News

IT legislation and regulation

October 25, 2018 25 Oct'18
MEPs call for action in wake of Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal

European members of parliament demand action to protect citizens’ privacy from abuses such as those uncovered in the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data sharing scandal
October 25, 2018 25 Oct'18
ICO issues maximum £500,000 fine to Facebook

The UK privacy watchdog has confirmed that Facebook has escaped a fine of more than $1bn under the GDPR, but will face the maximum under the DPA for failing to protect users’ personal information
October 25, 2018 25 Oct'18
Cathay Pacific under fire over breach affecting 9.4 million passengers

Hong Kong-based airline reveals massive data breach of the most sensitive personal data of passengers five months after loss was confirmed
October 24, 2018 24 Oct'18
Government can’t guarantee no-deal Brexit data-sharing agreement

Digital minister Margot James says there is no clear timetable on when the UK will secure a data adequacy decision from the EU, and cannot guarantee an agreement will be in place in the event of a no-deal Brexit

October 23, 2018 23 Oct'18
CIOs and the cloud: The future of European enterprise software

European organisations are moving to the cloud rapidly, but trepidation remains in concerning certain aspects, such as security
October 23, 2018 23 Oct'18
Government to invest £8m in Brexit customs training and automation

The Treasury and HMRC are putting measures in place to support the customs sector should the UK leave the EU with no deal, including funding to increase automation and training
October 23, 2018 23 Oct'18
Morrisons loses appeal against data breach liability ruling

Supermarket chain has lost its appeal against a High Court ruling that found it liable for a data leak by a former employee, underlining the importance of managing insider threats
October 22, 2018 22 Oct'18
Cab firm to map 250,000 miles of London roads for CAVs

Cab operator Addison Lee has teamed up with CAV software specialist Oxbotica to start preparing the streets of London for self-driving cars
October 18, 2018 18 Oct'18
Industry and government must collaborate to drive the digital economy, says techUK CEO

Industry and government must work together to grow use of technology across the UK economy, according to techUK CEO Julian David
October 18, 2018 18 Oct'18
No new funding for Hancock’s NHS tech vision

Getting the technology plan right is more about standards than money, says health and social care secretary Matt Hancock, as he explains why NHS organisations won’t be given additional funding to deliver on his vision

October 18, 2018 18 Oct'18
NHS standards framework aims to set the bar for quality and efficiency

NHS Digital’s standards framework sets out renewed commitment to implement and use open standards across the NHS
October 17, 2018 17 Oct'18
Hancock sets out NHS tech vision

Government will mandate national open standards for the NHS and tech suppliers, build a health and caretech ecosystem and give local NHS organisations more flexibility in how and what tech they buy
October 16, 2018 16 Oct'18
Commuter trains may need over 3Gbps of mobile data capacity by 2025

Ofcom has set out its vision of what will need to be done to meet the government’s goals around data connectivity on the UK’s rail network
October 16, 2018 16 Oct'18
UK faces 10 cyber attacks a week as hostile states step up hacking, says NCSC

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has thwarted more than 1,600 attacks over the past two years – many by hostile nation states
October 15, 2018 15 Oct'18
Tech companies should not be under legal duty to remove terrorist material, says watchdog

The internet should not be a safe place for terrorists, but making it compulsory for technology companies to trawl for radical content risks interfering with the rights of innocent people, says Max Hill QC, the independent reviewer of terrorism ...
October 15, 2018 15 Oct'18
Good data governance is good business

Organisations are failing to understand the importance of getting their data relationship with customers right and seeing the business opportunities that it enables, an industry analyst warns
October 15, 2018 15 Oct'18
Apple challenges Australia’s proposed decryption law

Tech giant Apple argued that the lack of judicial oversight could reduce customer trust and security, among other reservations over Australia’s draft decryption legislation
October 12, 2018 12 Oct'18
Watchdog calls for clarity on Schedule 7 terrorism powers

The Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation has called for greater clarity over police Schedule 7 powers to seize mobile phones and computers and question people without grounds for suspicion at ports and airports
October 11, 2018 11 Oct'18
Robots in the workplace supported by 81% of business chiefs

Robotic process automation continues to be taken up by more organisations – but despite proven benefits, those that already use it are struggling to scale it up
October 08, 2018 08 Oct'18
High Court blocks Google iPhone privacy lawsuit

The UK High Court has thrown out a group action lawsuit against Google for tracking iPhone browsing data, but campaign group Google You Owe Us, which brought the litigation, will appeal the decision
October 08, 2018 08 Oct'18
Geospatial Commission pumps £5m into unlocking value of location data

Commission wants to unlock the value of location data held by its partners through the use of emerging technologies
October 05, 2018 05 Oct'18
GDPR case work swamps Denmark’s data protection agency

The agency investigating alleged breaches of GDPR in Denmark is recruiting additional resources to cope with the increase in work
October 05, 2018 05 Oct'18
Business secretary awards regulators £10m to drive innovation

Regulators will be given funding to drive innovation and strengthen regulations in areas such as automation, data and artificial intelligence
October 02, 2018 02 Oct'18
Filling the blockchain chasm

Blockchain as a term is becoming common language, but there is a long way to go before it will mean anything to the performance of most organisations
October 01, 2018 01 Oct'18
UK will unilaterally tax web giants, says Hammond

Chancellor threatens to go it alone on tax reform for digital services businesses if an international agreement cannot be reached
October 01, 2018 01 Oct'18
Facebook could face up to $1.6bn fine for data breach

Facebook is under increased pressure to demonstrate that users’ personal data is protected as it faces a potential fine of more than a billion dollars for a data breach affecting millions of users
September 30, 2018 30 Sep'18
Openreach completes largest Tupe transfer in history

More than 30,000 BT employees have transferred across to the quasi-independent Openreach, completing what is thought to be the largest one-off Tupe transfer in history
September 28, 2018 28 Sep'18
EU sees eIDAS regulation come into full force

A regulation aimed at cutting red tape to enable a digital single market in Europe will soon be in full force, but it could present some challenges to the UK after Brexit
September 28, 2018 28 Sep'18
Citizens Advice makes super-complaint over rip-off phone charges

Citizens Advice is calling for a fair deal for consumers that it claims are being ripped off by out-of-contract charges by communications services providers and the financial services industry
September 27, 2018 27 Sep'18
CIO interview: Fraser Ingram, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank

Fraser Ingram joined the Clydesdale and Yorkshire banking group as CIO just at the right time – as it was embarking on its digital journey
September 26, 2018 26 Sep'18
ICO threatens fines for outstanding fees

The UK’s privacy watchdog has issued warning letters to organisations, including some NHS trusts and government organisations, for failing to pay a new data protection fee
September 26, 2018 26 Sep'18
Rural business bodies seal new broadband agreement

The Country Land and Business Association and the National Farmers’ Union have reached an agreement with Openreach to put new wayleave arrangements in place for broadband network builds
September 25, 2018 25 Sep'18
MI5 admits to ‘unlawful’ spying on Privacy International

The UK's intelligence agencies acted unlawfully by intercepting communications data on NGO, Privacy International, the UK's most secret court ruled.
September 21, 2018 21 Sep'18
Pharmacy2U signs up to digital communications platform

Online pharmacy aims to make it easier for people to contact them, using an omnichannel system from RingCentral allowing arrange of services, including voice, chat, text and email
September 20, 2018 20 Sep'18
Digital economy competition panel meets to discuss regulations

Experts on a new panel put together to review competition in the digital economy have met for the first time to discuss how to ensure the country has the right regulations in place
September 19, 2018 19 Sep'18
IT sector advises Swedish government on elections and voting system

Swedish IT secure is helping the government make election systems more secure and reduce external influence
September 18, 2018 18 Sep'18
EU needs clear 5G regulation to guarantee mobile success

The mobile ecosystem could be worth more than 4% of European GDP by 2022, if the right regulatory actions are taken by the European Union government
September 17, 2018 17 Sep'18
Danske Bank invests in anti-money laundering systems following Estonian problems

Danske bank improves its anti money laundering software, utilising artificial intelligence and machine learning
September 13, 2018 13 Sep'18
No Deal Brexit could mean changes for telecoms industry and mobile roaming

No Deal Brexit planning guidance documents say there could be changes to the UK electronic communications regulatory framework, and sets EU mobile roaming cap at £45 per month
September 13, 2018 13 Sep'18
GCHQ mass surveillance regime was in breach of human rights law, European court rules

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg has ruled that the UK’s collection of bulk interception of communications data lacked adequate oversight and safeguards and was in breach of human rights law
September 13, 2018 13 Sep'18
TechUK blasts European Parliament-backed revamp of EU-wide copyright laws

Tech industry trade body claims the changes spell bad news for web users, after European Parliament MEPs vote in favour of plans to modernise the copyright laws for the digital age
September 13, 2018 13 Sep'18
Tech Nation startup programme demonstrates richness of UK fintech

A Tech Nation programme to support the UK's financial technology startups demonstrates the increasingly diverse range of business-to-business products and services available through the country's fintech community
September 12, 2018 12 Sep'18
FCA warns it cannot manage financial crime risks without sharing data with EU

FCA admits it will be unable to manage financial crime effectively if it cannot share data with EU authorities.
September 10, 2018 10 Sep'18
Government positive to Science and Technology Committee’s report on algorithms

The government has issued its overwhelmingly positive response to the Science and Technology Committee’s report on the use of algorithms in decision making, published earlier this year
September 07, 2018 07 Sep'18
BA praised for swift GDPR-aligned action on data breach

British Airways has been praised for its swift response to a customer data breach, which could be the first test case under the EU’s GDPR and new UK GDPR-aligned data protection laws
August 30, 2018 30 Aug'18
US and UK days away from European Parliament ultimatum to suspend data transfers to the US

Threat to Privacy Shield as the European Union and US approach a critical European Parliament deadline to suspend data transfers from the EU to the US
August 29, 2018 29 Aug'18
Improving security is top driver for ISO 27001

Organisations are implementing the ISO 27001 standard in recognition of the fact that cyber attacks are increasingly inevitable and that it is best to be well-prepared to fend off attacks and mitigate their effect
August 28, 2018 28 Aug'18
Challenge to anti-GDPR immigration exemption in DPA to go ahead

Two human rights groups are challenging a controversial clause in new UK data protection legislation that they say is in conflict with the EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights and undermines the General Data Protection Regulation
August 28, 2018 28 Aug'18
Finland government to review public procurement laws

Finland's government is putting its procurement laws under the spotlight after a major IT fraud
August 24, 2018 24 Aug'18
Corbyn suggests tech tax to fund BBC

Labour leader says big technology companies and ISPs should contribute to a fund for public interest journalism