News

Internet infrastructure

• July 22, 2021 22 Jul'21

  Plans to address legal but harmful content ‘threaten free speech’

  House of Lords report criticises the government’s forthcoming Online Safety Bill for imposing duty of care on tech platforms to deal with ‘legal but harmful’ content, which it says threatens freedom of expression online

• July 20, 2021 20 Jul'21

  Nordic banks join forces to compete with fintechs

  Collaboration will be key for traditional Nordic banks to retain business amid intense competition from tech companies

• July 19, 2021 19 Jul'21

  Privacy Shield: One year on and companies are still grappling for answers

  Activist lawyer Max Schrems and Eduardo Ustaran, partner at Hogan Lovells, look for common ground in a problem with no easy answers

• July 06, 2021 06 Jul'21

  Bank of England searches for new CIO amid once-in-a-generation project

  The Bank of England is recruiting a head of IT during a period of major change in its core IT system

• July 06, 2021 06 Jul'21

  Nordic fintech could lead the world

  Will the Nordics become the fintech and open banking innovation capital of the world?

• June 29, 2021 29 Jun'21

  Bank branches will be a thing of the past in five years, say bankers

  Traditional bank branches are likely to disappear from the high street in the next five years, but banking ecosystems will ensure customer service levels are high, say bankers

• June 28, 2021 28 Jun'21

  Zopa Bank to make profit in its first year

  Bank set up by peer-to-peer lending fintech firm expected to make a profit in its first year

• June 24, 2021 24 Jun'21

  Google hands third-party cookies a stay of execution

  Google’s proposed Privacy Sandbox initiative – which will see third-party cookies phased out in the Chrome web browser – has been pushed back to 2023

• June 24, 2021 24 Jun'21

  Online Safety Bill unfit for purpose, says new campaign group

  Campaign group set up to oppose Online Safety Bill says the duty of care is too simplistic, cedes too much power to US corporations and will, in practice, privilege the speech of journalists or politicians

• June 24, 2021 24 Jun'21

  Lloyds Bank to close 44 more branches

  Banking group has announced the closure of a further 44 branches as customers increasingly use other channels for banking

• June 14, 2021 14 Jun'21

  G7 commits to action on ransomware, digital privacy

  The G7 urges Russia to do more to hold criminal ransomware gangs operating from within its borders to account as it commits to more action on the issue

• June 14, 2021 14 Jun'21

  Vodafone announces key partners for Europe’s first commercial Open RAN network

  Operator selects Dell Technologies, NEC, Samsung, Wind River, Capgemini Engineering and Keysight Technologies to build what it says will be one of the largest Open RAN networks in the world

• June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21

  FBI planned a sting against An0m cryptophone users over drinks with Australian investigators

  Australian Federal Police and the FBI came up with the idea over drinks: build a cryptophone network with a built-in backdoor and sell it to crime gangs around the world

• June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21

  CMA secures commitments from Google on future of cookies

  The Competition and Markets Authority is opening a consultation on commitments offered to it by Google to ensure its Privacy Sandbox proposals do not harm digital advertising markets

• June 09, 2021 09 Jun'21

  BBVA to cut 3,000 jobs in Spain as digital technology transforms industry

  Spanish bank is the latest to announce swingeing branch and job cuts amid increased digital competition

• June 07, 2021 07 Jun'21

  Police raids around world after investigators crack An0m cryptophone app in major hacking operation

  Police in 16 countries carried out raids on after Australian Police and the FBI cracked an encrypted An0M communications network used by crime groups

• June 07, 2021 07 Jun'21

  EU privacy chief investigates use of US cloud services

  Use of Amazon and Microsoft’s cloud services by public sector bodies in the European Union is being scrutinised by the bloc’s privacy watchdog

• June 01, 2021 01 Jun'21

  European-led consortium investigates quantum cryptography

  The arms race to a quantum internet is under way – the European Commission is looking at secure critical national infrastructure and member state comms

• May 25, 2021 25 May'21

  GCHQ bulk interception programme breached privacy rights, Strasbourg court rules

  European Court of Human Rights finds that the UK’s bulk surveillance programme breached citizens’ privacy rights

• May 25, 2021 25 May'21

  Stockholm’s startup scene seeks more diversity

  Swedish capital has created a world-leading tech startup environment, but it still lacks the diversity of people needed to move it to the next level

• May 18, 2021 18 May'21

  Microsoft EU Data Boundary dubbed ‘smoke and mirrors’

  Data protection experts claim Microsoft’s decision to create an EU Data Boundary is a tacit admission that it routinely transfers and processes the personal data of European citizens outside the bloc

• May 18, 2021 18 May'21

  Irish High Court dismisses legal bid by Facebook over EU-US data transfers

  Latest twist in long-running legal battle sees Facebook lose legal bid to prevent the Irish Data Protection Commissioner suspending its transfer of data about European citizens to the US

• May 13, 2021 13 May'21

  Fibre roll-outs gather pace in Europe

  Number of homes and businesses reached by fibre grows rapidly in 39 leading European territories, with FTTH/B coverage in Europe surpassing more than half the total number of homes

• May 12, 2021 12 May'21

  UK government publishes Online Safety Bill draft

  Bill builds on previous commitments by the government, which has added new measures to uphold democracy and freedom of speech while making tech giants more accountable

• May 12, 2021 12 May'21

  The Security Interviews: Why helpful bots could hurt vaccine roll-outs

  Earlier this year, spikes in traffic to websites containing information about Covid-19 vaccines were attributed by Imperva to automated bots scraping data. Why is that a problem?

• May 11, 2021 11 May'21

  Swedish court finds ambiguities in hacked EncroChat cryptophone evidence

  Defence lawyer claims evidence obtained by hacking the EncroChat encrypted phone network has ‘no legal’ value following Swedish appeal court ruling

• April 22, 2021 22 Apr'21

  GCHQ: Cyber investment a guarantor of UK’s global status

  GCHQ director Jeremy Fleming sets out a vision for the UK’s cyber security future

• April 07, 2021 07 Apr'21

  Digital Markets Unit starts work on codes of conduct for tech giants

  Digital markets regulator officially launched to ensure tech giants such as Facebook and Google cannot exploit their market dominance to crowd out competition and stifle innovation online

• March 29, 2021 29 Mar'21

  Big Tech eclipses telecoms and arms giants as biggest lobbying spenders

  Facebook and Amazon are spending more on lobbying and campaign contributions than any other companies in the US, including those in the arms and telecommunications sectors that have traditionally been the highest political spenders

• March 12, 2021 12 Mar'21

  Web founder calls for ubiquitous, safe internet access for young people

  Internet access has a direct correlation to GDP. On the 32nd birthday of the world wide web, its founder calls for improvements to safe access

• March 11, 2021 11 Mar'21

  UK digital regulators set out plans to strengthen cooperation

  Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum outlines plans for the coming year, marking a shift towards a more collaborative regulatory approach

• March 11, 2021 11 Mar'21

  CityFibre extends full-fibre network to Peterborough

  Former leading altnet to put a further £1.5m into its high-speed broadband connectivity project

• March 09, 2021 09 Mar'21

  UK's Starling Bank reaches unicorn status

  UK app-based bank Starling reaches unicorn status following its latest round of funding

• March 05, 2021 05 Mar'21

  Nottinghamshire schools suspend online learning following cyber attack

  Cyber attack on central trust that manages secondary schools in Nottinghamshire leaves them unable to access IT systems and deliver remote lessons

• March 04, 2021 04 Mar'21

  Bank of Ireland to reduce branch network by almost half

  Bank of Ireland is latest bank to pin its future on digital channels as customers change their banking habits

• March 03, 2021 03 Mar'21

  Virgin Media trial demos multi-gigabit upgradeable bandwidth

  Virgin Media trials optical networking technology that could pave way to faster internet connectivity that is easier to upgrade

• March 02, 2021 02 Mar'21

  HSBC offers to help customers transitioning to digital banking as branch closures continue

  HSBC is offering its customers training in how to bank digitally in a safe and effective way as it, like many banks, moves customers out of branches and towards using online services

• March 01, 2021 01 Mar'21

  Covid accelerates Bradford University remote working project

  Pandemic injected fuel into university’s existing project to introduce remote working

• February 26, 2021 26 Feb'21

  Nordic startups strive to fuel international e-commerce transformation

  Nordic startups are developing technology for retailers that want to improve the customer experience when buying online

• February 25, 2021 25 Feb'21

  MHRA and other agencies to offer new resources for scam victims

  New landing page resources will replace .uk domains suspended for criminal activity to help members of the public access appropriate guidance

• February 24, 2021 24 Feb'21

  Internet companies should provide real-time data on disinformation, Lords told

  Fact-checking experts tell House of Lords inquiry that upcoming Online Safety Bill should force internet companies to provide real-time information on suspected disinformation, and warn against over-reliance on AI-powered algorithms to moderate ...

• February 22, 2021 22 Feb'21

  UK government set to offer fintech visa

  The importance of immigrant workers to the UK's fintech sector highlighted by government planned fintech visa

• February 18, 2021 18 Feb'21

  Swedish police fined for unlawful use of facial-recognition app

  Sweden’s data watchdog has found that Swedish police failed to conduct the data protection checks required by law before using controversial facial-recognition tool

• February 17, 2021 17 Feb'21

  Swedish central bank extends digital currency project

  Sweden's central bank has extended its pilot of a digital currency for at least another year

• February 15, 2021 15 Feb'21

  Digital investments will add £232bn to UK economy by 2040

  The UK economy could grow by £232bn over the next two decades if investments in digital technologies continue

• February 05, 2021 05 Feb'21

  Google Chrome update to patch serious zero-day

  A serious heap buffer overflow vulnerability means Google Chrome users should patch their browsers as soon as possible

• February 04, 2021 04 Feb'21

  Revolut rewrites policy to include permanent remote working

  Challenger finance firm Revolut is redesigning its office spaces and introducing permanent remote working policies

• January 29, 2021 29 Jan'21

  Revealed: Brits who fuelled ‘vicious’ conspiracy theory by Trump supporters

  Trump supporters have apologised and paid millions in damages to the family of murdered Democratic Party staffer Seth Rich for promoting false allegations that Rich – not Russian agents – stole emails from the Democratic National Committee

• January 29, 2021 29 Jan'21

  Commerzbank announces big job cuts and branch closures

  German bank is closing hundreds of branches and cutting thousands of jobs as it reshapes for the digital age

• January 22, 2021 22 Jan'21

  ICO resumes adtech investigation

  The UK Information Commissioner’s Office was criticised for ending its investigation into alleged malpractice in advertising technology, but has now resumed its probe

• January 22, 2021 22 Jan'21

  Google threatens to cut off Australia

  Google’s threat to end its Australian Search operation comes in the face of new legislation that would force it to pay media publishers for news content

• January 20, 2021 20 Jan'21

  Should I be worried about MFA-bypassing pass-the-cookie attacks?

  Malicious actors bypassed multi-factor authentication using so-called pass-the-cookie attacks, but how worrying is this and what is the risk to organisations?

• January 20, 2021 20 Jan'21

  HSBC closing more branches as customers turn to digital channel

  Bank announces branch closures as it reshapes its network for the digital age

• January 08, 2021 08 Jan'21

  Government use of 'general warrants' to authorise computer and phone hacking is unlawful

  A court has ruled that the security and intelligence services can no longer rely on ‘general warrants’ to authorise the hacking of large numbers of computers and phones belonging to UK citizens

• January 06, 2021 06 Jan'21

  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to remain in prison despite winning extradition battle

  Judge cites Assange’s support of NSA whistleblower as one of the reasons for him being at high risk of absconding. He will remain in Belmarsh prison until the US government completes its appeal

• January 04, 2021 04 Jan'21

  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange cannot be extradited to face charges in US, court rules

  Court rules it would be oppressive to send Julian Assange to the US to face trial after finding he is at high risk of suicide. US government says it will appeal

• December 31, 2020 31 Dec'20

  Top 10 investigations and national security stories of 2020

  Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 investigations and national security stories of 2020

• December 29, 2020 29 Dec'20

  Top 10 financial services stories of 2020

  Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 financial services IT stories of 2020

• December 15, 2020 15 Dec'20

  UK government unveils details of upcoming online harms rules

  Online Harms Bill due early 2021 will introduce GDPR-style fines for technology companies that breach online duty of care rules

• December 14, 2020 14 Dec'20

  Optus teams up with VMware on SD-WAN

  Australia’s second biggest telco, Optus, will offer VMware’s SD-WAN solution to enterprises in a highly fragmented market

• December 10, 2020 10 Dec'20

  Challenger banks hindered by lack of customer confidence

  Despite an acceleration in the use of digital banking services, challenger banks face the obstacle of winning customer trust

• December 09, 2020 09 Dec'20

  Calls for Facebook break up as US issues lawsuits for anti-competitive behaviour

  Antitrust lawsuits issued by the US Federal Trade Commission and 48 attorneys general call for the breakup of Facebook following 10 years of anti-competitive behaviour

• December 08, 2020 08 Dec'20

  CMA sets out plan to regulate technology giants

  With its new Digital Markets Unit, the CMA is hoping to curb the excesses of the internet, improve competition and give more choice to consumers

• December 08, 2020 08 Dec'20

  AWS to open Melbourne cloud region in 2022

  Amazon Web Services’ second Australian cloud region is part of its growing infrastructure investments in the maturing cloud market

• December 04, 2020 04 Dec'20

  What next for the now-profitable app-based Starling Bank?

  Starling bank is the first of the new breed of UK digital banks to make a profit, so where next?

• December 03, 2020 03 Dec'20

  Allied Irish Bank prioritises digital services as it cuts workforce

  Bank is cutting its operating costs by 10% with job cuts and facility closures, but will continue to invest heavily in technology

• December 01, 2020 01 Dec'20

  22,000 malicious .uk domains suspended in past year

  Nominet has suspended just over 22,000 domains in the 12 months to 31 October 2020, continuing a downward trend, and with less impact from Covid-19 than might be expected

• November 27, 2020 27 Nov'20

  Lords propose making tech giants pay for using news

  Digital platforms such as Google and Facebook profit from running adverts alongside publishers’ content, but no financial compensation is given for carrying that content, says Lords committee

• November 27, 2020 27 Nov'20

  UK government ramps up efforts to regulate tech giants

  The Digital Markets Unit of the Competitions and Markets Authority aims to protect consumer privacy and lower barriers to entry for businesses

• November 23, 2020 23 Nov'20

  Telcos could face huge fines under new security laws

  Government boasts of unprecedented powers to boost the security standards of the UK’s critical national infrastructure

• November 23, 2020 23 Nov'20

  Amazon Swedish language site will expand reach of local retailers

  Amazon launches Swedish language website and promises to make more products available in the Nordic region

• November 17, 2020 17 Nov'20

  Automated image recognition: How using ‘free’ photos on the internet can lead to lawsuits and fines

  Germany-based photographer Marco Verch uses computer scripts to populate the internet with topical images and photographs. People and companies who make mistakes in following the complex licensing terms of his ‘free to share and adapt’ photographs ...

• November 16, 2020 16 Nov'20

  NHS completes transition to HSCN

  All 950 NHS, social care, private sector and local authority organisations have migrated from the legacy N3 network to the Health and Social Care Network

• November 11, 2020 11 Nov'20

  Amazon charged with breaching EU antitrust rules

  Tech giant accused of using data it collects on smaller retailers to benefit its own e-commerce business

• November 11, 2020 11 Nov'20

  EU aid funds used to train ‘unaccountable intelligence agencies’ in high-tech surveillance

  Hundreds of documents obtained by campaign group Privacy International show how the EU is supporting surveillance programmes in the Balkans, the Middle East and Africa

• 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

• 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 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 14, 2020 14 Oct'20

  US Elections: Malicious internet domains spike as campaigns heat up

  Internet domains related to the US presidential election are 56% more likely to be malicious than regular ones

• October 12, 2020 12 Oct'20

  Five Eyes spy group again demands access to private messages

  Spooks are once again calling for the tech industry to break end-to-end encryption in messaging platforms

• October 09, 2020 09 Oct'20

  Facebook critics’ webpage removed over false phishing allegations

  Real Facebook Oversight Board alleges Facebook is trying to censor it for speaking out against the social media company’s behaviour

• October 07, 2020 07 Oct'20

  US lawmakers release big tech antitrust report

  House Democrats have published a report on the monopoly power wielded by big tech companies and how to restore competition in digital markets

• October 05, 2020 05 Oct'20

  Facebook critics launch ‘Real Facebook Oversight Board’

  Organisation formed as an ‘emergency response’ to address the ‘immediate risk’ posed by Facebook’s role in the US election

• October 05, 2020 05 Oct'20

  Regulator wants fintechs to address pandemic financial challenges

  UK financial services regulator is supporting fintechs in addressing some of the challenges consumers and small businesses face amid the current pandemic

• September 24, 2020 24 Sep'20

  ‘Not unjust’ to extradite WilkiLeaks founder Julian Assange, court hears

  Nigel Blackwood, NHS consultant psychiatrist, told the Old Bailey court that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had ‘moderate depression’ and autistic traits, but said they did not prevent his extradition

• September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20

  Major tech firms urged to end targeted ads to under-18s

  An open letter to Google, Facebook and others is calling on the tech firms to take responsibility for protecting users of their services by ending behavioural advertising to children

• September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20

  Video gamers barraged with cyber attacks

  From credential stuffing to SQL injection and DDoS, video game producers and players are seeing massive volumes of cyber attacks

• September 23, 2020 23 Sep'20

  MoD Defence Digital adds Oracle Cloud to MODCloud list of assured providers

  Database giant Oracle has been added to the list of providers the Ministry of Defence has endorsed for use by the UK defence community

• September 22, 2020 22 Sep'20

  Twitter investigates image cropping algorithm for racial bias

  The algorithm’s consistent favouring of white faces in image previews has forced the company to investigate it for racial bias

• September 21, 2020 21 Sep'20

  NBN Co pumps in A$700m to shore up business connectivity

  Australia’s national wholesale broadband provider is creating up to 240 business fibre zones across the country to provide businesses with access to its enterprise ethernet service

• September 17, 2020 17 Sep'20

  Swedish bank cuts branches and jobs, increases IT spend

  Swedish bank is increasing investment IT to improve digital banking as it reduces its branch network

• September 10, 2020 10 Sep'20

  Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to stop sending user data to the US

  Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to suspend transfers of European citizens’ data to the US after Schrems II ruling that Europeans have no effective way to challenge American government surveillance

• September 10, 2020 10 Sep'20

  Edinburgh council to create smart city operations centre

  Edinburgh council extends an outsourcing agreement with CGI as it steps up its smart city programme

• September 08, 2020 08 Sep'20

  Nordic banks invest and innovate to keep digital rivals at bay

  Large traditional banks are accelerating their digital transformations as the regional fintech sector makes its presence felt

• September 03, 2020 03 Sep'20

  Amazon to recruit 7,000 permanent workers in UK during 2020 hiring spree

  The online retail giant’s UK workforce looks set to expand to 40,000 employees by the end of 2020, as its network of fulfilment centres continues to grow

• September 01, 2020 01 Sep'20

  Vint Cerf: Why everyone has a role in internet safety

  The Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated the power of internet connectivity. Vint Cerf talks to Computer Weekly about the challenges the internet now faces

• August 28, 2020 28 Aug'20

  New Zealand activates security services as DDoS outage enters fourth day

  New Zealand government calls in its national cyber security agencies to help investigate a continuing cyber attack on the country’s financial systems

• August 27, 2020 27 Aug'20

  Tech and telecoms advisory group set up to help trade negotiations

  Department of International Trade launches new Trade Advisory Groups to guide trade negotiations with other countries

• August 26, 2020 26 Aug'20

  Ministers urge local councils to lead on broadband and mobile

  Digital minister Matt Warman and local government minister Simon Clarke want local councils to do their bit to help ensure better access to connectivity during the Covid-19 recovery

• August 19, 2020 19 Aug'20

  Scotland announces £15m investment to boost connectivity

  Funding package aimed at improving internet access for 23,000 low-income households