Riyadh: Ministry of Communications, IT Inaugurates Kaspersky’s Transparency Center

SPA
SPA
TT

Riyadh: Ministry of Communications, IT Inaugurates Kaspersky’s Transparency Center

SPA
SPA

The “Kaspersky Transparency Center”, the first of its kind in the Middle East, was inaugurated Sunday by the Vice Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Eng. Haitham Al-Ohali. The launch is an essential part of Kaspersky’s Global Transparency Initiative, a flagship program committed to building trust and assuring the integrity of the company’s solutions and processes.
Kaspersky selected Riyadh as the headquarters for its first Transparency Center in the Middle East to closely align with the goals of “Saudi Vision 2030”. The vision aims to promote the Kingdom’s position as a hub for technology and innovation, and has transformed the country into a destination to attracts international companies to establish their regional headquarters in Riyadh, SPA reported.
Visitors to the Transparency Center in Riyadh can review the source code of all of Kaspersky on-premise solutions.



Dazzling Ice Castles Draw Tourists to New Hampshire, Other States

 Colorful lights shine inside inside the walls of ice at Ice Castles, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, in North Woodstock, N.H. (AP)
Colorful lights shine inside inside the walls of ice at Ice Castles, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, in North Woodstock, N.H. (AP)
TT

Dazzling Ice Castles Draw Tourists to New Hampshire, Other States

 Colorful lights shine inside inside the walls of ice at Ice Castles, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, in North Woodstock, N.H. (AP)
Colorful lights shine inside inside the walls of ice at Ice Castles, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, in North Woodstock, N.H. (AP)

An annual architectural celebration of ice is up and running again in New Hampshire and several other US states.

Ice Castles, which are both temporary art installations and tourist attractions, feature towers, tunnels, archways and caves, all created by growing, harvesting and arranging thousands of icicles and then blasting them with sprinklers.

The company behind the displays has expanded since its first installation in 2011. This year it has operations in Utah, Minnesota, two locations in Colorado and New Hampshire, where the site includes a snow tubing hill and ice bar. After a mild winter last year, officials were thrilled that temperatures were cold enough to open earlier this season.

"It's one of the biggest ice castles we've ever built," said Jared Henningsen, the company’s vice president for operations. "We're looking at about 25 million pounds of ice spread over two acres."

As a winter storm brought biting cold and wet snow to the South, visitors to the New Hampshire castle bundled up to explore its twists and turns Friday.

Julia Jones of Gloucester, Massachusetts, said she travels to northern New Hampshire several times a year but had not experienced the ice castles until her opening-day visit.

"I've never seen anything like this before," she said. "Honestly I didn't think it was gonna be this big."

Jessica Sullivan, of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, also was surprised, and not just by the frozen environment. Her boyfriend, Brian Jacques, proposed to her during their visit.

"It's a beautiful place," said Jacques, who got the "yes" he was hoping for. "I definitely thought, this is the time and place to do it."

By day the walls and other structures shine with a pale blue hue. After darkness falls, lights embedded within the ice glow pink, purple and green.

"Once you enter into an ice castle, you're transitioning into something that's totally immersive and unlike something that most guests have ever seen," Henningsen said. "I think it inspires people."