IT for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)

Charlie McMurdie joins PwC’s cyber practice

Charlie McMurdie, former head of the Metro Police central e-crime unit, is joining business consultancy firm PwC as its senior crime adviser Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How DWP and Universal Credit failed to work with SME suppliers

Less than 1% of DWP IT spending on the Universal Credit programme has gone to SMEs – how are big suppliers continuing their dominance? Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

Less than 1% of Universal Credit IT spend goes to SMEs

Despite a 25% target, less than 1% of IT spending for government’s flagship Universal Credit programme has gone to small businesses Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

How to appoint a new outsourcing supplier

Outsourcing can come with its own security risks if not managed appropriately, making due diligence and clear contractual arrangements key Continue Reading

By

• Sheila Pancholi

Government to put 50% of all new IT spend through SMEs

The government wants to put half of all new IT spending through small IT suppliers – doubling the previous target Continue Reading

The ideology of hacking

Business leaders need to be educated on the true threats their firms face and IT security professionals have to arm their executives with that information Continue Reading

By

• Mark Brown

ICO to investigate sale of online dating profiles

The UK’s data protection watchdog is to investigate the sale of 10,000 online dating profiles to the BBC’s Panorama programme Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

An introduction to cyber liability insurance cover

Cyber liability insurance cover has been around for 10 years, but most security professionals seem to have not heard of it or know that it exists Continue Reading

By

• Sarb Sembhi

Continual vigilance key to security, says Damballa

UK businesses must update their approach to cyber security to look for signs of compromise continually Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FireEye partners with Phishme for multi-layered security

Security technology developer FireEye has partnered with phishing awareness training firm PhishMe to offer a multi-layered approach to securing information networks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

MI5 and GCHQ call for FTSE 350 cyber health check

Intelligence agencies MI5 and GCHQ call on UK’s top listed companies to take part in a cyber governance health check Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cisco buys cyber security company Sourcefire for $2.7bn

Networking giant Cisco has reached an agreement to buy cyber security business Sourcefire in a $2.7bn deal Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Insider threat: Balancing security with privacy

How can organisations increase security without affecting productivity or encroaching on employees’ right to privacy? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK to block online porn by default

The UK is to block online pornography by default to all new internet users, David Cameron is to announce Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How to assess the security of a cloud service provider

As businesses continue to put more information online, understanding cloud suppliers and agreements has never been more important Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Fitzmaurice

Google competition proposals not good enough, says EC

Competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia wants Google to readdress fears that it is abusing its market domination for its own gain Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Intel Q2 profits down, but in line with expectations

Chip maker Intel reported a second quarter profit of $2bn, down 29% from a year ago, roughly in line with analysts’ estimates Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IBM misses revenue expectations again

IBM has reported second quarter revenues of $24.9bn, missing market estimates of $25.39bn Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Tech firms target piracy profiting websites

Tech firms including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft join an initiative targeting websites that profit from piracy by cutting off advert revenue Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

More than one-fifth of UK firms hit by DDoS attacks in 2012

More than a fifth of UK firms experienced a disruptive distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack in 2012 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Black market for software security flaws reaches new highs

The black market in previously undiscovered vulnerabilities in commercial software is so established that the average flaw sells for up to $160,000 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Lower uptake of cloud, ICT limiting medium-sized enterprises' productivity: CEBR

Medium-sized enterprises in the UK lagging behind large businesses in terms of productivity, because of lower adoption of ICT and cloud Continue Reading

By

• Archana Venkatraman, Datacentre Editor

Yahoo wants Fisa objections revealed

Yahoo is the latest company implicated in the Prism internet surveillance programme to call for more transparency around its involvement Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Icahn wants judge to appraise Dell buyout offer

Billionaire US investor Carl Icahn says he will go to court to get a better price for his stake in the computer manufacturer Dell Continue Reading

Protecting against modern password cracking

This article in our Royal Holloway Security Thesis series explains just how insecure passwords are and offers advice on alternative methods of security. Continue Reading

Smart cards: security risks

This article in our Royal Holloway Information Security Thesis series assess the new features introduced in Java Card 3 Connected Edition smart card specification and their associated security risks. Continue Reading

Security visualisation

This article in our Royal Holloway Information Security Thesis series shows how to generate a visual representation of a dataset and use visualisation in the evaluation of known security vulnerabilities. Continue Reading

Microsoft notches up over 3,000 copyright cases

In its battle against piracy, Microsoft says it has settled 3,265 copyright cases in the past year and warns of links to malware distribution Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Will cloud services follow the evolution of the banking industry?

Cloud service providers say security will become the very reason companies choose cloud services in future Continue Reading

How to monitor and improve the health of your datacentre

Any datacentre manager looking to support the business should take an end-to-end systems management approach to keep the datacentre in shape Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

UK takes cyber threats to infrastructure seriously

The UK is taking seriously potential cyber threats to critical national infrastructure, according to GCHQ head Iain Lobban Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Tougher EU penalties for cyber crime not enough, say security experts

The European Parliament has adopted a draft directive to toughen up EU penalties for cyber crime, but security experts say this is not enough on its own Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Prism unlikely to change much

Does the data collected by Prism put the US Government at risk from other state or non-state sponsored activists? Continue Reading

By

• Petra Wenham

UK joins EU demands for Google to rewrite privacy policy

The UK’s privacy watchdog has joined data protection authorities in France, Spain, Germany and Italy in demanding changes to Google’s privacy policy Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NSA Prism scandal could hit US cloud providers, says EC vice-president

EC vice-president Neelie Kroes says US cloud services providers could lose business because of fears over US Prism surveillance programme Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FBI warns of increased spear phishing attacks

The FBI has issued a warning about an increase in spear-phishing attacks targeting multiple industry sectors Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Prism – Sitting duck or elaborate honeypot?

Does the data collected by Prism put the US Government at risk from other state or non-state sponsored activists? Continue Reading

By

• Robert Newby

Senior MPs flout EU cookie law

Two years after the EU cookie regulation and UK law came into force, not all UK websites are compliant, including the sites of 13 senior MPs Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Stuxnet leak investigation leads to project originator

The US government investigation into Stuxnet leak of classified information leads to retired general in the Marines, James Cartwright Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

The Washington Post reveals more details of NSA Prism programme

The Washington Post has published new slides detailing processes in the US Prism online surveillance system Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Encrypting enterprises miss out on cloud benefits

Enterprises sending encrypted data to the cloud are missing out on some of the greatest benefits of cloud computing, says Thales e-Security Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Identity management key to browser-based IT strategy

A cloud-based identity management system is key to enabling a browser-based IT strategy at online recruitment firm Reed.co.uk Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Most firms underestimate volume of malware, study shows

Most companies greatly underestimate the number of malicious programs appearing daily, a global survey of more than 2,000 IT professionals has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK businesses failing to secure virtual environments, study finds

Most UK businesses are failing to secure data in virtual environments, a survey of IT decision makers has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government launches cyber awareness campaign

UK government debuts the first stage of a £4m cyber awareness campaign as part of the National Cyber Security Programme Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK links to US internet surveillance remain unclear

The government insists that UK spy agencies operate within the law, but questions remain Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

PM urged to criminalise internet rape porn

Campaigners are calling for the criminalisation of possessing internet pornography depicting rape Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Human error causes most data breaches, Ponemon study finds

Human errors and system problems caused two-thirds of data breaches in 2012, according to a study from Symantec and the Ponemon Institute Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Stratfor hacker pleads guilty

US hacktivist Jeremy Hammond pleads guilty to accessing computers of law enforcement agencies and government contractors illegally Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Syrian hackers deface Sky Android apps

Syrian hackers have defaced several of Sky’s Android apps, forcing the broadcaster to remove them temporarily from the Google Play store Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Privileged accounts key to most APT attacks, says Cyber-Ark

The theft, misuse and exploitation of privileged accounts is becoming an increasingly key tactic in advanced persistent threat attacks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Most IT environments immature, Microsoft reveals

Most business IT environments are immature, analysis of data from Microsoft’s Cloud Security Readiness Tool has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Microsoft declares conformance with ISO 27034-1

Microsoft has declared conformance with ISO 27034-1, the first part of an international standard for secure software development Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Adobe moves to cloud-based subscription model

Adobe has announced that it is to introduce a cloud-based subscription model for popular applications, including Photoshop Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Symantec helps NHS trust cut security costs by a quarter

The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust cut security costs by 25% in its partnership with security supplier Symantec Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Windows 8 passes 100 million in sales

Microsoft says Windows 8 OS has sold more than 100 million copies, roughly matching Windows 7 in the six months after launch Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Netherlands considers hacking powers for police

The Netherlands government considers legislation to give police powers to hack into computers, install spyware and read emails Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

What’s to be done about data breach discovery?

The time from first contact by cyber attackers to the victim learning of it is still measured in months and years, not hours and days Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2013: Cyber crime challenges law enforcement

Cyber crime is forcing police and law enforcement agencies to re-think basic skills needed, according to experts at Infosecurity Europe 2013 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Lib Dems will block Snoopers’ Charter, says Nick Clegg

The draft Communications Data Bill will not go ahead while the Lib Dems are in government, says deputy prime minister Nick Clegg Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2013: University research challenges reliability of IPS

Research shows intrusion prevention systems (IPS) are not as effective at detecting malicious activity as some might think Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security spend misaligned with threats, says security veteran

Security budget allocations have remained the same for the past 15 years, but threats have changed, says Shlomo Kramer, chief executive at security firm Imperva Continue Reading

US jails LulzSec hacker Cody Kretsinger

The US has jailed a member of hacktivist group LulzSec for a year for his role in breaching computer systems at Sony Pictures Entertainment in 2011 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Conficker makes way for web-based attacks, says Microsoft

Web attacks emerge as top threat as businesses finally begin to win the battle against Conficker and other worms, says Microsoft Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Microsoft reports strong quarterly results for all divisions

Microsoft reported profit of $6bn for the past quarter, up 17% from a year ago, despite a mixed response to Windows 8 and a decline in PC sales Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How to create a good information security policy

Information security policies provide vital support to security professionals, yet few organisations take the time to create decent policies Continue Reading

By

• Andi Scott

Anonymous hacks North Korean websites for a second time

Members of the Anonymous hacktivist collective claim to have again hacked several prominent North Korean websites Continue Reading

Google reaches deal with EU competition authorities

Google has reportedly reached a deal with European Union (EU) competition authorities over concerns about its business practices Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Google has another go at allaying EU competition concerns

Google has submitted a fresh set of proposals to address European concerns about its business practices and avoid punitive action Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Bots and web apps among top threats to data security, says Check Point

Bots, viruses, breaches and attacks are a constant and real threat to the information security of organisations Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Porn websites pose malware risk, says researcher

Browsing popular pornography internet sites pose a growing risk of malware infection, according to a security researcher Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

South Korea accuses North Korea of launching cyber attacks

South Korea blames North Korea for the cyber attacks that shut down thousands of computers at broadcasters and banks two weeks ago Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Case Study: 192business switches to tokenisation to speed up business processes

Online payment card verification firm 192business uses tokenisation to speed up its processes and protect credit card details from fraud Continue Reading

US Army practises poor data security on mobile devices

Pentagon inspector general finds smartphones and tablets the US Army buys are not configured to protect sensitive data and allow remote wipe Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Anonymous threatens to declare cyber war on North Korea

Anonymous hacktivist collective has threatened North Korea with cyber war if leader Kim Jong-un does not resign and install free democracy Continue Reading

Google closer to action from European privacy regulators

Google is another step closer to action by privacy regulators across Europe for failing to change the way it manages user data Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK government sets up cyber security fusion cell

A cyber security “fusion cell” for cross-sector threat data sharing aims to put government, industry and information security analysts side-by-side Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Employees ignore security rules, say infosec pros

Most information security professionals believe corporate employees wilfully ignore security rules, survey at RSA Conference 2013 reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Malware in counterfeit software to cost business $114bn in 2013

Dealing with malware in counterfeit software will cost global enterprises an estimated $114bn in 2013, says research firm IDC Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Six security issues to tackle before encrypting cloud data

Concern about security and privacy is likely to drive adoption of cloud encryption, but there are six security issues businesses should tackle Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

US authorities investigate hack of Michelle Obama and other high-profile people

US authorities are investigating hackers who allegedly stole financial information belonging to US first lady Michelle Obama Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Phishing emails sent in pairs to lend authenticity, says training company

Phishing emails are now being deployed in pairs to create the illusion of authenticity, says security awareness training company PhishMe Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Microsoft releases four critical security updates

Microsoft is to release four “critical” patches in its monthly Patch Tuesday security update, according to the advance notice. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

What is RSA's build, buy, partner strategy?

Computer Weekly takes a closer look at RSA's build, buy, partner strategy Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How to tackle big data from a security point of view

Before leaping into big data, companies must be clear what they are trying to achieve, otherwise their investment will be wasted Continue Reading

By

• Peter Wood, First Base Technologies LLP

RSA 2013: Suppliers need to prepare for new security vulnerability handling standards

Software makers and online service providers need to prepare for two ISO standards on vulnerability handling processes due by the end of 2013 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

RSA 2013: Obama cyber order will have significant effect, says DoHS

President Barack Obama’s executive order on cybersecurity is a “very big deal” says Mark Weatherford, deputy under-secretary for cybersecurity at the US Department of Homeland Security (DoHS). Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Music companies critical of Google’s anti-piracy efforts

Music companies have accused Google of failing to fulfil a pledge not to give prominent rankings in search results to websites offering illegal music downloads. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Bad outsourcing decisions cause 63% of data breaches

Bad outsourcing decisions nearly two-thirds of data breaches investigated by security firm Trustwave in the past year Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Boots to roll out contactless payments nationwide

Boots is to roll out contactless payments across its stores nationwide, in a deal with payment providers Visa Europe and Streamline Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

How to find the most vulnerable systems on your internal network

Most corporate networks share common vulnerabilities, but many could be mitigated with education in “hacker thinking” for technical staff Continue Reading

By

• Peter Wood, First Base Technologies LLP

Social media: A security challenge and opportunity

Generation Y workers are posing increasing security challenges to their employers as they share data unreservedly Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

EU cyber strategy aimed at boosting preparedness and cooperation

The European cyber security strategy addresses insufficient national preparedness and boosting co-operation in the region, says the EC Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Business avoids cloud over fear of government snooping

Almost half of IT professionals are deterred from keeping sensitive data in the cloud because of fear of government intervention and possible legal action, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Twitter strengthens login security after hacker attack

Days after a hacking attack, it has emerged that Twitter plans to strengthen its login security with two-factor authentication Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Raspberry Pi Model A computer goes on sale for £16

The latest version of the small single-board Raspberry Pi computer – Model A – has gone on sale in Europe at just £16 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Why has NAC, like DLP, failed to take off?

Why are organisations not investing in systems that are designed to keep malicious actors out of their networks? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Encryption is safe bet, says SafeNet

Encryption is the only thing that can give peace of mind to CIOs and CISOs, says Dave Hansen, president and CEO of security firm SafeNet Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

ICO hits Sony with £250,000 data breach penalty

The Information Commissioner’s office (ICO) has fined Sony Computer Entertainment Europe £250,000 for breaching the Data Protection Act Continue Reading

Why has DLP never taken off?

Why is data loss prevention (DLP) technology not being adopted if it provides the very protection most businesses need? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst