Friday, 31 March 2017
UK leading in using red team cyber security testing
Red teaming is set to become a key approach to ensuring cyber security controls and processes are fit for purpose and compliant with regulations, and the UK is leading the way
BP stresses importance of apprentices to its DevOps and digital transformation plans
BP explains why IT apprentices are central to the success of its agile and DevOps ambitions, as well as its wider digital transformation programme
Enterprise wireless: trends and developments in 2017
What will be the main developments in wireless this year and what challenges will this bring to enterprises?
Wholesale fibre price cut to benefit broadband users, says Ofcom
Ofcom is to cut the wholesale price that Openreach can charge other service providers for its fibre-based broadband products
Blockchain starts to prove its value outside of finance
Technology behind bitcoin is being adopted in supply chains, power networks and even to support independent musicians
£200 million fund can speed up demand for speedy FTTP broadband
The value of the government’s £200m broadband fund should not be measured in monetary terms, but in terms of demand generation, says Lyndsey Burton, founder of comparison site Choose.co.uk
Rudd backs down on end-to-end encryption
Lib Dems welcome government’s apparent U-turn on seeking to restrict end-to-end encryption for popular messaging apps and online communication services
Nottingham Council tenants to get Hyperoptic broadband
Nottingham City Homes, which manages Nottingham Council’s public housing stock, has signed a supply deal with FTTP ISP Hyperoptic
Thursday, 30 March 2017
Security Think Tank: Business input will help keep security usable and cost effective
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Expanding business intelligence firm uses technology to bring in recruits
Chester-based GBG has saved £300,000 in recruitment points and seen its ‘Glassdoor’ ratings jump from 1.9 to 4.2 out of 5
Microsoft to shut Skype office in Sweden
Stockholm base sees 120 jobs put at risk as tech giant seeks to reduce its geographical spread
First cyber security startups graduate from GCHQ accelerator
The first group of companies has completed a government-led cyber accelerator programme aimed at helping UK startups take the lead in producing the next generation of cyber security systems, with another round to be announced in 2017
How to start building enterprise momentum for microservices
The maturity of containers has given the IT industry a new architectural approach to engineer applications using microservices. We look at whether it is ready for the enterprise.
Government announces autonomous vehicle contest
Business secretary Greg Clark launches a contest to access funding from the government’s £100m connected and autonomous vehicle funding pot
HMRC contractors leave over inside IR35 ruling
HMRC has begun classifying its public sector contractors as "inside IR35", prompting fears of a digital "brain drain" at the organisation
UK insurtech startups follow fintech example
UK startups focused on technology for insurance companies saw capital investments double last year
More than a quarter of SME staff lack cyber threat training
Data from cyber insurance provider CFC Underwriting shows that 38% of its claims in 2016 could have been avoided through better staff education and training on cyber risks
Nearly a third of malware attacks are zero-day exploits
Companies could be missing up to third of malware that is targeting them, according to a report by WatchGuard
Wednesday, 29 March 2017
Thorn CEO on using machine learning and tech partnerships to tackle online child sex abuse
The CEO of US-based no-profit Thorn explains how cross-industry collaboration and machine learning is helping her organisation stay one step ahead of online child sex abusers
Nordic CIO interview: Kari Finnskog, Västtrafik
Swedish transport authority has opened up its IT to ensure it provides customers with a service that suits them
How will the network manager’s role change in the SDN world?
We explore how traditional network managers are changing the habits of a lifetime as SDN remakes the enterprise network
Dads aren't the problem: we need mums onside to get girls into Stem
Fathers are rarely a barrier for girls trying to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and maths, but we need to get mothers on board, according to an expert panel
Russian Airline at home in the cloud
S7 Airlines in Russia looks set to move more of its IT to the cloud after successful infrastructure-as-a-service project
Girls across UK take part in cyber skills event to promote tech careers
Young women from across the UK took part in cyber security event CyberFirst Girls, designed to promote girls with cyber skills and encourage them to pursue careers in technology
Cyber defence just one of the skills next-gen IT professionals will need
Emerging technologies, the impact of Brexit and fintech companies are creating new opportunities for the next generation of IT professionals
Almost 40% of firms seeking cloud skills find it hard to recruit
Most orgainsations agree that cloud skills are important for the future, but those involved in recruitment are finding it difficult to hire talent
Security Think Tank: Four guidelines on how balance security, usability and cost
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Belfast Waterfront centre equipped with state of the art network
Belfast City Council has refitted its Waterfront conference and entertainment venue with new smart building connectivity to enhance the staff and visitor experience
Non-malware attacks pose bigger threat than malicious software
Malware-free cyber attacks are on the rise and artificial intelligence in cyber security is still far from replacing humans, according to most cyber security researchers
Are ethical questions holding back AI in France?
France has been slow to create a strategy around the use of artificial intelligence, partly due to questions around ethics
Cyber attacks cost financial firms up to £1.6m a time
The costs associated with cyber attacks on the financial sector are rising as organisations face increasingly sophisticated threats, research shows
CNCF: Cloud Native Foundation drives portability forward
The Cloud Native Foundation conference in Berlin kicked off with a set of initiatives to take on board popular container engines from Kubernetes and Docker
In-flight electronics ban unsustainable, says IATA
The IATA calls on the American and British governments to urgently find alternatives to restricting the carry-on of laptops and tablets on Middle Eastern flights
Uber shuts down in Denmark after less than three years
Changes in Denmark’s taxi legislation force transportation network company to cease its operations in the country
Tuesday, 28 March 2017
Threats grow in Saudi Arabia’s cyber sector
Saudi Arabia's wealth makes it an attractive target for cyber criminals, but what have been the recent trends in cyber crime?
Association of Recruitment Consultancies asks MPs to delay roll-out of IR35 reforms
The chairman of Association of Recruitment Consultancies calls for introduction of IR35 reforms to be put on hold until numerous issues pertaining to the legislation are resolved
KPMG launches campaign to encourage women into tech
Professional services firm commits to increasing the number of women in its technology remit to encourage more women into the industry
ONS data science campus opens with “public good” mission
Data science campus opens at Office for National Statistics in Newport, south Wales with “public good” mission
1,000 sub-postmasters apply to join IT-related group litigation against Post Office
Group legal action against Post Office relates to allegedly faulty Horizon computer system
Security Think Tank: Use flexible tech backed by security policy for competitive edge
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Mobility suite saves Surrey and Sussex Police officers time and money
Over 3,000 frontline Surrey and Sussex Police officers have been outfitted with Airwave’s Pronto e-notebook and application suite
Microsoft facing $5m class action over Windows 10 upgrades
Three Windows users are attempting to claim $5m in damages from Microsoft for problems caused by faulty Windows 10 upgrades
Monday, 27 March 2017
Security Think Tank: Enable people using good security and risk methodology
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Nearly half of UK businesses lack a cyber security strategy
Commentators call on security industry to do more to help businesses understand the value of data and how best to protect it
Consumers want to use retailer apps in-store
Consumers want retailers to implement applications that can be used in-store to offer personalisation and convenience
UK business least likely to offer rewards to infosec professionals
UK firms need to rethink incentives to attract and retain people with cyber security skills, according to the findings of a recent global study
Red Hat adds Gluster metadata cache and container deployment
Scale out NAS parallel file system speeds operations with client-side caching, and allows container deployment and faster self-healing volumes
Time to restore from backup: Do you know where your data is?
Making a backup is only the start of the process. You must be sure you can restore, that backups contain what you need, and that they will work with the applications that need them
AWS London users suffer "insufficient capacity" problems with T2 Micro Instances
Users of AWS's London-hosted T2 Micro Instances suffered capacity issues on Friday 24 March
Ofcom scuppers BT’s ‘deemed consent’ ploy
Telco regulator fines BT for abuse of an opt-out clause that avoids service level fines on delays to Ethernet installations
Friday, 24 March 2017
UK impersonation fraud up 39% in last quarter of 2016
Just ahead of the end of the UK tax year, a survey underlines the importance of guarding against business email compromise aimed at stealing data and money
Case study: How the Department for Education deployed flexible IT
The Department of Education has upgraded its ageing datacentre to the Azure cloud and Office 365, and rolled out Microsoft Surface devices
AI and robots will 'create political instability' until humans find new occupations
The belief that advances in technology will create more jobs than they replace may no longer hold true
ISPs to pay automatic compensation for broadband faults
Telecoms regulator Ofcom says its plan, which would cover slow repairs and missed appointments, could see consumers in line for a payout of up to £185m every year
Security Think Tank: Minimise data to cut costs and comply with GDPR
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
UK labour costs are cheap but automation will erode jobs market
PwC has estimated that millions of people may be affected by robots and artificial intelligence replacing their jobs
Inside the well-planned metro network: how CityFibre does it
Computer Weekly met metro network builder CityFibre to find out why, and how, the organisation believes it can mount a credible challenge to Openreach’s dominance of wholesale fibre
FBI director reiterates call for action on encryption
The world is wasting time in resolving the conflict between privacy and public safety, and should consider an international framework on encrypted data access, says FBI director James Comey
Thursday, 23 March 2017
The rise of the ODMs: Should the branded hardware suppliers be worried?
The use of ODM datacentre hardware makes good economic sense for the hyperscale providers, but what about everyday enterprises?
LastPass releases fix browser extension security flaws
LastPass has been praised for its quick response in fixing flaws reported in browser extensions for its password manager
How Google is riding the multi-cloud wave to win over the enterprise
The Google Cloud Next conference saw the internet giant share details about how enterprise appetite for multi-cloud deployments are working in its favour
Almost 45% of men want a robot-led shopping experience in the future
Research reveals differences between what male and female, and older and younger consumers want from their shopping experience
Apple denies hackers holding millions of iPhones, iCloud accounts ransom
Apple reassures customers that none of its systems have been breached, dismissing hackers' claims that millions of iPhones and iCloud accounts are at risk of being wiped
Wednesday, 22 March 2017
CIO interview: Martin Hofmann, Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group recently demonstrated how it was working with D-Wave to research uses for quantum computing. We find out what the car maker is hoping to achieve
PSD2 – time to open and secure APIs and rethink business models
With the EU’s Payment Service Directive (PSD2) going into effect in January 2018, banks have no time to waste in preparing for the changes it will bring
Tech City UK report trumpets nation’s digital economy
In its third TechNation report, Tech City UK says the nation leads the way in digital innovation across Europe
IR35 reforms will harm public sector innovation and competitiveness, say contractors
Research from recruitment consultancy Harvey Nash highlights contractor concerns about how the forthcoming IR35 reforms will affect competitiveness and talent recruitment in the public sector
Three may consider legal action if spectrum imbalance persists
Three boss Dave Dyson says he may consider mounting a legal challenge if Ofcom does not change how spectrum holdings are regulated and controlled
Security Think Tank: Education and automation will up security and cut user friction
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
PostNord cutting up to 4,000 Danish jobs in response to digitisation
The logistics firm is set to cut jobs in Denmark due to falling mail volumes in the country, with a new production model set to be introduced
Most UK businesses in the dark about crucial DNS infrastructure
Most UK businesses have little visibility or control over their DNS servers and services even though they are a key component of businesses’ infrastructure and security profile
Tuesday, 21 March 2017
CW500 video: Monica Cardoso Salgado discusses the significance of GDPR to CIOs
GDPR comes into force on 25 May 2018. We speak to Monica Cardoso Salgado, senior manager, data privacy & governance at John Lewis Partnership about the implications
CW500 video: Chiara Rustici discusses the significance of GDPR to CIOs
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force on 25 May 2018. Chiara Rustici, an Independent GDPR analyst, discusses the implications
UK bans electronic devices from Middle Eastern flights
The UK government has announced that laptops and tablets will be banned from airliner cabins on UK-bound flights from a number of Middle Eastern countries
Co-operative Group overhauls retail store networks
The Co-operative Group has brought in BT to revitalise and upgrade legacy networking infrastructure at its food retail business
How CIOs can apply IT supplier management skills to digitisation
The digital supply chain can be managed in much the same way as the software supply chain, where CIOs have gained expertise in working with multiple providers to effectively run a complex ecosystem
Three fails to stop second data leak
Mobile operator Three should have done a thorough review and upgrade of security after its previous security breach to avoid another incident just months later, say security commentators
Heathrow Airport updates clunky loyalty scheme through cloud-based software and services
Streamlined loyalty programme doubles number of airport users and boosts average spend
Security Think Tank: Practical steps to increasing security without reducing usability
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Russian Citadel malware developer cuts deal with US authorities
US Justice Department set to sentence a second Russian hacker for helping to develop Citadel malware that netted $500m, but says investigations are continuing
Netherlands aims to benefit from Brexit in IT talent search
The Netherlands is positioning itself as the ideal home for ambitious IT professionals from across the world
Robots to support children in Middle East classrooms
Teachers and children in the UAE will soon be supported by robots in the classroom
Monday, 20 March 2017
Openreach trains apprentice engineers in virtual reality
Openreach inductees get to experience an immersive simulation of life as an engineer, taking them up telephone poles and into underground chambers
Many UK local councils still unprepared for GDPR, ICO survey shows
The ICO fines the Norfolk Council as it publishes GDPR guidelines for local councils after a survey revealed not all were up to speed in preparations to comply with the new data protection law
HCL Technologies to support IT for Volvo Ocean Race
HCL Technologies is to build and support the IT that will make the Volvo Ocean Race available to spectators around the world
Security Think Tank: Governance framework key to best security at lowest cost
How can organisations maintain usability and keep support costs low without compromising on security?
Storage fails the business as data balloons, survey finds
Lack of agility and failure of storage to keep pace with the business and data growth are major concerns to UK businesses that see data volumes increase by 27% a year
How business analysts can bring a human touch to IT change programmes
Aviva business analyst David Beckham is keynoting at the Innovation, Business Change & Technology Forum on how his profession can help IT and other workers through trauma of change programmes
Cardiff man admits terrorist charges after posting encryption instructions on Islamic blog
Samata Ullah, a resident of Cardiff, pleaded guilty to five terrorism charges, including developing an encrypted version of an Islamic website and posting videos explaining how to use encryption
Flash: it’s not all over yet
We look at the need for new approaches to storage as ever-increasing demands are placed on all-flash arrays
Global business leaders hail UK tech sector’s innovation potential
KPMG report reveals global confidence in UK tech sector’s ability to create innovative products and services that are keenly adopted across the world
IBM cognitive assistant to help manage and secure devices
IBM has announced a cognitive assistant powered by IBM Watson to help businesses manage and secure endpoints, including devices making up the internet of things
Dell joins HPE and Cisco at top of cloud infrastructure leader board
Cloud infrastructure is looking like a three-horse race between the big US suppliers, but the contract manufacturers are also in the running
Sunday, 19 March 2017
Middle East fintech sector to accelerate this year with UAE leading the way
The financial technology industry could be at the start of a period of rapid growth in the Middle East
SAP to invest $200m in United Arab Emirates
European software maker plans investment to get near customers in the Middle East
Saturday, 18 March 2017
Friday, 17 March 2017
Why there is more to digital than ones and zeros
These days no business strategy seems complete unless it is qualified by the adjective “digital”
Moving forward and looking back
This is the fourth and last in a series of articles charting the progress of participants from HutZero, a new cyber security entrepreneur acceleration programme run by Cyber London (CyLon) and the Centre for Security Information Technologies (CSIT) at Queen’s University Belfast
NCSC commits to greater diversity
GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre is planning several initiatives to ensure more women are attracted to and remain in technology roles, particularly cyber security
Cyber security is a huge opportunity for UK business, says NCSC
NCSC engagement director Alex Dewdney is leading government's new approach in working with UK industry to build a national cyber security community and capability
IT contractors prosper from Brexit uncertainty
Since the Brexit vote, IT contractors have seen higher pay rates and longer contracts, which indicates businesses’ caution over permanent recruitment
Thursday, 16 March 2017
HMRC urged to delay digital tax plan for businesses
Lords committee echoes previous criticism by MPs over timetable for Making Tax Digital programme and calls for further trials
Government to ramp up help for UK cyber security industry
Government, in partnership with industry, is pursuing a range of initiatives aimed at establishing a UK cyber security ecosystem, developing skills and products and boosting exports, says DIT’s Conrad Prince
CIO interview: Jon Cheyne, IT director, National Theatre
We speak to the IT head at the National Theatre about what it means to have a 99% cloud strategy
Nordea goes beyond what is mandatory for PSD2
Nordic bank prepares for the introduction of the latest banking regulations through a platform that is open to third parties
UK holidaymakers’ data breach highlights need to be proactive
Security experts say the data breach at travel industry association Abta underlines that no organisation is immune from cyber attack and that data holders and consumers should be more proactive about data protection
Most companies wide open to “cataclysmic” hack, especially after M&A
Companies are leaving themselves wide open to cyber crime, especially after M&A, so companies need to start enabling cyber-security professionals before they face serious problems
Oracle Q3 2016-17 results: cloud revenue up, overall growth 2%
Oracle’s third-quarter results for fiscal year 2017 show 2% growth in overall revenue, with cloud representing 13% of the total. Executives are bullish on cloud ERP growth prospects
Digital transformation shifts balance in IT departments
IT leaders are shifting the focus of the IT department, providing more staff to support digital business initiatives
Finance firms are vulnerable to cyber attacks, so why do customers think they are secure?
The public are overly confident in the ability of banks and financial institutions to protect their data, but that will change when mandatory reporting comes in next year under the General Data Protection Regulation
AI automation starts to transform legal profession
Artificial intelligence and automation are making inroads into legal work, but are more likely to support than displace lawyers and will draw IT more into legal service delivery
US accuses Russian spies of directing Yahoo breach
US authorities have arrested a man in Canada who has been charged alongside two Russian intelligence officers and a Russian hacker in connection with a 2014 data breach at Yahoo affecting 500 million accounts
Wednesday, 15 March 2017
Smart meters risk exacerbating problems of digital exclusion, says Ofgem
An Ofgem report has warned of the difficulties in getting consumers to engage with smart meters
Unicef uses data science to track refugees
United Nations agency for humanitarian aid for children and mothers in developing countries is turning to data science, marshalling expertise from companies and other corporates
Raising cyber security grasp is biggest challenge, says GCHQ chief
Everyone has a role to play in cyber security, and the NCSC has the right pedigree to co-ordinate and balance the efforts of government, industry and academia, says GCHQ director Robert Hannigan
The UK needs more women in cyber security, says GCHQ chief
The need to recruit more women into cyber security has come under the spotlight at CyberUK as a study shows the UK infosec industry has one of the lowest proportions of women and the highest gender pay gaps in the world
Nordic airline averts business disaster with application performance monitoring
Following an emergency decision to move to Amazon Web Services, Iceland’s Wow Air has wholeheartedly bought into the cloud
Tablets on the decline in Middle East as big smartphones take over
A total of 13.8 million tablets were sold in the region in 2016 – 14.7% less than in 2015
Digital commerce makes up less than 1% of GDP in Middle East
Region sees double-digit growth in consumer use of digital channels, but businesses seem reluctant to get involved
Biggest pain in backup is lack of storage capacity, survey finds
Ever-growing need for more storage is the biggest problem for backup, followed by administration overheads, poor performance, scalability and multi-supplier complexity
US set to charge four hackers for Yahoo breaches
Three Russians are reportedly among four hackers US authorities believe to be linked to data breaches at Yahoo affecting more than a billion accounts
UK identity fraud reaches record levels
The UK fraud prevention service is calling for better education about fraud and financial crime as identity fraud, which is often cyber-enabled, hits the highest levels ever recorded
Microsoft delivers enterprise chat through Office 365 and Teams
Teams is Microsoft’s latest step to put Office 365 at the heart of collaboration, cementing Office as the business workspace
National Theatre moves to Office 365
The National Theatre is increasingly using cloud technology, with the implementation of cloud-based productivity tools its latest move
Tuesday, 14 March 2017
Recruiting women key to closing cyber security skills gap, say experts
The European cyber security industry has one of the lowest proportions of women and the highest gender pay gaps in the world, the latest Global Information Security Workforce Study shows
Middle East healthcare on cusp of IT innovation era
Healthcare in the Middle East looks set for a revolution, according to the first surgeon to use Google Glass during an operation
What’s in the UK government’s 5G strategy?
The UK government’s 5G mobile strategy was released to coincide with the Spring Budget. We look at some of its key aims
NCSC chief calls for UK collaboration on cyber security
The National Cyber Security Centre is unashamedly ambitious in aiming to make the UK the safest place to do business online, which chief Ciaran Martin sees as an achievable goal
Derbyshire NHS Trust takes simple BI approach to secure patient safety
Derbyshire NHS Foundation Trust opts for a simple, clinician and business-led approach to business intelligence to secure patient safety, using MicroStrategy
Scale Computing to bring NVMe flash to hyper-converged
Hyper-converged infrastructure maker Scale Computing is set to introduce NVMe connectivity to its products in 2017 with tiers of all flash also on the roadmap
IR35 research: 85% of contractors will quit public sector if tax status changed
Research by tax advisers QDos Contractor suggests few public sector off-payroll workers would be willing to stick around if made to pay the same tax as salaried staff
Digital Economy Bill amended to protect Openreach pensions
The government introduces an amendment to the Digital Economy Bill to protect the pensions of BT employees transferring into the newly independent Openreach business
CIO interview: Simon McCalla, Nominet
Nominet, the registry for more than 10 million of the UK’s internet domains, is expanding into the internet of things and internet security services
HPE, Dell and IBM suffer Q4 server sales slumps, as demand for ODM hardware grows
IDC's latest EMEA-wide server market sales tracker suggests soaring demand for ODM servers is hitting tier-one manufacturers hard
Cyber threat to UK business significant and growing
The UK’s NCSC and the US’s NSA publish a joint report on the cyber threats facing UK businesses, outlining the best response strategies
Make identity management a foundation for cloud deployments
Every SaaS product has its own way to authenticate users, making it hard to keep track of which ones have access to which services
Portakabin’s biggest-ever IT investment unifies CRM
Modular construction firm is moving to a single source of business information through cloud technology and services
Monday, 13 March 2017
Silicon Valley startups aim to make big data capture and prep slicker
A group of California-based startup and early-stage data analytics and management companies are bidding to make big data, including sensor data, more tractable for analysis
The true impact of a cyber breach on share price
As cyber security breaches become increasingly common, a security consultant explores how recent headline breaches have affected company valuations
Powering the cloud: Unlocking the secrets of Google datacentres
At the Google Cloud Next conference in San Francisco, the internet search giant opened up about how it secures, operates and stress-tests its growing cloud datacentre fleet
Royal Dutch Touring Club stimulates innovation and renewal of ICT
Dutch motoring club has shaped its business in a way that enables the business and IT department to innovate together
Analytics sell Tegile hybrid flash as college replaces iSCSI
Bolton College replaces six-year-old Dell EqualLogic iSCSI block arrays and is won over to Tegile hybrid flash by ease of troubleshooting troublesome VM I/O spike issues
Vodafone brings offshore contact centre work to UK
Mobile operator Vodafone is creating 2,100 jobs in the UK by reducing the amount of call centre work done offshore
NCC Group launches bounty for open source security flaw fixes
Firm hopes bounty scheme will inspire others to do the same to encourage security specialists to make open source software more secure
Nearly 2,000 Lloyds bank IT jobs to move to IBM in £1.3bn outsourcing deal
Around 2,000 IT staff at Lloyds Banking Group will transfer to IBM as part of a seven-year IT outsourcing deal
Storage systems evolve to meet need for speed
The race is on to develop revolutionary storage-class memory products to meet rocketing data processing requirements
Danish shipping company uses blockchain in IBM partnership
Maersk and IBM test out the application of blockchain technology to track and manage the paper trail of shipping containers around the world
NCSC to educate UK politicians on the cyber threat
The National Cyber Security Centre is to deliver tailored seminars for politicians on how to protect their email communications and voters’ data to defend against cyber threats to the political system
Sunday, 12 March 2017
IDC survey reveals Middle East CIO challenges
CIOs in the Middle East have three huge digital transformation challenges this year, even before they start to look at what technologies to use
Friday, 10 March 2017
Navigating those early stages: research in its many forms
This is the third in a series of articles charting the progress of participants from HutZero, a new cyber security entrepreneur acceleration programme run by Cyber London (CyLon) and the Centre for Security Information Technologies (CSIT) at Queen’s University Belfast
Executive interview: Gideon Mann, head of data science, Bloomberg
We find out how Bloomberg’s Gideon Mann balances the certainty of analytics with the alchemy of machine learning
Paying ransomware attackers perpetuates attacks, says researcher
Continually evolving ransomware is among the threats organisations need to factor into their cyber defences in 2017, but only once they have taken care of the basics, says Kaspersky Lab researcher
Broadband controversy will linger despite BT Openreach split
Communications experts have welcomed the news that the legal separation of BT and Openreach will go ahead, but it remains unclear how, or when, the state of the UK's broadband will change for the better
Outsourcing gives Scottish charity’s IT team time to think ahead
Carr Gomm outsources IT support to allow internal IT team to think beyond keeping the lights on
HPE plots next move on services
HPE’s financial results suggest it has not had a good time in the IT services and outsourcing business. Will it be third time lucky?
BT agrees to Ofcom’s terms over Openreach split
BT agrees to Ofcom’s requirements for the legal separation of its arm’s length infrastructure division Openreach, which is now to become a distinct business
Tech firms to get first look at CIA hacking tools
WikiLeaks has promised to show tech firms details of what it claims is a leaked arsenal of CIA hacking tools to enable them to prepare fixes before any more are made public
Thursday, 9 March 2017
Huge demand for government cyber defence apprenticeships
A rush for cyber defence apprenticeships shows young people are looking to cyber security as a viable and interesting career option
Birmingham Airport uses sensor tracking to reduce queue times
Birmingham Airport has installed Wi-FI and Bluetooth sensors to gather valuable information on how long travellers are taking to move through the immigration process at the UK Border
GDPR to place extra burden on ICO, says commissioner
The GDPR and global enforcement work will place an extra work burden on the ICO, but government has collaborated on a new funding plan that is awaiting parliamentary approval
London IT firms trying to increase worker diversity
IT firms in London need to do more to reduce a gender bias and increase diversity in the workplace, says research
Danish consumer council refers Google to Data Protection Agency
Danish consumer rights protection organisation has referred Google to regulator over its personal data storage policy
Glencoe Mountain Resort switches on 4G at 2,800ft
Skiers and snowboarders get access to EE's superfast 4G mobile broadband at Scotland’s Glencoe Ski Centre
Centrica eliminates more than 20 IT systems after replacing SAP with cloud HR technology
Energy and services company claims major savings in IT costs after moving its HR services to the cloud
Open Rights Group calls for control of spies’ use of zero-days
Wikileaks’ publication of documents detailing CIA hacking tools has prompted calls for government to control spy agencies’ use of vulnerabilities in widely used hardware and software
Rackspace to roll out managed service support for Google Cloud Platform in Q3 2017
Managed cloud company becomes first managed service provider partner for the Google Cloud Platform
Nordea brings social aspect to saving with fintech startup Spiff
Nordea launches a mobile savings app from Norwegian finanical technology company Spiff
Alphabet’s Eric Schmidt: “Enterprise must move to the cloud now”
The executive chairman of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, says the “speed limit” to moving to the cloud has been lifted, and enterprises need to pick up the pace of their plans to move off-premise
Google: Democratisation of AI tech to ‘greatly improve’ quality of life
Fei-Fei Li, Google's chief scientist of artificial intelligence and machine learning, talks up societal benefits of making artificial intelligence tools and technologies accessible to all
Wednesday, 8 March 2017
Case study: Tamer Group boosts bandwidth and network connectivity
Saudi Arabian firm chooses point-to-point wireless to ensure it provides the connectivity required for a fast-growing business
BT, Ericsson, O2 and Vodafone expand Stem for girls scheme
BT and partners Ericsson, O2 and Vodafone are to expand a mentoring scheme launched last year to encourage girls into Stem careers
Budget 2017: IT skills, 5G, broadband, and R&D receive funding boost
Chancellor of the exchequer Philip Hammond targeted improvements in innovation, connectivity and education in his latest financial update
Spring Budget advances 5G strategy and broadband funding
The government has launched its 5G mobile strategy to coincide with Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Spring Budget, and has revealed more details of its planned broadband investment
Storage performance 101: Server, array and fabric/network basics
We look at the key performance attributes of storage media in use today, and the choices and basic tuning steps you can take to get the most from your storage
Abu Dhabi finance regulator pens fintech agreement with Singapore central bank
The financial services regulator in Abu Dhabi is co-operating with its counterpart in Singapore to promote financial technology developments
Cloud-based ID management is key to PostNL’s public cloud strategy
Mail company uses Azure, AWS, Salesforce, SuccessFactors, Office 365 and Microsoft Dynamics as it shifts from on-premise IT
Excelero NVMe over fabrics NVMesh brings SAN to hyperscale
Excelero aims at transactional and analytics use cases for webscale users that want to create SAN-like pools of storage with its NVMesh software-defined product
Investment industry to spend $2.8bn on AI by 2021, expected to cut quarter of a million jobs
230,000 jobs in the capital markets sector globally will be defunct because of the adoption of artificial intelligence technology
HPE buys Nimble Storage to fill an all-flash and hybrid gap
Hardware giant buys Nimble Storage for $1.2bn and plugs a gap below its high-end flash retro-fitted 3PAR arrays with ground-up solid state-based hardware
WhatsApp, Signal, ProtonMail safe from CIA hacking tools
Top secure messaging and email apps are said to be safe from CIA hacking tools, but organisations are urged to assess their own vulnerability if the tools were to fall into the hands of cyber criminals
Tuesday, 7 March 2017
MWC 2017: How virtual reality could be the next big thing for healthcare
Consumer virtual reality was again a hot topic at Mobile World Congress in 2017, but the technology is now advanced enough that use cases are emerging in other sectors. The IEEE’s Wendy Powell reveals how virtual reality could transform healthcare
Can you work around SAP indirect access software licensing?
The SAP legal case against Diageo highlights the seemingly arbitrary rules governing software licensing
Country as a service becoming reality in Estonia
Programme to help foreigners set up businesses in Estonia through virtual residency is gathering pace
From bootcamp to business: getting connected
This is the second in a series of articles charting the progress of participants from HutZero, a new cyber security entrepreneur acceleration programme run by Cyber London (CyLon) and the Centre for Security Information Technologies (CSIT) at Queen’s University Belfast
New wiper malware hits Middle East and Europe
In the wake of the Shamoon and Shamoon 2.0 malware attacks, a new wiper called StoneDrill is targeting organisations in the Middle East and Europe
Bank branches still more popular than mobile apps for new accounts
Major research reveals the opportunities and challenges facing fintech firms
Accept everything is hackable, business told
Many companies are in denial about cyber attacks, but they need to accept that they are likely to be targets, that everything is hackable and that they need to act accordingly, says security expert Menny Barzilay
ZF Group opens doors to Hyderabad tech centre
German car parts manufacturer ZF Group opens a technology centre in India to focus on software lead innovation
Four reforms to deliver competitive broadband
The UK will never benefit from ‘gold standard full fibre’ broadband without major reforms to the fabric of government, writes Ed Straw
Retail industry steps up the fight against rising cyber threats
UK retail body BRC publishes the first of its kind step-by-step guide on how to manage cyber security threats
Monday, 6 March 2017
IT staff recruitment poses major challenge in UAE and wider region
Organisations in the Middle East must create competitive IT recruitment strategies if they are to attract the right people
Nodeum to add S3 connectivity to LTFS-powered tape archive
Belgium-based Linux-plus-LTFS startup adds S3 capability to allow customers to add cloud as a tier and data portability between on and off-premises archiving
Virtual reality simulation helps KLM engineers escape in an emergency
Dutch airline KLM develops virtual reality simulation to show engineers what happens if the maintenance hanger catches fire
Challenger bank Monzo knocked down by card processor outage
Bank’s customers unable to make transactions as third-party card processor systems go offline
European data protection law to give consumers more control
UK information commissioner calls on business to focus on data protection, not only to comply with the new data regulations, but also foster the digital economy and gain a competitive edge
Thorough network upgrade underpins University of Law’s IT
Legal education specialist the University of Law has undertaken a multi-million pound future IT project to refresh its networks, Wi-Fi and datacentre infrastructures across multiple locations
Deutsche Bank creates group-wide CIO role
New chief will drive technology transformation across the bank
IBM readies quantum as a service
A universal quantum computer, available through the cloud, offers the potential for researchers and enterprises to tackle computationally impossible problems
3D printing gets serious in the Netherlands
3D projects abound in the Netherlands, with the technology being applied to canal bridges, bicycles, ship components and buildings
Cisco UK CEO sees chance to drive digital inclusion after Brexit
Cisco’s new UK and Ireland CEO Scot Gardner speaks to Computer Weekly about the supplier’s role in driving Britain’s industrial and digital strategies, supporting startups and skills, and the impact of Brexit
More than a million Gmail and Yahoo account credentials on sale
Usernames, email addresses and plaintext passwords of more than a million Yahoo and Gmail accounts are reportedly on sale on the dark web, posing a threat to corporate security
AWS outage shows vulnerability of cloud DR
The recent outage at Amazon Web Services has highlighted the risks of using any public cloud for disaster recovery IT
Build mobile experiences that drive engagement
Mobile experiences throw open the door to new opportunities for firms to win, serve and retain customers
Sunday, 5 March 2017
Friday, 3 March 2017
Would killing Bitcoin end ransomware?
Ransomware is running rampant. The SonicWall GRID Threat Network detected an increase from 3.8 million ransomware attacks in 2015 to 638 million in 2016. According to a Radware report, 49 percent of businesses were hit by a ransomware attack in 2016. Quite often the attacker asks for some amount of cybercurrency – usually Bitcoin – in exchange for providing a decryption key.
One question this raises is whether ransomware attacks would decrease if Bitcoin ceased to exist? Security experts answer that question with a resounding “no”, indicating that cybercriminals would just move on to another anonymous payment method to continue their extortion.
"Getting rid of Bitcoin to stop ransomware would be like the U.S. Government getting rid of $100 bills to try to stop drug dealers from laundering their dirty money. It’s not the right solution. Would it momentarily create a bump in the road for cyber attackers who are making millions off of ransomware? Absolutely, but only for a fleeting moment,” said Richard Henderson, global security strategist at Absolute.
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(Insider Story)Cyber attack on Barts NHS trust exploited zero-day vulnerability
A cyber attack that forced parts of Barts NHS trust offline in January 2017 has been blamed on previously unknown malware that was able to bypass the antivirus systems, highlighting a common weakness in cyber defences
HMRC blasted over "inaccurate" and "unreliable" IR35 online assessment tool
Public sector contracting stakeholders claim newly launched tool is returning inaccurate results over IR35 status of some public sector off-payroll workers
NSPCC CIO on combining hybrid cloud with managed services to boost Childline resiliency
NSPCC CIO Ray Bilsby sets out the work the children's charity is doing to boost the resiliency of its flagship services, with the help of its managed services partners
Modern Muse: ‘We all need to play our part’ to get girls into Stem, says equalities minister
As Everywoman relaunches its Modern Muse application, the parliamentary under-secretary of state for women, equalities and early years at the Department for Education, Caroline Dinenage, emphasises the importance of visible role models
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