News

IT for government and public sector

October 25, 2021 25 Oct'21
Tech firms launch digital identity scheme for real estate

Five companies joined the digital identity programme aimed at enabling buyers of real estate, and more providers are expected to join a pilot starting this month
October 25, 2021 25 Oct'21
Tech must be core to a high-wage UK economy, says TechUK

Trade association TechUK calls on government to prioritise tech-led growth on Budget and Spending Review
October 24, 2021 24 Oct'21
Digital healthcare in use by nearly half of UK’s adult population

Some 28 million citizens have access to the NHS login, according to new data
October 22, 2021 22 Oct'21
Multi-government operation targets REvil ransomware group

REvil has been forced offline by a multi-government hacking operation, marking the second time in 2021 that the group has gone dark

October 22, 2021 22 Oct'21
MEPs vote to expand Europol data mandate

The European Parliament has voted in favour of expanding Europol’s mandate to process data and develop AI tools, but critics claim it contradicts a previous vote which opposed using new technologies to predict crime
October 22, 2021 22 Oct'21
Government seeks supplier for UK digital identity project

Work on the UK digital identity project will be centred around the Gov.uk app, which is expected to be the new common check for citizen services
October 22, 2021 22 Oct'21
Post Office board ‘appalling’ and ‘short-sighted’, said minister researching Horizon project in 2000

A government minister investigating the controversial Horizon IT project in 2000 described the Post Office board of directors as ‘appalling, short-sighted and partisan’
October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
UK government launches information assurance unit for defence

The Military Systems Information Assurance is aimed at developing alternatives to cryptology
October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
UK government allocates £17.5m to farming innovation programme

Farming innovation initiative aims to drive productivity and sustainability among farmers, growers and other businesses
October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
US intelligence agencies issue advisory on BlackMatter gang

Joint advisory on ransomware gang warns about potential of further attacks on critical infrastructure providers

October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
What does Saudi Arabia’s autonomous vehicle agenda mean to the rest of the world?

If all goes according to plan, within a few years, one million people will live in Saudi Arabia’s ‘city of the future’ – and every one of them will depend on a fleet of self-driving cars
October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
DWP IT chief outlines the challenges of establishing a Chief Data Office

According to DWP chief Katharine Purser, interoperability between government systems is one of the main barriers to improving the handling of data
October 20, 2021 20 Oct'21
Police IT buyers should compel suppliers to prove AI claims

House of Lords told that UK law enforcement bodies should use their position as buyers to compel private sector suppliers to divulge more information about how their AI-powered technologies work
October 18, 2021 18 Oct'21
Singapore pulls ahead with public sector 5G trials

Singapore’s public sector organisations are testing the use of 5G connectivity to remotely operate an autonomous vehicle for road-sweeping, among other use cases
October 18, 2021 18 Oct'21
Government launches consultation on future of medical devices

UK government aims is to gather views on possible changes around innovations in the medical device field, including the creation of a regulatory framework for software and artificial intelligence
October 18, 2021 18 Oct'21
How Samlesbury, Lancashire became the home of the National Cyber Force

The National Cyber Force, a new branch of the military, is gearing up to fight battles in cyber space from the fields of Lancashire. Its presence is expected to bring a high-tech renaissance to the region
October 15, 2021 15 Oct'21
Global IT outsourcing sees record spending and no sign of slowing

Cloud services are being taken up by enterprises rapidly as they accelerate digital transformations
October 14, 2021 14 Oct'21
Apple scheme to detect child abuse creates serious privacy and security risks, say scientists

Apple’s plan to automatically scan photos to detect child abuse would unduly risk the privacy and security of law-abiding citizens and could open up the way to surveillance, say the world’s top cryptographic experts
October 14, 2021 14 Oct'21
UK government advances voter ID project

Cabinet Office-led project will see the introduction of a digital card to be used in future elections
October 13, 2021 13 Oct'21
Institutes of Technology launch to upskill adults in tech careers

Up to 4,000 working professionals will be trained in subjects such as cyber security and agricultural robotics to plug the national skills gap
October 13, 2021 13 Oct'21
Government to launch Gov.uk app

Service to be introduced as part of plans to simplify access to government services
October 13, 2021 13 Oct'21
Post Office Horizon scandal inquiry announces first public hearing

Public inquiry into the Post Office Horizon scandal will hold its first public hearing next month
October 12, 2021 12 Oct'21
Ban UK police use of facial-recognition, House of Lords told

Experts giving evidence to the House of Lords have said that UK police use of facial-recognition technology is disproportionate and ineffective, and further questioned the utility of algorithmic crime ‘prediction’ tools
October 12, 2021 12 Oct'21
Digital gender gap prompts $1tn GDP loss for developing countries

A new study by the Web Foundation investigates the economic cost associated with the barriers preventing women from accessing the internet
October 12, 2021 12 Oct'21
UK government outlines strengths and weaknesses in innovation

As part of the government’s overall innovation strategy, an evidence paper lists factors that influence the pace and direction of developments in the field
October 12, 2021 12 Oct'21
AI estimated to provide 10% boost to UK GDP by 2030

AI has financial benefits but there are concerns the technology could displace a significant number of human workers in the next decade, says report
October 11, 2021 11 Oct'21
Sensitive documents to stay with whistleblower after deadline for agreement for their return passes

A deadllne to agree the safe return of the sensitive banking details of former and current NatWest Group customers has passed without agreement
October 11, 2021 11 Oct'21
West Midlands expected to grow by £2.7bn with tech sector drive

The region is expected to create 52,000 job positions in the next four years
October 08, 2021 08 Oct'21
NatWest admits to weaknesses in anti-money laundering systems

Bank pleads guilty to failures concerning the laundering of hundreds of millions of pounds, but says it has since improved its anti-money laundering systems
October 07, 2021 07 Oct'21
ONS publishes technical learnings of UK’s first online census

Use of agile delivery and cloud computing were among the highlights of the Census 2021, which received 22 million responses countrywide
October 07, 2021 07 Oct'21
Ron Thompson, CDO, Nasa: Mind the data gap

Data is the crown jewels of business, but is often siloed. We speak to the chief data officer at Nasa about developing a data integration culture
October 07, 2021 07 Oct'21
Glasgow publishes draft digital housing strategy

Reducing digital exclusion, improving connectivity and citizen services are part of the plan
October 06, 2021 06 Oct'21
MEPs approve report opposing certain uses of AI by police

European policymakers have approved a report on the use of AI in criminal matters, rejecting several amendments in the process that would have made it easier for police to potentially conduct predictive analytics and biometric surveillance
October 06, 2021 06 Oct'21
US lawmakers propose ransomware reporting rules

Former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren lends her support to a bill that would require corporate ransomware victims to disclose more information about their attacks to the authorities
October 05, 2021 05 Oct'21
Concerns raised over confidentiality and transparency in government data innovation

National data guardian Nicola Byrne warns about central principles that should be observed as data-driven innovation gathers pace in areas such as health and care
October 05, 2021 05 Oct'21
Direct Line hires former Virgin Atlantic IT chief as CIO

Ash Jokhoo will be joining the insurance company as a member of the executive board
October 04, 2021 04 Oct'21
NHSX publishes IT standards and interoperability priorities

The creation of an IT strategy, a governance model and an open source playbook are among the areas of focus for the interoperability team of NHSX
October 04, 2021 04 Oct'21
NHSX IT chief outlines opportunities of elective recovery tech fund

Priorities for the digital unit of the health service include remote recovery with virtual wards, pre-surgical digital support, and use of robotic process automation to reduce the administrative burden on staff
October 01, 2021 01 Oct'21
Met Police purchase new retrospective facial-recognition system

Retrospective facial-recognition software purchased for £3m by the Met Police will be deployed in coming months amid continuing controversy around the use of biometric technologies by law enforcement bodies
October 01, 2021 01 Oct'21
BEIS urged to prioritise funding to protect umbrella workers in government Spending Review

In an open letter to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, umbrella regulation draft policymakers Rebecca Seeley Harris and James Poyser urge the government to prioritise funding for a single enforcement body
October 01, 2021 01 Oct'21
Norway and IoT: A match made in heaven

Norway is becoming a centre of internet of things innovation as tech developers look for answers to some of the country's unique challenges
September 29, 2021 29 Sep'21
UK government announces industry group to lead digital pound debate

Joint forums set up by HM Treasury and the Bank of England for a Central Bank Digital Currency include representatives from big tech firms, fintechs and incumbent banks
September 28, 2021 28 Sep'21
Digital regulators need discrete but cooperative remits

The UK’s information commissioner has told MPs that digital economy regulators need discrete remits backed up by strong information sharing powers to both provide clear focus as well as allow for greater cooperation between their disparate but ...
September 28, 2021 28 Sep'21
Dutch IT firm transforms HR policy built on lessons from pandemic

Software firm rips up human resources rule book and replaces it with a hybrid working policy
September 28, 2021 28 Sep'21
Government announces data strategy for defence

The plan sets out the goals around treating data as a strategic asset to be achieved by 2025
September 27, 2021 27 Sep'21
Uber drivers strike over pay issues and unfair dismissal claims

Unionised Uber drivers take industrial action in response to ongoing disputes over pay and claims that drivers are being unfairly dismissed as a result of the company’s technologies
September 27, 2021 27 Sep'21
Giant Umbrella contractors suffer salary payment delays following suspected ‘data breach’

Following the discovery of “suspicious network activity” in its systems, payroll processing firm Giant Umbrella has taken itself offline, leaving contractors to fume over missing salary payments
September 27, 2021 27 Sep'21
Scotland sees increase in job opportunities in tech

Driven by startups and scaleups, employment in digital firms in Edinburgh and Glasgow is growing more than in other parts of the UK, according to data
September 24, 2021 24 Sep'21
London publishes guidelines for ethical use of smart city tech

Latest draft of the ‘Emerging Technology Charter for London’ encourages local authorities, public services and technology companies to improve how they implement technology in the capital
September 24, 2021 24 Sep'21
HMRC postpones Making Tax Digital until 2024

Digital tax changes have been delayed to allow more time for customers taking part in the pilot and for the government to enhance the service