SENATES.
     Bleep ALL YOUR.

ma guy the provoke.lmao

Stoping Nite Browsing doen't mean scammer will stop working.The way i see the issue is that too much power to the EFCC make them not to think straight.There are politicians and highly placed Civil servants that are doing more harm to the 9ja.I guess that should be their focus,not to witch hunt cyber cafe owners and their customer(So called Scammer), The buttom line is that Ori Efcc ti da ruuu!!!