IT news in your industry sector

Amnesty identifies most privacy-invasive Covid-19 contact-tracing apps

Bahrain’s ‘BeAware Bahrain’, Kuwait’s ‘Shlonik’ and Norway’s ‘Smittestopp’ are the most privacy-invasive contact-tracing apps, reveals Amnesty International study Continue Reading

By

• Laura Middag Alvarez

Select committee chair demands sharper teeth for review of Post Office IT scandal

Call for government review of Post Office Horizon scandal to have the power to force individuals to give evidence under oath Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

NHS Digital seeks suppliers for Covid-19 testing service

The NHS Digital tender aims to find a partner to handle the development, delivery and running of the coronavirus testing service Continue Reading

Government publishes geospatial data strategy to capitalise on location data

National Geospatial Strategy will develop the country’s location data framework over the next five years Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

Activists call on Zoom to implement encryption for all

A coalition of tech organisations and nonprofits have urged Zoom CEO Eric Yuan to make end-to-end encryption available to all users Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Danske Bank begins process of creating autonomous development teams

Danish bank begins the process of changing how thousands of its staff work as it attempts to be more responsive to digital demand Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Norway’s contact-tracing app suspended over privacy concerns

Norway has been given until 23 June to justify the location tracking of citizens who download its contract-tracing app Continue Reading

By

• Laura Middag Alvarez & Bill Goodwin

QLC + 3D Xpoint = Vast Data’s universal storage

Vast marries cheap-and-deep QLC flash with super-fast 3D Xpoint to bring flash for all data, with a particular eye on analytics and with NAS and S3 object access for now Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

6G, European internet, censorship: EU Parliament sets out vision for digital services

Research outlines trends for the coming decade and an action plan with some controversial recommendations to inform the decisions of policymakers around the upcoming Digital Services Act. Continue Reading

Banking trojans roar back to prominence in May

Check Point sees an upswing in malicious activity around a number of classic banking trojan malware variants Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UK quantum technology projects get a £70m boost

Government is funding 38 projects, one-third of which are focused on quantum computing Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Why UK needs independent oversight body for contact-tracing app

The public needs and deserves clarity, and not just assurances, over the UK’s Covid-19 contact-tracing app Continue Reading

By

• Dan Cooper  

NHS signs countrywide deal with Microsoft

‘Landmark’ IT deal will see NHS organisations in England get access to all Microsoft 365 services, including Teams and Office 365, and strengthen cyber security measures Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

NatWest develops behavioural biometrics as additional authentication

Bank is working with Visa to develop behavioural biometrics technology as an extra layer of invisible authentication Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Northern Ireland invests £1.7m in online learning

Package of online skills interventions aimed at people who have been affected by the coronavirus Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Accessories store Claire’s hit by Magecart credit card fraudsters

Attackers gained access to retailer’s website as long ago as March Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Blow to government review of Post Office scandal as key forensic accountants refuse to support it

The government’s proposed review of the Post Office IT scandal has received a further setback as forensic accountants join subpostmasters in refusing to back it Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Brits get used to life without cash

British people are getting used to life without cash, as the Covid-19 lockdown forces the adoption of digital payments Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Hospital uses thermal surveillance cameras to protect patients against second wave of Covid-19

A North Midlands NHS trust claims to be the first NHS trust to deploy thermal surveillance cameras to protect patients and staff against the coronavirus Continue Reading

By

• Laura Middag Alvarez

NHS email service users ensnared in phishing attack

More than 100 accounts on the NHSmail service were affected by attack, but health service says no patient data was accessed Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Santander to recruit 3,000 more IT staff

Spanish bank to recruit a further 3,000 tech staff globally to accelerate its digital transformation Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Fake contact-tracing apps delivering banking trojans

Spoof government coronavirus apps are popping up all over the world, says the Anomali Threat Research team Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UK to boost data science efforts in citizen services

Government Digital Service launches Data Labs to enhance services with tools such as artificial intelligence and natural language processing Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

How the RHS overcame Covid-19 to create first online-only Chelsea Flower Show in just eight weeks

The technology and digital teams at The Royal Horticultural Society discuss the work that went on behind the scenes to transform the Chelsea Flower Show into a virtual event with just weeks to plan Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Cloud storage on-site hardware: AWS, Azure, Google Cloud

We look at the big three cloud vendors’ on-site offerings: AWS’s Outposts, Gateway and Snow hardware, Azure’s Stack and Arc appliances, and Google Cloud’s software-defined Anthos Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

UN secretary general calls for global digital cooperation

Antonio Guterres launches roadmap for digital cooperation and calls for world leaders to come together to “connect, respect and protect people in the digital age” Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Twitter kills thousands of misinformation accounts

The accounts were linked to the governments of China, Russia and Turkey, and engaged in systematic operations against pro-democracy activists, political opponents and dissidents Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Subpostmasters will not cooperate with government review into IT scandal

A group of subpostmasters who suffered at the hands of the Post Office’s error-prone IT system refuse to participate in a government review into the scandal, describing it as a sham Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Tech firms respond to Nordic government calls

Nordic firms are working with tech suppliers to help them get back up and running after Covid-19 Continue Reading

By

• Gerard O'Dwyer

Government lays out future trade plan for UK tech

Measures aim to create jobs and increase technology exports, as well as encouraging international investments into the UK Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

North Staffordshire NHS trust rolls out mental health platform for young people

Digital portal enables young people to self-refer to local mental health services, giving them easier access to support and reducing waiting times Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

NHS England launches online tools for diabetes

People with type 1 or type 2 diabetes will have access to three new online services to help manage their condition at home Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Data insights will define post-coronavirus city planning

Who would have imagined that in 2020, the majority of people would work remotely and buy online? Cities are going to have to change how they are set up Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Swedbank to rebuild anti-money laundering systems after damning report

 Continue Reading

CW Europe: 5G rush in Russia

Russian mobile operators are pooling their resources to help them overcome the technical challenges of creating 5G networks. Also read why Swedbank is rebuilding its anti-money laundering systems, and how a public-private partnership in the Netherlands is combating business email compromise fraud. Continue Reading

Anger as government launches ‘pathetic’ and ‘pointless’ review of Horizon scandal

The government has been accused of launching a review that fails in getting to the bottom of one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in UK history Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IBM divests from facial-recognition market

IBM’s CEO writes to US congress about decision to stop using and selling facial-recognition technology, and says we should re-evaluate whether it should be sold to law enforcement agencies Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

UK tech professionals feel impact of lockdown easing

Mental health concerns increase, with a possible negative effect on the quality of work, as companies get ready to return to the office, study shows Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

CogX 2020: Matt Hancock on tech during Covid-19

Health secretary Matt Hancock says technology companies have been vital in dealing with the pandemic, and praises UK for testing more people “than almost anywhere in the world.” Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

CogX 2020: Rethinking technological innovation

Innovation processes and relationships must be fundamentally restructured to bring in more stakeholders, and spread the benefits of technological change as far as possible Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Virtual GP practice accidentally exposes patient video calls

A small number of users of Babylon’s GP at Hand service were briefly able to view other patients’ video GP consultations thanks to a bug in a new software feature Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus: Danske Bank to make permanent changes to working practices

Danske Bank has seen the value of remote working during the unplanned proof of concept triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CaixaBank introduces facial recognition ATMs

Spanish bank broadens its use of facial recognition technology on cash machines Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

6G, European internet, censorship: EU Parliament sets out vision for digital services

Research outlines trends for the coming decade and an action plan with some controversial recommendations to inform the decisions of policymakers around the upcoming Digital Services Act Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Meet the Identity and Attributes Exchange – GDS’s future for digital identity after Verify

As the Government Digital Service (GDS) prepares for the winding down of its Gov.uk Verify service, its future plans for digital identity are becoming a little clearer. In recent weeks, GDS has ... Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Cloud storage 101: NAS file storage on AWS, Azure and GCP

We look at NAS file storage options in AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. All three offer native-based and NetApp-based file storage, with Azure adding single namespace cache services Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Honda investigates suspected Snake ransomware attack

Attack disrupts global operations at carmaker, with assembly lines falling silent and sales suspended Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Churchill gets Ctera hybrid cloud NAS and dodges 3PAR disk spend

Potteries-based ceramics maker faced the choice between expanding its HPE SAN at great cost or deploying Ctera hybrid cloud NAS. It saved thousands by heading for hybrid cloud Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Covid-19 global co-ordination is off the mark, Tony Blair tells CogX

Former UK prime minister, now head of a global institute that advises governments, tells CogX attendees that global co-ordination to combat Covid-19 is far from where it needs to be Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

AS Roma to develop video tracking with Acronis AI expertise

Italian football club will get variable-price ticketing using artificial intelligence expertise to develop systems. It has also deployed Acronis cloud backup Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Bankers say artificial intelligence will separate winners and losers

The application of artificial intelligence at banks will be the difference between the ones that succeed and the ones that fail in the coming years Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Government publishes artificial intelligence procurement guidance

A document has been published outlining the challenges for public sector buyers as well as best practices on procuring AI technology Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Select committees to continue with Zoom virtual meetings until September

Although MPs have returned to Parliament, House of Commons select committees will continue with virtual meetings until 17 September Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

The software innovation impact of coronavirus

Software developers can work remotely, but if workers are expected to work remotely in the long term, can organisations maintain a software innovation cycle? Continue Reading

Coronavirus: Retailers reach for tech to keep staff connected in the crisis

From fast-tracking home-working strategy, to conducting training and board meetings virtually, read about how retailers are keeping staff connected during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis Continue Reading

CIO interview: Simon Moorhead of the Rail Delivery Group discusses integration

Train services across the UK are fragmented, with data and systems in silos, which makes it hard to provide a seamless experience for rail users Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

How retailers are staying connected during their coronavirus shutdown

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we look at how the hard-hit retail sector has turned to technology to stay connected with staff during the coronavirus lockdown. Our latest buyer’s guide examines best practice in data quality and how to avoid “garbage in garbage out” syndrome. And we look at how remote working affects software development teams. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

How Malaysia’s Gain Secure stood tall amid Covid-19

Walter Wong, executive director of Gain Secure and former Microsoft employee, talks up how his business is coping during Malaysia’s lockdown Continue Reading

By

• Avanti Kumar

Accurate data in, better insights out

The coronavirus pandemic has propelled data into the headlines, but it has also shown the challenges of dealing with incomplete datasets Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Nordic CIO interview: Janne Puustinen, Valmet

Janne Puustinen built Finnish industrial technology company Valmet’s entire IT organisation from scratch after a demerger Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Cystic fibrosis and Covid-19 patients get tech to monitor condition at home

NHS at Home programme sees cystic fibrosis patients given home spirometers and coronavirus patients given oximeters, together with an app, to monitor their condition from home and share information with clinicians Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

NHS Covid-19 datastore contracts published under pressure from privacy groups

The government has published the contracts with Palantir, Faculty, Microsoft and Google for the controversial NHS datastore ahead of court proceedings initiated by civil liberties organisation OpenDemocracy Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

Businesses develop apps quickly to manage disruption of Covid-19

Healthcare companies, insurers, government agencies and big tech companies have used technology from Pegasystems to develop apps to manage the disruption caused by coronavirus Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Police chiefs working with Public Health England on contact-tracing security

Police force representatives are in talks with Public Health England over operational security concerns arising from the NHS Test and Trace coronavirus contact-tracing scheme Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus: Digital bank Monzo cuts 120 staff

Digital challenger Monzo has announced 120 job cuts as it navigates the current economic slowdown Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CaixiaBank gets ready to modernise IT using IBM Cloud Pak

Spanish bank extends IBM relationship with the roll-out of Cloud Pak to modernise IT, which it says will allow it to innovate in quantum computing and blockchain Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

London Tech Week to go ahead through Zoom

London Tech week will go ahead next week, with the tech industry attending through Zoom Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Ministry of Defence forms new cyber security regiment

The 13th Signal Regiment brings together personnel from across the armed forces to provide specialist security services Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch organisations invest heavily in compliance – but in vain

Despite the fact that companies in the Netherlands have invested heavily to comply with GDPR legislation introduced two years ago, 90% of them are still discovering fundamental weaknesses in their IT environment Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

Government evades being pinned to a date for online harms legislation

MPs challenge government on online harms bill timetable, but have to settle for “clear assurances” that it will brought to parliament before the end of the session Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

OVHcloud brings healthcare-focused private cloud offering to UK market

French infrastructure-as-a-service provider OVHcloud is making its sector-specific portfolio of private cloud and bare metal services available to UK-based healthcare providers Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

The Security Interviews: How the BSI protects the IoT from itself

David Mudd of the BSI reveals how a pragmatic and realistic approach to security vulnerabilities underpins its internet of things kitemark, helping give users the confidence to buy smart devices safely Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

MPs' investigation into Post Office Horizon IT scandal bares teeth

Select committee chair writes to former Post Office CEO demanding answers over her role in IT scandal Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Lidl Finland speeds up with new local server racks

Lidl brings server racks to its Finnish stores in a bid to improve connectivity and introduce new services to its customers Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Security procurement framework goes live for NHS and public sector

Cyber Security Services Framework, developed by NHS Shared Business Services, has formally launched Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CCRC sends 47 subpostmaster miscarriages of justice for appeal, asks for prosecution powers review

The Criminal Cases Review Commission sends 47 more subpostmaster cases to Court of Appeal and asks government to review private prosecution powers Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

How Teams and Office 365 connect NHS staff during the lockdown

NHS’s AGEM Commissioning Support Unit has migrated from on-premise SharePoint to Office 365 and is now using Teams Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Aston Martin swaps out legacy antivirus for AI-driven service

Luxury car manufacturer says the advent of artificial intelligence-powered services will revolutionise its security posture Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Collaboration technology is breeding burnout – keep it real

The Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably caused the use of collaboration platforms to spike. But as fatigue sets in, organisations try to keep their use cases focused Continue Reading

By

• Cath Everett

Government departments could cut payment costs through API deal

The UK government adds fintech to its approved procurement list which promises to cut the costs of receiving payments Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

OneFS for Cloud is a heavyweight entrant in cloud file storage

Dell EMC’s porting of its Isilon OneFS scale-out file system to cloud and hybrid use cases brings a big player to a market that has had some innovative incumbents for some time Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Covid-19 pandemic accelerates work on NHS App

The coronavirus health crisis has sped up work to integrate online consultations in the NHS App, exceeding roll-out targets and driving uptake Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Hull supercomputer helps fight Covid-19

University’s Viper supercomputer team join forces with Sheffield-based HPC specialist in global distributed computing project focused on the coronavirus Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

NIS security regulations proving effective, but more work to do

The UK’s NIS cyber security and risk regulations are proving somewhat effective, according to a government report Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Subpostmasters to force scrutiny of government’s role in Post Office IT scandal

The government's role in the Post Office Horizon IT scandal could soon be put under the microscope as subpostmasters take their complaints to the Parliamentary Ombudsman Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

What will be the IT security priorities of the post-coronavirus world?

In this week’s Computer Weekly, with the working world after the pandemic set to be very different, we assess the IT security priorities for the ‘new normal’. Facial recognition firms are racing to identify people wearing face masks. And how did Europe’s telecoms networks cope with the switch to remote working? Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Employees must be consulted on technologies monitoring the return to work

Experts say the workforce must be ‘in the room’ and given a meaningful say about technologies introduced to monitor their return to work following the Covid-19 pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

HSBC platform uses AI to analyse trading data thousands of times faster

HSBC is offering its US share trading customers artificial intelligence-powered insights into public information about listed companies Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange misses court hearing due to respiratory problems

The WikiLeaks founder is expected to call 21 witnesses during a three-week extradition hearing in September Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

How Saudi Arabia is using cloud to navigate the Covid-19 downturn

Organisations in Saudi Arabia are using cloud computing services to help them navigate challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic Continue Reading

By

• Alicia Buller

UK-Ireland frictionless border tech far from ready, EU Select Committee finds

The government has promised a frictionless UK-Ireland border, but currently technology only has the capacity to mitigate rather than eliminate friction, and the government’s technical advisory group on the border seems to be on hiatus Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Coronavirus: Government under renewed pressure to ramp up support for limited company directors

Chancellor of the Exchequer's announced extensions of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme prompt renewed calls for more tailored financial support for limited companies Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Councils don't have a consistent view of cyber security, says report

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government releases findings around security perceptions of local authorities Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Inside India: The world’s IT powerhouse

The Covid-19 pandemic is turning out to be a big fork in the road for many companies. But what about the industry that keeps the lights on for them? Continue Reading

By

• Pratima Harigunani

Trump signs executive order targeting social media firms

US president moves to weaken legal protections for social media companies after Twitter takes action on his posts Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Test and Trace has not passed data protection impact assessment

Public Health England failed to complete the required impact assessment before launching the Covid-19 Test and Trace programme Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The new future of work

We may come to stop talking about ‘remote’ working altogether after the coronavirus pandemic. It could become just ‘working’ – part of the normal mix of how things are done Continue Reading

By

• Bev White, Nash Squared

UK fintech investment reaches record high

Huge increases in UK fintech investment over the past three years has seen the sector explode, but most of the activity is still concentrated in London Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

UK to join Covid-19 High-Performance Computing consortium

UK becomes first country outside the US to join group enabling researchers and scientists to access top supercomputers to help their work on the coronavirus Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Kaminario offers cut-price virtual SAN in the cloud

Flash pioneer Kaminario builds its VisionOS out to the cloud and says its cloud block storage is much cheaper than what is available from the native cloud services of the big three providers Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra, LeMagIT