Soumik Roy – Tech Wire Asia https://techwireasia.com Where technology and business intersect Wed, 01 Apr 2020 16:16:45 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.7.4 Hong Kong seeks to attract fresh tech talent in new categories https://techwireasia.com/2020/04/hong-kong-seeks-to-attract-fresh-tech-talent-in-new-categories/ Thu, 02 Apr 2020 02:50:32 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=201333 Hong Kong’s government has added new categories to its technology talent acquisition scheme to fast-tract research efforts.

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Hong Kong recently suffered many blows because of political factors, whose impact was augmented by the novel coronavirus outbreak.

To help companies return to normalcy and to accelerate research and innovation capabilities within the country, Hong Kong decided to augment its technology talent admission scheme.

A recent PwC advisory explained the intricacies of the update. In essence, the scheme has been amended to “add six new technology areas to the existing seven technology areas covered by the scheme and extend coverage to all companies conducting research and development activities within the eligible technology areas.”

Originally launched in 2018, the technology talent admission scheme was rolled out by Hong Kong’s Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) to help companies involved in research and innovation work in the country attract and employ foreign talent.

At the time, the scheme covered tenants, and incubates the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTPC) and Cyberport Management Company Limited (Cyberport) in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, cybersecurity, data analytics, financial technologies, material science, and robotics.

With this update, the need to have a presence in HKSTPC or Cyberport has been eliminated, making the scheme available to a wider range of companies involved in research & development activities.

The new areas that the update concerns itself with are 5G communications, digital entertainment, green technology, integrated circuit design, internet of things (IoT), and microelectronics.

Although the scheme makes it possible for companies to acquire and onboard talent more quickly (two weeks v. up to six weeks under regular visa application processes), it does require companies to hire a proportionate number of local talents – but this is done at the initial quota application stage rather than each time a visa is issued.

In the coming months, as the world battles the novel coronavirus outbreak, and Hong Kong deals with obstacles hindering its path to normalcy and accelerated progress with technology, the upgrade to the talent program is expected to provide quite an incentive.

Hong Kong is a great destination when it comes to technology innovations because of its ability to attract talent from the West as well as from the Mainland, fostering collaboration among teams and creating opportunities for exciting innovations that are out of the ordinary in most cases.

The country has been producing a strong pool of fresh talent from its universities as well, which will have better opportunities to train and grow their skills under the management and through the mentoring provided by overseas talent brought into the country.

PwC’s advisory is definitely positive when it comes to the scheme’s upgrade – but the government might need to further incentivize businesses to take on the offer and make the necessary investments in their operations at this time.

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Australia is fast-tracking its bid to becoming an AI powerhouse https://techwireasia.com/2020/03/australia-is-fast-tracking-its-bid-to-becoming-an-ai-powerhouse/ Wed, 18 Mar 2020 07:50:44 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200885 Standards Australia is an important body and has come up with a set of recommendations to fast track the development of artificial intelligence.

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Investment in artificial intelligence (AI) has been a priority for governments and businesses across the world. 

In Southeast Asia, the emphasis on AI-leadership is more pronounced with China’s Premier incentivizing research efforts in the technology, and technology giants such as Alibaba and Tencent making massive strides in their quest for AI excellence.

Research cited by Standards Australia, a standard setting non-profit, found that since 2017, 14 of the world’s most advanced economies have announced over US$55 billion (AUD86 billion) in focused AI programs and activities.

Australia, despite its government’s efforts to help take the its agencies and businesses on a digital journey, hasn’t made significant progress with AI. Standards Australia aims to change that.

A recent 44-page report published by the body provides an extensive study of the landscape in the world in terms of AI development and offers recommendations which can start to change the status quo when it comes to AI success and leadership on the global stage.

According to the study conducted by Standards Australia, there are four key goals for Australia:

  1. Ensure that Australia can effectively influence AI standards development globally
  2. Increase the international competitiveness of Australian businesses in relation to responsible AI and streamline requirements in areas like privacy risk management
  3. Ensure AI-related standards are developed in a way that takes into account diversity and inclusion, ensures fairness, and builds social trust, and
  4. Grow Australia’s capacity to develop and share best practice in the design, deployment and evaluation of AI systems.

The recommendations put forward by the body emphasize the importance of standards, not just in the AI space, but in any commercial ecosystem.

“Standards affect 80 percent (US$4 trillion annually) of global trade, and are important in relation to emerging technologies, like AI, and provide an adaptive and responsive approach to managing AI,” said the reporting team.

While the setting up of standards [which are usually not legally enforceable] must be thought through, the reality is that their impact will only be felt across the economy if they’re welcomed with open arms and implemented across the board.

According to Standards Australia, the standards could be implemented either on a voluntary basis, through inclusion in contracts, or via regulatory call-up in specific sectors.

Of course, implementation on a voluntary basis is best, but sometimes, accelerating the progress towards certain goals, especially when playing catch up, requires a more hands-on approach.

In China, for example, which leads in many aspects of not only AI research but also at-scale implementation, the government isn’t shy to use regulatory call-ups. It has a nationwide AI success framework and policy, with appropriate governance, incentivization, and monitoring structures in place.

The report by Standards Australia contains recommendations, many of which can really fast-track the country’s AI efforts — to see how much of it is put into action, market observers will have to wait. Hopefully just a short while.

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Stalkerware on the rise in Malaysia — but what’s the risk? https://techwireasia.com/2020/03/stalker-ware-on-the-rise-in-malaysia-but-whats-the-risk/ Wed, 18 Mar 2020 00:50:04 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200873 Kaspersky’s latest report finds that Malaysians are at an increased risk of stalker-ware and businesses could be affected.

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Since data is valued higher than gold on forums and exchanges on the internet and the dark web, customers are rightly concerned about their privacy and security online.

Despite precautions, cybersecurity specialists at Kaspersky believe that data is being ‘stolen’ from individuals, with relative ease and without their knowledge. In fact, this is a major trend in Malaysia — and Kaspersky is sounding alarm bells to raise awareness among customers and warn regulators.

The impact of the situation could now escalate, with a surge in users now accessing sensitive data from their workplaces via their own devices, as the current COVID-19 pandemic forces businesses to enact work-from-home policies.

The method used to steal data is simple. Hackers bait innocent users into downloading stalkerware on their devices, which doesn’t present any symptoms on the device by itself. Instead, it simply sends data from the device and sometimes infects other devices that connect with the infected device.

According to Kaspersky, there has been a 23 percent year-on-year growth in users affected by stalkerware between 2018 and 2019.

“Consumer surveillance technology or stalkerware has evolved rapidly in recent years and the very purpose of surveillance activity has changed dramatically. It is often used to abuse the privacy of current or former partners and even strangers the malicious hacker is interested with,” said Kaspersky Southeast Asia General Manager, Yeo Siang Tiong.

Siang Tiong’s team believes that women fall prey to stalkerware more frequently than men but everyone needs to take precautions to ensure they stay safe.

Among the list of recommendations provided, the important things to note are that users should always ensure they download applications from trusted sources, avoid downloading files they don’t fully understand, and keep an eye on applications running in the background and spot suspicious names and activities quickly so that any damage can be limited.

For most customers, stalkerware seems like a problem that users face as individuals. However, the reality is that it is a major threat to businesses and organizations must be careful about which applications their users interact with, how they behave, and what tasks they perform in the background when not in active use.

“For our part, we have partnered with nine key organizations last year to launch a coalition against stalker-ware. The platform aims to provide a helpful online resource for stalkerware victims,” added Siang Tiong.

In the coming months, more organizations need to take steps to help staff understand what stalkerware is, how to look for it on devices they use, and what to do if they find something suspicious on their devices. 

Raising awareness is key to ensuring that the organization’s cybersecurity efforts don’t become redundant — be it fighting stalkerware, malware, phishing attacks, or any end-user-led cyberattack.

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How FC Barcelona wants to use digital to delight fans https://techwireasia.com/2020/03/how-fc-barcelona-wants-to-use-digital-to-delight-fans/ Mon, 16 Mar 2020 00:50:47 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200785 FC Barcelona wants to put ‘fans at the center of everything’ – and it's turning to digital to do that.

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Football Club (FC) Barcelona is well known offline as well as online, there’s no doubt.

However, to keep fans close in an age where attention is fleeting, the team’s directors have committed to digital with the aim to create a revolutionary experience using innovative digital products and services.

This effort, of course, is expected to boost revenues for the club and become a top source of income in the coming months.

“From this new approach, the club needs to take a further step forward and focus on a paradigm shift in terms of its digital strategy in order to be able to meet these challenges,” FC Barcelona said in a document outlining its plans.

According to the club’s directors, at the center of its digital strategy is a need to be “close and permanently connected to more than 350 million followers on social media, most of whom will never be able to watch a game at the Camp Nou [FC Barcelona’s home stadium in Spain] in person.”

That is the “key to fostering loyalty in an increasingly more competitive world” — and the club is quite right.

What FC Barcelona has honed-in on is something that clubs and associations in other sports are also exploring, be it NASCAR or American football.

FC Barcelona wants to put ‘fans at the center of everything’

Of the 350 million followers that FC Barcelona has on social media, only 4 million are able to make it to Camp Nou each year. It’s new fan-centric approach, the club hopes, will take it closer to those that never have an opportunity to visit the stadium in person.

“The […] model is based on the creation of an integrated ecosystem of club products, services, and contents in order to offer the best […] experiences to its fans, wherever they are, and whether or not they visit the stadium.

“The focal points for achieving this are, first, Barça Studios with regard to the creation of entertaining content to feed this ecosystem, and the FRM (Fan Relationship Management) data project, to get to know fans better and deliver what is most relevant to them at all times.”

From the document that the club has put together and shared with media, data seems to be a core element of driving and thriving with digital.

The FRM data project is interesting because its main purpose is to acquire, manage, and analyze data on behavior and interaction [of fans] with the club.

The club’s directors believe that the new FRM platform will help clearly understand where the interests of fans lie so that interactions with the club can be better focused, tailored, and geared for maximum engagement.

This data can also help amplify the message and emotions conjured by the content created by the club’s ‘Barça Studios’.

Overall, the studio and the new data platform are expected to help boost e-commerce revenues, accelerate efforts to grow the club’s membership and support its ticketing efforts, and also help generate income from on-demand content (OTT).

While there’s a strong emphasis on growing revenues, the investment in digital is not only commendable but also extremely exciting for fans — who will be happy to spend more with the brand hoping that the funds will be used to augment the club’s activities on the field as well.

The work that FC Barcelona has embarked on is exciting. Others must follow suit if they want to keep up. They must also remember that their competition isn’t just FC Barcelona or teams and leagues in other sports but the entire online entertainment industry. That’s their new reality.

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How can APAC businesses improve their cybersecurity posture in 2020? https://techwireasia.com/2020/03/how-can-apac-businesses-improve-their-cybersecurity-posture-in-2020/ Fri, 06 Mar 2020 00:50:37 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200532 APAC businesses can gain a lot from improving their cybersecurity posture in 2020 — but they need to focus on the right things

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Up until 2020, cybersecurity efforts have largely been driven by the need for compliance with regulations or a result of defense put up against incoming attacks.

This has been hard for businesses in the APAC who have not only been struggling to find the right talent but also integrate the right solutions into their workflows. Fortunately, things are changing for the better.

EY recently surveyed cybersecurity professionals to understand the threat landscape better and found many improvements.

Fifty-three percent of respondents in the APAC, for example, said they haven’t seen an increase in the number of destructive attacks over the past 12 months, compared with 41 percent globally.

The APAC is now also at a similar level as the rest of the world when it comes to ‘board and executive understanding’ on the needs and value of cybersecurity – with more than half of both global (58 percent) and APAC (54 percent) respondents agreeing.

In addition, 57 percent of global respondents claim their cybersecurity subcommittees now hold briefings with executive boards on a regular basis, with APAC following closely at 52 percent. Results suggest that the APAC is now better-equipped and more prepared to respond to cyber threats.

Although the results are exciting, the reality is that there’s room for improvement for businesses in the APAC. Tech Wire Asia spoke to EY APAC Cybersecurity Leader Richard Watson to learn more.

The threats landscape is changing in the region

Watson, who’s spent more than a decade in the cybersecurity space, said that the important thing that businesses need to understand is that the threats landscape is constantly changing.

EY’s survey, for example, revealed that the largest drivers of cyberattacks in the APAC are now social activists (19 percent), exemplifying a shift away from traditional financial motives and creating new challenges for organizations.

Observing and monitoring these trends is important for organizations that want to ensure that they’are able to defend themselves against threats, effectively.

“Businesses that have been driving their cybersecurity agenda because of regulations have largely remained focused on data breaches. As the landscape changes, businesses must keep up.”

Although organizations in the region are doing pretty well in comparison to global peers, Watson believes that a more thorough approach to cybersecurity is essential.

“To survive in the constantly evolving threats landscape, companies need to think about cybersecurity first. That’s why we suggest that they adopt a ‘security by design’ approach.”

According to Watson, the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) needs to be roped in by teams across the organization when they want to launch a new product or service or leverage a new solution to support operations and existing workflows.

“People need to think about cybersecurity from the get to in order to keep attackers out. Involving the CISO when planning new IT investments, reviewing merger or acquisitions, or creating new products helps improve the overall cybersecurity posture while also saving resources that would otherwise be spent firefighting issues later on.”

Answering the ‘what next’ question in cybersecurity

The EY survey revealed that the state of cybersecurity in the APAC has improved a lot in recent times.

Companies in the region have spent the last few years taking control of their data and devices, and helping spread awareness among their staff about the importance of exercising caution when navigating the digital world.

“In the past two to three years, companies have dramatically improved their own cybersecurity posture. For them, the next step is to review the posture of third parties they’re associated with.”

Watson believes that organizations looking to strengthen their defense in 2020 need to conduct a third-party risk assessment and find out the maturity and measures in place at partner organizations.

After all, a data breach in a company could land its partners in trouble.

“When a cyber incident occurs at a vendor who performs services for a big bank, it’s the big bank’s name and reputation at stake when news of the attack hits the front page and could land them in trouble if their data was compromised, just because of the way regulations are shaping up.”

In the coming months, CISOs need to step up, be more involved in business decisions from the get-go rather than spend all their time monitoring risks, and businesses need to work more closely with third parties to expand their cyber defense strategy.

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McAfee on why 5G could become the CTO’s ‘worst enemy’ https://techwireasia.com/2020/03/mcafee-on-why-5g-could-become-the-ctos-worst-enemy/ Thu, 05 Mar 2020 00:50:21 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200465 The arrival of 5G will cause companies to think long and hard about their cybersecurity strategy because of the increased connectivity it provides.

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5G is no longer ‘just around the corner’. Although not widely available still, the technology is here and available for public and commercial use.

The next-gen network, with its high-speed and low-latency, has often been forecast to be the enabler of connectivity among the smallest sensors as well as the largest, most powerful devices.

McAfee Chief Scientist Raj Samani told Tech Wire Asia that as a result of 5G, the user experience is now faster and more seamless, encouraging people to connect to the internet on-the-go even more, across multiple devices.

“The level of data transmitted across networks and stored within the cloud will increase with these faster speeds. In turn, the number of devices being connected will grow at an exponential rate, expanding the threat landscape significantly and opening more opportunities and avenues for cybercriminals and corporations that have no regard for privacy to take our data.”

Samani, who is also a McAfee Fellow, said that CIOs and CTOs will be concerned. “As cybercriminals launch targeted campaigns to extract the most sensitive and valuable information, interconnectivity and 5G could be your worst enemy.”

With the arrival of 5G, and with companies now promoting ‘work from home’ as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, technology leaders in businesses know that their data will be spread across more devices, presenting more opportunities for hackers to target the data.

McAfee’s Samani also authored the latest McAfee Mobile Threat Report where he pointed out that regardless of the device in use, criminals are constantly looking for corporate intelligence as well as user data to steal, aggregate, and use for financial gain.

The report highlights the fact that cybercriminals want the quickest and easiest path to money, and hence, are using more sophisticated methods to stay unnoticed, even on mobile devices.

5G is fast, but the newfound connectivity between devices will increase the surface area of vulnerability and make it simpler for cybercriminals to infect devices, stay hidden, and profit.

In the 5G era, companies need cybersecurity by design

Today, cybersecurity isn’t just about bringing in vendors and implementing software measures — there is too much at stake, and not enough is being done.

Hence, Samani believes the companies need to implement (cyber) security by design.

“Chief Risk or Technology Officers need to understand what is at stake for companies. They must also be capable of understanding and balancing technological developments, and a company’s cybersecurity needs.”

Implementing a new cloud server without a Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) in place, for example, will do the business more harm than good, as the organization’s data will be accessible from multiple access points with no cybersecurity solutions beyond those the service provider offers.

Of course, an organization’s people are its greatest strength — and they’re the ones who will be introducing the plethora of new devices to the company’s network.

Hence, Samani recommends that companies must work on creating a culture of security. Digital transformation doesn’t happen in siloes, and it is imperative for practices across a company to be on the same page when it comes to cybersecurity.

“Training must be provided to all teams, while good practice should be rewarded. Lastly, it starts from the top, and hence, company leaders need to exemplify cyber-secure behavior.”

At the end of the day, the reality is that cyber threats will continue to exist — 5G will only compound vulnerabilities. A strong defense, therefore, is the need of the hour.

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Coronavirus forces China to upgrade its facial recognition technology https://techwireasia.com/2020/02/coronavirus-forces-china-to-upgrade-its-facial-recognition-technology/ Fri, 28 Feb 2020 02:50:50 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200333 The coronavirus has caused China to upgrade its facial recognition technology — will it impact businesses and social life in the country?

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FACIAL recognition technology has helped China in many ways, especially during the coronavirus outbreak.

However, with citizens wearing masks to protect themselves, the technology was beginning to fail. Hence, the government decided to get an upgrade and evolve its systems to recognize citizens despite their masked faces.

In fact, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the government in China is taking this opportunity to evolve the system to recognize other facial obstructions such as beards, scarves, air purification masks, and so on.

The Chinese publication spoke to Stanford University Postdoctoral Fellow Amarjot Singh — his team published research on disguised face identification back in 2017 and highlighted the powers of an algorithm they designed and its ability to recognize people wearing eyeglasses, fake beards, scarves, and hard hats.

The framework that Singh’s team developed first looks for 14 key facial points and then uses them to perform face identification, and, at the time, outperformed the state-of-the-art methods on key-point detection and face disguise classification.

“Face recognition identifies a person by locating several key points on the face and connecting them together to form a unique person-specific signature. Although it would be less accurate, a match still can be established,” Singh told the SCMP.

A version of this technology is now being deployed in China where it is helping gated communities keep visitors out, recognizing residents even if they have masks on to protect themselves.

The epidemic has been on for a couple of months now but is expected to clear up in the near future. The technology in use, however, will be the advanced model that has now been developed.

For businesses, this means two things: Increased safety and security, and more (user) confidence.

Companies in China are keen to deploy facial recognition to not only support access management but also weave payments and other critical services into it to create experiences that are not only smarter but also more engaging.

In healthcare, for example, facial recognition could not only transform access but also enable recognition and payments, delivering a seamless interface, irrespective of the facility that is visited. This will be made possible by the new and stronger facial recognition solution in use by the country.

Further, the public’s confidence in the new and more accurate facial recognition identification model will also drive user adoption, allowing businesses to propel themselves ahead of western counterparts in terms of potential.

In the coming months, China’s evolved facial recognition algorithm is expected to yield great results for state agencies as well as local, regional, as well as, national businesses.

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ISACA global study reveals major talent gap in cybersecurity teams https://techwireasia.com/2020/02/isaca-global-study-reveals-major-talent-gap-in-cybersecurity-teams/ Thu, 27 Feb 2020 02:50:47 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200289 ISACA State of Cybersecurity Study, with respondents from around the world, reveals that there's a major talent gap in the industry among teams.

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AT A TIME when cybersecurity challenges are growing, teams can’t afford to be understaffed. But they are.

A recent global ISACA study surveying 2,051 respondents found that 19 percent of cybersecurity professionals said their teams were significantly understaffed, and a further 47 percent said they felt their teams were somewhat understaffed. That sums up to 66 percent — and is quite discomforting.

Although the lack of resources is sometimes to blame for understaffed cybersecurity teams, the study found that 57 percent of organizations had an open position, and a majority couldn’t find suitable candidates even after waiting for months — sometimes as much as six months.

However, it was reassuring to find that the talent gap was at the lower end of the corporate ladder.

Executive or c-level cybersecurity professionals, as well as senior manager and director-grade roles, were not vacant. The bulk of vacancies were in the individual contributor category or basic managerial category.

Obviously, the demand for future hiring lies in these categories as well, with 78 percent of respondents expecting to aggressively hire for technical cybersecurity professionals in the individual contributor grade and 47 percent expecting to aggressively hire for non-technical cybersecurity professionals in the same grade.

Experience over education in cybersecurity?

The ISACA study raised an interesting question about the need for education in cybersecurity.

Given the number of open positions, the report asked survey respondents if they felt applicants were well qualified. Thirty-three percent said less than 25 percent of the candidates were qualified for the job they applied for while 37 percent — slightly more optimistic — said that between 26 and 50 percent of the candidates that applied were qualified.

Speaking of qualifications, when asked if a university degree provided evidence of an applicant being qualified, 46 percent said they ‘neither agree nor disagree’, 21 percent said they ‘disagree’, and 7 percent said they ‘strongly disagree’.

And yet, 55 percent reported that a university degree was something their organization typically required when hiring cybersecurity professionals. In fact, 20 percent of respondents said that a university degree was very important to them when hiring cybersecurity talent.

Drilling down into the skills gaps inside cybersecurity teams, the top three challenges were soft skills, IT knowledge and skills gap and insufficient business insights. Truth be told, all of these could be acquired in university.

Experience (both, technical experience as well as hands-on training), on the other hand, ranked low when evaluating skills gaps in cybersecurity professionals — although technical experience was cited as most important when hiring candidates by 73 percent of respondents, and 81 percent found hands-on training either very important or somewhat important.

Overall, the ISACA study didn’t conclusively say that experience was more important than a university degree when it comes to cybersecurity — but the consensus slowly seems to be building in favor of experience (and hands-on training).

Given the learnings from the study, ISACA has four simple recommendations for organizations looking to ensure they have access to the talent they need to defend their organizations against bad actors in cyberspace:

  • Invest in existing employees through both financial incentives and training
  • Offer a pipeline to cybersecurity positions for current non-cyber staff
  • Look to nontraditional recruiting, such as apprenticeships, government programs or hosting a cybersecurity competition, and
  • Waive university degree requirements in recognition of the nontraditional paths to cybersecurity careers.

Following these recommendations is a good idea, not just for companies in the Asia Pacific, but anywhere in the world, in any industry, as cyber attackers are getting more sophisticated and exploiting any and every opportunity they can.

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In the digital economy, MoneyGram focuses on getting the basics right https://techwireasia.com/2020/02/in-the-digital-economy-moneygram-focuses-on-getting-the-basics-right/ Tue, 25 Feb 2020 00:50:14 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200185 MoneyGram ensures that the organization continues to stay relevant to customers as the digital economy grows.

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SIMPLICITY in sending money to friends and family overseas is becoming more important as expectations of customers in Asia Pacific (APAC) grows proportionately with its digital economy.

This simplicity is driven by platforms, which, according to a recent United Nations Trade and Development report, are the drivers of the digital economy.

As such, in the age of ‘platform-ization’, organizations in the remittance business, such as MoneyGram, are focusing on delighting customers to stay ahead of the market’s needs and deliver on convenience-linked expectations.

Tech Wire Asia recently caught up with MoneyGram APAC Head Anil Kapur in Malaysia to better understand the company’s plans.

“How MoneyGram works is simple. Anyone who wants to remit money goes to a partner outlet, pays the money and provides details of the receiver. In exchange, he or she gets a code to send to the receiver. The receiver takes the code, walks into a partner outlet in his or her country, shows identification, and collects the funds.”

In the digital age, however, with customers seeking to go digital with their remittances, MoneyGram has created a digital portal and app that provide the simplicity that their customers seek.

Currently available in Australia and soon to be launched in Singapore, customers can remit funds using their debit and credit card or their internet banking facility (for example, using Bpay in Australia) to send money to their family or friends’ bank account directly or allow for it to be collected at a partner outlet in his or her home country.

Remittances to bank accounts typically take a few hours to be completed while remittances to overseas cash outlets take just a few minutes in most cases.

The biggest and most important thing in this transaction is the fact that MoneyGram, as a result of regulatory requirements, is required to verify the identity of the sender and of the receiver, and also the purpose of sending funds.

“We have invested millions of dollars in building our compliance system. Identities of people involved in MoneyGram transactions are screened against lists supplied by government agencies such as the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

“Further, their reason for sending money to a particular person (for savings, family maintenance expenses, healthcare, etc) is analyzed alongside previous transactions to find anomalies. Ultimately, our goal with technology is to ensure we have best-in-class compliance.”

An important thing that Kapur touches upon is the fact that the company’s stringent guidelines require that its teams walk the tightrope, balancing compliance with user experience.

Failing at providing a seamless user experience will defeat the purpose of going digital and providing a simple transaction journey in the first place, and that’s not ideal.

Using analytics helps a great deal, explained Kapur. It’s what helps us identify the small percentage of transactions that require further checks, sometimes, even asking for an in-person interview with the sender.

Ultimately, MoneyGram’s success in the digital age leverages the reach of its kiosks and partner outlets but hinges on digital touchpoints that make aim to make remittance easier, every day, with every improvement.

Kapur’s positivity aside, the international remittance company’s success is reflected in the fact that the company currently handles US$160 billion worth of transactions across 200 countries. That’s definitely something to be proud of, especially in the digital age with several regional digital-only players vying for a piece of the market.

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Delighting customers in a data driven world requires strong governance https://techwireasia.com/2020/02/delighting-customers-in-a-data-driven-world-requires-strong-governance/ Fri, 21 Feb 2020 03:00:59 +0000 http://techwireasia.com/?p=200142 To delight customers and provide them with an engaging experience using that data, companies need strong data governance.

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DATA has been dazzling businesses for almost a decade now, ever since leaders realized how it can help them create exciting insights and give them an edge in the marketplace.

Initially, it was digital-first companies such as Netflix and Airbnb that used data to create beautiful experiences for customers — especially with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).

In the last two to three years, banks, insurance companies, telcos, retailers, and almost every other organization has started collecting, storing, and leveraging data, often in real-time, to delight customers.

Analyzing this data helps them develop new products, improve existing offerings, and better engage with customers, aside from optimizing the business and its processes of course.

With new self-serve analysis and visualization tools, powered by AI and ML at our disposal, the biggest challenge for organizations is breaking down silos to help data flow seamlessly through the organization while ensuring data governance best practices are observed.

Analysts at Gartner’s recent Data and Analytics Summit in Sydney aimed to help delegates overcome that challenge by showcasing the success stories of private sector organizations such as insurance leader Bupa and government sector agencies such as the Queensland Office of State Revenue.

The event welcomed more than 1,000 delegates who had the opportunity to attend over 60 research-driven sessions and workshops hosted by around 25 analysts and 35 hand-picked exhibitors.

Strong data governance is the need of the hour

Trust and Governance: The Evolving Challenge was amongst the most powerful tracks at the Summit, with well-known members of Gartner’s team such as VP Analyst Saul Judah, Senior Director Analysts Ehtisham Zaidi, Melody Chien, and Lydia Lydia Clougherty Jones, and Distinguished VP Analyst Mark Beyer speaking at length.

The key messages were simple:

  • Data is being produced at a significant pace, and hence, it must be cataloged correctly
  • When AI and ML are used to catalog data quickly, they break down silos, but without well thought out structures, monitoring and controlling data flow is difficult
  • Data governance, therefore, must be baked into new-age data management, analytics, and data science use cases right from the start.

Delegates also heard from Toyota Head of Advanced Analytics and Data Transformation Lead Travis Lewis who presented a case study of successful data transformation within the automaker’s Australia operations.

The company’s efforts have allowed it to get to grips with the explosion of data, walk the tightrope data protection and ethics tightrope, and deliver radical improvements across the value chain while building capabilities and technologies that will be required for the future world.

Of course, Lewis did emphasize the fact that at Toyota — and probably at any organization — ‘data transformation’ is an ongoing process and requires continuous focus and improvements. Ultimately, that’s how organizations can optimize processes and delight customers on an ongoing basis.

In the coming months, as organizations accelerate their journey to digital and harness real-time data with intelligent tools, via the cloud, on a multitude of devices, those that are able to enforce strong governance will find themselves able to break down silos and provide more contextual insights compared to those that don’t.

Governance, in many ways, will be a key differentiator, between different kinds of companies adopting different data and analytics strategies.

The post Delighting customers in a data driven world requires strong governance appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

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