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Singapore Brands Lag in Winning Hearts of Consumers as Customer Experiences Fall Short of Expectations

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 12 May 2021 Instead of bringing businesses closer to their customers, Singapore’s digital pivot last year has in fact widened the gap between what consumers expect of brands, and what businesses actually deliver. According to the new ‘Heart Matters’ study announced by SAP SE (NYSE: SAP), Singapore’s consumers find that businesses fall short of expectations by as much as 28% when it comes to being customer-centric, behind the Asia Pacific (APAC) average of 21%. Furthermore, only half (55%) of consumers in Singapore stated that brands here are able to resolve their issues after three interactions.

Heart Matters’ study, which was conducted by Qualtrics for SAP Customer Experience, surveyed 5,900 consumers across APAC countries including Australia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, India, Malaysia, and Thailand to understand their expectations and encounters with brands when it comes to customer experience, spending, and matters they truly care about. Key gaps identified from the study centred on the areas of customer centricity, personalised experiences, openness in privacy and data control, as well as sustainability and ethical behaviour.

The study also revealed that three in five consumers in Singapore are now expecting brands to be purpose-driven, going beyond profits and transactional relationships, to demonstrate trustworthiness, empathy, shared values, and care for society.

Singapore consumers surveyed indicated a gap between their expectations and actual experiences on this front, in areas such as brands respecting the rights and welfare of their workers (80% vs 67%), treating suppliers ethically (76% vs 56%), actively work to reduce gender and racial inequality (73% vs 55%), and not engage in anti-competitive behaviour (70% vs 54%).

Basics matter in winning customer confidence

Fundamental to any business, customer centricity is vital to creating positive brand experiences, loyalty, and a key differentiator in an increasingly competitive digital landscape.

Comparing Singapore customers’ expectations to what they experienced in reality, areas that local businesses were found to be lacking include responsiveness within 24 hours to customer queries (78% vs 51%), acting on customers’ feedback to improve products and services (84% vs 58%), resolving issues in less than three interactions (83% vs 55%), having a reward programme customised to their interests (81% vs 54%), and offering innovative or better ways to serve customers during COVID-19 (86% vs 65%).

Across the countries surveyed, Australian consumers were the most likely to cite a gap between their expectations and actual experiences of customer centricity overall (31% shortfall), followed by Malaysia (26%), Singapore (22%), Japan (22%), and South Korea (14%). Consumers in India and Thailand had the best customer experiences with expectation gaps at only 4% and 8% respectively.

“While it’s positive that brands in Singapore have adapted quickly to the pandemic by tapping on digital tools and turning to e-commerce, customers still expect brands to deliver on the basics – this means providing them with positive experiences and swift resolution of issues. It is sobering to know that despite all the efforts businesses have put into digitalisation over the past year, fundamentals around customer centricity are still not being met in Singapore. There is clearly an urgent need for brands to humanise the gap between digital actions and the heartstrings of consumers,” said Peggy Renders, General Manager & Senior Vice President, SAP Customer Experience, Asia Pacific & Japan, who was recently appointed to her current role in January 2021.

“The pandemic has laid bare the criticality of the customer experience in our hyperconnected world today. The key to sustainable growth in a post-COVID world lies in the right solutions and leadership that transform the customer experience. As a future-forward nation that is home to the region’s leading businesses, brands in Singapore have a golden opportunity to transform to give customers exactly what they want, and when they want it, in a future that is entirely digital.”

Diverse options, personalised touch

With digital-savvy consumers turning to e-commerce to fulfilling their shopping needs, they are also expecting brands to offer a diversified range of shopping experiences, with personalised options that cater to the unique needs of each customer.

Delivery, the last-mile of the shopping experience, was among the most dissatisfied areas for those surveyed, with 82% of Singapore consumers expecting brands to provide timely and accurate delivery options they could trust, but with just over half (59%) saying this was met in reality. The dissatisfaction over quality and reliability of delivery services especially significant for local supermarkets, where just 55% of Singaporeans mentioned they received trustworthy delivery services (vs 80% expectation).

Proactiveness in engaging customers was another area cited as an area of improvement, with just around half of Singapore customers shared that brands are actively updating them on relevant specials and new products (56%), is proactive in anticipating their needs and wants (55%), and provides tailored suggestions based on their purchase history and preferences (50%).

Being intuitive mobile natives, Singapore customers also want brands to provide omnichannel experiences that enable their lifestyles, expecting brands to provide them with a network of physical and online stores (76%), have easy to transact options across multiple channels such as online to in-store (81%), yet still provide a consistent experience irrespective of channel (82%).

Not taking trust for granted

Having transparency and control over their data and orders is also a key area brands are falling short on, with Singapore consumers highlighting shortfalls in having full transparency over how their personal data is being used (35% gap), security of their private data and not sharing it with third parties (33% gap), only obtaining private data from customers to serve them better (25% gap), and making it easy to track their orders and queries (23% gap).

People, planet and prosperity above profits

With global warming and climate change are rising to the forefront of agendas, Singapore consumers are increasingly placing greater expectations on brands to go beyond transactional customer interactions, expecting businesses to actively demonstrate their care and concern for the environment, their workers, and broader community and society.

Singapore brands fair slightly better than the APAC average on the expectation-experience gap, in the areas of whether brands look for new ways to recycle and reuse products, packaging materials and materials (12% vs 18% APAC gap), having specific policies to reduce and report carbon emissions (10% vs 14% APAC gap), and having a strong focus on sustainability and ethics in sourcing and selling their products (4% vs 10% APAC gap).

The full report of Heart Matters study is available for download here: www.sap.com/asia/heartmatters.

Visit the SAP News Center. Follow SAP on Twitter at @SAPNews.

For customers interested in learning more about SAP products:

Global Customer Center: +49 180 534-34-24
United States Only: 1 (800) 872-1SAP (1-800-872-1727)

About SAP

As the Experience Company powered by the Intelligent Enterprise, SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software, helping companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: 77% of the world’s transaction revenue touches an SAP® system. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP helps give people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want – without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables more than 440,000 business and public customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

About SAP The Heart Matters Study

The SAP’s Heart Matters’ Study was conducted by Qualtrics on behalf of SAP Consumer Experience from February and March 2021, surveying 5,900 consumers across Asia Pacific to understand matters they truly care about, how their views of brands correlate with their spending, and what matters most when it comes to customer experience. Countries included in the survey were Australia (n=1,200), Singapore (n=800), Japan (n=900), South Korea (n=900), India (n=900), Malaysia (n=400), and Thailand (n=400).

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP’s future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including SAP’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates. © 2021 SAP SE. All rights reserved. SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see https://www.sap.com/copyright for additional trademark information and notices.

#SAP

DHL Global Forwarding, Freight: myDHLi boosts online bookings by 56%

  • Digital customer platform myDHLi now also includes road transport via DHL Freight
  • New features and functionalities presented at the first myDHLi Digital Summit hosted by DHL

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 11 May 2021 DHL Global Forwarding, Freight (“DHL”), the leading international freight specialist division of Deutsche Post DHL Group, has today announced new features and greater functionality for myDHLi, coinciding with the digital platform’s first anniversary. After a successful launch of myDHLi, DHL has expanded the global availability of the platform from eight to 62 countries. In addition, online bookings and sales rose by +56% (yoy Q1/2020 to Q1/2021).

“For us, myDHLi translates digitalization into customer-centricity. That’s why we put an enormous amount of work in the roll-out. Customers can easily book shipments through the platform that follows modern design principles while having full control over the quotes with 360-degree visibility. By the end of 2020 we had 1,000 customers on the platform. Now, just four months later, we have reached a new high with 3,000 customers spread across 62 countries using myDHLi as of today,” says Tim Scharwath, CEO DHL Global Forwarding, Freight. “In light of this successful launch to market, we will continue to expand the platform by adding more languages over time.”

The expansion comes along with improvements to existing functionalities, for example, the integration of a “save and edit” option and new services such as myDHLi Reports to increase shipment transparency. In addition, for the first time, the platform is now available for road freight customers, with the roll-out starting in Turkey. To address the success of these innovations, there will be an annual myDHLi Digital Summit, with the first event launched at the DHL Innovation Center in Troisdorf.

With a “customer-first” approach, the Quote + Book functionality offers improved usability based on user behaviour analysis and modern design principles. Customers can save at any point and resume later during offer validity. This means that, should key details not yet be available at the beginning of the booking process, it is easy to pick back up at a later point to complete. As well as improving usability, the platform offers with myDHLi Reports a new feature that provides full visibility of past and current shipment data for further detailed analysis.

“As a leader in the industry, our customers look to us not only for superior forwarding solutions, but equally expect an overall exceptional shipping experience. With myDHLi, we have elevated the customer experience by providing complete visibility and automating processes, thus taking the guesswork and unnecessary manual steps out of their workflow. I am delighted that the feedback from our customers in Asia Pacific has been encouraging, as we continue to improve the platform to meet their needs,” said Kelvin Leung, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding Asia Pacific.

All improvements to the platform follow defined guiding principles for the further development of myDHLi. This includes 360-degree visibility of shipments from start-to-finish, no matter which stage the shipment is at, a multi-channel approach, so that all information is available combined in one place, regardless of which channel a customer uses, and a signaling action process, so that customers can always see where to focus their attention. What’s more, built-in popular social media features like Follow + Share simplify communications along the supply chain by enabling customers to exchange information with their own clients, colleagues, and suppliers.

myDHLi was successfully launched a year ago, setting a new benchmark in an industry much rooted in analog processes. The platform is characterised by a modular structure, allowing subscribers to conveniently personalise their portal. Customers can choose whether they only use the Quote + Book functionality to compare available options and directly book one of the logistics services. They can also access shipment tracking, document management or myDHLi Reports and myDHLi Analytics, which with the latest update now also provides insights into transit times and cost per unit. By adding road freight shipments, myDHLi can satisfy even more customers in the future, making it the one-stop platform for all DHL Global Forwarding, Freight customers. In addition, DHL’s sustainability efforts are integral to the platform. Since January 2021, DHL Global Forwarding is reducing the carbon emissions of all less-than-container load (LCL) ocean freight shipments with sustainable marine biofuels – at no additional cost for the customer. For all other transport modes an offsetting option or neutralisation of CO2 emissions via biofuels can be selected if preferred.

Digitalisation is one of the strategic pillars at DHL Global Forwarding, Freight, and to further drive developments in this area for the logistics industry, the myDHLi Digital Summit was established and will now take place annually. Besides presenting innovations around myDHLi, this event will continue to create a unique opportunity to drive the progress of digital transformation in logistics, in line with Deutsche Post DHL Group’s strategy “Delivering Excellence in Digital World”.

You can find the press release for download as well as further information on dpdhl.com/pressreleases

DHL – The logistics company for the world

DHL is the leading global brand in the logistics industry. Our DHL divisions offer an unrivalled portfolio of logistics services ranging from national and international parcel delivery, e-commerce shipping and fulfillment solutions, international express, road, air and ocean transport to industrial supply chain management. With about 400,000 employees in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide, DHL connects people and businesses securely and reliably, enabling global sustainable trade flows. With specialised solutions for growth markets and industries including technology, life sciences and healthcare, engineering, manufacturing & energy, auto-mobility and retail, DHL is decisively positioned as “The logistics company for the world”.

DHL is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group. The Group generated revenues of more than 66 billion euros in 2020. With sustainable business practices and a commitment to society and the environment, the Group makes a positive contribution to the world. Deutsche Post DHL Group aims to achieve zero-emissions logistics by 2050.

On the Internet: dpdhl.com/press

Follow us at: twitter.com/DeutschePostDHL

#DHL

Emerging Stronger with Adaptable HR: Alight Solutions’ State of HR Transformation Study 2021

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 11 May 2021 – After releasing three insightful editions, we are delighted to bring to you the fourth edition of the Alight Solutions‘ State of HR Transformation Study in partnership with People Matters.

The study, which was launched during the People Matters TechHR SEA, is themed around Emerging Stronger and sheds light on how some organisations are ahead of the curve in emerging stronger. A key finding was the positive sentiment that organisations in Asia have for the coming 12 months. Amongst them, adaptable organisations have reported that they are 1.5 times more likely to see positive growth in revenues and profits. The HR function has certainly proved its mettle in this case and shown how well it can manage disruption and guide organisations to emerge stronger.

Last year, Alight brought forward the construct of Adaptable HR as a guide to navigating the increasingly uncertain business and talent landscape in the midst of the biggest crisis faced. Exploring the anchors of adaptability in HR functions, Alight has consistently observed that HR Operating Model (interchangeably referred to as HR Service Delivery or Business Model) plays an important role in driving confidence on execution and productivity. When complemented with the right HR technology strategy, the results are amplified further.

Talking about this year’s study, Vikrant Khanna (Sr. Director and Advisory Lead at Alight Solutions), exclaimed, “We are delighted to see how Adaptable HR function led organisations are recovering from the impact of the pandemic. While there is still quite a bit of uncertainty in the environment, the construct of Adaptable HR acts as a lighthouse for organisations to emerge stronger.”

This year, as we continue to face new challenges and uncertainties posed by the pandemic, Alight found that organisations with Adaptable HR are emerging stronger to:

Lead in being digital: Adaptable HR report twenty times the NPS on technology satisfaction as compared to market averages. This is due to the digital success enabled by leveraging HR Technology to complement the HR Operating Model. In addition, 50% of Adaptable HR have advanced along their adoption journey of robotics and cognitive technologies to drive efficiencies and improved experience for employees.

Enable shifts in the way we work: Adaptable HR functions are three times more likely to be proactive in driving institutional change, new ways of working, and adoption of work technologies. In fact, Adaptable HR functions report the use of up to 5 forms of work technologies. Factors that enabled quick adoption include investment priorities and the right efforts in helping adoption through investments in manager/ leader enablement.

Reimagine HR: Adaptable HR functions are three times more likely to succeed in delivering closer partnership with the business through their operating model and capabilities. The specific capabilities demanded in Adaptable HR functions are what sets them apart and enables the organisation to be agile by design.

Shape and deliver value: Adaptable HR functions are almost three times more confident in their HR strategy and execution. This foundation and investment priorities enables them to be better equipped to address complexities and more proactive in responding to changes.

The world of work too has undergone drastic transformation in these times. Adaptable HR functions have proven that HR is truly at the forefront of shaping and delivering value to stakeholders, enabling us to adopt new ways of working, and enable digital success. Throughout this report, observations were shared in terms of how Adaptable HR organisations have paved ways for new co-creations and solutions for people and organisations to emerge stronger.

It is an accumulation of all individual behaviour changes and the larger organisation change which leads to business success. It is no surprise that organisations with Adaptable HR functions are 1.5 times more likely to have favourable growth in revenues and profit before tax in the coming 12 months.

Shaswat Kumar (Vice President and Asia Leader, Alight Solutions) shares, “This year’s findings demonstrate that Adaptable HR function led organisations are likely to succeed in their change agenda. This will enable organisations, not only to compete better, but also to deliver the right value to its constituents and shareholders.”

Certainly, the future belongs to organisations that are able to continue their journey of Adaptable HR, lead transformation and emerge stronger!

The State of HR Transformation 2021, is the fourth edition of the Alight Solutions’ flagship study on this subject. The study data was captured between Jan 2021 and Apr 2021 through an online survey. The insights combine data captured via a survey that saw participation from over 1,700 respondents (which were filtered down to 1,022 based on completeness and accuracy of responses), and observations of Alight Solutions in the space of HR Transformation.

About Alight Solutions

With an unwavering belief that a company’s success starts with its people, Alight Solutions is a leading cloud-based provider of integrated digital human capital and business solutions. Leveraging proprietary AI and data analytics, Alight optimises business process as a service (BPaaS) to deliver superior outcomes for employees and employers across a comprehensive portfolio of services. Alight allows employees to enrich their health, wealth and work while enabling global organisations to achieve a high-performance culture. Alight’s 15,000 dedicated colleagues serve more than 30 million employees and family members.

We deliver next level transformation at alight.com

Click here to download the exclusive report now. Let’s emerge stronger together!

Limited-time 7-Eleven x Crayon Shinchan Themed Stores now open!

Use our exclusive Instagram filter to take a selfie with Shinchan

 

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 11 May 2021 – 7-Eleven’s collaboration with Crayon Shinchan goes deeper than just a collectible programme. Building on the success of its recently launched “Let’s Take a Brick” promotion – a series of Brick Stores created in partnership with BANBAO bricks and some well-known brands – 7-Eleven has transformed three of its stores into first-of-their-kind Crayon Shinchan themed stores for a limited time only!

Buy limited-edition Crayon Shinchan merchandise

Located in Quarry Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and Tseung Kwan O, the stores have been totally taken over by cheeky Shinchan and his friends and offer exclusive décor, activities and merchandise. The colourful, fun-filled environment makes for a uniquely enjoyable shopping experience and a perfect backdrop for pictures with friends and colleagues! The themed store in Harbour City in Tsim Sha Tsui features an impressive display showcasing the complete set of Brick Stores from the “Let’s Take a Brick” collectible programme.

Each of the three themed stores carries a unique, limited-time range of Crayon Shinchan products. Crayon Shinchan fans will love the choice of items ranging from mini figurines to character cushions, and will want to bring the whole lot home with them!

Take a selfie with Crayon Shinchan and the gang

Each 7-Eleven x Crayon Shinchan themed store is jampacked with fun photo opportunities and feature mischievous Shinchan and his friends as well as his parents, Hiroshi and Misae Nohara, throughout the store. You can even take a picture with Shinchan and his friends with a limited-edition Instagram filter. Head down to any of the themed stores and enjoy a totally immersive experience and make some mischief with Shinchan and the gang!

Themed Store Exclusive Crayon Shinchan Products’ Details:

Pyjama Shinchan Cushions – Red/Blue/Green/Yellow ($108 each, Height 14 in)

These four cushions feature a pyjama-clad Shinchan in a different pose on the front and a brightly coloured panel on the back. Choose from a yawning Shinchan (red back panel), Shinchan pulling his pants up (blue back panel), Shinchan in a nightcap (green back panel) or Shinchan cuddling Shiro (yellow back panel). These comfy cushions are silky soft and make ideal back pillows or decorative cushions.

Shiro Sitting Plushes

($69 each, Height 13cm)

There are two versions of Shinchan’s fluffy pup to pick from – one with his cute signature expression or a more bashful version with blushing cheeks and bearing a sweet love letter.

Shinchan Buddy Mascots

($45 each, Height 15cm)

These little mascots come with a handy strap so you can attach them to your handbag or backpack. Whether you choose Shinchan or Shiro, their adorable little faces will be sure to put you in a good mood anytime, anywhere!

Crayon Shinchan Bouncing Ball

($149, 13cm x 13cm)

Kids and adults alike will love this cute bouncing ball with a Shinchan twist! You won’t be able to resist playing with this ball that’s super soft to the touch and plays, the catchy soundtrack from one of Shinchan’s animated series when you bounce it.

Shinchan Drawstring Bags ($36 each)

This drawstring bag comes in two sizes – rectangular (11x19cm) and square (16x18cm). Each eyecatching bag features Shinchan and Shiro on a bright patterned background and has both red and blue drawstrings. Cute and practical, they can be used to store your precious belongings such as lipsticks, hand creams and more!

Shinchan Two Way Tote Bag

($169, 33cm W x 27cm H x 12cm D)

This useful blue and white tote bag is designed with a sturdy handle and helpful drawstring so you can conveniently keep its contents secure. The bag is also printed with a pattern featuring Shinchan and the gang in a variety of poses

Shinchan Cartoon Shiro Plush ($89, Height 25cm)

This super cuddly Shiro plush is soft and fluffy and can be used as a pillow or a cushion

7-Eleven x Crayon Shinchan Themed Store locations:

Themed Store 1: Shop 4015-6, Level 4, Gateway Arcade, Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

Themed Store 2: Shop 5 & 6D, Ground Floor, Hoi Kwong Court, Nos.13-15 Hoi Kwong Street, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong

Themed Store 3: Shop No. G41-42 on G/F., East Wing, Hau Tak Shopping Centre, Hau Tak Estate, Tseung Kwan O, New Territories

#7ElevenHK #CrayonShinchan

Hong Kong Baptist University and Cornell University jointly develop a novel nano-carrier that increases the efficacy of Chinese medicine treatment for breast cancer

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 11 May 2021 – Researchers from Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), in collaboration with Cornell University, have developed a novel targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) that uses a specially-designed nano-carrier to deliver the Chinese medicine compound gambogic acid (GA). The invention enhances the anti-cancer effect of GA and reduces its damage to off-target organs. The invention has the potential to become a more effective therapeutic option for TNBC.

A research team led by Professor Bian Zhaoxiang (left) and Dr Kwan Hiu-yee(right) of HKBU’s School of Chinese Medicine collaborates with Cornell University to develop a nano-carrier that increases treatment efficacy of gambogic acid for TNBC.

The study was supported by the Vincent and Lily Woo Foundation, and the research findings have been published in the international medical journal Frontiers in Oncology.

GA as a breast cancer treatment and its limitations

TNBC accounts for 10-24% of all breast cancer cases and it also grows and spreads faster than other types of breast cancer. There are limited treatment options for TNBC and it has a high risk of recurrence and metastasis. In the advanced stage of the disease, the five-year relative survival rate is only about 12%.

GA is a herbal compound isolated from a dry, brownish resin called gamboge, which is derived from Garcinia hanburyi, a plant with a long history of medicinal use in Southeast Asia. Previous studies have shown that GA can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. However, its clinical application is limited by the fact that it is rapidly eliminated from the circulation system and has poor water solubility, which makes it difficult for GA to reach the cancer cells. Furthermore, high dosages of GA can cause damage to off-target organs due to its toxicity.

Nano-carrier increases treatment efficacy of GA

In the search for a more effective treatment protocol for TNBC when compared to existing options, Professor Bian Zhaoxiang, Director and Tsang Shiu Tim Endowed Professor in Chinese Medicine Clinical Studies of the Clinical Division of HKBU’s School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) and Dr Kwan Hiu-yee, Assistant Professor of the Teaching and Research Division of SCM, together with the research team of Professor Chu Chih-Chang at Cornell University, designed a novel nano-carrier to enhance GA’s efficacy as a TNBC treatment and reduce its off-target toxicity.

The researchers made a bio-degradable nano-carrier out of polyester urea urethane (PEUU), and they decorated it with folate (also known as vitamin B9) and arginine (an amino acid). Folate receptors are highly expressed in TNBC cells, and they can serve as a target for therapy. Arginine is a positively charged amino acid, and it can attract the nano-carrier to the negatively charged tumour surface. These features enable the nano-carrier to target and deliver GA effectively to TNBC cells.

Treatment efficacy tested in mice

The research team tested the efficacy of the GA-loaded nano-carrier as a TNBC treatment in a series of mouse experiments. Two groups of mice with TNBC were treated with the same dosage of GA, one in the form of the GA-loaded nano-carrier, and the other in the form of free GA. After 17 days of treatment, the average reduction in tumour weight of the GA-loaded nano-carrier group was 67.6% higher than the free GA group. The results showed that the GA-loaded nano-carrier is more effective at shrinking the tumours than the free GA.

In addition, the group treated with the GA-loaded nano-carrier had 0.23 μg/mL of GA in their tumours two hours after injection, and the tumour GA concentration of the GA-loaded nano-carrier group was three times of the free GA group, showing that GA is being delivered to TNBC cells more effectively with the nano-carrier. Also, the concentration of GA in the plasma of the GA-loaded nano-carrier group two hour after injection was nearly three times of the free GA group, showing that the GA carried by the nano-carrier stays in the circulation system for longer.

Reduced off-target damage to other organs

Furthermore, when compared with free GA, the GA delivered by the nano-carrier caused less damage to the off-target organs of the mice including their hearts, livers and lungs. It also caused minimal damage to their kidneys and spleens as relatively low levels of GA were detected in these two organs.

“As demonstrated in our study, the novel nano-carrier for GA offers many benefits when it comes to treating TNBC,” said Dr Kwan Hiu-yee.

“The application of nanotechnology in this study modernises the delivery of Chinese medicine, thereby enhancing its therapeutic efficacy. We believe that our nano-carriers have great clinical potential to treat TNBC and other types of cancer,” said Professor Bian Zhaoxiang.

#HKBU

Chinese Medical Personnel Assist Northern Provinces in Fight Against Covid-19

Chinese Medical Personnel Assist Northern Provinces in Fight Against Covid-19

A team of Chinese medical personnel is working closely with the Lao Ministry of Health to assist in the battle against Covid-19.

CrowdSec raises $5M to transform the global communications landscape with a collaborative solution

The power of Open Source innovation ensures that the worldwide internetworked community can now maintain its own safety

 

PARIS, FRANCE – Media OutReach – 11 May 2021 – CrowdSec, which puts online security into the hands of users themselves and has already helped to identify hundreds of thousands of malicious IP addresses worldwide, has announced a US$5 million round of seed investment from European VC Breega.

Making the internet a safer place, and empowering everyone with a rock-solid, free, first line of defense, whether they are individuals, institutions, SMBs or larger companies is the mission of European start-up CrowdSec, who is aiming to rethink cybersecurity by creating a collaborative endpoint detection and response (EDR) system, empowering a novel open-source strategy to combat attacks on any network, anywhere. This new round of funding will allow the company to expand its global community of users and contributors, including in China and Asia, to enhance its functionality, and to recruit new talents to fuel its expansion.

Collaboration and global focus are keys to CrowdSec’s open-source approach, as outlined by Philippe Humeau, CEO and co-founder, CrowdSec. “Every year, states, banks, businesses and institutions spend billions of dollars to protect themselves”, Humeau commented. “They are nevertheless hacked by groups with much lesser means. This cyberwar is asymmetrically favorable to hackers, who benefit from time, use stolen resources and mainly open-source software, and face increasingly fragmented and permeable perimeters, including Cloud drives, SaaS, VMs, containers, and VPNs. Our goal is to rebalance the cyber-security game by creating innovative, free and collaborative software in order to fight, together, hacking on a global scale.”

This is an approach that suits the Europe-based CrowdSec, where the business community is diverse and steeped in a rugged individualism developed over centuries. At the heart of CrowdSec is an independent, open culture that is founded upon its collaborative inclusivity.

China and global growth

Open source code has been an essential for the rapid growth of China’s tech sector and today China is one of the biggest consumers and contributors of of open source technology. China tech companies such as JD.com, the world’s third largest internet company by revenue, were early adopters and it is this pioneering spirt that has attracted CrowdSec to expand its footprint in China. Through close collaboration with the open source community in China, CrowdSec is seeking to assist the worldwide internetworked community to now maintain its own safety.

CrowdSec’s team is expected to grow within 18 months. Launched in December 2020, its solution has already been adopted in more than 90 countries, with a very rapid acceleration of the daily adoption rate. CrowdSec’s vision is international in scope and extends across all continents, including Asia and Greater China. As part of this growth, CrowdSec is the process of reaching out to key open-source influencers in China and other parts of Asia.

The company is currently in discussions with large customers, hosting companies, cloud makers and private companies globally. It will officially launch its commercial offering later this year, but will remain entirely free for its community. It has already reported several hundred thousand IP addresses as dangerous.

The arrival of the largest real-time map of hacking

The ‘bad guys’ of the IT world, the hackers hidden on the ‘Dark Web’ and elsewhere, use the IP addresses of machines they compromised to anonymously attack IT assets. CrowdSec’s open-source filtering software blocks these attacks and tracks IP addresses used against members of its community in order to redistribute them and thus deactivate the attackers’ strike capability.

When a CrowdSec agent detects an attack, its report is curated by the platform and, if legitimate, shared with all users so that they can also protect themselves. This community generates, in real time, one of the largest IP blocklists in the world.

Being able to protect each other without having to trust one another is also a key benefit. When system administrators, DevOps and SecOps join forces, they far outnumber hackers. CrowdSec provides them with the tool to federate. CrowdSec not only locally defends IT assets based on IP behavior, but also generates the largest real-time hacking map on the Internet. A new generation of distributed Cyber Threat Intelligence that reshuffles the deck in the defense of Internet-exposed IT resources.

A solution adapted to modern constraints

Designed for modern environments, such as public clouds and containers as well as bare-metal or virtualized architectures in enterprises, CrowdSec’s software provides a strong first line of defense of unprecedented efficiency and versatility. The different types of remediation offered range from simple access prohibition to two-factor authentication, CAPTCHAs, rights limitation, transmission of information to a SIEM or to SecOps desks, for example.

CrowdSec can block port scans, web scans, password attacks, identity theft attempts, as well as application denial of service, bots, credit card stuffing or fraud, among many other classes of attacks. By not exporting logs and collecting only the minimum amount of data (time stamp, attacking IP and recorded behavior) CrowdSec complies with the European GDPR and, more generally, respects data privacy.

Emphasizing the culture match behind the US$5 million investment, Breega Partner and Co-Founder Maximilien Bacot explains, “Digital has become a natural extension of our lives and we need to provide an answer to the societal problem posed by mass hacking. The techniques (or trends) developed over the last 30 years have clearly failed to address this problem. So, it seems logical to us to propose a community-based approach, which has already proven effective in so many other areas, yet has not been applied to cybersecurity… until now.”

About CrowdSec

CrowdSec is the open-source massively multiplayer firewall enabling you to respond to attacks and share signals across the community. Security should be available to everyone. We make it happen. For free. www.crowdsec.net

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Laos Confirms 35 New Cases of Covid-19 Bringing the Total to 1,362

Covid-19 update

Laos has confirmed 35 new cases of Covid-19, with Bokeo province confirming the highest number of new cases.