IT news in your industry sector

Justice for subpostmasters as wrongful criminal convictions are set to be quashed

The Post Office has chosen not to contest 44 out of 47 appeals, meaning most are likely to have their names cleared, but others still face a Court of Appeal battle for justice Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Backup audit: What is a backup audit and why do we need them?

Backup and recovery are vital components to protect against data loss, whether technical or causes such as ransomware. So how can a backup audit help protect our key assets? Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

How a Singapore startup is disrupting logistics management

Portcast’s cloud-based logistics management platform uses machine learning and big data to improve supply chain visibility for logistics companies, shipping lines and manufacturers Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Judge to give verdict on Julian Assange’s extradition after Christmas

Judge Vanessa Baraitser said today that she would make a ruling in early January on whether WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should be extradited to the US Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

How AXA Investment Managers supports user experience through the ‘confinement’

The head of AXA IM’s proximity services discusses the importance of creating a digital experience during the lockdown in France Continue Reading

By

• Christophe Verducci

WikiLeaks revelations ‘shed light of truth’ on war on terror, court hears

WikiLeaks disclosures led to ‘revelations of extraordinary journalistic importance’ about detention in Guantanamo Bay and civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Children’s debit card provider Gohenry banks on Google Cloud to ease IT infrastructure growing pains

The CTO and COO of child-focused, parent-controlled debit card service provider Gohenry discusses how moving to the Google Cloud has helped its IT infrastructure avoid user-related growing pains Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Government on the hunt for GDS CEO

Whitehall is recruiting for a Government Digital Service CEO who will report to the government chief digital officer, offering £168,000 a year for the role Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Most people are happy to see their GP virtually, survey shows

Research from healthtech company Visionable finds there has been a significant rise in GP video consultations, and that attitudes to communication technology have changed during the pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Trust in government technology is key to adoption

Panellists at GovTech Summit 2020 speak about the need to build trust in government digital services, as the pandemic has created room for increased use of technology in the public sector Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Blackbaud admits hackers stole banking details, passwords

Software firm paid off a ransomware gang, believed its hackers when they said they had destroyed the data, and has now discovered the cyber criminals accessed even more sensitive information than it thought Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

‘American friends’ spied on Julian Assange in Ecuadorian Embassy, court hears

Two former employees of UC Global, which provides security services to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, claim the company shared surveillance footage with the US of the WikiLeaks founder meeting with lawyers and other visitors Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Norway leaves door open to Huawei

Government gives telecoms companies responsibility to choose their equipment suppliers, which could include Huawei Continue Reading

By

• Gerard O'Dwyer

Julian Assange would be held with convicted terrorist Abu Hamza in supermax prison, court hears

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange would be held alongside convicted terrorist Abu Hamza in a supermax federal prison in Colorado, isolated from other prisoners, if he is extradited to the US, Old Bailey told Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Red Hat rivals VMware and Nutanix with hyper-converged OCS 4.5

Red Hat’s OpenShift 4.5 extended container orchestration to virtual machines. The arrival of OCS 4.5 moves the solution into the realm of hyper-converged systems Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra, LeMagIT

Coronavirus has changed perception of healthtech, say ministers

German health minister Jens Spahn and UK health secretary Matt Hancock say Covid-19 has accelerated healthcare technology adoption across Europe and changed attitudes towards tech in the healthcare system Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Over two million Brits using open banking

Data shows more than two million people in the UK are now taking control of their financial data through open banking Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

NatWest offers online banking customers free security services

Bank responds to a surge in cyber crime targeting users of online banking services Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ryuk attack downs private health provider in major incident

Private healthcare provider UHS has been been hit by a major big game hunting cyber attack that infected its systems with the Ryuk ransomware Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Subpostmasters still in the dark about live Horizon errors

Subpostmasters still not being told about all the known errors in the controversial Post Office branch accounting and retail system that they use Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Can banks solve money laundering puzzle through technology?

Banks face a huge challenge in identifying and stopping money laundering without interfering with police investigations. Continue Reading

How supply chain management is changing after Covid-19

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we examine the profound changes in supply chain management as a result of the global pandemic. We find out how digital experience platforms can help deliver an omni-channel web presence. And we look at the role of technology in cracking down on international money laundering. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Universal Credit algorithm fails people in need, says Human Rights Watch

The human rights charity says the government’s flagship benefits system is “flawed” and that the means-testing algorithm used causes “irrational fluctuations and reductions in how much benefit” claimants receive each month Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Julian Assange would be held in ‘solitary confinement’ in US jail

WikiLeaks founder would be held in a cell the size of a parking space for 22 or 23 hours a day without contact with other inmates before trial Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Erasure coding vs RAID: Data protection in the cloud era

Erasure coding has come to prominence with its use in object storage and, by extension, in the cloud. We run the rule over its pros and cons vs RAID data protection Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

UK and US marked down on responsible AI

The UK and US have been rated as leaders in government use of artificial intelligence, but the Nordics and Baltics attained the highest scores for responsible AI Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Sustrans opens door to NCSC cyber certification via the cloud

Sustainable transport charity turned to Qualys to help it attain needed certifications to bid for government work Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Government launches new genomics strategy

Genome UK strategy sets out plans to harness technological and science advances to create the “world’s most advanced genomic healthcare system” Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Government updates data ethics framework

The new data ethics framework was created to better reflect how projects are run in practice after finding there was “little awareness” of the previous framework across the public sector Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

TikTok ban stayed after last-minute court case

TikTok’s lawyers have staved off an imminent ban for the time being, after successfully arguing that it infringed rights guaranteed under the Constitution of the United States Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Case Study: Douglas and Gordon uses video to make house searching safer

Estate agent Douglas and Gordon has made videos of prospective properties to make it safer and easier for house hunters to find their new home during the coronavirus pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Clare McDonald, Business Editor

Police Scotland to set up new cyber crime centre

National Centre of Excellence will employ specially trained officers to tackle a vertiginous rise in cyber crime Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Airbnb hosts’ account data exposed in internal leak

Data exposure within Airbnb’s system was the result of a technical issue but was swiftly fixed, says the firm Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Forensic expert questions US claims that Julian Assange conspired to crack military password

Forensic computer expert Patrick Eller told the Old Bailey that US allegations that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange attempted to decrypt a password to help former soldier Chelsea Manning leak sensitive government documents anonymously do not fit with the evidence Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Government on the hunt for telexistence tech

Defence and Security Accelerator wants several technology innovations that can help people operate in dangerous environments without being physically present – with £500,000 funding available Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

The new age of supply chains post-Covid

Supply chain managers have been predicting the future for years. Now manufacturers are relying on insights to inform their decision-making Continue Reading

By

• John Kelleher

Third-party code bug left Instagram users at risk of account takeover

A critical vulnerability in Instagram’s image processing could have allowed attackers to take over not just their victim’s account, but their entire device Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NHS whistleblower privacy concerns passed on to regulator, but campaigners not holding their breath

NHS Improvement chair Dido Harding acknowledges receiving concerns raised about the anonymity of whistleblowers, but campaigners have little faith that anything will be done Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Coronavirus shows inadequacy of rear-view mirror planning

Looking at historical data has hampered businesses’ attempts to move forward effectively during the pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Can banks solve money laundering puzzle through technology?

Banks face a huge challenge in identifying and stopping money laundering without interfering with police investigations Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Government blasted over ‘reckless’ contact-tracing security

The Open Rights Group and Big Brother Watch accuse the government of endangering public health with a reckless attitude to contact-tracing data security Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Top five ways backup can protect against ransomware

Ransomware threatens to put your data beyond reach, so the best way to prepare is to have good-quality data you can restore from backup. We look at the key things to consider Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

How FedEx sustains tech innovation

At the start of the Tibco Live virtual conference, FedEx CIO Rob Carter was asked how he helps the business drive innovation Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has Asperger syndrome and depression, court hears

Julian Assange is on the autistic spectrum and has a history of depression that would put him at risk of suicide if he is extradited to a US prison, psychiatrists tell the court Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Over half of firms intend to continue US data transfers despite Schrems II

Survey shows many organisations do not intend to significantly change their data-sharing practices, at least until there is more guidance from regulators or governments Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Latest Tech Nation fintech cohort reflects diversifying sector

The latest group of fintechs accepted into Tech Nation’s growth programme reflects the diversification of a maturing sector Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Banks stall return-to-work plans as UK government changes advice

Banks pause plans to bring staff back to the office as the government backtracks on its policy Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Major tech firms urged to end targeted ads to under-18s

An open letter to Google, Facebook and others is calling on the tech firms to take responsibility for protecting users of their services by ending behavioural advertising to children Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Video gamers barraged with cyber attacks

From credential stuffing to SQL injection and DDoS, video game producers and players are seeing massive volumes of cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

MoD Defence Digital adds Oracle Cloud to MODCloud list of assured providers

Database giant Oracle has been added to the list of providers the Ministry of Defence has endorsed for use by the UK defence community Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

US agencies warn of election disinformation and cyber attacks

Federal agencies are warning of heightened disinformation as the crucial 2020 presidential election nears Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Top 10 skills to include in your IT CV

Find out what skills and keywords you should include on your CV to stand out as an IT professional in a competitive market Continue Reading

By

• Mike Podesto

The inside story of Taiwan’s AI whizz

Not content with his stellar achievements in artificial intelligence, Chih-Han Yu wanted to create an impact with his work and formed one of Taiwan’s most important unicorns Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

UK government to trial new single sign-on system for Gov.uk

GDS introduces Gov.uk Accounts in its latest attempt to unify the growing number of login systems used across the government web domain Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Twitter investigates image cropping algorithm for racial bias

The algorithm’s consistent favouring of white faces in image previews has forced the company to investigate it for racial bias Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Wielding influence: The challenges CIOs face under Covid-19

IT decision-makers are more necessary than ever, but their skills are being put to the test as the implications of the pandemic and the role of technology in the business evolves, according to the 2020 global CIO survey by Harvey Nash and KPMG Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Activision shoots down data breach claims

Gaming company denies there has been any data breach after up to 500,000 accounts appeared to have been compromised, but evidence mounts that credential stuffing attacks are to blame Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

GDS reviewing Cloud First policy post-Schrems II

Review seeks to determine the future of government engagement with cloud hosting services as they relate to cross-border data flows Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Scam mobile apps spreading via rogue TikTok accounts

Malicious TikTok accounts are promoting a number of adware scam mobile apps Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CIO interview: Mark Holt, CTO, Trainline

The coronavirus pandemic has reduced train travel significantly, but for the rail ticketing app it’s been an opportunity to focus on using innovative technologies to help support passengers in new ways Continue Reading

By

• Mark Samuels

Can Arm stay strong under Nvidia?

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we examine the implications of the controversial acquisition of UK chip leader Arm by US rival Nvidia. Black Lives Matter has raised awareness of social inequalities, but is the tech sector becoming more diverse? And we ask if business software can learn from the addictive nature of social apps. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Discover the main differences between COTS vs. GOTS

When admins compare government versus commercial software options, they must consider cost, use cases and available support as part of the selection process. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How Alder Hey NHS Trust uses HoloLens in the operating theatre

Mixed reality provides a way to present medical data and enable experts and consultants to offer advice during complex procedures Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Nutanix boosts storage performance by 50% with BlockStore

Hyper-converged infrastructure pioneer Nutanix boosts access to NVMe and potentially Optane storage with BlockStore, which avoids the need to access the deepest layers of the OS Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra and Antony Adshead

Royal Mint coin production freeze points to digital future for small payments

Royal Mint freezes production of certain coins as demand dries up amid changing consumer habits Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CIO interview: Julie Berry of Saffery Champness advances business advisory role for IT

Julie Berry, IT director at accountancy firm Saffery Champness, describes how her team has enhanced its advisory role to the business, in part through the implementation of a cloud-based document management system Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

Big questions to be answered over TikTok and WeChat reprieve

TikTok and WeChat seem to have received a stay of execution, but big questions and contradictions remain Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

WikiLeaks cables showed US interfered in German torture investigation

Khalid El-Masri, a German citizen who was kidnapped and tortured by the CIA in a case of mistaken identity, told a court that disclosures by WikiLeaks showed that the US had intervened in a German judicial investigation into his treatment Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly
• Sander Priston

NHS tech bosses outline cost of coronavirus app development

The government is forecasting spend to exceed £35m in the controversial contact-tracing app, a Public Accounts Committee on digital transformation in the NHS has heard Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Outgoing NCSC CEO: Ransomware threat kept us up at night

Former NCSC CEO Ciaran Martin sheds some light on some of the biggest cyber threats currently facing the UK Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Congressman offered Julian Assange a ‘win-win’ deal that would help President Trump

Details have emerged of US congressman Dana Rohrabacher’s offer of a pardon to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in a ‘win-win deal that would benefit US President Donald Trump Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

US government deplatforms TikTok and WeChat

The Commerce Department of the US government has banned new downloads of TikTok and WeChat in the US, and announced new prohibitions on doing business with them Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Open Data Institute explores diverse range of data governance structures

Unlocking the economic and social potential of data will require a diverse range of governance structures to meet the needs of different contexts, use cases and stakeholders Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

German authorities probe ransomware hospital death

Hackers failed to extort a ransom from University Hospital Düsseldorf, but indirectly caused the death of a patient Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Is Number 10 waiting for Harry Potter to apply for the government CDO job?

For many years, the UK IT community pined for a government that wants to put technology at the heart of the country’s future; one that understands the importance of bringing digital and policy ... Continue Reading

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• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Data institutions play critical role in solving global social problems

Nigel Shadbolt, co-founder of the Open Data Institute, argues that a new breed of data institutions have a key role to play in unlocking the social and economic value of data Continue Reading

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• Nigel Shadbolt, The Open Data Institute

Government IT leaders on how Covid crisis will shape future delivery

At a TechUK Building the Smarter State event, government IT leaders shared their experience of the coronavirus crisis, and their thinking about how future service delivery will aim to be more joined-up for citizens Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

How to build a smart city from the ruins of Covid-19

The London Data Commission is working to open up data about the capital to help regeneration and growth post-pandemic Continue Reading

By

• John Romeo, Oliver Wyman Forum

WikiLeaks partners developed software to redact 400,000 Iraq War Logs

Psychologist and co-founder of NGO the Iraq Body Count told a court that Julian Assange insisted on stringent redaction of hundreds of thousands of documents which revealed civilian deaths in the Iraq war Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Top five ways to benefit from tape today

We look at the benefits that tape can bring, including in backup and recovery, long-term and ‘warm’ archiving, compliance and WORM use cases and ‘air gapping’ to protect data Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

Swedish bank cuts branches and jobs, increases IT spend

Swedish bank is increasing investment IT to improve digital banking as it reduces its branch network Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Covid crisis shifts supply chain management from efficiency to resilience

Supply chain management seems to be changing profoundly as the coronavirus pandemic unfolds, possibly shifting from an economy of efficiency to resilience, harnessing trading networks, machine learning and robotic process automation Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

DWP accelerates digital transformation amid Covid-19 crisis

The Department for Work and Pensions has released an update of the efforts made in the past six months across key digital services, with progress accelerating due to the pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Loan charge under review: Government’s tax policy set to be challenged under EU law

A fresh attempt to judicially review the government’s controversial disguised remuneration policy is being launched, and its backers have already secured 85% of the £180,000 needed to test whether the loan charge breaches EU law Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Assange revelations among most important in US history, says Daniel Ellsberg

Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked highly classified documents that changed the course of the Vietnam War in the 1970s, says WikiLeaks exposed a serious pattern of US war crimes Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

NCSC steps up ransomware support for schools and universities

New alert and updated guidance comes after several academic institutions were targeted in ransomware attacks Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Pure flashes the cash, paying $370m for Portworx

Flash storage pioneer believes container storage is the next frontier and pays big money for container persistent storage software provider Portworx in deal set to close this month Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Julian Assange held back 15,000 documents to prevent harm to US government

Investigative journalist John Goetz said today that WikiLeaks held back publication of thousands of documents that could harm individuals Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Ocado sees increased weekly orders following lockdown

Weekly orders for online grocer Ocado increased in the third quarter of 2020 as customers settle into online shopping behaviour Continue Reading

By

• Clare McDonald, Business Editor

Retailers urged to get to grips with Magento as attacks spike

A huge spike in online retailers being hacked with Magecart credit card skimmers is being blamed on unsupported versions of Adobe Magento Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Banks report surge in impersonation scams

Fraudsters are using the Covid-19 crisis to trick people into transferring money to them Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Deutsche Bӧrse tackles VMware application migration with Google Cloud

German financial exchange firm provides an update on its progress in its move to embrace a hybrid IT and multicloud future Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

UK government plan for digital identity lacks substance and strategy

The tech sector has waited over a year for the government to respond to its consultation on digital identity, and when it came, the plan could hardly be more disappointing Continue Reading

By

• Frank Joshi, Mvine

Singapore partners Apple on LumiHealth

Singapore’s Health Promotion Board has developed a programme with Apple to encourage healthy living following a similar partnership with Fitbit last year Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Scality aims at high-performance object with Ring 8 all-flash

Object storage specialist – with file storage capability – aims at tier-1 use cases such as AI/ML, content delivery and some backup tasks with all-flash upgrade to Scality Ring 8 Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

The harsh reality for newspapers in the fight against Facebook, is that people won’t pay for news

The Australian media is the latest to try to get Facebook and Google to pay for using their news stories. That only exposes the fact that not enough readers want to do so Continue Reading

By

• Tim Worstall, Adam Smith Institute

TikTok-Oracle partnership moves forward for consideration

Joint venture proposal could create thousands of jobs and secure TikTok’s future outside China Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Data of every Welsh Covid-19 patient leaked online

Data on all 18,105 people in Wales who have received positive tests for the coronavirus was uploaded to a public-facing web server in error Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Experts slam government digital ID response

TechUK panel members say the government’s response to its digital identity consultation provides no concrete plan for moving forward Continue Reading

How data has helped in the fight against coronavirus

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to the Office for National Statistics about the important role data plays in the battle against Covid-19. We also look at the speedy deployment of the Scottish contact-tracing app and report on a discussion about the UK government’s delayed response to its digital identity consultation. Read the issue now. Continue Reading