School of Information Science and Technology

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Credit Scoring Techniques:A Survey
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2012-01-01) Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Mukosera, Macdonald
: Credit scoring is a numerical expression of the credit worthiness of an individual. A Value with a specific creditworthiness associated is assigned to an individual. Overall objective is to determine the creditworthiness of an individual. Ability of an individual to repay is determined in the credit scoring process. The credit scoring process looks at specific criteria such as income, credit history and many others. All this is done with the intent to reduce the overall default rate thereby decreasing the overall risk of financial institutions such as banks and micro lending institutions. Several credit scoring methodologies have been proposed and implemented and are varied from statistical based methods to Artificial Intelligence based techniques.
Analysis of NSL-KDD Dataset for Fuzzy Based Intrusion Detection System
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2012-01-08) Mukosera, Macdonald; Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Masaiti, Budwell
In a bid to provide useful information for intrusion detection, we focused on analyzing the NSL-KDD dataset. In this analysis, we seek to simplify the process of mining fuzzy rules by reducing the features and categorizing the dataset into various smaller clusters as smaller units of the dataset are easier to work with than the whole single large dataset. It is less complex to observe and discover sound fuzzy rules from a smaller dataset and this work serves as a foundation to a fuzzy logic based intrusion detection system. This paper presents a methodology for data preprocessing towards an intrusion detection system and Microsoft excel was used in the process.
Farmer’s Resource Flow Decisions on Farm-Level Interventions on Livestock Water Productivity: A Conceptual Model Approach
(International Journal of Mathematical Archive-3(4), 2012-03-18) Sisito, Givious; Chinofunga, , Peter; Sikosana, , Joseph; Govere, , Weston; VaRooyen, , Andre; Charumbira, Wellington
Across sub-saharan Africa water related poverty occurs because farmers lack dependable water resources and capacity to use them. Improvement in agricultural water management offer opportunities in poverty alleviation at farm-level. An integrated framework was developed to identify sets of options as interventions for different farmer profiles in mixed croplivestock systems. A combination of participatory rural appraisal (PRAs), household survey and gap analysis tools were used in Nkayi district, Zimbabwe to quantify the current crop and livestock production levels. The tools used identified gapsn animal health management, improved feeding, livestock sales and poor crop yields between different farmer wealth profiles in terms of mortalities, poor crop yield, reduced crop and livestock sales, poor feed quality and quantity.Interventions in terms of improved feed sourcing, improved animal health, soil fertility management and access to markets are possible solutions to the challenges faced by the different farmer profiles. If farmers’ different levels and capacities in terms of resources available are taken into consideration, there is a chance to improve the livestock water productivity at farm-level in semi-arid Zimbabwe.
The Heartbleed Bug: An Open Secure Sockets Layer Vulnerability
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2012-05-17) Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Noe, Elisa; Gati, Nicholaus
The Open Secure Sockets Layer (OpenSSL) is used to provide a secure platform for transactions that happen over theinternet. About two thirds of the servers on the internet use the OpenSSL platform to provide secure transaction over the internet. The OpenSSL is a widely used open source implementation of the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS). Transactions such as online shopping, emails and online banking are carried out on the internet through the OpenSSL and other platforms which provide a security. Vulnerabilities have however been found in the OpenSSL that has resulted in a wide public outcry all over the world. A vulnerability referred to as the Heartbleed Bug has sent shockwaves all over the internet. From the study we conducted, the scope of the data that has been potentially compromised is astronomical and includes usernames, passwords, bank account and credit card numbers, medical data, documents in online cloud storage. Not only has all of this user data been directly compromised, but, what are worse, the private keys of the servers running the vulnerable versions of OpenSSL were also almost certainly compromised. We recommend patching of affected applications or/and upgrade to versions that are not vulnerable in order to mitigate the risks identified.
The Use of the Internet to Attract Tourists to Zimbabwe. An Analysis of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority Website
(IJMBS, 2013-03-01) Weston, Darlington Govere; Tsokota, Theo; Chikuta, Oliver; Mukwembi, Alex; Chinofunga, Peter
The continuing rise of the internet as a communications tool for organizations in this informational era presents greater opportunities for marketing activities for tourism enterprises. In other words, the internet serves as a new communication and distribution channel for relevant and necessary tourism information. It is therefore Zimbabwe Tourism Authority’s’ mandate to lure tourists to Zimbabwe using this communication and distribution channel. Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has since employed various marketing techniques to try and lure back the tourists. Among the different and most interesting strategies being used by ZTA, a sound web presence in the form of a good and informative website This paper looks at the potentials inherent in internet technology and highlights how it can be useful in promoting tourism. The research will give Zimbabwe Government, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) and other Organizations involved in promoting Zimbabwe insight on the current situation regarding tourism and the internet in Zimbabwe. To achieve this we assessed the ZTA webpage to determine whether it gives adequate and relevant information to attract tourists.
Design of Application to Detect Images Embedded with Malicious Programs
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2013-06-14) Shoniwa, Robert T. R; George, Geogen
In today’s world, malware can be propagated to victim systems in an increasingly diverse number of ways. One of these methods involves the passive distribution of malware by embedding in JPEG images which goes on to highlight that even simple images can be manipulated maliciously by criminals. The aim of this paper is to design an application that partially acts as a steganalysis tool to scan, detect and notify the user of the presence of a payload in either one or a set of selected images.it will then proceed to analyze the payload and verify whether it is a malicious program or not. It will also give a brief summarized file analysis of the detected payload. Ultimately, this will help highlight the need to consider images as a potential attack vector and then also offer a corresponding solution to this problem
A Survey of the Security Use Cases in Big Data
(International Journal of Innovative Research in Computer and Communication Engineering, 2014-05-01) Zvarevashe, Kudakwashe; Mutandavari, Mainford; Gotora, Trust
Big data is the collection of large and complex data sets that are difficult to process using on-hand database management tools or traditional data processing applications. The invention of online social networks, smart phones, fine tuning of ubiquitous computing and many other technological advancements have led to the generation of multiple petabytes of both structured, unstructured and semi-structured data. These massive data sets have lead to the birth of some distributed data processing and storage technologies like Apache Hadoop and MongoDB. To tackle the security issues in Hadoop, the Kerberos protocol has been introduced in its second edition. However, this technological movement has created some security loopholes in the processing and storage of the data sets. This paper tries to list some of the directions research on Big Data challenges has taken for the past five years together with their corresponding Use cases.
Digital Currency:The Emergence of Bitcoins
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2014-06-06) Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Masaiti, Budwell; Mukosera, Macdonald
: Bitcoins are a crypto currency whose concept was developed in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoins are digital currencies which operate on a peer to peer system. The system is decentralized as there is no central regulatory authority as with fiat currency. For an individual to transact you need a bitcoin wallet which has one or more private and public keys associated with it. Unlike fiat currency and electronic payment methods such as Visa and MasterCard which are based on trust, Bitcoin usage is based on cryptographic proof. Bitcoin usage has been on the increase and they can be converted into fiat currency through bitcoin exchange
Profile Impostoring:A Use Case on the Rising Social Engineering Attack on Facebook Users
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2014-06-06) Mawere, Cephas; Mpofu, Thabiso Peter
Social engineering attacks have taken a new twist as a growing number of people use online social networking sites to foster social relationships among each other and market products. Of interest is Facebook whose users have exponentially increased; some of these users are prominent individuals with high influence in various communities like celebrities, philanthropists, religious ministers and non- profit organizations. Data retrieval from Facebook profiles is thus becoming a major tool for business which has led to most unsuspecting users being victims of deception. Profile impostoring, also known as identity theft, is increasingly on the rise and becoming an underlying threat to information security. The cyber perpetrators are creating fake Facebook profiles of prominent individuals who have a large following. Ordinary individuals are also not at their mercy. With such high pending risk of identity theft there is need to develop methods that help Facebook fans to automatically detect deception, identify imposters and get them arrested.
The Impact and Application of 3D Printing Technology
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2014-06-12) Mukosera, Macdonald; Mawere, Cephas; Mpofu, Thabiso Peter
3D printing also known as Additive manufacturing technology has been dubbed the next big thing and be as equally wide spread as cellular telephone industry. 3D printers print objects from a digital template to a physical 3-dimensional physical object. The printing is done layer by layer (Additive manufacturing) using plastic, metal, nylon, and over a hundred other materials. 3D printing has been found to be useful in sectors such as manufacturing, industrial design, jewellery, footwear, architecture, engineering and construction, automotive, aerospace, dental and medical industries, education, geographic information systems, civil engineering, and many others. It has been found to be a fast and cost effective solution in whichever field of use. The applications of 3D printing are ever increasing and it’s proving to be a very exciting technology to look out for. In this paper we seek to explore how it works and the current and future applications of 3D printing.
Multi-Processor Based Intelligent Industrial Monitoring and Control System Based on µCOS-II and Wireless Sensor Networks
(International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 2014-07-01) Zvarevashe, Tinotenda; Vasumuthi, D
This paper is based on my M Tech project which shares the same title as this paper. It presents a model which illustrates how we can incorporate a Real Time Operating System (RTOS) into an Industrial setup whereby a sensor node resides in the field where processing is carried out and a Master or Control station resides in a control room and the two communicate using a wireless protocol. The RTOS is meant to provide predictability, faster time response and high performance among other wide provisions. The RTOS used to implement this model is µCOS-II (Microcontroller Operating System) from J Labrosse. It is a pre-emptive kernel where the highest priority task in the ready queue is executed first. Thus faster processing of control commands and real time logging of data channeled by sensor node to control station is expected as a result of incorporating the operating system rather than use of a super loop.
A study of User Adjustment plans for the Introduction of Facebook Timeline
(International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 2014-07-05) Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Gati, Nicholaus; Babu, Suresh; Elisa, Noe
This work applies coping theory to learn user adaptation strategies to major interface changes on Social Networking Sites (SNSs). Specifically, we qualitatively examine 1,798 user comments posted to the Facebook’s official Timeline blog in order to get a large and blended sample of real Facebook users’ perceptions about the launch of Timeline. Our data suggests a high level of stress associated with the transition to the new interface introduced by Timeline. We also found evidence which suggests that increasing users’ perceptions of control over major interface changes may help facilitate user adaptation to these changes. This study offers valuable insights to SNSs for mitigating user stress and facilitating successful adaptation during major interface changes
Artificial Immune Systems:A Predictive Model for credit scoring
(International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 2014-08-01) Mpofu, Thabiso Peter; Reddy, G Venkata Rami
With the advent of the global financial crisis which hit the global economy, credit scoring has become of the essence. The global financial crisis also known as the “credit crunch” was largely attributed to the issuance of credit to individuals with no capacity to return the money. Credit scoring has become a very important task in the credit industry. Various credit scoring methods such in areas as artificial neural networks (ANNs), statistical based methods and decision trees have been proposed to increase the accuracy of credit scoring models. The proposed Artificial Immune Systems (AIS) are an artificial intelligence technique modelled on natural immune system processes have been used to solve various kinds of real life processes with success. In this paper we compare the performance of current classifiers used in credit rating against Artificial Immune Systems. Artificial Immune Systems have various algorithms used to implement them. The algorithm under consideration is the negative selection algorithm. Artificial Immune Systems (AIS) are found to be produce competitive results very close to traditional artificial intelligent systems such as Neural Network
Designing of Android Mobile Based System Using QR Code
(INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT, 2014-11-01) Muradzikwa, Gresham; Sarai, Noreen; Sibanda, Dumisani; Govere, Weston D.
This paper explores a solution to create a cashless mobile payment system. The aim is to provide the most cost efficient and secure alternative to current systems. Current systems use SMS and USSD to process payments. These are not cost effective methods of communication. There is also no current method of processing credit payment on a mobile phone without the need for a specialized piece of hardware. The system is broken up into three parts, a visual QR code, Qpay Android application and a payment server. The identification of mobile phone is encoded in a QR Code allowing the built in camera on a mobile phone to scan a card. This was improved on by using a HTTPS connection between mobile phone and server. HTTPS provides an encrypted communication channel. This paper shows that a mobile phone is capable of processing QR code payments on a mobile phone. Time taken to process a payment was within an acceptable limit.
Cloud Based SecuritySolution For Android Smartphones.
(International Conference on Circuit, Power and Computing Technologies [ICCPCT], 2015-01-13) Marengereke, Munyaradzi. T
In this paper, we define SIEM and we discuss Android security monitoring as well as recent research in Android security systems. Then, we propose a cloud based security system for collection, visualization, analysis and correlation of application logs, statistics and determining abnormal application and network behavior on the device. If abnormal behavior is detected an appropriate alert is sent back to the device for remedial action. In the case of abnormal network traffic, then firewall rules to be updated on an implementation of an IPTABLES/ NETFILTER firewall to block unwarranted network traffic. Furthermore a web interface is created to enable visualization of logs and all data collected from the device. So it serves as an intrusion mitigation solution coupled with security information audit web portal. This paper highlights the architecture of the proposed system.
Android Mobile Forensic Analyzer for Stegno Data
(International Conference on Circuits, Power and Computing Technologies, 2015-01-30) Mambodza, Walter. T.; Nagoor, Meeran A.R
The advancement of technology has led to better and improved service in mobile communication networks. Smartphones are being used by people for social networking, conducting business transactions as well as committing crime. Anti-Forensic compromises the availability of evidence to the forensic process causing problems to the investigator. The aim of this paper is to provide a solution to the anti-forensic technique of steganography by designing and implementation of an application that will scan, hash and analyze for any hidden information on an image, video or audio file on an android device and collect data for digital profiling or investigation.
Virtual Firewall Security on Virtual Machines in Cloud Environment
(International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 2015-02-01) Jekese, G; Subburaj, R; Hwata, C
Virtualization is revolutionizing how information technology resources and services are used and managed and has led to an explosive growth in the cloud computing industry, illustrated by Google’s Cloud Platform and Amazon’s Elastic Cloud. It brings unique security problems such as virtual traffic, denial of service and intrusion, resulting in penetration of virtual machines, which is disastrous for the enterprise, the user and the cloud provider. Virtual traffic between virtual machines may never leave the physical host hardware; making traditional physical firewalls hopeless to monitor and secure it. This paper proposes a virtual firewall which allows managing the network security of the virtual infrastructure per-virtual machine basis, defining network traffic rules, and hardening the security of the virtual environment. A private cloud is designed using open source solutions and to manage the firewall rules, we implement a Tree-Rule firewall technique which filters packets in a tree-like way based on their attributes such as IP address and protocols. The speed of filtering and processing packets on virtual firewall is highly improved to avoid overload of the firewall in the particular case. It permits to log and analyze network traffic logs for each of the monitored virtual machines. The virtual firewall will provide the power to control the bandwidth utilization of each virtual machine in the infrastructure, preventing overutilization and denial of service to critical applications.
Impact of Object Oriented Design Patterns on Software Development
(International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 2015-02-02) Subburaj, R.; Jekese, G; Hwata, C
—Software design patterns are a bonanza for building large Object Oriented (OO) software systems. They provide well-tested and proven solutions to recurring problems that developers address. There are several benefits of using patterns. They can speed up the software development process. Design patterns consolidate learning with an aim to make it easier for designers to use well-known and successful designs developed from expert experience. At the same time software design patterns are too abstract and remain an art that has to be mastered over time with experience. This paper seeks to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of design patterns.
Securing patient data in the cloud using Attribute Based Encryption
(International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 2015-03-01) Subburaj, R; Hwata, C; Jekese, G
Cloud computing has attracted attention worldwide in all industries, including the medical field leading to the rise of electronic healthcare systems. Although it has brought about an improvement in the provision of healthcare in terms of information management, it also poses a lot of security and privacy concerns to the patients. This is due to the fact that personal and highly sensitive data is outsourced to a third party (Cloud Service Provider) for processing and storage. This paper seeks to improve security of cloud-based patient data in healthcare organizations by employing a Ciphertext Policy Attribute Based Encryption (CP-ABE) scheme. The proposed scheme provides data confidentiality and allows the patient to control who accesses her personal health data by encrypting it under a specified access policy alongside with her key. It also provides collusion-resistance, flexible and immediate revocation of users who are no longer allowed to access a patient’s data.
A Study on Cloud Robotics: Ad-hoc cloud (Cloud Seeding)
(International Journal of Innovative Research in Computer and Communication Engineering, 2015-04-01) Chifamba, Shepard
Cloud seeding in cloud robotics is the concept of forming an adhoc cloud using the available robot resources. A team of robots working in the same field utilizing cloud robotics might experience a connection failure to the main node however this should not stop field work. The teamed robots surrender their resources to form a virtual adhoc cloud not only to load balance tasks but to share resources and information. In this paper the researcher explores further on how cloud seeding can best be done, the security implications as well as networking concerns involved. This however is not a permanent infrastructure but a way of circumventing the challenge of network failure between the main cloud infrastructure and the field robots in cloud robotics.