News

IT for government and public sector

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Loan charge: Government dashes hopes of revised down settlements for contractors

  HMRC and HM Treasury confirm there are no plans to alter the loan charge settlement terms, despite calls from cross-party MPs to consider doing so

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Public sector not considering the elderly in development of digital services

  A study by software firm Civica found public sector leaders have admitted to not targeting digital services at those over 70, despite many people this age claiming to use digital technology

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Russian state hackers attacking Covid-19 researchers

  Kremlin-linked APT29 group, also known as Cozy Bear, is conducting a campaign against Covid-19 researchers around the world

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  IR35 private sector reforms: Government response to Finance Bill Sub-Committee inquiry slammed

  Contracting stakeholders claim HMRC and HM Treasury are ‘burying their heads in the sand’ over impact IR35 reforms are set to have on the private sector

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Schrems v Facebook: European court strikes down EU-US Privacy Shield agreement

  The European Court of Justice has struck down Privacy Shield, the EU-US data-sharing agreement, creating uncertainty for European countries that share data with the US and pressuring the US to reform surveillance laws

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Gov.uk Verify sees surge during Covid-19 outbreak but remains unachievable

  The government's flagship identity service and over half of the 26 major IT projects led by the government bear highest risks and are unlikely to be completed, according to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

• July 16, 2020 16 Jul'20

  Room for improvement in Dutch digital skills

  The Netherlands has good telecommunications and IT networks that can be used safely and reliably, but there is room for improvement in digital skills among the Dutch

• July 15, 2020 15 Jul'20

  Defra releases sustainable IT strategy

  Defra’s sustainable IT strategy seeks to help government and private organisations maximise the benefits of sustainability, with an overall mission to ‘leave the environment in a better state than we found it’

• July 15, 2020 15 Jul'20

  Overseas IT directors could need salary of £56,100 to work in the UK

  The government has confirmed the salaries it considers as the ‘going rate’ for tech professions, which overseas applicants will need to earn to gain immigration points

• July 15, 2020 15 Jul'20

  Huge declines in traditional outsourcing as Covid-19 puts a stop on deals

  Traditional IT outsourcing deals value plummets in the last quarter as contracts dry up amid Covid-19 disruption

• July 15, 2020 15 Jul'20

  University graduates to Nutanix Files hyper-converged NAS

  The University of Reading had already deployed Nutanix hyper-converged infrastructure so it made sense to add Nutanix Files when its ageing NAS boxes bit the dust

• July 14, 2020 14 Jul'20

  European court to decide legality of EU-US data sharing in dispute between Schrems and Facebook

  A ruling by the European Court of Justice will have ramifications for hundreds of thousands of companies that share data with the US. The case aims to balance US surveillance laws with the rights of EU citizens to keep their data private

• July 14, 2020 14 Jul'20

  Government pumps more than £100m into border IT systems

  HMRC will get more than £100m for border IT systems as part of a £705m government funding package for infrastructure, jobs and technology post-Brexit

• July 14, 2020 14 Jul'20

  Subpostmasters hit funding target to prevent government from burying IT scandal

  The government is set to face scrutiny over its involvement in the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, described as one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in modern UK history

• July 10, 2020 10 Jul'20

  Universal Credit still struggles with digital issues, says NAO

  The cost of rolling out Universal Credit continues to rise, while only 20% of new claimants attempt to verify their identity online and digital skills remain an issue, according to the National Audit Office

• July 09, 2020 09 Jul'20

  NHS North West London boosts analytics use during Covid-19 outbreak

  A collaboration of NHS hospitals and health organisations in London is enhancing the use of data to improve their response to coronavirus

• July 09, 2020 09 Jul'20

  NHS trust uses case management software to deliver time savings

  To deal with inefficient and unreliable processes, East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Trust has implemented a case management system specifically designed for HR practitioners

• July 09, 2020 09 Jul'20

  Clearview AI faces ICO investigation over facial recognition

  Controversial company that scraped data from the public internet to build its facial recognition algorithm faces a joint UK-Australian investigation into its practices

• July 09, 2020 09 Jul'20

  Matt Hancock encourages private sector involvement in post-pandemic NHS technology

  Health secretary Matt Hancock has outlined how the NHS will continue to leverage digital technologies with the help of the private sector after the Covid-19 pandemic ends

• July 08, 2020 08 Jul'20

  Political awareness needed to ethically handle migration data, panel claims

  Understanding the political, social and economic relationships between different groups in society is needed to ensure location data is not used in ways that further endanger already vulnerable people on the move

• July 08, 2020 08 Jul'20

  Post Office scandal victims have days to raise thousands of pounds or perpetrators go scot-free

  Victims of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal need to raise thousands of pounds in a week or those responsible for their suffering will avoid scrutiny

• July 03, 2020 03 Jul'20

  Green tech needed for post-Covid economic recovery

  Green technology investments could help society recover from the coronavirus – and prepare it for the long-term negative social and economic outcomes of climate change

• July 03, 2020 03 Jul'20

  DWP publishes digital delivery results and cost of IT blunders

  DWP released a number of updates of its digital transformation work including several initiatives relating to the Covid-19 outbreak, and reported more than £10m sunk in failed IT projects

• July 02, 2020 02 Jul'20

  Loan charge MPs denied House of Commons vote on Finance Bill policy amendments

  Despite securing the support of 50 named MPs, an amendment to the forthcoming Finance Bill that could have seen thousands of people fall out of scope of the Loan Charge policy has been denied

• July 02, 2020 02 Jul'20

  Cops take out encrypted comms to disrupt organised crime

  The UK’s National Crime Agency, alongside other law enforcement agencies in France and the Netherlands, have busted illicit arms and drugs rings after disabling an encrypted comms platform

• July 02, 2020 02 Jul'20

  Police secrecy over ‘IMSI-catcher’ mass surveillance of mobile phones

  Following a tribunal ruling, constabularies in England and Wales can refuse to confirm or deny whether they use mass surveillance devices, known as IMSI-catchers to monitor people’s location, phone calls and text messages

• July 02, 2020 02 Jul'20

  Civil and family courts to get video platform for remote hearings

  Video platform that has been used in magistrates’ and crown courts during the coronavirus pandemic will be extended to civil and family courts

• July 02, 2020 02 Jul'20

  CMA calls on government to revamp regulations for tech giants

  Competition regulator says current laws are not fit for purpose and wants a new, ‘pro-competition regulatory regime’ that the likes of Google and Facebook must abide by

• July 01, 2020 01 Jul'20

  Equity in STEM education more important than ever, says Parliamentary group

  All-Party Parliamentary Group on Diversity and Inclusion in STEM suggests recommendations for increasing equity in education after stating coronavirus makes diversity increasingly important

• July 01, 2020 01 Jul'20

  UK government announces Office for Talent

  The Office for Talent is part of a research and development roadmap, which includes an innovation programme to accelerate innovation in government

• July 01, 2020 01 Jul'20

  Lenovo, top-of-the-world Chinese supercomputer supplier, sweeps all markets

  Supercomputers are not just about computing power, they are a symbol of political ambition. Chinese supercomputer supplier Lenovo is now the dominant supplier across the world

• June 30, 2020 30 Jun'20

  Australia to invest a record A$1.35bn in cyber security

  The Australian government is making its largest ever investment in cyber security over the next decade to identify cyber threats, disrupt foreign cyber criminals and build new capabilities

• June 30, 2020 30 Jun'20

  HMRC and Treasury accused of ‘direct interference’ in independent loan charge review

  Loan Charge All-Party Parliamentary Group report pours scorn on claims that December 2019 review of government’s disguised renumeration policy was conducted independently

• June 30, 2020 30 Jun'20

  Government expands Future Fund eligibility criteria

  The Future Fund will now be accessible to startups that have previously taken part in accelerator programmes, but early-stage firms continue to struggle

• June 29, 2020 29 Jun'20

  MPs urged to back Finance Bill amendments to loan charge policy

  Loan Charge Action Group urges its members to ask their MPs to support an amendment to the controversial loan charge policy that could see more people fall outside its scope

• June 29, 2020 29 Jun'20

  Lawyers learn of fresh US allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange from press reports

  The US has filed an updated indictment against Julian Assange alleging that he conspired with hacking groups to obtain information for WikiLeaks. Defence and prosecution lawyers learned about it from press reports

• June 29, 2020 29 Jun'20

  MPs to examine fairness of private prosecutions in light of Post Office IT scandal

  Parliamentary Justice Committee to hold short inquiry into the rules and regulations surrounding private organisations’ ability to initiate criminal proceedings

• June 29, 2020 29 Jun'20

  Lords urge government to take immediate action on online harms

  Select committee calls for tech giants to be held responsible for the harm done to individuals, wider society and democratic processes through online misinformation

• June 29, 2020 29 Jun'20

  UKCloud signs MoU with CCS to provide public sector with discounted cloud pricing

  Public sector-focused IaaS firm UKCloud has become the latest supplier to sign a discounted pricing deal with the UK government

• June 26, 2020 26 Jun'20

  CBI: Government must take steps to drive SME business innovation

  The coronavirus pandemic has shown how much can be achieved in a short period with a strong partnership between government and industry – and this needs to continue

• June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20

  NHSX seeks evolution of digital transformation capabilities

  New approaches and team structures could be tested as a result of learnings from the work around Covid-19

• June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20

  Former Post Office CEO and Fujitsu play the blame game in Horizon IT scandal

  Post Office and Fujitsu blame each other for many of the failings in the Horizon IT scandal that wrecked lives

• June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20

  CBI: UK needs an immigration and training rethink

  For the UK to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, vast swathes of the population will need retraining – and overseas IT specialists will also be needed

• June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20

  CBI: Digital economy needs joined-up regulations and gigabit broadband

  The coronavirus pandemic has shown the need for fast, reliable networking across the UK. The CBI is urging the government to do more

• June 25, 2020 25 Jun'20

  HMRC yet to begin building UK border IT system

  The UK government has still not built its Goods Vehicle Movement Service (GVMS) IT system, despite the end of the Brexit transition period looming, while the Port of Dover’s head of EU exit proposes just licensing the French IT system instead

• June 24, 2020 24 Jun'20

  Firm that investigated controversial Post Office IT system to support criminal conviction appeals

  Second Sight is working with law firm in appeals by subpostmasters against criminal convictions in Horizon IT scandal

• June 24, 2020 24 Jun'20

  IT services giant gives staff time out to volunteer for police clients

  IT services company CGI responds to Met Police call by offering its staff the opportunity to take 11 days paid leave to volunteer their time

• June 23, 2020 23 Jun'20

  SoftIron aims at data too valuable for commodity storage

  UK array maker hopes to be the storage provider of choice for those that really value their data, with highly optimised Ceph-powered hardware aimed at HPC users and enterprises

• June 22, 2020 22 Jun'20

  Government to publish digital strategy this autumn

  Strategy will set out how to increase tech-led economic growth and productivity after the Covid-19 pandemic, says digital secretary Oliver Dowden

• June 22, 2020 22 Jun'20

  Immigrants’ rights campaigners take Home Office to court over visa algorithm

  Campaigners claim built-in algorithmic bias makes processing of visa applications ‘discriminatory’

• June 22, 2020 22 Jun'20

  East Coast Main Line to get £350m digital signalling boost

  Government accelerates the roll-out of electronic signalling, pumping £350m into a digital signalling system on the East Coast Mainline

• June 22, 2020 22 Jun'20

  Care Quality Commission to discuss concerns over Paula Vennells’ NHS role

  Healthcare regulator will be discussing concerns about former NHS boss chairing an NHS trust at an upcoming meeting

• June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20

  Post Office Horizon scandal victims keep pressure on government’s doorstep

  Subpostmasters fighting for justice in IT scandal are pressuring government on numerous fronts, as momentum is regained after reduced activity due to Covid-19 lockdown

• June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20

  Technology firms come under scrutiny for ties to law enforcement

  Three major technology companies have committed to not selling facial-recognition tech to law enforcement, but remain silent on how other technologies can be used to fuel racial injustice and discriminatory policing

• June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20

  AI bias and privacy issues require more than clever tech

  The new AI Barometer report from the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation has assessed the threats and opportunities of artificial intelligence in the UK

• June 19, 2020 19 Jun'20

  Facebook allows US users to disable political ads

  Users of the social media platform will soon be able to opt out of seeing politically motivated posts

• June 18, 2020 18 Jun'20

  US pulls out of talks with Europe for global digital tax

  Despite the US’s resistance to an international digital services tax, the UK and other European countries plan to continue pushing for a global solution to taxing technology giants

• June 18, 2020 18 Jun'20

  Data protection watchdog calls for controls on police mobile phone stop-and-searches

  Information commissioner wants new safeguards on the use of police powers to download sensitive personal data from the mobile phones of suspects and crime victims

• June 18, 2020 18 Jun'20

  EU-backed bid to build data preservation cloud for European research community gathers pace

  The Archiver project, which aims to create a hybrid cloud-based data preservation environment for scientific researchers across Europe, has named the ICT suppliers in the running to deliver on its vision

• June 18, 2020 18 Jun'20

  Survey finds 30% of people let down by public-sector tech during pandemic

  ThoughtWorks research highlights problems around remote schooling, local government and GP services

• June 18, 2020 18 Jun'20

  Nordic business is leading open banking charge in Europe

  Nordic region has the right ingredients to prove open banking can benefit consumers, businesses and the economy

• June 17, 2020 17 Jun'20

  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

• June 17, 2020 17 Jun'20

  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

• June 16, 2020 16 Jun'20

  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

• June 16, 2020 16 Jun'20

  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

• June 16, 2020 16 Jun'20

  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

• June 15, 2020 15 Jun'20

  UK quantum technology projects get a £70m boost

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

• June 15, 2020 15 Jun'20

  Northern Ireland invests £1.7m in online learning

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

• June 15, 2020 15 Jun'20

  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

• June 12, 2020 12 Jun'20

  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

• June 12, 2020 12 Jun'20

  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

• June 12, 2020 12 Jun'20

  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”

• June 12, 2020 12 Jun'20

  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

• June 11, 2020 11 Jun'20

  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

• June 11, 2020 11 Jun'20

  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

• June 11, 2020 11 Jun'20

  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

• June 11, 2020 11 Jun'20

  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

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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.”

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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

• June 10, 2020 10 Jun'20

  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

• June 09, 2020 09 Jun'20

  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

• June 09, 2020 09 Jun'20

  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

• June 09, 2020 09 Jun'20

  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

• June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20

  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

• June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20

  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

• June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20

  London Tech Week to go ahead through Zoom

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

• June 05, 2020 05 Jun'20

  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

• June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20

  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

• June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20

  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

• June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20

  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

• June 04, 2020 04 Jun'20

  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

• June 03, 2020 03 Jun'20

  Security procurement framework goes live for NHS and public sector

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

• June 03, 2020 03 Jun'20

  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

• June 02, 2020 02 Jun'20

  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

• June 02, 2020 02 Jun'20

  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

• June 02, 2020 02 Jun'20

  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

• June 02, 2020 02 Jun'20

  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