The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) and the Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre (HKCERT) jointly held the "Build a Secure Cyberspace" webinar cum sticker design contest award presentation ceremony today (February 5). The theme of the webinar this year is "Secure Use of Mobile Devices", which aims to arouse public awareness of mobile device security.
      
     Speaking at the webinar, the Assistant Government Chief Information Officer, Mr Jason Pun, said that remote working, online learning and distance business have become part of the new normal amid the rampant COVID-19 epidemic, and mobile devices are now the most commonly used tools for accessing the Internet. He also reminded the public to stay vigilant to cyber security threats relating to mobile devices and to prevent cyber criminals from using leaked information for identity theft or other fraudulent purposes.
      
     Mr Pun emphasised, "Cyber security threats may come from the vulnerabilities or misconfiguration of a device itself, the communication network and mobile applications, etc. We all should pay extra attention to mobile security, take appropriate measures to enhance our defense and strengthen our vigilance to the information received so as not to fall victims to cyber attacks."
      
     Mr Pun also called on organisations that are using cloud services to formulate relevant security policies and codes, protect data on cloud platforms properly and adopt appropriate measures to enhance cyber security.
      
     In the webinar, representatives and experts from the OGCIO, the HKPF, as well as experts from the information security industry shared their experience and insights in various topics, including cloud services and fintech. The sticker design contest award presentation ceremony was also held alongside the webinar. Entries were judged in three categories, namely primary school, secondary school and open groups. Mr Pun praised the designs for being thoughtful and vivid, with security tips of mobile device protection impressively expressed through the distinctive characters on the stickers. The winning entries can be viewed and downloaded at the Cyber Security Information Portal (www.cybersecurity.hk/en/contest-2020.php).
      
     The "Build a Secure Cyberspace" campaign is an annual event co-organised by the OGCIO, the HKPF and the HKCERT. The campaign aims to raise public awareness of information security and enhance their cyber resilience capabilities through a variety of channels including websites, social media, radio broadcasting and school visits.

     The Food and Health Bureau announced today (February 5) that the 19 community testing centres in Hong Kong will remain open during the Lunar New Year to enable members of the public to undergo testing. The opening hours will be adjusted as follows:
 

 
    Starting from February 15 (the fourth day of Lunar New Year), the opening hours of community testing centres will resume as normal (open daily from 8am to 1.30pm and from 2.30pm to 8pm). Deep cleaning and disinfection will be conducted when the centres close in the afternoon and at night.
 
     Please refer to following webpage for information of the community testing centres: www.communitytest.gov.hk/en/.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (February 5) that the official foreign currency reserve assets of Hong Kong amounted to US$493.5 billion as at the end of January 2021 (end-December 2020: US$491.8 billion) (Annex).
 
     There were no unsettled foreign exchange contracts at end-January 2021 and end-December 2020.
 
     The total foreign currency reserve assets of US$493.5 billion represent over six times the currency in circulation or about 48 per cent of Hong Kong dollar M3.
 
****************************************************************

     At present, four press releases relating to the Exchange Fund's data are issued by the HKMA each month. Three of these releases are issued to disseminate monetary data in accordance with the International Monetary Fund's Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS). The fourth press release, on the Exchange Fund's Abridged Balance Sheet and Currency Board Account, is made in accordance with the HKMA's policy of maintaining a high level of transparency. For the month of February 2021, the scheduled dates for issuing the press releases are as follows:
 

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the People's Bank of China, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, China Securities Regulatory Commission, State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong and Monetary Authority of Macao have agreed on the principles of supervisory cooperation under the cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect, and signed the "Memorandum of Understanding on the Launch of the Cross-Boundary Wealth Management Connect Pilot Scheme in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area".
      
     By signing the Memorandum of Understanding, authorities in the three places aim to establish sound supervisory cooperation arrangements and liaison mechanism. This will lay a good foundation for the smooth operation of the scheme and the protection of investors' interest. The HKMA will continue to work with the relevant authorities to step up preparations for the cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect and keep the industry engaged, with a view to launching the scheme early.

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (February 5) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza in Uckermark District of the State of Brandenburg in Germany, and an notification from the Swedish Board of Agriculture about an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Mönsterås Municipality, Kalmar County in Sweden, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from Uckermark District and Oskarshamn Municipality, which is adjacent to Mönsterås Municipality, with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 3,900 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 1.41 million poultry eggs from Germany and about 1,550 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Sweden last year.

     "The CFS has contacted the German and Swedish authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE and relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.