COVID-19 Alert - 27 October 2020

27 October 2020

This alert was created automatically by our award-winning intelligence product Silobreaker Online. Story selection is determined by an algorithm and based on queries initially set by a Silobreaker user. Contact us here for more information.

Actions by Governments

Anger over Italy virus rules as curfews enforced around… (Mail Online UK)
As Singapore gradually opens its borders, we need to be mindful of a second COVID-19 wave (Channel NewsAsia)
Belgian doctors infected with coronavirus told to keep working (9News.com.au)
COVID-19 In Europe: Germany Deliberates New Measures To Tackle Pandemic (International Business Times)
China aims to end extreme poverty, but COVID-19 exposes gaps (Hartford Courant)
Countries must work closer in fighting COVID-19, Germany says (Reuters)
Germany Inc fears the worst as second wave takes hold (Telegraph)
Germany mulls additional COVID-19 restrictions (Deutsche Welle)
Gyms, leisure centres close amid new Covid-19 restrictions in Italy (ONE News)
How will a second hard lockdown and a covid-19 second wave affect South Africa ? (567 CapeTalk)
Iran extends curbs as it reports one virus death every four minutes (The Straits Times All News)
Iran reports COVID-19 death every four minutes, extends curbs (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Italy, not wanting a covid lockdown again, shows peril of targeted restrictions (Washington Post)
Italy’s Conte begins to lose his lustre as second wave takes hold (FT.com – World, Europe)
Lessons of pandemic key as Ireland stands at crossroads (Irish Times)
Malaysia reports 835 new Covid-19, slightly lower than record figure on Monday (The Straits Times All News)
School trips in Japan go virtual during pandemic (JapanTimes.co.jp)
Spain Unemployment Hit 16.26% Amid COVID-19 Fallout (InsideBusinessOnline.com)
The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (NationalPost.com)
The latest numbers on COVID-19 in Canada for Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020 (NationalPost.com)
UK – ‘Mask tax’ row as Rishi Sunak refuses to extend VAT holiday on PPE (Telegraph)
UK – Boris Johnson under pressure to detail `road-map out of… (Mail Online UK)
UK – Boris Johnson’s promised coronavirus inquiry will not start for many months, No 10 suggests (The Independent)
UK – Matt Hancock doesn’t expect coronavirus vaccine rollout until ‘first half of 2021’ (Sky News Latest)
UK – UK government warns restaurants against exploiting Covid-19 loophole (FT.com – Travel & Leisure)
US – 614 Minnesota hospital beds filled with COVID-19 patients (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
US – Coronavirus behind two-thirds of excess deaths in US: CDC (FOXNews.com)
US – Coronavirus outbreak at Massachusetts nursing home leaves 5 dead (FOXNews.com)
US – Editorial: Looking forward, how can Virginia — and the nation — prepare better amid this ongoing pandemic? (Richmond.com)
US – Editorial: Trump administration admits it has surrendered to the coronavirus (STLtoday.com)
US – Global pandemic hits home in the West Virginia mountains (star-telegram.com)
US – Idaho governor orders return to some COVID-19 restrictions (star-telegram.com)
US – Kentucky governor expected to issue new COVID-19 recommendations Monday (Louisville Courier-Journal)
US – Missouri virus hospitalizations rising as data problem fixed (STLtoday.com)
US – NIAIDNews – RT @NIH: #NIH @NIAIDNews Director Dr. Anthony Fauci knows it’s very important to #FightFlu during the #COVID19 pandemic. Getting vaccinated… (NIAIDNews – Twitter)
US – NIAIDNews – RT @nih_nhlbi: How will #COVID19 impact people living with HIV? @reprievetrial is examining whether statin therapy protects against or decr… (NIAIDNews – Twitter)
US – Other states are watching COVID-19 rates rise. California’s coronavirus numbers are steady (Fresno Bee)
US – Statement—NIH-Sponsored ACTIV-3 Trial Closes LY-CoV555 Sub-Study (NIAID)
US – The Trump administration’s covid-19 message: You’re on your own. Try not to die. (Washington Post)
US – Thieves take $1.5m worth of gloves meant for hospitals as Florida battles pandemic (ONE News)
US – Transparency from Texas government crucial amid pandemic (San Antonio Express-News.com)
US – Trump administration offers conflicting messages on COVID-19 pandemic (CBS News)
US – We finally know the Trump administration’s pandemic strategy: Surrender (Washington Post)
WHO’s latest situation report (WHO)

Actions by Companies

AirAsia resumes in-flight dining experience options to pre-booked orders (Business Standard India)
Airports Company South Africa makes R1.2 billion profit, sees 1% decline in departing passengers (IOL)
Amex sweetens premium card rewards, again, with new Uber perks (AmericanBanker.com)
Arab Bank Group reports nine months 2020 net profit of $215.2 million (bizbahrain)
AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine On Track for Possible Year-End Rollout (TheStreet.com)
AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson resume Phase 3 vaccine trials (CNBC)
AstraZeneca poised to deliver first batches of COVID-19 vaccine to London hospitals next week (Seeking Alpha)
BP returns to profit but pandemic weighs on demand (BBC News – Business)
Covid-19 cases turn investors, bank earnings, Alibaba on grocery delivery (FT.com – Companies)
DP World posts 3.1% growth in Q3 container volume handling (Khaleej Times)
Global Cyber Security Market (2020 to 2025) – Featuring AWS, Check Point Software Technologies & NTT Security Among Others (Yahoo! Finance UK and Ireland)
Goldman Sachs Foundation President Asahi Pompey: Why we’re actually seeing businesses starting amid a pandemic (Yahoo! Singapore)
Huawei CFO’s lawyers set to grill witnesses as U.S. extradition case resumes (Today Online)
IDBI Bank board to mull fund raising (Business Standard India)
Kotak Mahindra Bank Q2 Pressure on asset quality evident as uncertainty caused by Covid continues (Moneycontrol.com)
Lilly antibody drug fails in study, others go on (New Zealand Herald)
Lufthansa to ground more planes during winter as pandemic bites (The Straits Times All News)
Mahindra Finance Q2 PAT jumps 34% to Rs 351 cr (Business Standard India)
Moody’s – Coronavirus makes difficult operating environment for European retail landlords harder (Business Insider)
Moody’s – Coronavirus to accelerate changes in China’s health insurance business models (Business Insider)
Moody’s – Pandemic fallout keeps number of companies in crossover zone at record high in Q3 2020 (Business Insider)
MultiChoice Uganda donates personal protective equipment Kampala, National Covid-19 Task Force (Telecompaper)
Nippon Paint elevates its philanthropic goals with “We Care We Share by Nippon Paint” (Bangkok Post)
Nissan to boost production capacity in China amid pickup in demand (Mainichi JP)
Novartis CEO says 2020 guidance could be affected if COVID-19 lockdowns resume (Reuters UK)
Novartis Raises Forecast as Drugmaker Weathers Covid-19 (Bloomberg-Quint)
Oxford vaccine prompts immune response in elderly: AstraZeneca (Al Jazeera)
Rolls-Royce to temporarily close factories, cut benefits, says report (Business Standard India)
SAP shares drop as lockdowns prompt corporates to curb spending (Telegraph)
Samsung Display said to get US licences to supply some panels to Huawei (South China Morning Post)
Santander back to profit after quicker customer recovery (FT.com – Companies)
Tata Motors: Nothing To Look At (Seeking Alpha)
US toymaker Hasbro upbeat on demand for games ahead of holiday season (FT.com – Travel & Leisure)
Walmart Store Changes: Retailer Extends Store Hours Amid Holiday Shopping Season (International Business Times)
We are still in the ‘early stage’ of economic recovery from the pandemic: JPMorgan (CNBC)

Drugs, Treatments & Vaccines

Almost 20% of staff at Dublin hospital have antibody evidence of Covid-19 infection (Irish Times)
Americans share concerns over safety and side effects of a COVID-19 vaccine (CBS News)
Antibody levels drop by a quarter as second wave hits (City A.M.)
AstraZeneca reports promising coronavirus vaccine results after resuming clinical trial (FOX Business – Video)
COVID-19 pandemic: an opportunity for tobacco use cessation (Lancet)
Covid-19 vaccine could still work, scientists claim (Mail Online – Latest Stories)
Does the COVID-19 pandemic provide an opportunity to eliminate the tobacco industry? (Lancet)
Federal health researchers have halted testing a combination of a Covid-19 antibody drug and remdesivir in hospital… https://t.co/gkbzCpgSyh (WSJ – Twitter)
Flattening the curve on COVID-19 : South Korea’s measures in tackling initial outbreak of coronavirus (American Journal of Epidemiology)
Frailty and mortality in patients with COVID-19 (Lancet)
Governor: Nevada will be ready to deliver COVID-19 vaccine (Las Vegas Review Journal)
Lilly antibody drug fails in a COVID-19 study; others go on (San Diego Union Tribune)
The first approved COVID-19 drug is far from ‘amazing’ (Clusterstock)
University of Washington study shows hydroxychloroquine does not prevent COVID-19 (seattlepi.com)

Societal & Economic Impact

A family stimulus: supporting children, families and the economy through the pandemicAustralian Policy OnlineDescription Families in Britain are struggling. Although the job retention scheme and its scaled down successor, the job support scheme, have and will spare some job losses – without significant further government action next year, unemployment could…

Air pollution may hinder India’s fight against COVID-19, say scientistsDaily Excelsior.comNEW DELHI: The causal link between air pollution and COVID-19 cases is yet to be established conclusively but long-term exposure will certainly make people more vulnerable to lung infections, warn scientists as the skies over large parts of north…

How to minimize the impact of the coronavirus on the economyPolitico.euThe coronavirus pandemic is bad for business. Local lockdowns, restrictions on social gatherings and travel disruptions have slowed economic activity, cut off supply chains and forced companies to furlough or lay off workers. So far, injections of…

Italy rules spark protests as WHO warns of ‘pandemic fatigue’South China Morning PostProtesters turn out in Italian cities to vent anger over latest Covid-19 rules WHO chief says of pandemic fight: ‘We cannot give up’

Nigerian official says resurgence of COVID-19 possible due to protestsXinhua News AgencyABUJA, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) — A senior Nigerian official has expressed fears over a likely resurgence of COVID-19 cases following the recent mass protests calling for police reform in the country. For over two weeks, the country has witnessed a huge…

Spain’s COVID-19 state of emergency faces backlashNationalPost.comMADRID — The Spanish government faced a backlash on Monday over its plans to put the country, one of Europe's worst COVID-19 hotspots, under a state of emergency for six months….

Spanish unemployment rises to 16.3% amid pandemicDayton Daily NewsSpain was only just beginning to relish a recovery from the severe 2008-2013 financial crisis when the pandemic struck this year. The government earlier this month unveiled plans to spend 140 billion euros ($162 billion) of European Union aid to…

WHO, lack of contact-tracing drives the COVID-19 further into darknessAl ArabiyaLack of contact-tracing capacity in Europe, despite very high rates of positive tests, will drive the coronavirus further into the “darkness”, the World Health Organization’s top emergency expert told an online briefing on Monday. For more coronavirus…

Wall Street opens down as virus and stimulus uncertainty continueMail Online UKThe Dow plunged more than 570 points after the US hit new record high of daily coronavirus cases over the weekend.

Wall Street opens down as virus and stimulus uncertainty growMail Online UKVideo: BREAKING: Dow plunges more than 650 points after US hit new record high of daily coronavirus cases over the weekend The Dow plunged more than 570 points after the US hit new record high of daily coronavirus cases over the weekend.

Geopolitical Impact

2+2 Indo-US dialogue: India to gain US satellite data for military operations under BECAIndia TodayUS Secretary of Defence Mark Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are in Delhi for the 2+2 Indo-US dialogue and will hold meetings with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and EAM S Jaishankar on Tuesday. India will have access to US satellite data…

China gives six U.S. media outlets a week to report on operationsAsahi.comBEIJING–China’s foreign ministry has ordered six U.S. media outlets to report back on their operations in the country within seven days, after Washington said it was designating the U.S. arms of six more China-based media firms as foreign missions. T…

China launches three new spy satellites amid border dispute with India and tensions in the South China SeaBusiness Insider IndiaChina launched three new spy satellites dubbed the Yaogan-30 series to add to its military surveillance constellation — the Chuangxin-5. Experts believe these satellites are capable of using signal intelligence to detect ships by their radio…

Contesting neighbours, revised geopolitical playbooksThe HinduThe engagement by India and China in the West Asia region is a good example of their metamorphosing approaches The year 2020 has been a watershed moment for relations between India and China following the most serious clashes between the two…

Dubai Customs organises discussion on ‘Dubai and Global Trade: Challenges and Opportunities’WAM.ae BusinessDUBAI, 26th October, 2020 (WAM) — Dubai Customs’ Statistics section- Strategy and Corporate Excellence Department held a discussion session titled Dubai and Global Trade: Challenges and Opportunities in cooperation with Al Marifa (Knowledge)…

How BECA with US can help India in ‘another Balakot’; keep an eye on ChinaBusiness Standard IndiaThe in-person talks between India and the United States is taking place at a time when India is locked in a tense standoff with China in eastern Ladakh The in-person talks between India and the United States is taking place at a time when India is…

India should focus on epidemic instead of war with ChinaGlobal TimesA worker sanitizes the door of a shop at a market in Agartala, the capital city of India's northeastern state of Tripura, Oct. 18, 2020. (Str/Xinhua) War is always in the minds of some Indians, no matter how messy their domestic situation is. Bharatiya…

Pompeo lashes out at China at start of defence talks in India: ‘A threat to security and freedom’The IndependentMike Pompeo meets India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval before ministerial-level talks Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called for India and the US to work together…

Priti Patel ‘wants to increase counter-espionage powers’ of ‘Britain’s FBI’Mail Online UKPriti Patel wants to give National Crime Agency greater powers to tackle spying Thousands of spies from the likes of Russia and China are thought to be in Britain Home Office insists no formal decision has been made over changes to powers Priti Patel…

Vladimir Putin offers NATO site inspections to avoid missile buildupBusiness Standard IndiaRussian President Vladimir Putin proposed on Monday that NATO and Russia should conduct mutual inspections of each other's military bases Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed on Monday that NATO and Russia should conduct mutual inspections of…

Cybersecurity Impact

Credential Stuffing Attacks are Rising: ReportCywareCredential stuffing attacks are on the rise and cybercriminals are smartly utilizing this attack vector as a stepping stone for more substantial intrusions. Recently, a report by Akamai disclosed that over 100 billion credential stuffing attempts…

CyberScoopNews – What the FBI did to make headway against COVID-19 research hackers https://t.co/YXrl03GMNm by @timstarks… https://t.co/DQ7IySd51xCyberScoopNews – TwitterWhat the FBI did to make headway against COVID-19 research hackers https://hubs.ly/H0yC_qp0 by @timstarks #CyberTalks #CyberWeek https://twitter.com/CyberScoopNews/status/1320930973601665024/photo/1

Cyberattacks Evolve as the Hospitality and Travel Industry AdaptsSecurity Bloggers NetworkWhile the world fights against the COVID-19 pandemic, cybercriminals are out in full force with a multitude of scams designed to take advantage of the confusion and panic. COVID-19 has — by necessity — made us all more comfortable working,…

Dinosn – COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer suffers a data breach https://t.co/MweBjAQDhbDinosn – TwitterCOVID-19 vaccine manufacturer suffers a data breach https://securityaffairs.co/wordpress/109994/hacking/covid-19-vaccine-manufacturer-hacked.html

Dr. Reddy Labs discloses cyberattack soon after getting ok for final COVID vaccine trialSC Magazine USIndian pharmaceutical company Dr. Reddy Laboratories reported a cyber attack about a week after the company was granted permission to begin its final stage trials for a Russian COVID-19 vaccine. In a statement released by Dr. Reddy’s to the National…

Forrester: Insider threats, online sellers and non-U.S. cyber investment likely to riseSC Magazine USEver since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, businesses around the world have been grappling with the fallout and changing their IT operations on the fly. That has many research firms scrambling to revisit their IT or security market forecasts and pick up…

Insider data breaches set to increase in 2021 due to remote work shiftIT Pro UKA third (33%) of all data breach incidents in 2021 are expected to be caused by insiders, according to the latest Forrester Cyber Security Predictions report. This will be an 8% increase compared to 2020, during which 25% of data breaches were deemed…

Japanese drug firm Shionogi hit by cyberattack and data breachSeclists.org – Data LossPosted by Destry Winant on Oct 26…

Joy in Melbourne as lockdown lifted after ‘double zero’ dayStraits Times5:00 AM MELBOURNE • Australia's second-biggest city will this week exit its coronavirus lockdown following nearly four months under onerous restrictions, after no new daily cases or deaths were recorded.

The Future of Ransomware AttacksCywareRansomware operators are constantly evolving and gaining higher profits from their attacks. With the ongoing trend of such attacks, it is expected that the attacks will not slow down in the coming year. What’s going on? With businesses paying high…

Although Silobreaker has relied on what it regards as reliable sources while compiling the content herein, Silobreaker cannot guarantee the accuracy, completeness, integrity or quality of such content and no responsibility is accepted by Silobreaker in respect of such content. Readers must determine for themselves what reliance they should place on the compiled content herein.

27 October 2020

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