ToneTag, MasterCard Start Path Partner to Drive Payments Innovation

ToneTag, a sound based proximity payment technology provider, has been recently selected in the Mastercard Start Path as one of the technology companies shaping the future of payments by enabling consumers & merchants to adopt digital payment solutions.

ToneTag has also represented the technology at the Mastercard Start Path event in London and at Money20/20 in Copenhagen. As a part of the initiative, Start Path team will work closely with ToneTag to create and execute a tailored plan for expansion. This program will also give ToneTag access to Mastercard’s global ecosystem, including experts, partners, leading banks and retailers, and enable the sound based tech startup to break in to new markets through relationships with Mastercard and its global customers.

 “Mastercard Start Path is a great initiative to help startups reach new opportunities. Unlike before, businesses are well-connected today thanks to technology, and it is imperative that fintech companies hold the key to a better payment experience for both consumers and merchants alike and ensure transactions are secure, clean and done through organized channels. ToneTag is excited to be a part of this endeavour.” said Kumar Abhishek, Founder & CEO, ToneTag, in a statement.

Sanjay Kumar Kalirona Appointed as the CEO and Director of COMIO India

COMIO India appoints Mr. Sanjay Kumar Kalirona as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Director of the company. With close to two decades of experience in the telecom industry, he is known for his business acumen, understanding of the Indian market and his farsighted vision.

Kalirona has held various senior leadership positions with some of the fast-paced mobile brands in the country. In his previous job, he held the position of CEO at Zen Mobile. Prior to his association with Zen, he led the mobile business at Intex Technologies India Ltd. where he climbed the ladder over his 15-year stint and is credited with having successfully regulated the mobile phone business for the company in India.

On this occasion, Sanjay Kumar Kalirona, CEO and Director at COMIO India, says “I am grateful to COMIO for considering me appropriate to lead the India business. With our nation growing to become one of the largest smartphone markets globally, I am looking forward to taking COMIO to greater height in the years to come!’’

Kalirona has worked across various departments in the telecom industry including new business development, strategic planning, distribution, sales & marketing and channel development and is set to play a pivotal role at COMIO as he gears up for the launch of the mid-segment smartphone in India.

A post graduate in business management from Fortune institute of international business, New Delhi, he is an ace market strategist who devises keeping in mind the changing dynamics and sensitivities of the market. An excellent team leader and mentor with exemplary leadership skills, he is a go-getter and is able to drive his team to achieve goals within tight deadlines.

NPCI’s RuPay, UPI and AePS Gain Big Momentum in Q1 FY2017-18

National Payments Corporation of India’s (NPCI) is proud to announce that RuPay card’s monthly transaction volume on Point of Sale (POS) and e-commerce stands at 4 crore valuing about Rs. 5,000 crore during Q1FY 18. The transaction volume and value during pre-demonetisation period were about 1 crore and Rs. 1,500 crore respectively. Recent use cases on RuPay contactless like Kochi, Ahmedabad and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) are poised to significantly contribute towards digital transactions through RuPay cards.

A. P Hota, MD & CEO, NPCI said, “The nation has taken a target of achieving 25 billion digital payments transactions mark in FY18. Last year, the volume of digital payments was 9.2 billion of which 3.5 billion had been contributed by NPCI. This year, we are aiming to contribute about 11 billion digital transactions.”

Recently introduced BHIM and BHIM Aadhaar are also showing positive trends. BHIM Aadhaar is based on NPCI’s Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS). AePS volume was 5 crore, 6 crore and 7 crore for April, May and June 2017 respectively. BHIM Aadhar was launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on April 14, 2017 and it is currently being offered by over 1.34 lakh merchants.

UPI has crossed 1 crore transactions valuing Rs. 3,000 crore. UPI volume (UPI, BHIM and USSD 2.0 - *99#) was 0.72 crore, 0.93 crore and 1.03 crore in April, May and June 2017 respectively.

RuPay

“RuPay” is the coinage of two terms Rupee and Payment. It is India’s home-grown debit card network with the total issuance of over 370 million in the country. RuPay was dedicated to the nation by Hon’ble President of India, Pranab Mukherjee on May 8, 2014. RuPay cards are accepted across all major Point of Sale (POS) terminals, online merchants and ATMs in the country. It has simplified and transparent pricing structure. It comes with enhanced security features.

BHIM/ UPI

Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) is a smart mobile phone based app based on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) that allows simple, easy and quick payment transactions using UPI. One can easily make direct bank to bank payments instantly and collect money using mobile number or virtual payment address. It is a unique payment solution which empowers an individual with immediate send and collect request.

AePS

AePS is a bank led model which allows online interoperable final inclusion transaction at PoS (MicroATM) through the business correspondent of any bank using Aadhaar authentication. The four Aadhaar enabled basic types of banking transactions are Balance Enquiry, Cash Withdrawal, Cash Deposit, Aadhaar to Aaadhaar Funds Transfer.

Uber Celebrates One Year of uberMOTO in India; Completes 2 Million Trips Across 5 Cities

Uber, the ridesharing app that connects riders with drivers to provide convenient, reliable and affordable rides at the push of a button, celebrates the first anniversary of UberMOTO, Uber’s bikesharing product, in the country. This month also marks the completion of 2 million trips on uberMOTO, a key milestone for the company and testament to the potential of bikesharing to improve last and first mile connectivity in the country.

“uberMOTO gives riders the option to book a motorbike ride via the Uber app, a mode of transport that has long been the preferred way to get around cities in India. Currently available in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Jaipur, the success of uberMOTO reflects how Uber easily blends into the fabric of the cities, providing multiple commute options at the push of a button” said Prabhjeet Singh, GM, Uber Delhi and North

India

To celebrate the success of uberMOTO, Uber introduced a Zip Zap Zoom Index, a round up on how bikesharing has touched riders, driver partner and the cities in the last 12 months.

Here are some fun facts:

• Riders from 181 cities across the world booked a ride on uberMOTO in India
• A female rider in Gurgaon took the highest number of rides, accounting for 1393 trips in one year
• A single driver partner in Gurgaon has taken 5573 trips in the last one year
• Every 18 seconds an uberMOTO ride is requested in Hyderabad
• Kalupur Railway Station is the top destination for uberMOTO in Ahmedabad  
• In Jaipur, no new vehicles have been added ensuring better asset utilization of existing two-wheelers, in an effort to reduce congestion in the city
• One out of every four trips on uberMOTO are to/from metro stations in Gurgaon

UberMOTO is a step forward in Uber’s commitment to help the address the first and last mile connectivity transportation needs. By integrating Uber’s on-demand technology platform with motorbikes, the objective is to use today’s transportation infrastructure more efficiently and effectively. Here are five reasons that make uberMOTO a must-have for all cities:

1.     Expands access to public transport: Public transit is the mobility backbone of cities. uberMOTO promotes the use of public transport as people now have an affordable and efficient transport option for their last mile connectivity. Today, one out of every four trips on uberMOTO are to/from metro and railway stations.

2.     Saves time: With uberMOTO, commuters can ride and swiftly maneuver through traffic. It is the quickest way to get anywhere, anytime of the day. Riders can save time traveling by motorbike when and where it makes sense, such as for short trips in heterogenous traffic that’s more easily navigated via small vehicle, or along routes where public transport isn’t easily accessible or convenient.

3.  Affordability: uberMOTO rides are one of the most affordable commute options in the city. Several studies have also explored the correlation between access to transportation and essential opportunities including education and employment.

4. Empowering a dignified living: The positive impact of ridesharing on congestion, safety and cities are real and important, but it’s also important to note the economic activity generated by the people who drive on Uber. Owning a motorbike is much more affordable than owning a car. The lower cost barrier of uberMOTO makes it even easier for more people to pursue this micro-entrepreneurship opportunity.

5.  Hop on, hop off commute: Whether you are riding to the office for an early morning meeting, catching the metro at the nearest station or heading to the mall for a fun-filled evening, travelling in a city on uberMOTO is the smartest hop on, hop off option.

CII’s 13th India Innovation Summit in Bengaluru from July 13-14, 2017

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) announced its 13th India Innovation Summit with the theme, ‘The New Wealth of Nations – Innovation and Intellectual capital’ in the city today. The two-day summit, on July 13 and 14 will cover subjects such as, Teens as Innovators to disrupt the existing businesses, Rise of Machines and Future of Human Labour, India’s digital transformation into a cashless economy, the great expectations on the e-commerce industry – scaling the consumption economy, the role of society and culture on innovation, the rise of personalized/ precision medicine, the role of technology in continuing education, and intellectual property rights and the scope of innovation as a new state diplomacy.

n the current times of geopolitical re-balancing, innovation-led businesses became the prime driver of differentiation between the developed and developing nations. The asset-driven and regulation-based industries of the past era are giving into the innovation-centric and open market, digital businesses.

Addressing the gathering Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, India Innovation Summit said, “in the new world order, innovation shall be the most important factor defining the growth of development. India, as a society, should embrace the change that innovation, across all the spheres, brings in. It’s time we relooked at the conventional definition of wealth. Innovation and Intellectual property, he firmly believes, shall be the new wealth of the nations.”

“CII has seen working on a multi-point agenda to include the larger society for inclusive growth.” Kamal Bali, Chairman, CII Karnataka added, and thanked the government for being a wonderful partner in translating it into action. “The state council achieves the goal of helping the industry, particularly, MSMEs to help cope with the changes in the business landscape and help job creation led by innovation.”

Detailing the event, Vijaya Kumar Ivaturi, Co-founder, Crayon Data elucidated, “India Innovation Summit has been growing from strength to strength. We started off with covering innovation that was done in larger corporates. We moved towards the spirit of entrepreneurship, which are, more often than not, orthogonal in nature. This year, we have come up with the third dimension. It is perhaps the result of the first two. Our theme captures the larger picture that is true of every nation: innovation and intellectual property determine the wealth of a nation. In a digitally connected age, it’s all about leveraging the social capital through technology to our best advantage. It means learning the new and unlearning the obsolete. The panels are a good mix of the industry veterans and the technology natives and entrepreneurs. The structure of the program and each element has been carefully crafted to capture the transition. We only hope the leaders shall closely guide the new-age, young innovators, with deep commitment and utmost care. As though one handles a teenager who is a digital native. India Innovation Summit is 13, by the way, he reflected.”

Highlighting the CII-3M challenge, Debarati Sen, Managing Director, 3M India Limited said, “India has emerged as a hub for innovations and houses the largest population of youth in the world. Identifying the vast scope and talent that exists in the country, 3M India, in collaboration with the CII, instituted the Young Innovators Challenge Award in 2014 with a vision to create a forum to recognize innovative ideas with a social relevance. The award also offers a level playing field to young innovators across a wide spectrum, from the top institutes in the country to the grassroots, to compete for recognition & support that can give impetus to their ideas to become an established initiative. This nationwide search culminates with the winners of the challenge being felicitated by 3M India and CII leadership at the CII India Innovation Summit.”

To complement and augment the conference themes, there will be an exhibition that will provide an experiential understanding of the real-world tools of the new wealth paradigm. The pavilions will cover the spectrum of innovation by the Indian industry, representing the macro and micro level of the nation’s spirit, creativity and entrepreneurial zeal in a showcase.

Implemented Without Delay: MP Rakeev Chandrasekhar Urges Defence Minister Arun Jaitley

Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar wrote to the Defence Minister regarding the Government’s order dated 29 June 2017 on implementation of orders of Hon’ble Courts/AFT’s in Neither Attributable to Nor Aggravated (NANA) by service cases.

In his letter to the Defence Minister he welcomed the move and the landmark step taken by the Narendra Modi Government that will benefit thousands of soldiers who have suffered disability died because of a disability while in service.

“The Committee of Experts submitted its report in November 2015 with 75 recommendations and despite the then Raksha Mantri giving his go ahead for implementing the recommendations in August 2016, there has been no action taken on its implementation till date.” MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar said.

Recalling the DESW Memo of 02 January 2014, which stated the department would appeal automatically in six categories of disability , Chandrasekhar said he had taken up the matter strongly with then Hon’ble Raksha Mantri Shri A K Antony and after his interventions, the Minister had withdrawn the instructions.

Despite the former Hon’ble Raksha Mantri Shri. Manohar Parrikar decision in January 2015, not to pursue nearly 4,000 disability pension cases pending against the Ministry of Defence in courts, in April 2016 new instructions were issued by the DESW to again automatically file appeals in all cases pertaining to disability pensions and benefits, Chandrasekhar wrote in his letter to the Defence Minister.

“I had urged the then Raksha Mantri to put in place a system of audits to ensure genuine cases of disabled soldiers and their families do not suffer long painful legal battles” Rajeev said.

PM Modi in the past had expressed the need to minimise litigation, stop frivolous appeals and to strengthen the Armed Forces Tribunals which had led to the constitution of the Raksha Mantri’s Committee of Experts for reduction of litigation in the Ministry of Defence and strengthening of mechanisms of redressal of grievances in July 2015.

What is CopyCat Malware? How It Spreads and ways to Protect Themselves in India?

CopyCat is an adware (a malware that injects ads on victims device to generate revenue) that affected over 14 million Android users in the span of 2 months. It raked over $1.5 million via fraudulent app installations and advertising with peak activity during April & May 2016.

How did CopyCat malware spread?

Unlike older adwares, CopyCat spread via 3rd party app stores and standard phishing attacks. With increased security checks in the Google Play, the architects of CopyCat chose not to host it on the official market. 

How does CopyCat work?

CopyCat once installed from a 3rd party app store or a phishing campaign. injected advertisements in the browsers and other applications of a victim's device and when the victim clicked them, it earned money. 

Moreover, after installation, the malware fetched information about the device and used specific exploits to root (A process where an app gains highest available privileges allowing it to alter the core architecture of the device) the victim's device. This allowed CopyCat to further install rootkits to make itself persistent in the victim's phone.

After gaining root access, the malware could then install fraudulent apps, monitor app installations and app launches to display targeted ads and altered the refer-install mechanism to steal the installation revenue.

All this was done via infecting the Android Zygote Daemon(A service in Android devices that is responsible for launching apps on the device). This allowed the attacker complete access to the victim's device.

CopyCat used several exploits, including CVE-2013-6282 (VROOT), CVE-2015-3636 (PingPongRoot), and CVE-2014-3153 (Towelroot) to infect devices running Android 5.0 and lower, which is although very old but widely used.

What was the impact of CopyCat?

CopyCat infected over 14 million devices out of which, 8 million were rooted ie complete high privileged access. Out of these 8 million, 3.8 million devices were infected with adware and 4.4 million were used to steal credit card information.

In this span of 2 months, it earned over $1.5 million via fraud app installations & displaying over 100 million advertisements.

Which parts of the world did CopyCat hit the worst?

CopyCat primarily affected devices in the Southeast Asia, mainly spanning to India, Pakistan & Bangladesh.

Although in the Unites States over 280,000 devices were infected. Interestingly, Chinese users were not infected indicating the attack to be originated from China.

Who is behind CopyCat?

Though it lacks any direct evidence, researchers at CheckPoint suggested the responsible 

party being a Chinese advertising network MobiSummer.

The researcher found following connections between CopyCat & MobiSummer:

1. CopyCat malware and MobiSummer operate on the same server 

2. Several lines of CopyCat's code is signed by MobiSummer 3.

CopyCat and MobiSummer use the same remote services 

4. CopyCat did not target Chinese users despite over half of the victims residing in Asia

What can users do to protect themselves?

According to the spokesperson at Bugsbounty, users should take the following precautions:

1. Install applications only from the Google Play Store and not use any 3rd party app stores

2. Make sure that the option for allowing app from unknown sources is unchecked in the Android settings

3. Avoid installing apps with < 50,000 downloads and enough reviews & ratings.

4. Check the app permissions before installing. The app should only take permissions that are relevant to it. If a flashlight app needs permission for SMS & contacts it is definitely malicious

5. Update to the latest version of Android if possible

6. Specifically disallowing apps specific permissions from the settings if your phones allow it.