variednews: variednews: Attain Corporation to Open Online Japa...

variednews: variednews: Attain Corporation to Open Online Japa...: variednews: Attain Corporation to Open Online Japanese-languag... : TOKYO, Feb. 1: Attain Corporation, a company offering e-learning lan...

variednews: Attain Corporation to Open Online Japanese-languag...

variednews: Attain Corporation to Open Online Japanese-languag...: TOKYO, Feb. 1: Attain Corporation, a company offering e-learning language courses, including the Attain Online Japanese website, will op...

Attain Corporation to Open Online Japanese-language School in April 2022, Now Accepting Requests for Admission Information

TOKYO, Feb. 1: Attain Corporation, a company offering e-learning language courses, including the Attain Online Japanese website, will open a high-quality and affordable online Japanese-language school, "Attain Online Japanese (AOJ) Language School," in April 2022. This service is also available from anywhere in the world. The company is accepting requests for information related to admission. So please feel free to contact: https://aoj-ls.jp/en/admission/doc-request.html Because of the COVID-19 pandemic that began to spread at the start of 2020, it has become hard to go overseas just as before, forcing those who had wanted to work or study in Japan to put it off or cancel it. Even in this situation, Attain had kept thinking of how to deliver online Japanese-language education of the same quality as attending a traditional Japanese-language school. For those who want to learn Japanese but have difficulty coming to Japan, Attain is seeking to provide quality Japanese-language education online. Now, it will open AOJ Language School to make learning Japanese more fun and efficient. In AOJ Language School, students from many countries will gather in virtual classes for lessons. The classes with students from different cultures will be more stimulating than before. In addition, the school does not require enrollment fees, and students can take lessons for more affordable monthly tuition fees. By using online services, the school will provide more reasonable ways of learning. The important part is to make everyone satisfied with the content. Attain's Japanese e-learning program has over 100,000 subscribers worldwide, obtaining high marks as well. For this content, Attain will combine the Japanese e-learning curriculum that it had with live classes held by excellent teachers with Japanese-language teacher qualifications. This high quality and new hybrid learning will give those who are learning the best online study experience. Overview of online Japanese-language school "AOJ Language School" Official website: https://aoj-ls.jp/en/ Opening date: April 3, 2022 Tuition: Half-year prepayment via bank transfer, or monthly payment of 14,000 JPY (about 122 USD as of January 28, 2022) through PayPal For more details: https://aoj-ls.jp/en/admission/guideline.html Features Attain Online Japanese (AOJ) Language School is a Japanese-language school for study online. Live and video lectures give students access to high-quality Japanese learning from anywhere in the world. Full support to pass JLPT N2. Even if students start learning as beginners, they can acquire JLPT N2-level Japanese in a minimum period of 2 years. Attain will fully support students until they pass JLPT N2. Live lectures by talented teachers who are qualified as Japanese-language instructors will make learning Japanese more fun and engaging. Each live lecture is to be given in a small group. Students can participate in classes anywhere via internet connection. Students can access recorded lectures even if absent from live ones. It is a place where students can meet Japanese learners from all over the world. They can also interact with others of different cultures through the learning of Japanese. It supports all Japanese-language levels. Students can choose the level of Japanese class that suits them. AOJ Language School provides high-quality Japanese learning to those who want to learn Japanese all over the world. Attain does not require any admission fee to make it easier to continue studying and students can choose to pay the tuition fee monthly. Attain has a consultation desk to support studying and working in Japan.

variednews: variednews: Zone & Co Acquires International NetSu...

variednews: variednews: Zone & Co Acquires International NetSu...: variednews: Zone & Co Acquires International NetSuite Partner ... : BOSTON, Feb. 1:Zone & Co, a leading NetSuite development acce...

variednews: Zone & Co Acquires International NetSuite Partner ...

variednews: Zone & Co Acquires International NetSuite Partner ...: BOSTON, Feb. 1:Zone & Co, a leading NetSuite development accelerator for financial operations software, has acquired Fast Four, a pre...

Zone & Co Acquires International NetSuite Partner Fast Four and Announces Goal to Accelerate Global NetSuite Development and Adoption

BOSTON, Feb. 1:Zone & Co, a leading NetSuite development accelerator for financial operations software, has acquired Fast Four, a premier international NetSuite Partner and SuiteCloud Developer. Built from similar origins, the Fast Four team will join Zone as part of the transaction. Fast Four leadership, including CEO Hylke Sluis, will focus on developing Zone's global NetSuite presence and strengthening the company's services capabilities and SuiteApps platform: Zone Apps, built for NetSuite. "Never before has the power of cloud technology been so fully realized for finance teams." The Zone Apps platform, built for NetSuite, allows fast-growing finance teams to eliminate time-intensive, retroactive manual work in favor of accelerated and automated forward-looking processes. Zone Apps empower users to rapidly deploy and scale financial solutions across the business completely in NetSuite, enabling groundbreaking automation features inside NetSuite like any-way-you-want billing, advanced revenue recognition capabilities, third-party payment provider integrations, accounts payable, and more. "Over the next twelve months, Zone and Fast Four's plan, like our mission, is simple," said Derek Zanga, co-founder and President, Zone & Co. "We'll be doing everything we can to accelerate SuiteApp and feature development, so that our existing product suite becomes faster, better, and stronger for our global customers, while identifying use cases and customer needs to continuously add to our growing product pipeline." "In the past two years we saw tremendous growth in our business." said Hylke Sluis, co-founder and CEO, Fast Four. "We welcomed hundreds of new customers and grew our team from 20 to 70 employees. We opened offices in 6 countries and had a privilege to work with so many great staff, partners and customers. We were also able to take our products to places that we would not have imagined two years ago. Now we want to accelerate what we started. To improve our products quicker. To service our customers even better. We want to grow our products and services with more expertise, experience and great people. To realize our ambitions we found the perfect fit in joining Zone & Co. A company with a similar background and a similar DNA. Together we will be bigger, stronger and better. We could not be more excited." Zone & Co recently closed $76 million in funding led by Insight Partners in an effort to accelerate the growth of Zone & Co's premier SuiteApp, ZoneBilling, and development of new advanced NetSuite products. Throughout this investment, the company will exponentially expand its market reach and bring unparalleled efficiency and automation to NetSuite customers in almost any industry. The inclusion of Fast Four's impressive ecosystem of SuiteApps and NetSuite services bolsters Zone & Co's ability to deliver a broader product offering within NetSuite. It will unlock new capabilities within the platform to reduce the friction and time required for customers to procure, implement, and build out their NetSuite environments for scale. By expanding their NetSuite instance to cover the entirety of lead to revenue, procure to pay, record to report, and other key financial processes–instead of using third-party applications or homegrown solutions–businesses gain increased financial visibility, auditability, and efficiencies across the business due to unified data, automated workflows, and centralized access. This means fewer errors, faster closes, quicker payments, and less clicks, all while staying compliant with industry and federal regulations. "It's an exciting time to be on the cutting edge of cloud financial software developing critical tools for businesses growing at unprecedented rates," Zanga added. "Never before has the power of technology been so fully realized for finance teams, and we're lucky enough to build this on a platform as powerful as Oracle NetSuite. We're excited about combining teams with Fast Four and becoming a leader in the global acceleration of NetSuite development with our 200 worldwide employees in development, professional services, and go-to-market specialties." About Zone & Co Zone & Co's mission is to make life easier for finance teams by accelerating the development of groundbreaking cloud software built on the Oracle NetSuite platform, the #1 cloud ERP/Financials system supporting over 28,000 businesses globally. The company was founded in 2013 by Derek Zanga (CEO) and Errol Fagone (CTO) when they saw the untapped potential of NetSuite to handle advanced financial operations at scale. For more information on Zone & Co and all its products, visit zoneandco.com or follow us on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/zoneandco About Fast Four Fast Four was founded in 2012 as the very first NetSuite solution provider in The Netherlands. It was founded by entrepreneurs who saw in NetSuite THE ERP system of the future and a huge opportunity on the Dutch and Belgian market to help companies make their step to the cloud. Along the way, Fast Four started developing SuiteApps to initially help their own customers use NetSuite more effectively but these apps proved as popular with other NetSuite customers around the world. They are now one of the largest SDN Partners in the world, with over 500 customers across their SuiteApps.

variednews: variednews: Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmar...

variednews: variednews: Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmar...: variednews: Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmark Series A R... : RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 1: Retailo, the fastest growing startup in...

variednews: Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmark Series A R...

variednews: Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmark Series A R...: RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 1: Retailo, the fastest growing startup in Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan (MENAP) which is digitizing...

Retailo Raises $36M million in Landmark Series A Round For Empowering Community Commerce in MENA Region

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 1: Retailo, the fastest growing startup in Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan (MENAP) which is digitizing the region's retail supply chains, has raised $36 million in its Series A investment round which was a mix of equity and venture debt. Retailo is a regional B2B marketplace in MENAP and has raised a total investment of $45 million in less than 1.5 years of operations, a landmark for any startup in the region. Retailo's Series A round has attracted leading investors with proven track records of impactful investments. The round was led by Silicon Valley based Graphene Ventures which was an investor of tech giants Snapchat and Lyft. For Retailo's Series A, Graphene is joined by leading investors that include 500 Global, Agility, Aujan, Tech Invest Com and Mentor's Fund, all of which have the relevant exposure and investments in the retail industry's technology companies. The venture debt was raised from Nahda Fund - one of the Middle East's first venture debt funds which is backed by IMM Investment Global, based in Hong Kong. Additionally, Shorooq Partners, Abercross Holdings, Arzan VC, AgFunder also participated in the round as repeat investors which demonstrates their continuing belief in Retailo's successful future. Retail in MENAP is a $500 billion industry which consists of over 10 million small businesses to serve a population of more than 700 million consumers. However, the majority of this retail industry is informal and undigitized. Small businesses have to rely on inefficient supply chains and limited financial resources while operating on impossible margins. Retailo aims to champion these small business owners by building a suite of technologies around them. The company has begun this via their B2B community commerce platform which is used by over 50,000 retailers monthly. On Retailo's mobile platform, small businesses can find a wide catalogue of over 5,000 SKUs which are delivered to their doorstep in less than 24 hours. They can also avail Buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services, which give them flexible payment options and credit lines. By providing timely supply, competitive rates, and easy credit, Retailo is able to address the needs of retailers and significantly improve their business. To offer a one-stop shop solution, Retailo (https://retailo.co) directly works with hundreds of leading local, regional and global brands. Retailo also optimizes end-to-end logistics in the supply chain via efficient warehousing operations and smart fleet management solutions. Leveraging its wide regional presence, Retailo has recently begun offering its sellers a cross-border distribution platform across the three biggest markets in the region: KSA, UAE and Pakistan. Retailo also provides data analytics services to sellers to help them evaluate sales performance and consumption trends. Headquartered in Riyadh, Retailo was founded by former Careem executives Talha Ansari, Wahaj Ahmed and Mohammad Nowkhaiz in July 2020 with a unique regional launch. Growth has been quick and in only 18 months Retailo has scaled to 10+ cities in 3 countries: KSA, UAE and Pakistan. "The multi-market strategy from day one was unconventional and challenging. Covid made it even more so. But now Retailo is a scalable organization with hundreds of millions of dollars in annualized revenue and colleagues from multiple nationalities and diverse backgrounds who have left leading institutions like Amazon, Delivery Hero and Goldman Sachs to fulfil Retailo mission in building technology that empowers 10 million retailers in the region," said Himag Vaidya, Retailo's Head of Strategy. Nabil A. Borhanu, partner at Graphene Ventures said, "We are impressed with what Retailo has achieved in an astonishingly short time. Their vision is both ambitious and inspiring and we believe that partnering with them is a sound business investment and also a chance to truly improve the lives of millions of people." The Series A funding will help Retailo move into the next phase of expansion into new geographies, verticals and products. "As global supply chains come under stress pushing up commodity prices and depressing GDP growth, the value of smart supply chains becomes even more important," said Retailo's CEO Talha Ansari. "The retail sector serves 700 million persons in MENAP, contributes almost 20% to the GDP and employs tens of millions. By providing technology solutions to this underserved market, we are not only improving lives but also uplifting the economy of the entire MENAP region."

variednews: variednews: The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspi...

variednews: variednews: The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspi...: variednews: The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspire Acts of L... : NEW YORK, Feb. 1: Today, the Ad Council announced it is working with...

variednews: The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspire Acts of L...

variednews: The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspire Acts of L...: NEW YORK, Feb. 1: Today, the Ad Council announced it is working with Amazon Ads on its Emmy®-Award winning Love Has No Labels initiative...

The Ad Council and Amazon Aim to Inspire Acts of Love and Create a More Inclusive World in New Love Has No Labels Campaign

NEW YORK, Feb. 1: Today, the Ad Council announced it is working with Amazon Ads on its Emmy®-Award winning Love Has No Labels initiative to spread messages of love and inclusion across the world. Amazon's Alexa has been asked millions of questions about love, and the newest campaign, "Alexa, what is love?", aims to encourage people to take meaningful actions to foster inclusivity within their communities. When people ask their Alexa-enabled device, "Alexa, what is love?", they'll now receive a response from people of various backgrounds and identities sharing what love means to them. "We are proud to work with the Ad Council to give a voice to customers in such a meaningful way through Alexa," said Alan Moss, VP of Global Advertising Sales at Amazon. "At Amazon, we are committed to increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we're excited for Alexa to share diverse perspectives from our customers. The Love Has No Labels campaign resonates with our goals and the important work to be done." "We're honored to partner with Amazon and Alexa to redefine what love means by bringing diverse stories of inclusion directly into people's homes. Our hope is that when audiences ask about love, they will hear voices that inspire them to take action in their communities," said Ad Council President and CEO Lisa Sherman. "This collaboration is right in line with the goal of Love Has No Labels—to flood culture with messages of unbiased love across race, age, gender identity, religion, ability and sexual orientation." The campaign will also include a documentary-style film directed by Rodney Lucas, an award-winning Brooklyn-based documentary filmmaker from the southside of Chicago. The film delves deeper into the lives of the people featured in the new Alexa response, and how acts of love have helped them, and others, feel more included. In one instance, when a person asks Alexa about love, they will hear the voice of Dianne, a community activist and wellness coach, who responds: "Love is when we create safe spaces for Black women." Other voices and stories include: Cheer, software developer "Love is showing patience and understanding when someone is learning a new language." Christopher, photographer, creative entrepreneur "Love is when someone acknowledges how I identify." Igor, filmmaker "Love is opening your doors to others without expecting anything in return." Jim, tour guide, anti-bullying advocate, ally "We gotta look out for each other, that's how we show love. We gotta show love by being there for one another." Peter, retired, ally "Love is to be there for someone without judgment." Rajee, product specialist, disability activist in media "Love is supporting people in pursuing their dreams, no matter their abilities." Shujaa, student, organizer & activist "Love is when true allies protect my voice." Watch the film here: https://youtu.be/4L_ayZ9dqsk The "Alexa, what is love?" campaign will be promoted in Amazon audio ads, Amazon streaming TV ads, social media, and digital formats nationwide. People can learn more at amazon.com/lovehasnolabels, which features the aforementioned individuals' stories as well as inclusive actions everyone can take. When we act with love—by educating ourselves, taking meaningful action, and supporting organizations that help communities who have been marginalized—we can combat bias, discrimination, and hate. The Love Has No Labels campaign first launched nationally in 2015 with a video of skeletons dancing and embracing before coming out from behind an x-ray screen to reveal themselves as diverse couples, friends and families. The original "Love Has No Labels" video became the first PSA to win an Emmy for Outstanding Commercial and received more than 169 million views making it the second most viewed social activism video of all time. In 2016, it was followed by "We Are America" featuring WWE® Superstar John Cena celebrating the diversity of America on Independence Day. In 2017, Love Has No Labels put a twist on the kiss cam by turning it into a symbol for unbiased love with "Fans of Love." The campaign launched its first short film in 2018 with "Rising," written by Lena Waithe (The Chi, Master of None) and directed by David Nutter (Game of Thrones), asking the question, "why does it take a disaster to bring us together?" Most recently, in June 2020 Love Has No Labels took a clear stance against racial injustice with "Fight For Freedom," revealing the stark contrast of the simple freedoms that many take for granted and the systemic racism Black people face every day in America. In July 2020, the campaign launched "Fight the Virus. Fight the Bias." to combat hateful rhetoric that the API community is experiencing amid COVID-19. In total, the campaign's six videos have exceeded 397 million online views. Since the Love Has No Labels campaign's initial video launched in March 2015, there have been over 19.2 million U.S. sessions on lovehasnolabels.com. Since the launch of the campaign, significantly more adults agree that they can create a more accepting and inclusive environment (61% in March 2015 to 75% in June 2021), according to a survey commissioned by the Ad Council and conducted by Ipsos, Public Affairs. To date, the campaign has received more than $154 million in donated media. To learn more, visit the Love Has No Labels website, view the PSAs on YouTube, join the campaign's social communities on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Ad Council The Ad Council is where creativity and causes converge. The non-profit organization brings together the most creative minds in advertising, media, technology and marketing to address many of the nation's most important causes. The Ad Council has created many of the most iconic campaigns in advertising history. Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk. Smokey Bear. Love Has No Labels. The Ad Council is a nonpartisan, nondenominational organization, engaging a diverse range of communities, including the faith community, to impact society for good. The organization's innovative social good campaigns raise awareness, inspire action and save lives. To learn more, visit AdCouncil.org, follow the Ad Council's communities on Facebook and Twitter and view the creative on YouTube.

variednews: variednews: Olive Announces Winners of Hack for He...

variednews: variednews: Olive Announces Winners of Hack for He...: variednews: Olive Announces Winners of Hack for Health Develop... : U.S.A., Feb 1: Olive, the automation company creating the Internet o...

variednews: Olive Announces Winners of Hack for Health Develop...

variednews: Olive Announces Winners of Hack for Health Develop...: U.S.A., Feb 1: Olive, the automation company creating the Internet of Healthcare, today announced the winners of the first-ever Hack for...

Olive Announces Winners of Hack for Health Developer Contest

U.S.A., Feb 1: Olive, the automation company creating the Internet of Healthcare, today announced the winners of the first-ever Hack for Health Contest. In partnership with Rotera, Olive held the contest to encourage developers to build Loops (think apps in an app store) that will change the way healthcare employees work by improving efficiency, reducing the scope for errors and burnout, and enhancing productivity — all to optimize the patient experience. Olive designed its Hack for Health contest to solve healthcare's biggest problems through collaboration with the developer community. Participation is open to any individual developer, startup, health system, or enterprise technology company. Winning Loop submissions are published on Olive's platform, giving developers full access to Olive's growing payer-provider network. While any developer who publishes a Loop on Olive's platform receives 85% of the revenue generated from their Loop(s) once published, Hack for Health grand prize winners also receive tiered cash prizes up to $10,000, industry speaking engagement opportunities, a 60-minute pitch meeting with the Olive Ventures team, an Oculus Quest 2, YubiKey, and a 30" curved monitor. Olive also provides opportunities for its employees to develop Loops as part of an internal contest with its own set of prizes. "Olive created healthcare's first true platform. We wanted to create an event that encouraged a wide range of developers to come build on it to grow our ecosystem of people working together to transform healthcare," said Patrick Jones, Executive Vice President, Partnerships at Olive. "Our first-ever Hack for Health contest, in partnership with Rotera, was the perfect way to introduce developers of all sizes to Olive and create new solutions that will help change the way healthcare workers work." Olive selected the following five Loops as the grand prize winners based on their functionality, innovation, outcome improvement, and bettering of diversity, equity, and inclusion among underrepresented healthcare workers and patients: AESOP Technologies with the RxPrime Loop and DxPrime Loop: These Loops identify potential wrong-drug errors like "look alike/sound alike" errors and "wrong click" errors, as well as missing and incorrect diagnoses codes. They also provide suggestions of diagnoses and medications based on comparing the patient's chart to information mined from more than 3 billion patient visits. CMEfy with the Instant Rounds by CMEfy Loop: This Loop helps practice administrators, clinician leaders and non-clinical staff instantly and seamlessly reward their clinicians with continuing medical education (CME) credits during key meetings, impromptu Instant Rounds and other day-to-day co-learning engagements. Grief Coach with the Grief Coach Loop: This Loop supports clinicians who need to speak with grieving family members after a patient has died by providing them practical guidance on what to say and how to say it. Medecipher with the Predictive Staffing Flexing Tool Loop: This Loop provides actionable staff scheduling decision insights for real-time operations using Medecipher's AI-enabled predictive analytics and optimization model. Amit S. with the Supply Chain Rx Inventory Loop & Clinical Trials REST API Loop: The Supply Chain Loop acts as an AI assistant to help users make quick and informed decisions on managing supply chain Rx inventory using predictive analytics. The Clinical Trials Loop acts as an AI assistant to help users make quick and informed decisions when searching for active studies on ClinicalTrial.gov API. "Medecipher has been eager to develop on Olive's platform, and Hack for Health provided us with a unique collaborative opportunity to do so! By leveraging Olive's platform, we were able to quickly implement a clinician-facing decision support tool (our Loop) that provides critical operational insights from our models and algorithms," said Stephanie Gravenor, co-Founder and CEO at Medecipher. "We're honored to be named a winner of Olive's first-ever Hack for Health contest with our Predictive Staffing Loop and look forward to continuing to refine our use case and leverage Olive to expand our impact." For developers interested in developing their own Loops, they can submit their information at https://oliveai.com/about-us/partner-with-us. About Olive Olive is the automation company creating the Internet of Healthcare. The company is addressing healthcare's most burdensome issues through automation — delivering hospitals, health systems and payers increased revenue, reduced costs, and increased capacity. People feel lost in the system today and healthcare employees are essentially working in the dark due to outdated technology that creates a lack of shared knowledge and siloed data. Olive is driving connections to shine new light on healthcare processes, improving operations today so everyone can benefit from a healthier industry tomorrow. To learn more about Olive, visit oliveai.com/

variednews: variednews: VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to ...

variednews: variednews: VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to ...: variednews: VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to $20 An Hour,... : TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 31: VOLT® Lighting, headquartered in Tampa, Florida...

variednews: VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to $20 An Hour,...

variednews: VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to $20 An Hour,...: TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 31: VOLT® Lighting, headquartered in Tampa, Florida, announces that the company's minimum wage will be raised to $2...

VOLT® Lighting Raises Minimum Wage to $20 An Hour, Doubling Florida's Minimum Requirement

TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 31: VOLT® Lighting, headquartered in Tampa, Florida, announces that the company's minimum wage will be raised to $20 an hour, effective January 1, 2022, to reflect employees' hard work. Alan Brynjolfsson, founder/CEO of VOLT®, believes each one of his dedicated employees should be able to have, at the minimum, a living wage– and believes Florida's minimum wage requirement of $10 an hour does not meet that need. "This salary increase allows me the opportunity to provide a better life for my family and be a better father." "I knew we were experiencing inflation and factored that in when I was helping my son create an annual budget for himself," said Brynjolfsson. "Realizing some of my employees are making just $15 an hour, I immediately decided to increase wages." The 2022 Federal Poverty Guideline in the U.S. for a family unit of two people is $18,310 annual salary or $8.80 an hour, according to The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. Florida's minimum wage is at $10 an hour, and the Federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. "We don't think full-time employees should be living so close to the poverty line," said Brynjolfsson. "Inflation is causing real estate, gas, and food costs to rise; wages need to follow the trend. When employees are not distracted by making ends meet, they can focus on creating a better culture in the workplace and providing a better experience for customers." VOLT® designs, manufactures, and distributes professional-grade lighting products at factory-direct prices, with four distribution centers in Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Nevada. "VOLT®'s mission is to deliver such an outstanding experience that our customers become our best advocates," Brynjolfsson said. "Part of the way we achieve this success is by making sure we take care of our employees so that they take care of our customers." VOLT® has 12,500 5-Star Google Customer Reviews showing this is a winning strategy that helps VOLT® deliver on its mission. Warehouse Associate, Antonio Stephens said, "This salary increase allows me the opportunity to provide a better life for my family and be a better father. Making $20 an hour changes how I see myself long-term here. It is not waiting years down the line to get just a $1 raise each year. I already feel years invested and never want to leave." Taking care of employees goes beyond wages. VOLT® offers health, dental, and vision insurance, 401K matching the maximum 4% allowed, 12 paid holidays plus two weeks of personal time off (PTO), and holiday bonus. VOLT® continues to be a disrupter in the industry and a leader in the community, putting its employees first and improving lives. About VOLT® Lighting: Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, VOLT® Lighting manufactures and distributes quality indoor and outdoor lighting products and systems. VOLT® is the largest manufacturer of professional landscape lighting in the world, with distribution centers in Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Nevada. For more information, visit www.voltlighting.com

variednews: variednews: Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahe...

variednews: variednews: Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahe...: variednews: Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahead of the Bi... : CHICAGO, Jan. 31:The countdown to the Big Game is on, and ...

variednews: Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahead of the Bi...

variednews: Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahead of the Bi...: CHICAGO, Jan. 31:The countdown to the Big Game is on, and fans are in for a great night – but Quaker, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, is gettin...

Quaker® Invites Fans to "Pregrain" Ahead of the Big Game with Quaker Oats 6-Pack Sweepstakes

CHICAGO, Jan. 31:The countdown to the Big Game is on, and fans are in for a great night – but Quaker, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, is getting ready for a big morning, inviting fans to crack open a hot one and "pregrain" before the Big Game with a bowl of Quaker Oats. The Big Game is one of the largest grain consumption days of the year – grains by the glass, that is. But the real grain of all time is Quaker Oats – "A Super Trusted Superfood." So why not start your Sunday morning off with a bowl of Quaker oatmeal? To help you gear up for game day celebrations, Quaker created limited-edition 6-packs to help you fuel up ahead of the game. Each 6-pack is specially designed for game day, with six mini canisters that each hold a packet of delicious Quaker Instant Oats. It's a great way to score an easy victory in the kitchen and starting today, one hundred lucky fans will have the chance to win one of their own Quaker Oats 6-packs to enjoy with their squad before kickoff. "At Quaker, we're here to get fans just as excited about their game day breakfast as they are about watching the Big Game, which is why we created oatmeal canisters specially designed with football viewing in mind," said Kristin Kroepfl, vice president and chief marketing officer for Quaker North America at PepsiCo. "Cracking open that iconic Quaker Oats canister gives fans the chance to have a nutritious, heart-healthy breakfast time option game day morning." For 145 years, Quaker has helped people benefit from the taste, versatility and nutrition of whole grain oats. Needless to say, the brand has been around for all 56 Big Games and knows that pregraining is a great way to help start your morning. Quaker is also releasing a new :30 second light-hearted commercial bringing a fun twist to classic game day advertising traditions where grains are the star of the show. To enter the Quaker Pregrain Sweepstakes, fans can head to Quaker's Instagram page, @Quaker, between January 31 and February 6 and comment tagging a friend they'd like to crack open a canister with on game day morning, using #QuakerPregrain and #Sweepstakes. One hundred lucky winners will be randomly selected during the week of February 7 and 6-pack prizes will be shipped to them ahead of the Big Game. See official rules here for complete details on how to enter. Sweepstakes closes at 11:59 p.m. EST on February 6, 2022. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Must be 18 or older and a U.S. resident to enter the sweepstakes. For additional information about Quaker and recipe inspiration, visit QuakerOats.com or check out @Quaker on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. About The Quaker Oats Company The Quaker Oats Company, headquartered in Chicago, is a unit of PepsiCo, Inc., one of the world's largest consumer packaged goods companies. For more than 140 years, Quaker's brands have served as symbols of quality, great taste and nutrition. Quaker® Oats, Quaker® Rice Cakes and Quaker Chewy® Granola Bars are consumer favorites. For more information, please visit www.QuakerOats.com, www.Facebook.com/Quaker or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @Quaker. About PepsiCo PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated $70 billion in net revenue in 2020, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lays, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales. Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with PepsiCo Positive (pep+). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

variednews: variednews: National Staffing Leader Launches "Sph...

variednews: variednews: National Staffing Leader Launches "Sph...: variednews: National Staffing Leader Launches "Spherion Winter... : ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Spherion Staffing and Recruiting (Spherion) is...

variednews: National Staffing Leader Launches "Spherion Winter...

variednews: National Staffing Leader Launches "Spherion Winter...: ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Spherion Staffing and Recruiting (Spherion) is inspiring national pride in its workforce this winter through the Spheri...

National Staffing Leader Launches "Spherion Winter Games" to Engage Workforce

ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Spherion Staffing and Recruiting (Spherion) is inspiring national pride in its workforce this winter through the Spherion Winter Games, a campaign with a mission to boost hiring and retention at Spherion offices across the nation. The Spherion Winter Games, which launches on January 31, will run for six weeks with the goal of addressing pandemic-related workforce challenges and inspire America's workforce to seek — and stay — at new career opportunities. Spherion is eager to match job seekers with more than 10,000 fulfilling positions available nationwide. Each week of the campaign, Spherion offices will award nine employees gold ($500), silver ($250) and bronze ($100) cash prizes for a total of 54 winners throughout the six-week period. The campaign will wrap-up on March 11 with the announcement of nine grand prize winners the following week, who will be awarded gold ($5,000), silver ($2,500) and bronze ($1,000) cash prizes. "Now more than ever, people are incredibly selective about the jobs they are willing to take. At Spherion, we've always prided ourselves on offering meaningful, competitive career opportunities," said Rebecca Rogers-Tijerino, president of Spherion Staffing. "We saw an incredible response to our recent Spherion Works Sweepstakes and Get More! Giveaway campaigns. The Spherion Winter Games offers yet another exciting opportunity to reward our employees for their hard work and help our client companies find and retain top talent. Let's go for the gold!" All Spherion employees active on assignment and in good standing will earn one entry for each week worked during the campaign. At the end of each week, nine prize winners across Spherion's nationwide network of local offices will be selected to receive cash prizes, totaling $15,300 in weekly prizes. At the close of the campaign, nine Grand Prize winners will be selected to win a bronze, silver, or gold-level amount, bringing the campaign's total cash prize purse to nearly $50,000. With the emergence of even more job opportunities and a growing demand for workers caused by the "Great Resignation," Spherion is dedicated to connecting job seekers with meaningful positions at local client companies across more than 200 offices nationwide. To learn more about the Spherion Winter Games, visit spherion.com/wintergames. About Spherion With more than 75 years of staffing and recruiting experience, Spherion stands out as a leader in the industry, leveraging the power of local to support its vast network of independent franchisees. True to its tagline, Let's Get to Work, Spherion provides workforce solutions to more than 4,000 businesses nationwide across its more than 200 offices. With recent awards including recognition on Entrepreneur magazine's Franchise 500 list and being named a top recruiting firm by Forbes, Spherion has a proven ability to cater to the ever-changing demands of America's workforce. Backed by the global leader in human resources, Spherion is prepared to provide workforce solutions through its General Staffing franchise model and newly launched Professional IT model to even more job seekers and organizations. To learn more about Spherion Staffing, visit: https://www.spherion.com. To learn more about the Spherion franchise opportunity, visit: https://www.spherion.com/franchising/.

variednews: variednews: August Launches Three New Collections,...

variednews: variednews: August Launches Three New Collections,...: variednews: August Launches Three New Collections, Including F... : NEW YORK, Jan. 31:Europe's innovative co-ownership vacation home ...

variednews: August Launches Three New Collections, Including F...

variednews: August Launches Three New Collections, Including F...: NEW YORK, Jan. 31:Europe's innovative co-ownership vacation home company, August, today announced the addition of new properties to i...

August Launches Three New Collections, Including First-Ever Premium Range

NEW YORK, Jan. 31:Europe's innovative co-ownership vacation home company, August, today announced the addition of new properties to its co-ownership platform. August offers a modern way to buy and own vacation homes, and the launch of the new Premium Collection comes after the successful sell-out of the Signature and City collections of homes throughout 2021 – in destinations including the French Riviera, Cotswolds, Mallorca, and the French Alps. Since its inception in 2019, August has revolutionized the way holiday homes are owned throughout Europe. Offering families from all over the world the chance to own a 1/21 share of five exceptional holiday homes instead of just one, the platform offers a convenient and cost-effective way to invest in a world-class holiday home experience. August is on track to acquire more than €50 million of real estate in 2022, with expansion already taking place in Barcelona, Marbella and Paris, in addition to new markets including Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and additional geographic regions of France. "We are pleased at the overwhelmingly positive feedback on the August model of vacation home ownership," said Nico Watzenig, Co-Founder and Chair of August. "Seeing such tremendous demand proves that we are offering the innovation needed in the vacation home market. The August community has grown exponentially, drawn to a model that eliminates the obstacles and enhances the enjoyment of holiday time with family and friends in beautiful, maintenance-free homes. A vision brought to life through the culmination of the August team and our technology-enabled platform." The August team consists of experts in finance, interior design, real estate, and travel. Simplifying the co-owning experience for buyers provides a unique opportunity to stay in a collection of five remarkable destinations for less than the price of owning just one vacation home. In addition, August eliminates many of the costly, time-consuming, and frustrating aspects of buying, renovating, and maintaining a holiday home abroad. "In the age of the shared economy, we are thrilled to continue adding to our inventory of co-owned home collections for modern passionate travelers looking for their second-home abroad," said Mélie Dunod, Co-Founder and CEO of August. "Providing buyers with the best luxury homes with local charm in the world's most sought-after destinations is at the core of our model. From the beaches of the French Riviera to the bustling streets of Barcelona, we believe we are revolutionizing the way people own and experience holiday homes." About the Collections August allows buyers access to a collection of design-driven properties, ideally situated in carefully selected and coveted vacation destinations, for a fraction of the cost of second home ownership. Due to an increased demand for homes offering more space and exceptional interiors, August is launching the Premium Collection. In the most charming and idyllic European neighborhoods of the French Riviera, The French Alps, The Cotswolds, Mallorca and Tuscany, the collection offers villas, farmhouses, and a chalet of four to five bedrooms with expansive space and the highest level of finish and luxury. The starting price for this collection is $668,638, plus maintenance fees of $1,246 per month. City Collection consists of unique apartments and villas, perfect for those who value the ease of convenience in five of Europe's most desirable destinations: Cannes, Chamonix, Barcelona, Mallorca, and Tuscany. Each property in the City Collection features two to three bedrooms, accommodating four to six guests. Pricing begins at $237,990 plus maintenance fees of $510 per month. Signature Collection includes homes full of charm and authentic features in the same sought-after destinations as the Premium collection. Combining space and privacy in beautifully designed properties, this collection offers homes with three to four bedrooms, accommodating six to eight guests. Pricing begins at $402,319, plus maintenance fees of $850 per month. All homes in the current collections will be available for occupancy in 2022. The August Model August purchases, renovates, interior designs, maintains, and manages homes for co-owners. Buying with August means buying into a collection of five properties with a one-time fee beginning at $250,000 - a fraction of the cost of second home ownership. Locations are carefully selected in sought-after European destinations, with plans to expand into additional geographic locations as demand grows. The five homes within each collection are shared across 21 like-minded families with similar vacation ideals—clients can reserve their visiting time in their preferred home through the August booking system. Access to the properties is split between families through an app-based 'points' system. Each co-owner is guaranteed access to the homes for an average of 12 weeks per year. In addition to the one-time purchase cost, an ongoing annual fee is paid by each owner to cover all maintenance for the properties. The August Difference All August properties – whether an apartment, villa, or house – are beautifully crafted by top interior designers and architects and are maintained and serviced to the highest standard. When visiting an August home, co-owners are greeted with the same convenience as a hotel, all included within the annual fee. August is for people who love traveling yet appreciate the comfort of feeling at home without the hassle of always finding a new accommodation for each trip. With August's network of experts, co-owners never have to worry about the taxes, finances or any legal aspects involved with owning a home abroad. About August: August, Europe's first co-ownership platform, is the modern way to own a vacation home abroad. With collections of beautifully designed and characterful properties in the most sought-after destinations in Europe such as the French Riviera, Tuscany, Mallorca, Chamonix and Barcelona-- August is for holiday home buyers who want to experience multiple destinations and avoid the typical hassles of foreign property ownership. August's team of experts take care of every aspect of the home owning process from the purchase of properties, renovation, interior design, and ongoing administration. August co-owners have access to five properties for less than the price of owning one, offering greater affordability, convenience and more freedom of choice than any sole vacation home ownership. With August's innovative technology-enabled platform, co-owners will be matched up based on similar vacation ideals and coordinating travel schedules to ensure each co-owner gets use of the five properties for an average of 12 weeks per year including peak demand periods. For more information, please visit https://www.augustcollection.co.uk/

variednews: variednews: Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Har...

variednews: variednews: Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Har...: variednews: Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Harmon and Dr. ... : DALLAS, Jan. 31: Tech Titans, the largest technology trade organizati...

variednews: Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Harmon and Dr. ...

variednews: Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Harmon and Dr. ...: DALLAS, Jan. 31: Tech Titans, the largest technology trade organization in Texas, has named Mance Harmon and Dr. Leemon Baird, both Co-fo...

Hedera Hashgraph Co-founders Mance Harmon and Dr. Leemon Baird Win 'Emerging Company CEO' and 'Technology Inventor' at Tech Titans Awards

DALLAS, Jan. 31: Tech Titans, the largest technology trade organization in Texas, has named Mance Harmon and Dr. Leemon Baird, both Co-founders of Hedera Hashgraph, as the winners of the 'Emerging Company CEO' and 'Technology Inventor' award categories respectively, in the 21st Annual Tech Titans Awards. Mance Harmon, Co-founder of Hedera Hashgraph, said: "These wins are a testament to the hard work and dedication of Hedera's community, developers, partners, and council members. Born in Texas, the Hedera network is rapidly expanding and members of the ecosystem now hail from every corner of the world. As we move to the next stage of growth - where we further accelerate the decentralization and development of the Hedera network, expand the number of contributors, and move to Swirlds to participate as part of the broader community to develop products and services beyond the Layer 1 protocol - we are lucky to be part of such an engaged, forward-thinking technology and distributed ledger community here in North Texas." The Tech Titans Awards recognize the elite in North Texas technology – individuals currently transforming the high-tech industry and giving companies competitive edges as well as companies leading the way in innovation and technical applications. The Tech Titans Awards showcase the innovators, adopters and executors impacting the technology industry for the greater good. Hedera Hashgraph, founded in Dallas in 2018, is the most used, sustainable, enterprise grade public distributed ledger. Hedera allows developers, enterprises, and organizations to build and run decentralized applications leveraging the hashgraph algorithm, for fairer, more transparent, and more efficient ways to transact and communicate with others. Hedera's users hail from industries such as supply chain, payments, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, advertising, art, retail, energy, and more. Bill Sproull, president and CEO of Tech Titans, said: "We are proud to be able to recognize the individuals and organizations that make a substantial impact in the North Texas technology industry each and every day. The innovation, leadership and advocacy each of our finalists contributes to the industry makes a significant difference in our communities and the world. We look forward to seeing what each of these elite individuals and companies will continue to do for years to come." For more information on the event, visit Hedera.com and techtitans.org. About Hedera Hedera is the most used, sustainable, enterprise-grade public network for the decentralized economy. The platform is governed by a council of the world's leading organizations, including Avery Dennison, Boeing, Chainlink Labs, Dentons, Deutsche Telekom, DLA Piper, EDF (Électricité de France), eftpos, FIS (WorldPay), Google, IBM, LG Electronics, Magalu, Nomura Holdings, Shinhan Bank, Standard Bank Group, Swirlds, Tata Communications, University College London (UCL), Wipro, and Zain Group. For more information, visit www.hedera.com, or follow us on Twitter at @hedera, Telegram at t.me/hederahashgraph, or Discord at www.hedera.com/discord. The Hedera whitepaper can be found at www.hedera.com/papers. About Tech Titans Tech Titans is the largest technology trade association in Texas, representing a quarter million employees through its 300 member companies. Tech Titans includes a diverse group of technology leaders from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies who collaborate to help innovation thrive in the region. As part of its goals, Tech Titans is active in: Cultivating a technology community of companies, entrepreneurs, investors and students Growing future tech leaders with its talent and workforce development initiative Advocating technology's advancement in governmental arenas Connecting people and inspiring innovative ideas through its programs and special interest forums For more information, please visit www.techtitans.org.

variednews: variednews: IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED S...

variednews: variednews: IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED S...: variednews: IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED STATES : NEW YORK, Jan. 31: Sustainably sourced vegan haircare line, Imbue, announces ex...

variednews: IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED STATES

variednews: IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED STATES: NEW YORK, Jan. 31: Sustainably sourced vegan haircare line, Imbue, announces expansion to United States consumers in Target retail stores...

IMBUE HAIRCARE EXPANDS IN THE UNITED STATES

NEW YORK, Jan. 31: Sustainably sourced vegan haircare line, Imbue, announces expansion to United States consumers in Target retail stores and online nationwide. The celebrity hairstylist backed brand offers a collection of premium haircare and styling products catering to the needs of the curly, coily, 3A-4C hair community historically overlooked in the industry. Already a top seller in the United Kingdom, this launch will enable the brand to further its commitment to empowering the natural hair community while expanding how it communicates, cares for, and celebrates hair. Imbue's range of haircare fulfills the unmet beauty needs of the curly, coily, and tight, textured hair community. This expanded footprint in Target brick and mortar retail stores will broaden Imbue's reach to empower everyone to celebrate true curls from wash hair day to protective styles, wigs, and weaves. "At Imbue, we believe the importance of developing clean and effective formulas for the curly hair community and we're excited for this partnership with Target to expand our audience and present a more engaging way for us to connect with our consumers." says Imbue Brand and Marketing Director Anne-Claire Ahouangonou. The complete Imbue collection features a four-step curly hair regimen with innovative, clean, and vegan formulas to cleanse, condition, and style while locking in moisture. Housed in recyclable packaging, Imbue uses unique proprietary blends of curl loving, performance-led ingredients packed with moisturizing and hydrating benefits like coconut oil, avocado oil, and Cupuaçu seed butter. Celebrity hairstylist, afro hair veteran, and brand ambassador Michelle Sultan has supported Imbue since inception using her twenty years of experience to ensure each formula is designed to respect and empower curls. In an effort to provide curly haired consumers the curl confidence they deserve, Imbue is committed to continuing to push the boundaries to create high-quality innovations while also staying kinder to the environment to protect the planet. The Imbue Collection is now available for purchase in Target stores nationwide. ABOUT IMBUE Imbue is a curl-worshipping vegan haircare brand with a collection of products for curl and coil types 3A to 4C. Imbue knows that curls and coils have a mind of their own and what makes them so beautiful, but sometimes stressful, and with their collection of haircare products, Imbue is on a mission to break the negative stigma of caring for your curls.

variednews: variednews: Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,...

variednews: variednews: Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,...: variednews: Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,026 Pounds o... : LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31: Silent Arrow today announced that the Air Force...

variednews: Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,026 Pounds o...

variednews: Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,026 Pounds o...: LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31: Silent Arrow today announced that the Air Force of a U.S. allied government in the Middle East has conducted the fi...

Silent Arrow® Autonomously Delivers 1,026 Pounds of Cargo in First Overseas Deployment

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31: Silent Arrow today announced that the Air Force of a U.S. allied government in the Middle East has conducted the first overseas deployments of the Silent Arrow GD-2000 cargo delivery drone under a $1.5M operational evaluation contract. In preparation for the flight operation, 1,026 lbs. (465 kg) of an undisclosed cargo load was secured inside the 26 cubic foot fuselage of two GD-2000s, bringing the gross vehicle weight of each aircraft to 1,520 lbs. (689 kg), below Silent Arrow's certified max gross of 2,000 lbs. (907 kg). Two C-130s were used in the operation, during which two GD-2000s were rigged in accordance with U.S. military standards for Container Delivery System (CDS) bundles. Deployment occurred over a desert environment where Silent Arrow demonstrated completely autonomous flight, autonomous waypoint selection and navigation, and during the auto landing sequence, Silent Arrow's autonomous autopilot was able to command and achieve a zero-sink rate flare. A series of 12 Block 1 GD-2000s are currently on station in the Middle East in support of the contract, with 15 Block 2 aircraft in production at Silent Arrow's Irvine, California facility due to ship in the first half of 2022. To date, 45 Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Silent Arrow® GD-2000s have been built, with Full Rate Production (FRP) into the thousands of units expected to begin in 2023. "As we prepare for mass production, it's encouraging to see foreign allied governments as enthusiastic about the new capabilities Silent Arrow brings to the warfighter as the U.S. military has been," said Chip Yates, Silent Arrow's founder and CEO. "We have distribution agreements in place for 37 countries so far and are working hard to become the worldwide standard for airdrop logistics." Originally designed to replace GPS-steered parachutes (JPADS) under contract from the U.S. Marine Corps, the Silent Arrow line of autonomous cargo delivery aircraft has so far expanded to three platforms based on military tactical resupply requirements and has supplied or won contracts directly with all four U.S. military service branches for the following products: Silent Arrow GD-2000 (26 cubic feet for up to 1,500 pounds of payload) Silent Arrow Widebody (140 cubic feet for greater than 1,500 pounds of payload) Silent Arrow Precision Guided Bundle (7.6 cubic feet for 350 pounds of payload) Silent Arrow's tightly integrated packaging with its patented spring-deployed wing system, industry-leading payload capacity, 40+ mile standoff distance and low unit cost, has become a leading solution for non-parachute, heavy payload airdrop logistics around the world. About Silent Arrow®: Silent Arrow® is a DBA of Yates Electrospace Corporation, founded in 2012 by electric aviation pioneer Chip Yates, to produce the Silent Arrow® and AVIUS Air Delivery™ autonomous cargo drone product lines, which were highlighted as an "Unmanned Cargo Aircraft to Watch" by Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine. Silent Arrow's engineering team has been awarded more than 20 patents, 6 Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) aircraft world records and 2 FAI Louis Bleriot medals for disruptive contributions to the aerospace industry. In 2021 Silent Arrow® was selected as a finalist for the Robert J. Collier Trophy as the "Greatest Achievement in Aeronautics or Astronautics in America." For more information visit www.Silent-Arrow.com.

variednews: variednews: VIDSIG Signs Partnership With Californ...

variednews: variednews: VIDSIG Signs Partnership With Californ...: variednews: VIDSIG Signs Partnership With California State Par... : SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 31: Live, global video chat platform VIDSIG annou...

variednews: VIDSIG Signs Partnership With California State Par...

variednews: VIDSIG Signs Partnership With California State Par...: SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 31: Live, global video chat platform VIDSIG announced today it had signed a new partnership agreement with the Califo...

VIDSIG Signs Partnership With California State Parent Teacher Association

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 31: Live, global video chat platform VIDSIG announced today it had signed a new partnership agreement with the California State PTA to provide live, one-to-one video chats with its hundreds of vetted undergrads from colleges and universities across the United States. VIDSIG's platform facilitates conversations that aim to provide honest answers to questions from students and parents across the state to help make the challenging college process easier through ten-minute, live one-to-one video chats on VIDSIG.com or through VIDSIG's new app. "This is such an exciting announcement to make," stated Jonathan Yarnold, Chief Executive Officer of VIDSIG. "California has always been a state of innovation, and to partner with the California State PTA is an honor that is reflective of a continued, innovative pursuit for parents, high school students and educators across the state." VIDSIG's College Experience Experts are current undergrads representing 175+ colleges and universities across the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia. High school students and their parents across the United States are currently using the VIDSIG platform to speak live, one-to-one with vetted and current undergrads to gain valuable insight about schools during 10-minute, live video chats. California is the third state, along with New York and Wisconsin, to sign partnership agreements with VIDSIG in recent months to provide this groundbreaking service to over 1 million members collectively. "California State PTA is excited to offer high school students the opportunity to ask real questions of their college peers. We are pleased to partner with VIDSIG to support California's high school students during their college explorations and the application process," stated Carol Green, President, California State PTA. "We recognize VIDSIG's value for students and families across the state, and we are glad to bring this valuable service to our members who want real information as they make their college decisions." "As anyone who visits VIDSIG.com can see, we reference 'Life-Changing Conversations' for a reason," continued Yarnold. "These types of conversations can dramatically impact the course of one's life by receiving honest answers to all questions. The last thing anyone wants is to make the wrong school choice and experience buyer remorse. This is a powerful way to help avoid that, right from the palm of your hand on virtually any device." Live, one-to-one video chat sessions with the College Experience Experts are $25 for 10 minutes – and the partnership with the California State PTA will provide Californian PTA members with a number of complimentary sessions. Go to CA State PTA Winter Member Perks at https://capta.org/join/member-perks/. To download the new VIDSIG app, visit the App Store. To learn more about VIDSIG, visit https://vidsig.com/. To learn more about PTAs in California, visit https://capta.org

variednews: variednews: BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Op...

variednews: variednews: BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Op...: variednews: BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Opens at Natio... : WASHINGTON, Jan. 31: BetMGM and the Washington Nationals announced t...

variednews: BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Opens at Natio...

variednews: BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Opens at Natio...: WASHINGTON, Jan. 31: BetMGM and the Washington Nationals announced today the opening of the first retail sportsbook connected to a Major...

BetMGM Retail Sportsbook Officially Opens at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31: BetMGM and the Washington Nationals announced today the opening of the first retail sportsbook connected to a Major League Baseball stadium. The BetMGM Sportsbook at Nationals Park is open year-round, providing sports fans an innovative entertainment destination to watch and wager on games. "We're constantly pushing the boundaries to deliver sports fans unique experiences, and that's just what we've done with the new BetMGM Sportsbook at Nationals Park," said Adam Greenblatt, CEO of BetMGM. "Whether fans are attending baseball games or looking for a place to watch any sporting event, the BetMGM Sportsbook at Nationals Park is bound to be one of the most engaging sports viewing environments in the District." Publicly accessible from N Street SE next to Center Field Gate, the new sportsbook features 40 big-screen TVs with live odds boards that update as the action progresses. Visitors can place wagers directly with cashiers at six betting windows or utilize user-friendly betting kiosks. Additionally, the BetMGM Sportsbook offers full-service beverage and dining options. Alan Gottlieb, Chief Operating Officer of Lerner Sports, said, "The BetMGM Sportsbook at Nationals Park represents the newest way in which we are providing our fans with the best experiences in sports and entertainment. Upon its opening, the sportsbook immediately becomes one of the neighborhood's premier venues for both the savvy bettor and casual fan to watch the top events in an upscale and electric atmosphere." The retail sportsbook complements the BetMGM app that launched in Washington, D.C. in June 2021, allowing users to place mobile wagers within a two-block radius of Nationals Park. Today's news is the latest phase of BetMGM's multi-year, exclusive partnership with the Washington Nationals. Greenblatt continued, "The D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region is a great look into how we're seeking to expand the BetMGM platform with a variety of unique experiences for our customers. They can utilize the BetMGM mobile app anywhere in Virginia, can visit the newly opened retail sportsbook at MGM National Harbor in Maryland, and now in D.C., they can access the first sportsbook connected to a Major League Baseball stadium. We've established great partnerships that allow us to bring these one-of-a-kind touchpoints to the DMV." The newly created sportsbook will be located in the space previously known as Center Field Social, across Center Field Plaza from the Nationals Team Store. It will not be accessible by fans while they are in attendance at a Nationals game, but fans will be able to place bets via BetMGM's mobile app. By the Numbers: BetMGM Sportsbook at Nationals Park Number of TVs: 40 Size: 4,000 square feet Capacity: 187 Hours of Operation: Seven Days a Week, 11:00 a.m. - Midnight As BetMGM continues to expand to new areas, responsible gaming education remains a key focus. BetMGM is proud to provide resources to help customers play responsibly. For more information on BetMGM, follow @BetMGM on Twitter. About BetMGM BetMGM is a market leading sports betting and gaming entertainment company, pioneering the online gaming industry. Born out of a partnership between MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and Entain Plc (LSE: ENT), BetMGM has exclusive access to all of MGM Resorts' U.S. land-based and online sports betting, major tournament poker, and online gaming businesses. Utilizing Entain's U.S.-licensed, state of the art technology, BetMGM offers sports betting and online gaming via market leading brands including BetMGM, Borgata Casino, Party Casino and Party Poker. Founded in 2018, BetMGM is headquartered in New Jersey. For more information, visit http://www.betmgminc.com/.

variednews: variednews: Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility...

variednews: variednews: Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility...: variednews: Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility Division to... : ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Cox Automotive has signalled its future mobility i...

variednews: Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility Division to...

variednews: Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility Division to...: ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Cox Automotive has signalled its future mobility intent with the launch of a new global division – Cox Automotive Mobi...

Cox Automotive Unveils Global Mobility Division to Serve World's Fleets

ATLANTA, Jan. 31: Cox Automotive has signalled its future mobility intent with the launch of a new global division – Cox Automotive Mobility – targeting emerging transport technologies. Cox Automotive Mobility will guide the growth of mobility-focused digital and physical services, product development and investments throughout the U.S., UK, Continental Europe, Canada and Mexico, with additional geographic expansion planned in the future. The announcement of the new global division follows a historic 12 months during which Cox Automotive made several strategic acquisitions, including leading service provider for EV battery lifecycle management, Spiers New Technologies, and specialist cloud-based workflow technology business, FleetMaster. Designed to service OEMs, automotive dealers and fleet providers, Cox Automotive Mobility encompasses four business solution areas – Fleet Services, Fleet Operations, EV Battery Solutions and Emerging Ventures. "Last year was a landmark year for Cox Automotive Mobility," said Steve Rowley, president of Cox Automotive. "We've built the global tools and engine to power our clients' growth across borders, enabling dealers, automakers and fleet customers to capitalize on business opportunities only Cox Automotive can provide within our fully-integrated Global Mobility architecture. As our partners race toward an ever-changing mobility future, we'll be there to lead them." Game-changing Mobility Solutions With Governments worldwide legislating to end the production of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and unveiling environmental targets to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions, the question of electric battery lifecycle management will only intensify. Cox Automotive Mobility's EV Battery Solutions is set to play an important role in addressing these environmental challenges, including pre-treatment battery recycling services. Furthermore, with the health of EV batteries in a growing global EV parc undoubtedly influencing future remarketing values, Cox Automotive's battery health diagnostic tool built in partnership with Spiers New Technologies will become the third-party, industry standard to assess the condition and value EV batteries. Keeping pace with the changes in the mobility landscape requires agility and flexibility. Changes in vehicle ownership and usership are driving new business models, including short-term rental, vehicle-as-a-service and vehicle subscription. Bolstered by FleetMaster capabilities, the Cox Automotive Mobility platform enables fleet and mobility owners and operators to pivot and adapt their products and services to meet the needs of this ever-changing marketplace; a game-changer for the market. Global Operations for an Evolving Mobility Landscape Cox Automotive Mobility is led by President Joe George, who will oversee operational strategy for the division, as well as continuing to run U.S. operations. Paul Humphreys has been appointed to Managing Director of Mobility, Cox Automotive International, overseeing strategy, execution and operations outside the U.S. "The opportunities for organizations operating in fleet and consumer transport are limitless," said Joe George, President of Cox Automotive Global Mobility. "By combining the scale and expertise of one global vision, with bespoke market-led data and insights, we are enabling a safer, cleaner and more connected transportation ecosystem with operational efficiencies that can be realized for our partners worldwide." Paul Humphreys, Managing Director of Mobility, Cox Automotive International, added: "More consumers are choosing to use vehicles as and when they need them as opposed to owning them outright. The definition of ownership is being redefined, enabled by ever-evolving finance and lease models. Through Cox Automotive Mobility, we are empowering our customers and partners in the UK and Europe to take advantage of the opportunities the mobility landscape has to offer." About Cox Automotive Cox Automotive Inc. makes buying, selling, owning and using vehicles easier for everyone. The global company's more than 27,000 team members and family of brands, including Autotrader®, Dealer.com®, Dealertrack®, Dickinson Fleet Services®, Kelley Blue Book®, Manheim®, NextGear Capital®, VinSolutions®, vAuto® and Xtime®, are passionate about helping millions of car shoppers, 40,000 auto dealer clients across five continents and many others throughout the automotive industry thrive for generations to come. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately-owned, Atlanta-based company with annual revenues of nearly $20 billion. www.coxautoinc.com

variednews: variednews: Artivion Announces Publication of On-X...

variednews: variednews: Artivion Announces Publication of On-X...: variednews: Artivion Announces Publication of On-X® Mitral Hea... : ATLANTA, Jan. 31:Artivion, Inc. (NYSE: AORT), a leading cardiac and ...

variednews: Artivion Announces Publication of On-X® Mitral Hea...

variednews: Artivion Announces Publication of On-X® Mitral Hea...: ATLANTA, Jan. 31:Artivion, Inc. (NYSE: AORT), a leading cardiac and vascular surgery company focused on aortic disease, today announced ...

Artivion Announces Publication of On-X® Mitral Heart Valve PROACT Study Results in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

ATLANTA, Jan. 31:Artivion, Inc. (NYSE: AORT), a leading cardiac and vascular surgery company focused on aortic disease, today announced the publication of PROACT clinical trial results in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, the official journal of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. The publication, titled Low-Dose Versus Standard Warfarin After Mechanical Mitral Valve Replacement: A Randomized Controlled Trial, https://www.annalsthoracicsurgery.org/article/S0003-4975(22)00138-2/fulltext, highlighted outcomes from the multicenter, non-inferiority, two-arm study which assessed whether, after an On-X mechanical mitral valve replacement (MVR), patients could be safely managed with lower-intensity warfarin plus aspirin. The results were published online on January 29, 2022. In tandem with the publication, the study results were presented at the 2022 Annual Meeting for The Society of Thoracic Surgeons on January 30, 2022. "The PROACT Mitral results add to the data from clinical trials we have sponsored showing that patients with our On-X heart valves can be safely maintained with lower anticoagulation levels than required for competitors' mechanical valves. We continue investing in scientific studies to improve and simplify the lives of prosthetic heart valve patients. In addition, the ongoing PROACT Xa trial aims to prove that patients with the On-X aortic valve can be safely maintained on apixaban, without the need for routine anticoagulation blood tests," said Pat Mackin, Chairman, President and CEO of Artivion, Inc. Michael W. A. Chu, M.D., FRCSC, Chair/Chief of Cardiac Surgery at London Health Sciences Centre, Western University, London, ON, Canada, and lead author for the PROACT mitral clinical trial, said, "this randomized trial has very important and reassuring findings for patients with unrepairable mitral valve disease. Patients with an On-X mechanical mitral valve can be reassured that a lower INR target is safe, without any increased risk of blood clots or stroke, which may help to alleviate some of the concerns with anticoagulation management with a mechanical valve. We believe this research represents one of the most important advances in the clinical management of mechanical mitral valves over the past 2 decades and will potentially have important practice and guideline changing implications. We are proud to have presented it at the Society of Thoracic Surgeons' Annual Meeting along with simultaneous publication in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery." About the On-X Mechanical Heart Valve PROACT Trial The On-X Mechanical Heart Valve PROACT clinical trial was a two-armed, multicenter, non-inferiority trial to determine if patients with an On-X mechanical mitral valve replacement (MVR) can be safely managed with lower-intensity warfarin plus aspirin. After On-X mechanical mitral valve replacement followed by at least 3 months of standard anticoagulation, 401 patients at 44 North American centers were randomized to low-dose warfarin (target INR 2.0 to 2.5) or standard-dose warfarin (target INR 2.5 to 3.5). All patients were prescribed aspirin 81 mg daily and encouraged to use home INR testing. Mean patient follow-up was 4.1 years with a maximum follow-up of 8 years. No differences in bleeding, valve thrombosis, or thromboembolism rates were observed between patient groups treated with low-dose vs standard-dose warfarin. This study demonstrates that a lower target INR is safe and feasible for patients with an On-X mechanical valve in the mitral position. The U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently reviewing the labeling change recommendation for the On-X mechanical mitral valve based on this clinical trial. About the On-X Mechanical Heart Valve On-X mechanical heart valves are made with the most advanced design and materials in the industry including length-to-diameter ratio similar to a native valve, an inlet flared orifice, a leaflet opening up to 90 degrees, an actuated pivot, and pure pyrolytic carbon. These key features translate into laminar flow, low gradients, and reduced thrombogenicity making it the most clinically beneficial lifelong heart valve replacement option available for patients today. About Artivion Headquartered in suburban Atlanta, Georgia, Artivion, Inc. is a medical device company focused on developing simple, elegant solutions that address cardiac and vascular surgeons' most difficult challenges in treating patients with aortic diseases. This multinational company's four major groups of products include: aortic stents and stent grafts, prosthetic heart valves, cryopreserved cardiac and vascular allografts, and surgical sealants. Artivion markets and sells products in more than 100 countries worldwide. For additional information about Artivion, visit our website, www.artivion.com

variednews: variednews: Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System

variednews: variednews: Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System: variednews: Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System : WARSAW, Poland, Jan. 31:Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced the ...

variednews: Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System

variednews: Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System: WARSAW, Poland, Jan. 31:Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced the completion of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) soft...

Warsaw Metro Deploys New Infor ERP System

WARSAW, Poland, Jan. 31:Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced the completion of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software implementation of Infor LN™ at the Warsaw underground company Metro Warszawskie by Infor partner S&T. Learn more about Infor LN: https://www.infor.com/solutions/erp/ln Warsaw's underground railway services are used by up to 750,000 commuters a day, totalling nearly 200 million passengers annually. As the network is expanded — the second line extension is nearing completion and the construction of the M3 line is planned — these numbers will grow. The company employs 2,600 staff. In addition to passenger transport, the company has responsibility for the day-to-day maintenance and operation of the tunnels, stations, rolling stock and equipment as well as supervision over construction works. New challenges, new solutions With the ongoing expansion of its business and increasing scale of its operations, the Warsaw Metro was looking for a modern software-based solution to effectively manage the increasingly complex technologies, operations, information and resources; facilitate taking the right decisions to boost operational excellence and lead to top customer satisfaction levels. After an in-depth analysis of the market and available solutions, the Infor LN enterprise application was chosen. Metro Warszawskie was looking for a system that would support its operations in a holistic manner. The absolutely top priorities were support for the day-to-day business and the tools for advanced analytics to turn its abundant data into actionable business insights. "A key to the project was the migration of data involving the transfer of over 95,000 records from previously-used applications. Without this process and the involvement of key users, it would not have been possible to launch the new solution," said Radosław Zacharewicz, S&T's enterprise solution architect. One of the main expectations for the new system was to accommodate business requirements as much as possible through standard system functions. As a result, it was possible to shorten the time necessary for the implementation of the new solution and to reduce expenditures on system maintenance. Thanks to the Infor LN technology, the business-critical maintenance and traffic continuity assurance management requirements were delivered immediately without customisation or software modifications. The system was activated based on infrastructural solutions that use cloud technologies available as platform-as-a-service (PaaS). The software was additionally provided with Infor's cloud platform, Infor OS®, interworking with the domain systems of the Warsaw Metro and ensuring support and management of the IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things). The business results The new system supports an effective fulfilment of the Warsaw Metro's business needs and technical requirements. Thanks to the implementation of the cutting-edge ERP system, the Warsaw Metro can optimise and boost the effectiveness of managing the key area processes, such as traffic maintenance and continuity, overhauls, finances and controlling, sales, procurement, or inventory management. Since Infor LN combines data and processes with business applications and technical and operations knowledge resources, it is capable of delivering detailed business insights using the information retrieved from the measurement and control automation systems. The new system was delivered and commissioned for over 400 direct users. Thanks to S&T ensuring a virtual maintenance environment in a PaaS model, the legacy financial book-keeping software was efficiently and safely decommissioned. "We have delivered the Warsaw Metro implementation using the Prince2™ compliant project management methodology. The system development and commissioning were split into two stages. Though all the commissioning work was performed during the pandemic, thanks to the use of environment available in the PaaS model, we could perform the majority of operations remotely, thus limiting all the physical customer contacts to an absolute minimum. The solution delivered by S&T met the majority of customers' business requirements without the need for any software modifications to be made to the standard software release. The quick and effective contract performance proves our high competencies in the implementation of the state-of-the-art IT business management support tools," concludes Radosław Zacharewicz. "Warsaw Metro users often do not realize the challenges involved in managing such a highly specialised company to provide them with efficient transportation. The Infor LN system implemented in the Warsaw Metro is software developed for the leading global enterprises with complex business needs. This is why we are confident that it will exceed what was expected of it and will contribute to speeding up the company's digital transition and to further improvement of its operational agility and give it a business effectiveness boost in all the key areas," said Mariusz Siwek, Infor's sales director for Poland and Baltics. About the Metro Warszawskie sp. z o.o. The Warsaw Metro (Metro Warszawskie) is a state-of-the-art rapid transit system. Its key job is the underground railway passenger transport in Warsaw, day-to-day maintenance and operation of the rolling stock, equipment, and facilities as well as the supervision of investments and construction works on the expansion of the city's underground network. The company is the user of the underground infrastructure (tunnels, stations) made available to it by the Capital City of Warsaw and is responsible for its upkeep. The company is owned by the Capital City of Warsaw. Visit https://www.metro.waw.pl/strona-glowna About S&T S&T is one of the largest IT integrators in Central and Eastern Europe. The company has been associated with the Polish IT services market for over 50 years. It belongs to an international group employing over 5,000 employees in 32 countries around the world. In Poland, S&T focuses on the implementation of IT technologies in the area of hardware infrastructure and network solutions. S&T also specializes in the implementation of ERP, APS, MES, SCADA, BI and EAM business management systems. The company also provides services in the field of designing dedicated business applications. As one of the few entities on the market, it has its own network of 13 service offices located throughout the country, ensuring local support for users 24/7. S&T employs over 450 employees in Poland, including certified programmers, IT architects, support engineers, analysts, software testers, network administration specialists, experts in hardware infrastructure management and implementation consultants in the fields of: finance, controlling, sales, logistics, retail and manufacturing. The contract with Metro Warszawskie is another S&T agreement for the implementation of an ERP class system in the public transport sector in Poland. Visit http://www.snt.pl/ About Infor Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. We develop complete solutions for our focus industries, including industrial manufacturing, distribution, healthcare, food & beverage, automotive, aerospace & defense, and high tech. Infor's mission-critical enterprise applications and services are designed to deliver sustainable operational advantages with security and faster time to value. We are obsessed with delivering successful business outcomes for customers. Over 65,000 organizations in more than 175 countries rely on Infor's 17,000 employees to help achieve their business goals. As a Koch company, our financial strength, ownership structure, and long-term view empower us to foster enduring, mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. Visit www.infor.com.

variednews: variednews: Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j ope...

variednews: variednews: Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j ope...: variednews: Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j opening doors f... : PRAGUE, Jan. 31:Avast (LSE:AVST), a global leader in digital security...

variednews: Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j opening doors f...

variednews: Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j opening doors f...: PRAGUE, Jan. 31:Avast (LSE:AVST), a global leader in digital security and privacy released its Q4/2021 threat report today, revealing an ...

Avast Q4/2021 Threat Report: Log4j opening doors for new attacks while ransomware and RAT attacks on decline

PRAGUE, Jan. 31:Avast (LSE:AVST), a global leader in digital security and privacy released its Q4/2021 threat report today, revealing an immediate exploitation of the Log4j vulnerability by coinminers, RATs, botnets, ransomware, and APTs, in December putting CISO departments under pressure. Furthermore, Avast's threat researchers observed the revival of the Emotet botnet, and a 40% rise in coinminers, posing risks for consumers and businesses alike. The Q4 findings likewise show an increase in adware, technical support scams on desktop, and subscription scams and spyware on Android devices, targeting consumers. At the same time, Avast saw less ransomware and remote access trojan (RAT) activity. "Towards the end of the year, the extremely dangerous, ubiquitous, and easy to abuse Log4j vulnerability made CISO departments sweat, and rightly so, as it was weaponized by attackers spreading everything from coinminers to bots to ransomware," said Jakub Kroustek, Avast Malware Research Director. "On the other hand, we are happy to report decreases in RAT, information stealer, and ransomware attacks. RAT activity died down thanks to the holidays, with bad actors even going as far as copying the DcRat remote access trojan and renaming it 'SantaRat'. We saw a slight decrease in information stealer activity, likely due to a significant decrease in infections through password and information stealer Fareit, which dropped by 61% vs. the previous quarter," noted Jakub Kroustek. "The havoc ransomware caused in the first three quarters of 2021 triggered a coordinated cooperation of nations, government agencies, and security vendors to hunt down ransomware authors and operators, and we believe all of this resulted in a significant decrease in ransomware attacks in Q4/2021. The ransomware risk ratio decreased by an impressive 28% compared to Q3/2021. We hope to see a continuation of this trend in Q1/2022, but we are also prepared for the opposite." Cybercriminals attacking businesses via Log4j vulnerability and via RATs abusing Azure and AWS The vulnerability in Log4j, a Java logging library, proved extremely dangerous for businesses because of the ubiquity of the library and the ease of exploitation. Avast researchers observed coinminers, RATs, bots, ransomware, and APT groups abusing the vulnerability. Various botnets abused the vulnerability, including the infamous Mirai botnet. Most bot attacks were just probes testing the vulnerability, but Avast also noticed numerous attempts to load potentially malicious code. For instance, some RATs were spread using the vulnerability, the most prevalent of which were NanoCore, AsyncRat and Orcus. A low-quality ransomware, called Khonsari, was the first ransomware the researchers saw exploiting the vulnerability. In addition to exploiting the Log4j vulnerability to spread RATs, cybercriminals exploited the CVE-2021-40449 vulnerability, which was used to elevate permissions of malicious processes by exploiting the Windows kernel driver. Attackers used this vulnerability to download and launch the MistarySnail RAT. Moreover, a very important cause of high NanoCore and AsyncRat detections was caused by a malicious campaign abusing the cloud providers, Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Service (AWS). In this campaign malware attackers used Azure and AWS as download servers for their malicious payloads to attack businesses. Moreover, Avast researchers saw the bad actors behind Emotet rewrite several of its parts, reviving their machinery, and taking the botnet market back with the latest Emotet reincarnation. Adware, Coinminers, and Tech Support Scams Targeting Consumers Desktop adware and rootkit activity increased in Q4/2021. Avast researchers believe these trends are related to the Cerbu rootkit, which can hijack browser homepages and redirect site URLs according to the rootkit configuration. Cerbu can therefore easily be deployed and configured for adware, annoying victims with unwanted ads and capable of adding a backdoor to victims' machines. While the Bitcoin price increased at the end of 2021, the number of coinminers spreading increased by 40%, often via infected web pages and pirated software. CoinHelper was one of the prevalent coinminers very active throughout Q4/2021, mostly targeting users in Russia and the Ukraine. Coinminers stealthily abuse a user's computing power to mine crypto currencies, which can cause high electricity bills and impact the lifespan of the user's hardware. Additionally, CoinHelper harvests various information about its victims including their geolocation, antivirus solution they have installed, and hardware they are using. Despite observing multiple crypto currencies configured to be mined, including Ethereum and Bitcoin, Monero stood out to Avast researchers in particular. Monero is designed to be anonymous, however, the wrong usage of addresses and the mechanics of how mining pools work, enabled the researchers to gain deeper insights into the malware authors' Monero mining operation. They found that the total monetary gain from the CoinHelper coinminer was 339,694.86 USD as of November, 29, 2021. In the month of December, it mined an additional ~15.162 XMR, ~3,446.03 USD. CoinHelper is still actively spreading, with the ability to mine ~0.474 XMR every day. The Avast threat researchers also observed a spike of tech support scams, tricking the user into believing they have a technical problem, and scamming them into calling a hotline where they will be scammed to pay high support fees or grant remote access to their system. Premium SMS Subscription Scams and Spyware Stealing Facebook Credentials Spreading on Mobile Devices The Avast Threat Labs noted two mobile threats in the report: Ultima SMS and Facestealer. Ultima SMS, a premium SMS subscription scam resurfaced in the last few months. In October, Ultima SMS apps were available on the Play Store, mimicking legitimate applications and games, often featuring catchy adverts. Once downloaded, they prompted users to enter their phone number to access the app. Subsequently, users were subscribed to a premium SMS service that can cost up to $10 per week. The actors behind UltimaSMS extensively used social media to advertise their applications and accrued over 10M downloads as a result. Facestealer, spyware designed to steal Facebook credentials, resurfaced on multiple occasions in Q4/2021. The malware masquerades as photo editors, horoscopes, fitness apps and others. After using the app for a period of time, it prompts the user to sign in to Facebook to continue using the app, without adverts. For more detailed information visit the full report: https://decoded.avast.io/threatresearch/avast-q4-21-threat-report/ About Avast: Avast (LSE:AVST), a FTSE 100 company, is a global leader in digital security and privacy, headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic. With over 435 million users online, Avast offers products under the Avast and AVG brands that protect people from threats on the internet and the evolving IoT threat landscape. The company's threat detection network is among the most advanced in the world, using machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies to detect and stop threats in real time. Avast digital security products for Mobile, PC or Mac are top-ranked and certified by VB100, AV-Comparatives, AV-Test, SE Labs and others. Avast is a member of Coalition Against Stalkerware, No More Ransom, and the Internet Watch Foundation. Visit: www.avast.com. Keep in touch with Avast: For security and privacy insights, visit the Avast blog: https://blog.avast.com/ For in-depth technical analysis of threats, visit the Avast Decoded blog: https://decoded.avast.io/ For handy guides, advice and tips, visit Avast Academy: https://www.avast.com/c-academy For more information about Avast visit: https://www.avast.com/en-gb/about and https://www.avast.com/company-faqs Follow us on Twitter: @Avast Join our LinkedIn community: https://www.linkedin.com/company/avast Visit our Facebook group: www.facebook.com/avast Media Contact: PR@avast.com

variednews: variednews: CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint...

variednews: variednews: CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint...: variednews: CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint Maggie Sun ... : SINGAPORE, Jan. 31: CTH Group, a leading company in the blockchain an...

variednews: CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint Maggie Sun ...

variednews: CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint Maggie Sun ...: SINGAPORE, Jan. 31: CTH Group, a leading company in the blockchain and digital asset ecosystem, and its sister company, Atlas Technology ...

CTH Group and Atlas Technology Appoint Maggie Sun as Chief Financial Officer in Global Hiring Blitz

SINGAPORE, Jan. 31: CTH Group, a leading company in the blockchain and digital asset ecosystem, and its sister company, Atlas Technology Management Pte. Ltd (Atlas), one of the world's largest companies in application specific computing, announced today the appointment of Maggie Sun as Chief Financial Officer for both entities. CTH founder and CEO, Raymond Yuan said: "I'm very pleased to welcome Maggie at this pivotal period for our companies. We are bracing for rapid global expansion, and we will benefit tremendously from her extensive knowledge and track record to elevate our financial practices. Maggie's capital market experience will also allow us to weigh private and public fundraising options to fuel our ambitious growth." In addition to the day-to-day management of Atlas's financial reporting and strategic direction, Sun will oversee the financial operations including strategy, performance reporting, capital markets activities and investor relations across the Group's venture capital firm Fundamental Labs and digital asset focused asset manager, IDEG. "I'm excited to take on the positions as CFO for CTH and Atlas which are in the critical stage of expanding their global footprint in the blockchain and digital assets ecosystem. Blockchain technology is driving extraordinary innovation and value creation in our daily lives, and I'm thrilled to be contributing to its growth. Atlas has the potential to be one of the global leaders in its field and I welcome the opportunity to share its story with the capital markets," said Maggie Sun. Sun is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of global experience in finance operations and capital markets advisory spanning New York to Silicon Valley and Asia. Before joining CTH, she was a Partner in the Operating Group of SoftBank Investment Advisors ("Vision Fund"). Prior to that, she was a Partner at Ernst & Young and PwC. Atlas saw unprecedented growth in 2021 and has aggressive hiring targets to achieve its expansion ambitions in 2022. Yuan added, "The blockchain sectors are growing, and talent is in high demand. In addition to enhancing our senior leadership team, we continue to hire across all our companies. Fundamental Labs and IDEG are garnering significant interest from high performers wishing to leave traditional finance, meanwhile Atlas continues to attract high caliber talent around the world." About CTH Group The CTH Group is a leading company in the blockchain and digital asset ecosystem. Following a distinctive strategy, we have a triangular business structure including venture capital investment, high-performance computing, and digital asset focused asset management. We bring value-added insights, operate distributed computing networks, and connect mainstream capital with the new asset class. Founded in 2016, our company has footprints across multiple countries and regions, covering the major innovation centers in the blockchain ecosystem. About Atlas Atlas is a Singapore headquartered technology group offering a broad range of value-added services including high-performance computing, application specific computing, hosting and cloud services, hardware distribution, and associated consulting services. The company's main revenue stream comes from maintaining and supplying computing capacity across blockchain networks. Currently, Atlas operates high-performance computing facilities in North America and Central Asia, with plans to expand operations in northern Europe and/or South America. Atlas is one of the largest companies in application specific computing (ASIC).