News

IT for government and public sector

• August 09, 2012 09 Aug'12

  Government saves £249m in IT costs

  The government reduced its IT spend by £249m in 2011/12, with savings of £104m coming from digital services and contract renegotiations

• August 09, 2012 09 Aug'12

  Obama considers ordering industry to improve cyber defences

  US President Barack Obama is considering issuing orders compelling or encouraging companies in critical industries to improve their cyber defences.

• August 08, 2012 08 Aug'12

  The IT behind Mars Science Laboratory's landing of the Curiosity rover

  IT has been key to successfully landing the rover robot Curiosity, on Mars earlier this week.

• August 08, 2012 08 Aug'12

  Good data protection can be cheap and easy, says ICO

  The ICO says charities and third sector organisations stand to benefit most from a data protection check-up.

• August 06, 2012 06 Aug'12

  US passes resolution to block UN control of the internet

  The US House of Representatives has voted unanimously to approve a resolution preventing greater UN power of the Internet

• August 06, 2012 06 Aug'12

  ICO issues £175k penalty against Devon NHS Trust

  The ICO has fined NHS Trust in Torquay £175,000 for publishing the sensitive details of over 1,000 employees on its website.

• August 06, 2012 06 Aug'12

  LinkedIn data breach costs more than $1m

  LinkedIn says the forensic investigation and other recovery costs of the data breach in June could have topped $1m.

• August 03, 2012 03 Aug'12

  MoD awarded £303m contract to CSC despite 'torture flight' allegations

  The Ministry of Defence awarded CSC a £303m contract after learning of allegations the supplier was involved in the illegal rendition of a German citizen.

• August 03, 2012 03 Aug'12

  Edinburgh Napier University to boost UK cyber defence skills

  Edinburgh Napier University is launching a part-time MSc in Advanced Security and Cybercrime to help business combat rising levels of online crime.

• August 03, 2012 03 Aug'12

  US to oppose plans for UN control of the internet

  The US has confirmed it will resist efforts to put the internet under the control of the UN.

• August 03, 2012 03 Aug'12

  Google changes Android policy to tackle malicious apps

  Google has introduced stricter rules for Android applications to reduce the number of malicious apps in the Google Play app market

• August 03, 2012 03 Aug'12

  Facebook share price hits new lows on news of fake accounts

  Facebook shares have hit a new low after reporting slowing advertising revenue growth and admitting more than 83 million accounts may be fake

• August 02, 2012 02 Aug'12

  Atos and Capita win £540m in controversial DWP disabilities testing contract

  The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been slammed by disabled charities for awarding £540m in contracts to Atos and Capita to test the eligibility of disabled people receiving benefits.

• August 02, 2012 02 Aug'12

  NCC Group to acquire Matasano Security

  International escrow and assurance services provider NCC Group is to acquire US-based Matasano Security in £8.4m deal.

• August 02, 2012 02 Aug'12

  NHS Scotland rolls out shared services for 22 boards

  NHS Scotland has started the roll out of a single shared services platform for finance across its 22 health boards.

• August 02, 2012 02 Aug'12

  HP wins battle with Oracle for continued Itanium support

  A California court has ordered Oracle to continue support for the Intel Itanium chips used by Hewlett-Packard in a number of its servers

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Big data analytics can reduce cyber risks, says ISF

  Big data analytics has the potential to reduce the growing number of cyber security risks and increase business agility, says the ISF.

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Unsafe password practices cause Dropbox spam scare

  Dropbox has confirmed that usernames and passwords stolen from other websites were used to sign in to a small number of Dropbox accounts.

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Public Accounts Committee urges government to make case for free open data

  The government lacks a clear evidence-based policy on whether or not to charge for data and should investigate the economic benefits of making all data free.

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Enisa calls for collaboration to protect online identity

  European Union cybersecurity agency Enisa has called on service providers and end-users to work together to protect online identities.

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Colchester Hospital tracks equipment with Wi-Fi

  Colchester Hospital is using Ekahau’s real-time location tracking to locate important medical equipment across its campus over its Wi-Fi network

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Six London councils deploy shared services ERP to cut £18m

  Six London councils are using an Oracle shared services implementation, in a move expected to save £18m over four years.

• August 01, 2012 01 Aug'12

  Twitter initiated ban on UK journalist

  Twitter has admitted encouraging US broadcaster and commercial partner NBC to file a complaint that led to the suspension of a UK journalist's account

• July 31, 2012 31 Jul'12

  Newham spends £400,000 on ChildView software

  The London Borough of Newham has spent £400,000 on case management software to help join up its disparate children’s services databases.

• July 31, 2012 31 Jul'12

  Isolate games PCs warns researcher after Ubisoft flaw comes to light

  A researcher who discovered a security flaw in Ubisoft's Uplay gaming application says PCs used for gaming should be isolated from business and other networks

• July 31, 2012 31 Jul'12

  Interview: Denise McDonagh, government G-cloud director

  Denise McDonagh talks about the challenges of the G-cloud programme and how the government is reducing dependence on large outsourcers. 

• July 31, 2012 31 Jul'12

  Cyber threats affect banks worldwide

  Nearly a quarter of the world's banks were hit by security breaches in the past year, a study shows

• July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12

  Analysis: Security not the only thing cloud adopters overlook

  Security is not the only thing that is being overlooked by eager adopters of cloud-based services, it seems, with incident response also being neglected

• July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12

  UK public sector sales drive Steria growth

  French outsourcer Steria has posted steady growth in the UK for its second quarter, driven by an improvement in public sector sales.

• July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12

  NHS seeks explanation over CSC role in 'torture flights'

  The Department of Health is seeking an explanation from CSC over allegations the supplier was involved in illegal renditions in the US "war on terror"

• July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12

  Hackers steal personal details of 8.7 million mobile subscribers

  Hackers have accessed the personal details of 8.7 million mobile phone subscribers to South Korea's second largest telecommunications company

• July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12

  US cyber chief calls on hackers to make internet secure

  The head of the US Cyber Command has called on hackers to help make the internet more secure

• July 27, 2012 27 Jul'12

  Google admits to ICO it still has some UK Wi-Fi data

  Google has admitted to the Information Commisioner's Office (ICO) that it failed to delete all the Wi-Fi data collected by its Street View vehicles

• July 27, 2012 27 Jul'12

  Twitter users targeted by Blackhole malware

  Twitter users are being targeted by tweets containing malicious links that claim recipients are pictured in an online photo

• July 26, 2012 26 Jul'12

  Dark fibre firm Geo Networks provides rural broadband in Lancashire

  Dark fibre firm Geo Networks will work with B4RN to provide 1Gbps connections for homes and businesses in Lancashire

• July 26, 2012 26 Jul'12

  SQL injection attacks rise sharply in second quarter of 2012

  SQL injection (SQLi) attacks were up 69% in the second quarter of 2012 compared with the previous quarter, warns cloud hosting firm FireHost

• July 26, 2012 26 Jul'12

  BlackHat 2012: UK firm MWR InfoSecurity reveals chip and PIN vulnerability

  Security firm MWR InfoSecurity shows how retail chip and PIN devices can be attacked easily at the 2012 Black Hat conference in Las Vegas

• July 26, 2012 26 Jul'12

  Facebook to expand rewards for hackers

  Facebook is to expand its reward scheme for hackers who uncover vulnerabilities in its products to include network vulnerabilities

• July 26, 2012 26 Jul'12

  Australian telco AAPT confirms Anonymous data breach

  Australian telecoms firm AAPT confirms business customer data was breached by hacktivist group Anonymous at an external service provider

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Why the GDS transactions tool could be key to digital public services

  The creation of a tool which lists 1,000 transactional government services could be a key step toward digital public services

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Customers urged to boycott CSC over CIA 'torture flights'

  CSC customers are being urged to boycott the supplier over allegations that it took part in illegal CIA rendition flights in the US "war on terror"

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Cheap consumer hardware cracks complex passwords in seconds

  A dream tool for hackers capable of cracking nine billion passwords a second can be bought for as little as £400, warns hosting firm UKFast

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Security issues hit Apple as new OS X released

  Researchers confirm new iOS and Mac malware just hours before the release of the latest version of Apples OS X operating system

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Siemens issues software fix to protect against Stuxnet

  German engineering firm Siemens has issued a fix for the software vulnerabilities in its programmable logic controllers that were exploited by the computer virus

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Google and EC agree outlines of antitrust settlement

  Google and the European Commission (EC) outline a settlement to end the investigation into Google's alleged abuse of dominant market position

• July 25, 2012 25 Jul'12

  Three top ISPs refuse to sign UK internet code of practice

  Three top internet service providers (ISPs) refuse to sign up to a code of conduct aimed at guaranteeing full and open access to the internet

• July 24, 2012 24 Jul'12

  Stonesoft releases AET defence system and free test tool

  Security firm Stonesoft has released an Advanced Evasion Technique (AET) defence system and testing tool in quick succession

• July 24, 2012 24 Jul'12

  EC opens cybersecurity consultation

  The European Commission (EC) has launched a public consultation on cybersecurity, seeking the views of governments, businesses and citizens

• July 24, 2012 24 Jul'12

  Cisco loses 1,300 jobs in another round of cost-cutting

  Cisco Systems is to cut around 1,300 jobs – or 2% of its workforce – in continued efforts to cut costs and streamline decision making

• July 23, 2012 23 Jul'12

  CIO interview: Sally Howes, National Audit Office

  Sally Howes, CIO at the National Audit Office, talks about how the NAO hopes to perform more IT health checks and fewer project post mortems

• July 23, 2012 23 Jul'12

  NHS Hack Day winners claim app will save £3m

  The winners of a free software app created at the first NHS Hack Day claim their product could save the NHS £3m per year in lost time

• July 20, 2012 20 Jul'12

  Universities invited to train cyber spooks

  The government is hoping to shore up its defences against cybercrime through post-graduate training, and has asked universities to apply for funding to run training courses for post-graduates

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Can IT investment in schools keep pace with change?

  As more schools join the academy programnme, is the next generation getting access to the right technology crucial to the digital world?

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  BT wins Welsh broadband contract

  The telecoms giant is to work with the Welsh Government and BDUK to get 80Mbps connections to 96% of the country by 2015

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Electrical power grids prime targets for cyber attack, says McAfee

  Legacy electrical power grids are a prime target for cyber attack and security needs to be built into these critical systems, a study has found

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Imperial College London moves ITSM to the cloud

  Imperial College London is moving IT service management (ITSM) into the cloud after it grew out of its eight-year-old system

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  CIO interview: Mark Large, Great Ormond Street Hospital

  Great Ormond Street Hospital IT director Mark Large discusses resilient networks, standardisation and consumerisation of IT

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Lack of IT investment could prolong recession

  Research suggests the UK economy could continue to suffer economically as businesses fail to invest in technology and innovation

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Many global firms unaware of online risk, finds KPMG

  Many global organisations could do a lot more to protect their private data and reduce exposure to attacks by hackers, according to KPMG

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Europol leads initiative to pool cyber crime intelligence

  Europol is to lead an initiative pooling cyber crime intelligence from business, government, law enforcement and security agencies

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Security researchers join forces to bring down Grum botnet

  Security researchers have collaborated to take down Grum, the world’s third-largest botnet of hijacked computers

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Apple ordered to run 'Samsung did not copy iPad' ads

  A UK judge has ordered Apple to publish adverts that say Samsung did not copy the design of its iPad

• July 19, 2012 19 Jul'12

  Microsoft reveals 26 October launch for Windows 8

  Microsoft has updated announcements that Windows 8 will be available in October, by revealing an exact launch date

• July 18, 2012 18 Jul'12

  UK Cyber Security Challenge zeroes in on software developers

  The UK national Cyber Security Challenge has launched another competition aimed at finding software developers to defend critical national infrastructure.

• July 18, 2012 18 Jul'12

  Tech firm iCity wins datacentre bid for Olympics media centre

  IT company iCity has been awarded the contract to turn the Olympics media centre into a datacentre, for which it will hire 4,600 staff

• July 18, 2012 18 Jul'12

  Scottish Power launches Suffolk smart metering trial

  An 18-month trial of smart metering technologies will be carried out in Ipswich to test long-range radio communications networks

• July 18, 2012 18 Jul'12

  Microsoft faces substantial EC fine over browser rules breach

  Microsoft faces a large fine for failing to offer Windows users a choice of web browser despite apologising to the European Commission (EC)

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  UK cyber protection should be more aggressive, say MPs

  The UK should declare cyber war on states and cyber criminals who target the country, say MPs

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  Border Agency’s IT system runs £28m over budget and a year behind schedule

  The Border Agency’s £385m Immigration Case Work IT project is £28m over budget and one year behind schedule, says the National Audit Office

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  Online identity theft is up 300% on 2010, warns Experian

  Fraudsters exchanged 12 million pieces of personal information online in the first quarter of 2012, says Experian

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  Skype works to fix privacy bug as instant messages leak

  Internet telephony service Skype has confirmed that a bug in its software has been sending copies of instant messages to unintended recipients

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  BT wins North Yorkshire rural broadband contract

  Fujitsu has lost out again to a bid from BT, which will see the telecoms giant provide rural broadband across the UK’s largest county

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  UK ISP says block on The Pirate Bay file-sharing site proving ineffective

  A block on file-sharing site The Pirate Bay is proving ineffective, according to data from a top UK internet service provider (ISP)

• July 17, 2012 17 Jul'12

  Google revises proposals to EC competition authorities

  Google has submitted a revised set of proposals to address the concerns of European Commission (EC) competition authorities

• July 16, 2012 16 Jul'12

  DCLG sticks with same old system integrators for IT refresh

  The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) will contract a single outsourcing giant for its desktop management services

• July 16, 2012 16 Jul'12

  Sophos combines endpoint security and UTM

  Security firm Sophos combines endpoint protection and unified threat management (UTM) products into a single physical or virtual appliance

• July 16, 2012 16 Jul'12

  Hacker gets eight years for role in $3m hacking spree

  A trio of US cybercriminals has been given stiff sentences in a case that netted $3m and has important lessons for businesses

• July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12

  DWP loses £3.2bn in error and fraud, finds NAO

  The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) estimates that total benefit overpayments due to fraud and error in 2011-12 were £3.2 billion.

• July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12

  Yahoo Voices breach highlights basic security failings

  The data breach of the details of more than 450,000 Yahoo account holders highlights common enterprise security failings, say experts

• July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12

  O2 claims mobile network is fully restored

  O2 claims it has fixed network problems that left hundreds of thousands of customers without mobile voice and data connections for up to 24 hours

• July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12

  The most influential women in UK IT

  Computer Weekly is pleased to announce the first ever list of the most influential women in UK IT

• July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12

  Katie Davis steps down as health informatics chief

  Katie Davis is to step down as managing director for NHS Informatics at the Department for Health.

• July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12

  EC vice-president Neelie Kroes presses for EU broadband policy adoption by 2012

  EC vice-president and leader of the digital agenda, Neelie Kroes, outlines her plans for encouraging investment in broadband across Europe

• July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12

  £1m competition opens to find tech start-up with the X factor

  A global competition with a £1m prize has opened with the aim of finding and funding an entrepreneur with a good idea for a start-up business in London

• July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12

  Russia's parliament votes for internet censorship law

  Russia's lower house of parliament has voted for a law that would give the government the power to shut down internet sites without trial

• July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12

  Metropolitan Police gears up to analyse smartphone evidence

  The Metropolitan Police plans to build a computer system to analyse photo and video evidence gathered from the public using mobile phones

• July 11, 2012 11 Jul'12

  Fujitsu submits ‘incomplete bid’ for Cumbria broadband tender

  The company’s tender for the £40m fund to roll-out broadband was submitted with key aspects missing, making the bid null and void

• July 11, 2012 11 Jul'12

  Websense launches cyber security intelligence services

  Security firm Websense is to launch cyber security intelligence services to enable businesses to tap into the resources of its research teams

• July 10, 2012 10 Jul'12

  Websense takes aim at modern hacker attack methods

  Defenders need to know themselves as well as their enemy and this can be applied to defending information security, says security firm Websense

• July 10, 2012 10 Jul'12

  Cabinet Office names Bill Crothers as chief procurement officer

  The Cabinet Office has named Bill Crothers as government chief procurement officer, following the departure of incumbent John Collington

• July 10, 2012 10 Jul'12

  All Hallows Catholic High School wins Cisco STEM Challenge

  Winners of the Cisco STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) Challenge 10 were presented with their prizes after a Dragon’s Den-style pitch to judges

• July 10, 2012 10 Jul'12

  Strong leadership essential to shared services strategy, warns PAC

  The Cabinet Office must show strong leadership if it is to make shared services work, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has warned

• July 09, 2012 09 Jul'12

  EC invests €1.5bn in IT research

  The European Commission (EC) has announced funding for research into IT totaling almost €1.5bn

• July 09, 2012 09 Jul'12

  Cloud mobile device management key to BYOD, says Lambeth IT head

  Cloud mobile device management will be key to enabling bring your own device (BYOD) policies, says Lambeth council IT chief Rob Miller

• July 09, 2012 09 Jul'12

  Atos staff could walk out during Olympics

  Over 1,500 workers in Atos’s IT services and healthcare units could go on strike during the Olympics after a below-inflation pay rise was offered

• July 09, 2012 09 Jul'12

  Google Android OS Trojan virus hits 100K devices in China

  Trojan malware has hit 100,000 devices using the Google Android operating system (OS) in China, say security researchers

• July 06, 2012 06 Jul'12

  Majority of hospitals seek electronic records post NPfIT

  Most hospitals are seeking electronic patient records outside the NHS National Programme for IT (NPfIT), according to Computer Weekly research

• July 06, 2012 06 Jul'12

  Microsoft Office 365 for Education free for teachers

  Microsoft launches Office 365 for Education, as Scottish Government commits to using the free cloud productivity suite.

• July 06, 2012 06 Jul'12

  Business analytics software aims to cut gun crime

  A European Union funded project has created a prototype using business analytics software from SAS to tackle gun crime.

• July 06, 2012 06 Jul'12

  Virus could cut 20,000 UK computers from web on Monday, FBI warns

  The DNS Changer virus could cause 20,000 computers in the UK – of 350,000 worldwide - to lose web access on 9 July, the FBI has warned