News

IT for government and public sector

• November 09, 2020 09 Nov'20

  EU moves closer to encryption ban after Austria, France attacks

  Draft resolution document setting up an EU-wide ban on end-to-end encryption is set to be waved through this week

• November 09, 2020 09 Nov'20

  Tampere’s perfect storm triggers a startup revolution

  Previously a hub for Nokia and Microsoft, Finland’s second-largest city is capitalising on a wealth of technical knowhow to become the dark horse of the Nordic startup scene

• November 06, 2020 06 Nov'20

  Covid-19 pandemic has significantly affected HMRC’s operations, says NAO

  NAO’s insight into HMRC’s annual report and accounts finds that the pandemic has created challenges for the department’s transformation programmes, including Universal Credit and the end of the Brexit transition period

• November 06, 2020 06 Nov'20

  Finger pointed at Fujitsu as Post Office Horizon system crashes nationally

  Post Office branches offline during busy business hours after suffering an IT error that the Post Office said related to IT from supplier Fujitsu

• November 06, 2020 06 Nov'20

  HMRC shuns Gov.uk Notify and seeks supplier to unify notifications

  Tax collection agency HMRC will spend up to £9.75m to streamline notifications through text, voice and email

• November 05, 2020 05 Nov'20

  Risk of ‘widespread disruption’ at UK border after Brexit transition period, NAO warns

  National Audit Office report highlights concerns over UK’s readiness when Brexit transition period ends, including several IT systems at risk of not being ready in time

• November 05, 2020 05 Nov'20

  Royal Navy tests new tech in Cyprus

  Navy has been trialling drones, autonomous systems and new communication systems under plans to evolve the Royal Marines into a ‘hi-tech raiding and strike force’

• November 05, 2020 05 Nov'20

  Slot of the Antarctic: Tape the best option for polar survey backup

  Tape deemed the best medium for backup on board the Antarctic research vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough, with Quantum’s Scalar i3 chosen in a fully redundant deployment

• November 05, 2020 05 Nov'20

  Mastercard: Looks like a tech firm, acts like a tech firm, is a tech firm

  Financial services giant finds itself in a prominent position as the volume of digital transactions increases

• November 04, 2020 04 Nov'20

  Asda recruits new IT chief to handle transition

  Former Morrisons CTO Anna Barsby will lead retailer’s tech agenda as part of its acquisition by the Issa brothers

• November 04, 2020 04 Nov'20

  Nordic countries to develop common digital system

  Common digital platform will help small and medium-sized enterprises across the Nordic region with data sharing

• November 03, 2020 03 Nov'20

  Government sets out plans for security vetting IT platform

  A three-year programme to transform the security vetting process for civil servants includes a technology platform due to be rolled out in summer 2021

• November 03, 2020 03 Nov'20

  Subpostmasters’ complaint about government begins its journey to Parliamentary Ombudsman

  Government faces scrutiny of its handling of the Post Office IT scandal that destroyed subpostmasters’ lives and livelihoods

• November 02, 2020 02 Nov'20

  NHS weathers cyber crime storm during pandemic, says NCSC

  The NCSC dealt with over 700 incidents in the 12 months to August 2020, with over 200 specifically related to Covid-19, and the NHS a critical area of focus

• November 02, 2020 02 Nov'20

  Finnish government rolls out digital projects to support SMEs

  Finland is set to create network of technology hubs that will support SMEs in the country, as well as create links across the EU

• November 02, 2020 02 Nov'20

  Government seeks Council of Science and Technology co-chair

  Co-chair will be part of the council that advises the prime minister on science and technology policy issues, including sustainable development, innovation and the UK’s research and science capability

• October 30, 2020 30 Oct'20

  Government invests £200,000 to boost Scottish geospatial sector

  The new Scottish Geospatial Network Integrator will work on developing opportunities in the geospatial services industry

• October 30, 2020 30 Oct'20

  CCS out to tender for technology services framework worth up to £2bn

  Third iteration of Crown Commercial Service’s technology services framework includes technical management, transformation programmes and integration and management

• October 29, 2020 29 Oct'20

  Most further education colleges have skills shortages in IT teams, says Jisc

  A report from member organisation Jisc has found that a larger number of further education colleges have a skills shortage in IT teams

• October 29, 2020 29 Oct'20

  Victims contest technology firms’ attempt to dismiss cobalt mining deaths case

  Technology companies say they cannot be held responsible for the deaths of children mining for the cobalt used in their products

• October 29, 2020 29 Oct'20

  UK Hydrographic Office launches innovation programme

  The programme aims to help startups and innovators use marine geospatial data to develop products and systems to “support safe, secure and thriving oceans”

• October 29, 2020 29 Oct'20

  Royal Navy and US Navy evolve joint AI and ML work

  The teams are working on improving interoperability and interchangeability of technology between the US and UK

• October 27, 2020 27 Oct'20

  ICO slams Experian over ‘invisible’ data processing

  Data processing practices used by Experian broke data protection law, says Information Commissioner’s Office

• October 27, 2020 27 Oct'20

  Not enough time to get software ready for end of Brexit transition period, warns industry

  Software suppliers are concerned they don't have enough time or information to help businesses be ready on time for the end of the Brexit transition period

• October 26, 2020 26 Oct'20

  Policy Exchange calls on government to publish digital ID strategy

  The lack of reliable digital ID services in the UK is limiting the country’s digital infrastructure potential, according to a report on digital identity, which also recommends the government to clarify the future of Gov.uk Verify

• October 26, 2020 26 Oct'20

  Dutch government ‘unambitious’ in digital

  The Netherlands has been working at home as much as possible since the outbreak of Covid-19, but its dependence on technology and connectivity does not seem to be reflected by the government’s approach to digitisation

• October 26, 2020 26 Oct'20

  Cooperation between Norway’s security agencies planned following cyber attack on parliament

  Government seeks to develop enhanced national IT infrastructure with an embedded early warning system and defence shield to protect the IT systems of public and private organisations

• October 23, 2020 23 Oct'20

  Digital public services fail UK citizens on multiple fronts

  Commission for Smart Government publishes paper on obstacles facing the UK’s digital government, setting out principles for digital government initiatives to follow

• October 23, 2020 23 Oct'20

  Cyber attack on Hackney Council is ‘morally repugnant’, says mayor

  Mayor of Hackney is ‘incredibly angry’ at the cyber criminals behind the attack, which will continue to disrupt key council services for some time

• October 23, 2020 23 Oct'20

  Nesta launches report on collective intelligence

  Report sets out how to combine machine and human intelligence to drive innovation that could solve social challenges

• October 23, 2020 23 Oct'20

  NHS trust takes another look at its appointment of IT scandal CEO

  Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has asked for external review of its process when appointing controversial executive

• October 22, 2020 22 Oct'20

  Nordic countries in denial over IT industry equality

  Arriving in Denmark to find she was the only woman on a computer science master’s course was a shock to Plamena Cherneva

• October 22, 2020 22 Oct'20

  Bath and North East Somerset goes live with integrated care record

  Record system allows health and care professionals to share information across Virgin Care, local GPs, Royal United Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Bath and North East Somerset Council

• October 22, 2020 22 Oct'20

  US Justice Department files antitrust lawsuit against Google

  Lawsuit alleges Google used anticompetitive tactics to maintain and extend its monopolies in a number of interconnected digital markets, violating US federal antitrust law

• October 21, 2020 21 Oct'20

  How Malaysia’s Selangor state is tapping cloud

  Malaysian state has built a cloud-based payment services platform for citizens and is looking to tap cloud-based analytics to upgrade its surveillance cameras, among other cloud computing initiatives

• October 20, 2020 20 Oct'20

  Hackney Council services to be disrupted ‘for some time’

  Inability to make housing benefit payments is likely to sting some tenants as Hackney cyber attack drags on

• October 20, 2020 20 Oct'20

  Police given access to self-isolation data

  NHS Test and Trace self-isolation data will be made available to police after new guidance changes data-sharing rules

• October 20, 2020 20 Oct'20

  MoD launches science and technology strategy

  Strategy sets out how the department will find and fund technological breakthroughs, focus on data and deliver next-generation military hardware

• October 20, 2020 20 Oct'20

  Labour shares concerns over ‘whitewash’ Horizon IT inquiry

  Labour MPs write to postal affairs minister expressing fears that the inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal does not guarantee cooperation from the Post Office, Fujitsu and government

• October 20, 2020 20 Oct'20

  Making Tax Digital could impose unreasonable costs on taxpayers, says PAC

  Public Accounts Committee calls on HMRC to assess whether the administrative burden placed on taxpayers through its Making Tax Digital programme is reasonable before continuing to roll it out

• October 19, 2020 19 Oct'20

  Scottish Borders extends CGI outsourcing contract until 2040

  CGI will continue to provide the Scottish council’s end-to-end managed IT services until 2040, making it one of the longest extensions in the company’s history

• October 19, 2020 19 Oct'20

  UK Space Agency funds three Covid-19 tech projects

  Projects include drones to carry coronavirus tests and samples, a mobile app using satellite technology to provide access to community transport, and e-learning courses in Earth observation data analysis

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  UK announces proposals to protect cash amid evolution of digital payments

  Government wants to ensure access to physical currency by consumers at retailers of all sizes

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  Serco and Sitel contact-tracing contracts agreed to be penalty-free for underperformance

  Penalties for underperformance were not included in NHS contact-tracing contracts with Serco and Sitel, it has emerged from questions to the Department of Health by Conservative MP David Davis

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  UK government aims to prioritise future innovations

  Government research has been published to enable evidence-based recommendations on emerging technology with greatest impact

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  Welsh shared electronic record project is far from realising ambition, says auditor

  Welsh Community Care Information System roll-out, originally due in 2018, is taking longer and costing more than expected, and the prospect of a full take-up among local organisations is still uncertain

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  Spanish court to question witnesses over ‘illegal surveillance’ of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange

  The Spanish National Court in Madrid is to hear evidence from information security expert Andy Müller-Maguhn and two lawyers who were subject to ‘illegal surveillance’  of their meetings with Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London

• October 16, 2020 16 Oct'20

  Services Australia taps AI in document processing

  Services Australia and Capgemini have developed an AI engine to classify and extract information from claim documents in a pilot project

• October 15, 2020 15 Oct'20

  UK regulators lack the skills and expertise to cope with increasing use of algorithms

  MPs told that multiple regulators will be needed to govern the ever-growing use of algorithmic systems in all areas of the economy and public sector

• October 15, 2020 15 Oct'20

  Emerging tech can improve regulatory processes, says BEIS report

  Regulators should take a best-practice approach to the use of emerging technologies but need to be aware of the challenges, according to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy