Listen: IT services cos stare at bleak FY21; Zoom and security lapses; SaaS cos pool resources to fight Covid-19

As we enter the third week of the 21-day national lockdown, there is talk of it being extended, as there has been a steady increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country. Many states have already announced an extension till April 30, even as we await clarity at the national level.

In this week’s episode:

• Indian software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies come together as part of SaaSBoomi to create a fund for startups in the sector to help them tide over the downturn for the next 9-12 months. 
• India’s $190 billion IT services industry prepares to report its first ever decline in annual sales, as projections take a hit due to the global lockdown due to Covid-19.
• Online communication platform Zoom, which has seen a 20-fold jump in user base in the past three months, came under fire for security breach. The California-based platform saw increased cases of Zoombombing, among other breaches. There has also been a rise in phishing attacks related to the pandemic -- 30,103 coronavirus-related new domain names were registered in the last two weeks. Also domain names similar to Zoom and Netflix have seen a spike as hackers shift focus from enterprises to those working from home. 
• Gurugram-based NBFC, Aye Finance raised $24 million in debt.
• Sequoia India also led a $12 million Series A round in agri-tech platform DeHaat. Skill-based gaming platform Zupee raised $8 million in a round led by Matrix India Partners.