GRTech
DIFC, Accenture Sign MoU to Further Cement FinTech Hive Globally
Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading international financial hub in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with professional services company Accenture to foster innovation in the financial services industry globally.
Under the MoU, FinTech Hive at DIFC – the first financial technology accelerator in the MEASA region will collaborate with Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Labs in New York, London and Hong Kong, to share resources and knowledge on the latest research and trends in financial technology. The agreement will help build long-term relationships across the accelerator’s international initiatives, further cementing synergies between the DIFC and Accenture.
The Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, Arif Amiri, and a senior managing director in Accenture’s Financial Services practice, Sushil Saluja, signed a memorandum of understanding to foster collaboration between FinTech Hive at DIFC and Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Labs in New York, London and Hong Kong.
In line with DIFC Growth Strategy 2024 and Dubai Vision 2021, FinTech Hive at DIFC fills an important void in the market by giving financial giants access to state-of-the art technologies to support their digital transformation while providing innovators with invaluable access to potential clients and investors.
The Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, Amiri, said: “This agreement leverages DIFC’s position as the top Fintech hub in the region and Accenture’s expertise in shaping a world-class innovation platform.
“The UAE’s position as a hub for financial institutions and for innovative talent gives the FinTech Hive at DIFC a competitive advantage for fostering FinTech growth. What sets us apart is our ability to harness the assets to grow Fintech locally that will ultimately create more jobs, attract investments and support the economy as a whole.
“By teaming up with Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Labs from around the world, we aim to utilize this demand to support innovation and growth as well as strengthen Dubai’s position as one of the world’s top 10 FinTech hubs.”
The FinTech Innovation Labs are annual 12-week accelerator programs that bring together early-stage financial technology companies and the world’s leading financial institutions. Globally, the Labs’ alumni companies have raised more than US$1.07 billion in venture financing after participating in the programs.
Also commenting, the Senior Managing Director in Accenture’s Financial Services practice, Sushil Saluja, said, “We are excited to further grow our fruitful partnership with the DIFC. Accenture will facilitate and create ties between the DIFC accelerator and our FinTech Innovation Labs in Europe, North America and Asia.
“In today’s hyper-connected world, this type of alliance is critical for maximizing talent development and innovation. With surging demand for FinTech solutions and Dubai’s increasing presence on the global financial scene, we are confident that this international collaboration will generate incredible opportunities for the region.”
DIFC has recently announced that the 2018 program, which is opening for applications in May, will be expanded to include insurance, Islamic finance, and regulatory technology services.
First Abu Dhabi Bank, Arab Bank and Noor Bank will join the program this year, with returning financial institutions to include Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Citigroup, Emirates Islamic, Emirates NBD, HSBC, Mashreq, Standard Chartered, UAE Exchange, and Visa.
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world’s top ten financial centers, and the leading financial hub for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.
The Centre provides a world-class platform connecting the region’s markets with the economies of Europe, Asia and the Americas and facilitates growth in South-South trade and investment.
An onshore, international financial center, DIFC offers a stable, mature and secure base for financial institutions to develop their wholesale businesses.
DIFC continues to pursue expansion into new services and sectors within the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, an area comprising over 72 countries with an approximate population of 3 billion and nominal GDP of US$7.4 trillion.
With Black Friday and Cyber Monday around the corner, we’re entering a high-risk period for cybersecurity.
A recent Sophos report highlights that malicious emails were the second most common root cause of ransomware attacks in critical sectors, responsible for 25% of cases.
During peak shopping days, this threat intensifies.
Here’s what happens: with the surge in online deals, more employees may be shopping from their work computers, feeling that Cyber Monday is a legitimate time to do so.
This increases the risk of them clicking more freely and potentially exposing the organization to malicious links or phishing attacks.
To keep your organization safe, encourage your team to follow these simple tips:
• Use an ad blocker – Advertisements are not only tracking your every movement and collecting enough information on your habits to make the FBI blush, but they are also a major source of malicious links and deceptive content on the internet. Not only is your browsing safer, but also faster and uses less bandwidth. Two of our favorites are uBlock Origin and Ghostery.
• Use private browsing or incognito mode – To prevent your shopping habits and interests from following you around from site to site (and potentially revealing what gifts you might be purchasing to others using your device, bonus!), you should enable private browsing (Firefox) or incognito mode (Chrome). This will block tracking cookies and help the internet forget your travels as the waves wash away your footprints in the sand.
• Make your browser “privacy smart” – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) provides a browser extension called Privacy Badger designed to automatically make all the right choices around browsing whilst maintaining our privacy and blocking invisible trackers.
• Avoid using one account on multiple services – When logging into an e-commerce site it is often tempting to use the “Sign in with Facebook” or “Sign in with Google” button. While it takes a few more minutes to create a new login, it will provide more privacy as you are not sharing all of the sites you shop at with these tech giants.
• Use guest login when available – In addition to letting you use an account from other websites, many have an option to use a guest login rather than creating a new account. This is a great option if you don’t expect to need technical support or to do business on a recurring basis. Fewer passwords, fewer personal details, fewer problems if they get hacked.
• Don’t save card details – Many e-commerce sites will default to storing your credit card information in your profile for your “convenience” (or their hope you’ll shop there again). They can’t lose what they don’t have, so tell them not to store your credit card unless it is absolutely necessary.
• Use temporary card numbers – Many financial institutions now offer temporary or one-time use credit card numbers. You can open the app on your phone or in your browser and get a single-use disposable credit card number preventing card fraud and tracking when merchants share card processors. Sometimes you’re even able to specify a card limit per temporary number to further protect your account.
• Use credit, not debit – All of us need to be wary of overspending during the holidays, but it is best to leave the debit card at home. Credit cards offer significantly more protection against online fraud, and you are in the power position in a dispute. You can simply not pay your bill while disputing the charge, rather than having criminals directly drain your bank account of your hard-earned cash.
• Beware of direct messages via social media/chat apps – With modern generative AI technology it is almost trivial to create an entire fake online store and lure people to share their personal information and payment data with you. It’s safest to shop at established sites or those personally recommended to you by friends and family. Many unsolicited messages lead to data collection or theft.
• Don’t click deals in email that look too good to be true or are from businesses you don’t have accounts from – these could be phishing emails hoping to bait you into clicking links to bogus, malicious web sites.
This season, small steps can make a big difference in protecting against cyber threats.
GRTech
It’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month and Sophos has Some Tips for You!
In the mood of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Christopher Budd, Director Sophos X-Ops, has compiled some tips for staying secure online.
Cybersecurity Pro Tips:
- Face Scans and Fingerprints are Safer Than Passcodes: Use features like Face ID or fingerprint scans for your devices as much as possible. These are safer than passcodes and devices have good built-in protections for this sensitive information.
- Use Multi-Factor Authentication: Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) whenever possible. This gives an important extra layer of security that makes it harder for cybercriminals to access your accounts. If you can’t use something more secure like secure authenticator applications or physical hardware security keys, use your phone number — it’s safer than using nothing. If you use MFA for only one thing, use it for your email: that’s what attackers want the most.
- Think Before You Share Publicly: Think twice before sharing any information publicly –cybercriminals can use it to access your accounts or to convince someone that they’re you.
- Think about those cute surveys on Facebook with questions about your first car, city you were born in: these are the same kinds of info cybercriminals can use to pretend they’re you and log into and take over your accounts.
- You Don’t Always Need (to keep) the App: Don’t feel pressured to download an app every time: you can often use the service’s website just as well. Apps collect much more data than websites, including your location, your contact list and other info you might not want to share.If you do download an app, think about deleting it when you’re done using it: you can always reinstall it next time you need it.
- Apps from app stores and websites that aren’t the official big names ones like Google Play, Apple’s App Store, Samsung’s Galaxy Store can be very risky. The official stores have security and privacy standards that can identify malicious activity. Always stick to official sources for downloading apps or, if they’re not on the official app stores, download the app from the developer’s official website or use the app’s web version.
- Be On Your Guard for Unexpected Emails and Text Messages: Phishing continues to be one of the most effective tactics cybercriminals use to compromise consumers. If you get an unexpected email or text message, ignore it or at least don’t interact with it (don’t open attachments, don’t click on links). If you think it might be legitimate, reach out directly to who you think sent it and check with them.
- Question Urgency in Emails and Calls: Cybercriminals use urgency to get you to let your guard down and make bad decisions. If someone contacts you saying they’re from a trusted organization like the IRS, police or your bank and need you to take action quickly or something bad will happen, stop and question it. Go to the trusted source like the number on the back of your credit card to independently validate the request.
- Practice Good Password Security: Every account should have its own unique complex password. A strong password is at least 12 characters long with a mix of numbers, upper- and lower-case letters, and punctuation characters. Passwords should not be based on any personal information, and the best ones use a phrase rather than single words. If these passwords are too tough to juggle, try a password manager to stay organized.
- Keep Everything Updated and Run Security Tools. Make sure all your apps and devices are always fully updated. Be sure to have some sort of security software on all of your phones and computers (even if you have a Mac).
- Get Rid of End-of-Life Devices and Software: Everything from operating systems to services to Wi-Fi routers “go stale” and must be replaced eventually. For example, it might surprise you, but your internet router is typically only supported with patches and updates for a few years after you get it. Attackers love out-of-date devices. When something is “out of support” it’s stale: get rid of it and replace it with something fresh.
- Back Up Your Data: While ransomware groups are mostly after businesses that can pay higher ransoms, they still go after people at home. It’s still important to have your data backed up so that you don’t have to consider paying a ransom.
Put Your Mind at Ease Regarding These Cybersecurity Concerns
Part of staying secure requires being able to filter out the noise and prioritize the security actions that matter. Here are things notto worry about. Focus your energy on real risks, not exaggerated threats.
- Public Wi-Fi is Safer Than You Think: Contrary to outdated advice, public Wi-Fi is generally safe due to encryption used by most websites and apps. Use it freely at airports or coffee shops, but avoid sensitive activities.
- Beware of Fearmongering Around New Tech Features: Not every new technology is as risky as it’s made out to be. For example, Apple’s NameDrop feature is generally safe and requires specific conditions to function. However, if you’re concerned, you can easily turn it off in settings.
Stop Stressing Over Public Chargers: The risk of “juice jacking” (data theft from public chargers) is extremely low. Don’t worry about using public phone chargers — just focus on real, more prevalent threats.
eSocialMint Inc., a tech startup based in Houston, is hoping to revolutionize social and professional events with its innovative new app.
Scheduled for launch in Nigeria at the end of the year, eSocialMint (eSM) offers a comprehensive platform that integrates features from popular apps like Facebook, TikTok, Zoom, WhatsApp, and Snapchat.
Designed to transform how events are conducted and experienced, eSM combines social media technology with advanced features such as virtual hologram technology.
Developed by IT architect Fisayo Olamigoke, eSM is available on both web and mobile devices. It offers a range of functionalities, including team events, social events, advertising, an eStore, and the unique “eSprayMe” feature.
This feature allows users to virtually spray money at events, replicating a popular Nigerian cultural practice while adhering to legal regulations.
Targeted at professionals, personal users, public institutions, and governmental bodies, eSM aims to save time and money by reducing the need for physical travel. With its cutting-edge technology and user-friendly interface, eSocialMint is poised to redefine the future of virtual interactions.
-
Entertainment4 days ago
Sinach to Feature in Global Christian Event, Gather25
-
News4 days ago
Penpushing Media congratulates IPI new leadership
-
Spotlight5 days ago
SIFAX Group Thanksgiving 2.0 in Photos
-
Health3 days ago
Enhancement of Military Health Services: Matawalle Meets U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for Health
-
Spotlight4 days ago
Mr. Magic: Dotun Oladipo @ 55
-
News3 hours ago
Tinubu to Revitalize Zamfara and Nigeria’s Economy – Matawalle