HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 21 July 2022 – Dorsett Hospitality International is delighted to be bringing The Way We Dance, an Augmented Reality (AR) digital art performance piece, to Affordable Art Fair. Returning as the Exclusive Hotel Partner for Affordable Art Fair Hong Kong, Melbourne, London Battersea Autumn and Singapore for 2022, Dorsett Hospitality International has always believed in the power of art and technology to bring people together.

The Way We Dance at Affordable Art Fair

With a footprint of 54 hotels in 25 cities, Dorsett Hospitality International has supported the fight against Covid-19 from the very beginning looking after over half a million quarantine guests, medical workers and refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine. As a hotel group, we’ve been inspired by how our guests, colleagues, frontliners and people from all walks of life have danced through the rain, through all challenges together, and come out stronger on the other side.

This is what led us to partner with digital art and creative studio The Collective to create The Way We Dance – choreographed by Yuh Egami (with kind permission from the Hong Kong Ballet) and performed by students Jennie Chou and Lee Kok Liang from the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts.

Combining visual art, virtual space and technology, the dances “Awake” and Progress” have been brought to life via motion capture with each virtual dancer designed through the lens of artists from all over the world; each representing their own unique experiences of the pandemic.

Instagram-activated artwork: House of Joy and House of Dreams

When one door closes, another door opens. Dorsett Hospitality International’s booth, will also showcase House of Joy by Katrina Chuang and House of Dreams by Sunny Sun – two physical artworks on canvas which come to life through an AR Instagram Filter.

Prints of these two art pieces will also be available for visitors to take home to colour and draw their own dreams before activating their own art piece using the Instagram filter!

For more information and imagery, visit: https://www.dorsett.com/en/media/aaf2022-the-way-we-dance.html

Hashtag: #DorsettHospitalityInternational

Ransomware, multi-modal attacks, and cyber supply chain compromises emerge as key cyber threat trends impacting organisations in 2022

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 21 July 2022 – Ensign InfoSecurity (Ensign), Asia’s largest pure-play end-to-end cybersecurity services provider, today unveiled the findings of its Cyber Threat Landscape 2022 report, which found that the Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) and Transport industry groups were the top targets for cyber threats in Singapore in 2021.

The latest edition of Ensign’s report provides insights and analysis into the cyber threat landscape in Singapore and key Asia Pacific markets such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, and South Korea. It also explores emerging cyber threats that will impact organisations in 2022 and beyond.

Here are some of the key findings from the report:

Singapore: TMT and Transport Emerged as Top Targeted Industry Groups in 2021

The Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) industry group, comprising infocommunications[1], data centre and media sectors, was the top target for threat actors in 2021. Ensign found that nearly 70% of malicious traffic observed in Singapore in 2021 was directed at the infocommunications sector.

Percentage of malicious traffic observed targeting Singapore industries in 2021

Threat actors targeted TMT organisations as they covet these firms’ bandwidth and computing resources, which can be used to build botnets or compromise other connected organisations. Additionally, many TMT organisations also support other businesses by providing services such as processing and storing sensitive data. This gives malicious actors an easy access pathway to target and access downstream customers via cyber supply chain compromise.

“Infocommunications companies are lucrative targets for malicious actors as their services penetrate and power almost every aspect of our society and digital economy. We need to constantly elevate our cyber defence capabilities to prevent cyber threats from derailing our nation’s digital ambition and undermining our position as a regional technology hub. This would require public and private stakeholders to work closely together to build a vibrant cybersecurity ecosystem conducive to nurturing skilled cyber talents and driving innovation,” said Steven Ng, CIO and EVP of Managed Security Services, Ensign.

In addition, threat actors were targeting media organisations following the cyberattack campaigns outside Singapore. Media companies saw cyberattacks designed to cause business disruptions, including ransomware campaigns. A key driver behind these attacks was to prevent facts from being disseminated to the public. This can distort or disrupt the public’s understanding of the situation.

The Transportation industry group, comprising the Aviation and Maritime sectors, became increasingly attractive targets due to their global and regional connectivity. This is fuelled by the collection of personal identifiable information (PII) for cross-border travel, which may include medical information for COVID-19 tracking purposes.

The Maritime sector continues to see ransomware attacks targeting shipping lines and maritime support services. This further exacerbates supply chain challenges caused by COVID-19. Ransomware operators are likely exploiting the already-strained business operations to pressure organisations to pay the ransom.

Singapore: Rise in Opportunistic Cyberattacks due to COVID-19

In 2021, Ensign observed an increase in opportunistic cyber incidents using stolen credentials in Singapore. It revealed that 80% of these incidents were traced to “hands on keyboard” intrusions against remote access portals such as VPN and Virtual Desktop Interfaces. In these attacks, threat actors manually log into an infected system using leaked credentials.

These attacks can be attributed to COVID-19 where companies were forced to swiftly establish emergency remote working arrangements. However, some of these systems are not adequately secured. As a result, past credential leaks and bad cyber hygiene, such as reusing leaked passwords, led to a number of these opportunistic cyber breaches.

Global trends: Ransomware attacks and cyber supply chain disruptions are growing globally

1. Increasingly Sophisticated Ransomware Tactics

Ransomware remains a prominent and prevalent threat globally. This is exacerbated by increasingly sophisticated methods, such as multi-extortion attacks ransomware attacks.

Ransomware operators most typically leverage a mix of the following extortion threats:
1. Disrupting business operations;
2. Leaking exfiltrated data;
3. Reporting to regulators;
4. Reporting to stock exchange for public listed victims;
5. Rallying key customers to force the victim to pay the ransom by threatening to leak their personal or sensitive information;
6. Buying online advertisements to publicise the compromised victims; and
7. Disrupting Internet-facing services via Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks.

Threat actors are highly selective of their victims. Their criteria are typically based on the target victims’ ability to pay a high ransom amount. These organisations usually provide high-availability services required for uninterrupted downstream operations.

Ransomware operators are also prioritising more lucrative regions and markets in their attacks. According to the data that Ensign gathered from ransomware data leak sites and active ransoms in 2021, almost half of the ransomware incidents occurred in companies operating in the US (49%), followed by Europe (22%) and Asia (9%).

Furthermore, Ensign found a 133% increase in Singapore-based companies being mentioned on ransomware leak sites. The financial sector is the top target for ransomware attacks. The maritime and aviation are the next most targeted sectors.

2. Multi-modal Attacks, incorporating Misinformation, Disinformation and Malinformation (MDM), on the Rise

Multi-modal attacks have risen in prominence as threat actors attempt to increase their success rate. As these types of attacks come from multiple fronts, they can result in greater confusion among the victims and require more resources to tackle. In particular, MDM techniques have been incorporated in multi-modal attacks to support phishing or perform influence campaigns.

MDM techniques employed for phishing typically leverage misleading information or distorted facts to trigger the victims’ urgency of response or action. This increases the threat actors’ chances of successfully gaining access to the targets. Such techniques have been observed in the COVID-19 themed phishing attacks and election-related attacks.

Threat actors also leverage MDM techniques in extortionist attacks. This includes using false information to cause negative hype or sharing illegally exfiltrated sensitive information to influence a large-scale outcome.

3. Threat Actors Compromising the Cyber Supply Chain Upstream

Cyberattacks through compromised cyber supply chains serve as effective and less secured backdoors for threat actors, giving them a higher probability of success with a minimum investment of efforts and resources. As threat actors move upstream in the cyber supply chain, it has more significant implications and affects more victims downstream.

The cyber supply chain comprises hardware, software, and vendors, and each element presents unique security complexity. A key challenge organisations face across the cyber supply chain is the imperfect inventory of assets. This allows threat actors to slip through an organisation’s security blind spots and compromise their digital environment.

Furthermore, the report highlighted that threat actors can compromise all stages of the software development chain:

• Threat actors can attack and compromise open-source libraries. This can expose organisations to risks such as code injections when their developers leverage commercial reusable code libraries.

• During a software’s building and test phase, threat actors can attack code repositories, leading to exposed credentials and certificates and malicious code injected with automated commit.

• Threat actors also exploit zero-day vulnerabilities when new software is launched, or updates are implemented.

The next category of cyber supply chain compromises relates to hardware. This category is the hardest for cyber defenders to address and increasingly involves firmware and microcode. Sophisticated attackers continue to exploit them as firmware patches can be complex to implement. Hence, remediation may only be possible in 6 to 9 months.

Furthermore, hardware-related vulnerabilities provide the threat actor access to privileges higher than the operating system. This means that the threat actor can potentially infect the system with malware and maintain persistence without being detected by conventional anti-malware solutions or even modern endpoint detection and response solutions. Due to the nature of such vulnerabilities, the implications are much more severe than application-level vulnerabilities.

Hashtag: #EnsignInfoSecurity

About Ensign InfoSecurity

Ensign InfoSecurity is the largest, pure-play end-to-end cybersecurity service provider in Asia. Headquartered in Singapore, Ensign offers bespoke solutions and services to address their clients’ cybersecurity needs. Their core competencies are in the provision of cybersecurity advisory and assurance services, architecture design and systems integration services, and managed security services for advanced threat detection, threat hunting, and incident response. Underpinning these competencies is in-house research and development in cybersecurity. Ensign has two decades of proven track record as a trusted and relevant service provider, serving clients from the public and private sectors in the Asia Pacific region.

For more information, visit www.ensigninfosecurity.com or email marketing@ensigninfosecurity.com

Choosing a reliable broker to invest with isn’t always easy. OctaFX outlines eight tips on how to protect yourself in the markets and find a trusted broker to start your financial journey.

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA – Media OutReach – 21 July 2022 – Financial market trading is getting bigger every day. With so many brokers offering their services, finding the right one can be difficult. What should you look for in a broker to get the best out of trading in the financial markets and feel safe? There’s no one easy answer, but there are many tips that will help you on the way.

Types of brokers

It is important to choose the type of broker you will trade with according to your goals and investment approach.

Cryptocurrency brokers and exchanges are a way to go if you find it easy to navigate highly volatile markets and want to invest in cryptocurrencies. However, bear in mind that the crypto market has experienced devastating crashes leaving many investors with heaps of coins worth nothing. The most recent example is the 2022 crypto crash. Nevertheless, there emerged tens of thousands of crypto millionaires in the last ten years due to the explosive growth of some cryptocurrencies.

Investing with a stock broker usually implies allocating considerable funds and playing long-term. Stock prices often rise or decline simply because of companies’ policies, over which investors have no control, making price movements of a given stock largely unpredictable. Still, stock investing could bring about considerable profits, especially after thorough research and analysis.

Forex brokers mostly offer CFD trading on many instruments of different classes, including currencies, commodities, stock indices, and crypto assets. You can base your trading strategies on a variety of timeframes, from extreme short-term (M1, M5) to long-term (D1 and wider).

Let’s stop on Forex brokers as the ones offering the most versatile trading experience.

Trading in a global, decentralised market

Foreign exchange trading is happening twenty-four hours a day, five days a week, on various exchanges around the world. Decentralisation is vital for the Forex market due to the globalised world economy’s need for fast, easy flow of currencies.

International Forex brokers—as opposed to local ones—operate in a multitude of countries. They are allowed to operate globally through multiple international documents. Not being extensively regulated locally and not having to implement restrictions that often limit trading opportunities for traders, international Forex brokers can therefore offer more favourable conditions to their clients.

Many traders, especially beginners, choose to work with local brokers because of the licences they usually possess issued by local financial authorities. However, taking into account the global nature of the Forex market and heavy restrictions such brokers experience, trading with them may lack in the variety of trading instruments, promotional and bonus programs, and simply be less profitable because of the higher commissions.

Choosing a trusted Forex broker

When it comes to choosing a reliable international Forex broker to invest with, there are several handy tips that will help you.

1. Check when the broker was established. Any broker with at least ten years of work in the financial markets is worth a try.
2. Find information about the broker on the internet. Conduct your own research.
3. Check the reviews (you can find them on trustpilot.com).
4. Find out whether the broker has received any industry awards for its services in Asia, and Malaysia in particular.
5. Check if the broker publishes its own educational content. A reliable broker is always interested in its clients being better prepared for trading in the financial markets.
6. Find out whether the broker provides multilingual support.
7. Find information on whether the broker is otherwise present in Malaysia. For instance, OctaFX regularly invests in charitable initiatives across the country to give back to the society it works in and be closer to its clients.
8. The last—and the most important. Compare trading conditions of the brokers that showed themselves well in all other respects and choose the one with the lowest spreads, no additional commissions, and no swaps.

Using the tips above, you can find a trusted broker that would suit you and help you achieve your financial goals. Besides, you will protect yourself against fraudsters posing as Forex brokers as they will never be able to fake a reputation garnered over many years of work in the financial markets.

Hashtag: #OctaFX

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About OctaFX

OctaFX is a global broker that provides online trading services worldwide since 2011. It offers everything one needs to reach their investment goals, providing top-notch conditions utilised already by clients from over 150 countries worldwide.

The company is involved in a comprehensive network of charity and humanitarian initiatives, including improvement of educational infrastructure, short-notice relief projects, supporting local communities and small to medium enterprises.

In the APAC region, it managed to capture the ‘Decade Of Excellence In Forex Asia 2021’ award and the ‘Best Forex Broker Malaysia 2022’ by Global Banking And Finance Review, World Finance, and Cfi.Co, respectively.

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 21 July 2022 – The Institute of Operations Research & Analytics (IORA) at the National University of Singapore and Pickupp, an on-demand delivery platform, have recently signed a Research Collaboration Agreement for a two year project. The project aims to set a new benchmark in logistic and fulfilment efficiency.

The research partnership comes at a time where e-commerce is inherently ingrained in our day-to-day lives, with businesses and consumers now relying on the logistics industry more than ever. In this climate, the company with the most efficient logistics network and ability to serve businesses with agility and adaptability will gain a competitive edge.

Optimising Delivery Efficiency and Improving Sustainability In The E-Commerce Landscape

Leveraging data from Pickupp’s proprietary database to interpret patterns and trends, the collaboration strives to address logistical inefficiencies commonly faced in the industry through two main research areas. The first research area is about improving logistics network design.

The research will be used to develop a highly flexible service matrix for an industry where most companies are asset-heavy and do not fully utilize network systems. The intention is to enable a strategic placement of logistics spaces that will shorten the distance for last-mile delivery across the city while efficiently grouping and routing deliveries in a way that is both time-saving and cost-efficient.

The second key research area is price optimization. This research aims to develop an integrated incentive system that will enhance existing solutions for (i) matching drivers to jobs, (ii) managing incentives for the drivers and (iii) price optimization for merchants. This data-analytics driven approach reinforces Pickupp’s commitment to sustainability through the streamlining of delivery routes, while increasing revenues for delivery agents and improving cost management for businesses.

The collaboration is led by Assistant Professor Feng Yifan (Department of Analytics and Operations of NUS Business School and affiliated faculty member of IORA) and Crystal Pang, Chief Executive Officer of Pickupp, with co-leads Professor Teo Chung Piaw and Professor Jussi Keppo of IORA, Lawrence Ho, Chief Product Officer from Pickupp and Lee Chee Meng, Co-Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of Pickupp’s Singapore Office.

Lee Chee Meng, Co-Chief Operating Officer, said, “At Pickupp, we believe that the future of logistics is asset-light and leveraging data is highly crucial in meeting the increasing demands of e-commerce, especially with perishables and groceries. The collaboration with NUS is a step forward in our belief that the future of logistics is data driven, and we trust the results from the research will unlock Pickupp’s network economic power to ensure that every delivery is fulfilled for a price that achieves equilibrium between cost to the business and incentive to the delivery agent.”

Professor Teo, IORA Executive Director, said, “This industry-academia partnership between IORA and Pickupp is significant as it builds on NUS’ growing research expertise in operations research and data science. The project will see our researchers work with industry to create products that have high value for commercialisation and industry adoption.”

Pickupp’s expanding network of islandwide pick-up and drop-off service points has enhanced its capacity to continuously diversify its product portfolio and offerings across all industries and verticals. On top of meeting different logistical needs, from on-demand delivery to micro-fulfilment and warehousing as well as cross-border services, these service points are also aligned with Pickupp’s goal of improving the efficiency of deliveries during peak traffic hours and decarbonising its operations by increasing its walker and rider delivery agent pool. Going forward, these service points will also serve as pick-up points and a point of sale for Pickupp’s e-commerce platform – Shop On Pickupp.
Hashtag: #Pickupp #NUS

About Pickupp Pte. Ltd.

Pickupp is an on-demand delivery platform redefining logistics with its transparent customer-centric service and technology. Founded in 2016, the company has operations in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan, providing logistics support to 20,000+ businesses spanning MNCs, logistics giants as well as retail and e-commerce. They also have a strong delivery team of over 100,000 delivery agents across all cities.

Pickupp provides flexible, tech-driven logistics solutions that enable businesses of all sizes to scale and thrive. Through highly optimised batching and chaining technology, customers can book a delivery anytime without sacrificing speed and cost, while real-time GPS tracking provides end-to-end transparency. Pickupp’s flexible delivery windows and their handy scheduling feature enable customers to be nimble and capitalise on business opportunities. Pickupp launched Shop On Pickupp, a one-stop e-commerce platform offering all-rounded payment and tech-enabled delivery solutions for businesses in 2020. For more information, please visit our website at https://pickupp.io/en/.

About Institute of Operations Research and Analytics (IORA), National University of Singapore (NUS)
Established in November 2016 as a NUS university level research institute, IORA conducts research on the optimisation, analysis and management of service systems, including model formulation, algorithm design, analysis of service strategies and software development.

IORA works with local companies and MNCs, to optimise resource allocation and utilisation, as well as developing a cutting-edge solver to handle large scale complex models that are often encountered in the field of data analytics.

Our vision is to establish IORA as a centre of excellence to integrate Operations Research with Data Analytics, giving new impetus to fundamental research to promote the adoption of prescriptive analytics in academia and industry, attracting and nurturing top talents (faculty and students) for the profession.

For more information on IORA, please visit www.iora.nus.edu.sg