News

Managing IT and business issues

June 06, 2018 06 Jun'18
HMRC puts numerous IT projects on hold to focus on Brexit

Nearly 40 technology projects and changes are being put on the backburner because of Brexit priorities, including improving HM Revenue and Customs’ data-sharing capabilities and parts of the Maxing Tax Digital programme
June 06, 2018 06 Jun'18
Singapore government to form AI advisory council

New council will develop standards and guidelines to address ethical issues arising from the growing use of artificial intelligence
June 05, 2018 05 Jun'18
Australia’s chief scientist calls for AI regulations

The proposal would require companies to apply for a trustmark so they know from the outset how their AI is expected to behave
June 05, 2018 05 Jun'18
HMRC on track for August roll-out of customs IT system

The government will have a “fully functioning” customs declaration service by January 2019, HMRC CEO Jon Thompson told MPs

June 05, 2018 05 Jun'18
Interview: How a tech apprenticeship changed one man’s life

Past Microsoft apprentice Joshua Uwadiae explains how in hindsight, he realises his apprenticeship was a life-defining moment in the lead-up to his tech career
June 04, 2018 04 Jun'18
Subpostmasters told to expect decision on alleged unfair prosecutions in August

The Criminal Courts Review Commission is expected to announce the findings of an investigation into alleged unfair subpostmaster prosecutions in August
June 01, 2018 01 Jun'18
Huge rise in TSB-themed mobile phishing attacks after IT meltdown

Scammers have used bank’s IT problems as an opportunity to target its customers with mobile phishing attacks
May 31, 2018 31 May'18
Artificial intelligence identifies skin cancer in lab test more effectively than doctors

Artificial intelligence has outperformed experienced dermatologists in identifying skin cancer samples, further highlighting the potential of the technology in healthcare
May 29, 2018 29 May'18
Firms step up spending on digital tech, but struggle with strategy

Businesses and the public sector are stepping up their spending on digital technology, but many business leaders are struggling to keep pace with what it means for their business
May 29, 2018 29 May'18
Drone industry set to contribute £42bn to UK economy by 2030

PwC research has predicted drones could add £42bn to the economy and create 68,000 jobs by 2030

May 29, 2018 29 May'18
Salary is the biggest motivator for software developers

A survey finds that benefits such as free food and drink or a modern office space are not the main motivator for most developers, with the majority prioritising a higher salary
May 23, 2018 23 May'18
Blockchain tourism being replaced by its application to business challenges

Deloitte reveals the next 12 months could see businesses move from exploring blockchain to applying it to business challenges
May 17, 2018 17 May'18
Blockchain technology lacks enough use cases to be disruptive, says Worldpay

Worldpay's Jason Scott-Taggart says although the company is looking at blockchain, there are too few strong use cases for the technology at present
May 16, 2018 16 May'18
AI is more than just doing things cheaper and faster

Choose the parts of AI to deploy to demonstrate return-on-investment and differentiate your brand, says Volkswagen Australia’s chief customer officer
May 16, 2018 16 May'18
Companies need to adapt to new communication demands from millennials

TechSmith has warned businesses younger generations have new multimedia-based communication demands
May 15, 2018 15 May'18
TSB refused help from Lloyds as IT meltdown began

TSB turned down an offer of help from Lloyds Banking Group as the migration of customers accounts to its new banking system went wrong
May 15, 2018 15 May'18
Santander latest traditional player to open digital bank

Santander is the latest traditional bank to follow an industry trend and develop a digital banking unit
May 14, 2018 14 May'18
HSBC blockchain trial proves trade finance utility model

HSBC and ING used blockchain to successfully complete a real-world trade financing transaction as part of a pilot
May 11, 2018 11 May'18
Police Scotland did not inform public of mobile phone searches

Members of the Scottish Parliament heard that Police Scotland did not conduct impact assessments or give explanations to the public when they were accessing private data on their mobile phones
May 11, 2018 11 May'18
GDS wants to take 'hands off control' on digital identity, says Gov.uk Verify boss

Gov.uk Verify boss Nic Harrison says GDS wants to take its “hands off the controls” of identity, as he confirms target of 25 million Verify user accounts “won’t all be created by government”
May 10, 2018 10 May'18
Government must support SMEs, says Oliver Dowden

The minister for implementation, Oliver Dowden, provides further details on the GovTech competition and talks about GDS’s role as an “innovation incubator”, losing data policy to DCMS and the importance of SMEs
May 10, 2018 10 May'18
Barclays to set up biggest office outside UK in India

Bank is expanding its presence in India with plans for an office for 8,000 staff in Pune
May 10, 2018 10 May'18
BT to shut London HQ and cut 13,000 jobs

Another round of cuts comes as BT struggles to reposition itself for sustainable long-term growth
May 10, 2018 10 May'18
UK railways to save billions of pounds through digital signalling

Network Rail hails digital transformation plans as “a turning point in the history of our railways”
May 09, 2018 09 May'18
How enterprises can cope with digital disruption

Red Hat CEO Jim Whitehurst says enterprises can take a leaf from DevOps and build modularity into their technology infrastructure to prepare for the forces of digital disruption
May 08, 2018 08 May'18
TSB offers interest rate sweetener as IT issues continue at the bank

TSB is offering customers higher interest rate to go towards making up for the problems its core banking system migration caused customers
May 04, 2018 04 May'18
Britons used contactless for 42% of card payments in 2017

Paymentsense survey confirms rapid growth of contactless payments, but £30 limit is preventing further dominance
May 04, 2018 04 May'18
Most CIOs not interested in “massively hyped” blockchain, finds Gartner

Despite the noise surrounding blockchain technology, not many CIOs are using it or planning to do so in the near future, finds Gartner
May 03, 2018 03 May'18
City Police use Lego simulation to teach businesses cyber security

City of London Police are offering to train business leaders and IT security in cyber security using a Lego simulation that is surprisingly close to real life
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
Enterprise readiness for multi-cloud adoption is low across Europe, suggests IDC research

IDC suggests multi-cloud adoption will become the norm across European enterprises, but there is much work to be done before this becomes a reality
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
GDPR is key to driving other transformational strategies in business

With GDPR compliance in place, there are several technologies organisations can use to transform their data analytics
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
Fresh blow for Facebook as court refuses stay in Max Schrems legal action

Facebook has lost a legal attempt to delay the Irish High Court from seeking answers from the European Court of Justice over the legality of EU-US data transfers
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
Up to 270 women may have died due to breast cancer screening IT failure, says health secretary

Computer algorithm failure caused 450,000 women to miss their breast cancer screenings – some of whom will have "had their lives shortened" by the error, Jeremy Hunt has admitted
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
Cabinet Office updates spend controls

Revamped spend controls policy aims to give departments more flexibility, but requires them to keep a 15-month pipeline plan of any current and intended technology spend above £5m
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
Finnish government launches regional digitisation plan

Finland’s government allocates €400m to support digital projects run by the country’s local authorities
May 02, 2018 02 May'18
RBS closes branches after axing challenger bank project

Royal Bank of Scotland to close 162 branches and shed 800 jobs after deciding not to create a challenger bank – but a new digital bank may be on the way
May 01, 2018 01 May'18
Facebook bolsters enterprise integration with Workplace tool

Facebook wants to embed its platform in the enterprise, and hopes to achieve this through integration with third-party services
May 01, 2018 01 May'18
ODI and Sport England launch project using data to break down exercise barriers

Ten startups have been chosen as part of the OpenActive accelerator programme to develop fitness products and encourage people to be active
May 01, 2018 01 May'18
MPs to grill TSB CEO over IT disaster

Paul Pester will face questions from the Treasury Committee about the bank’s IT problems
April 30, 2018 30 Apr'18
TSB IT disaster moves into a second week

TSB's IT problems have moved into a second week, as the bank fights to get its services and reputation back on track
April 27, 2018 27 Apr'18
Most organisations unprepared for GDPR, survey finds

Despite the vast majority of businesses agreeing that GDPR affects them, only 5% say they are fully prepared for it, according to a BSI survey
April 27, 2018 27 Apr'18
Government given six months to rewrite snoopers’ charter

The government has until 1 November 2018 to rewrite a key section of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, after the high court declared them unlawful in a judicial review brought by human rights group Liberty
April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18
Barclays aims to drive entrepreneur startup development with law incubator

Barclays is opening its Eagle Lab incubator in London to help entrepreneurs create successful law businesses.
April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18
Almost all London law firms are using or plan to use artificial intelligence

Law firms are harnessing artificial intelligence to reduce the manual creation and checking of legal documents
April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18
SuiteWorld 2018: Hiring people is about more than just ability, says Rachel Zoe

NetSuite customer, fashion designer and CEO of Rachel Zoe explains that part of entrepreneurship is hiring people who fill the gaps you leave behind, and that in doing so passion can be more important than ability
April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18
SuiteWorld 2018: Businesses more likely to learn from failures than successes, says NetSuite EVP

Failure is the best way for firms to learn and succeed when it comes to business transformation, NetSuite’s executive vice-president Jim McGeever tells the audience at SuiteWorld 2018
April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18
Digital Catapult aims to accelerate AR and VR startups to long-term success

Ten augmented reality and virtual reality startups can join 10-week Augmentor accelerator, with access to classes, facilities and mentorship
April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18
SuperNova growth programme offers European tech scale-ups chance to pitch for investment

Scale-Up.eu says initiative will enable scale-up companies to grow their business without relying on overseas investment
April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18
ICO and finance regulator assess TSB IT blunder

Customer data was exposed during migration to new core banking platform
April 23, 2018 23 Apr'18
Next generation of SCADA industrial controls will protect against cyber attack

Oil, energy and chemical companies are rethinking how to control big manufacturing plants, replacing expensive control technology with cheaper, more secure systems, taking their cue from biology
April 23, 2018 23 Apr'18
GDS on the hunt for new chief operating officer

Cabinet Office offers up to £130,000 for chief operating officer role, to act as Kevin Cunnington’s deputy and be responsible for the internal transformation and day-to-day running of Government Digital Service
April 22, 2018 22 Apr'18
Thales to open ‘digital factory’ in Asia

India and Australia are potential candidates for Thales’s new coding centre that will support digital transformation efforts
April 19, 2018 19 Apr'18
CyLon continues to drive cyber security innovation with next accelerator cohort

CyLon has selected the next group of innovative cyber security startups for its seventh London accelerator programme
April 18, 2018 18 Apr'18
Australian supermarket chain hit by IT outage

Thirty-minute glitch knocked out checkout systems at half of Woolworths’ stores in Australia
April 17, 2018 17 Apr'18
Artificial intelligence will help Metro Bank customers manage their money

Service will use AI and predictive analytics to provide personalised prompts to help customers control their spending
April 17, 2018 17 Apr'18
Norway’s tax administration combats economic crime through IT

Authority has updated its IT system to step up the fight against tax evasion
April 16, 2018 16 Apr'18
Many British workers victims of ‘substandard’ technology in secondary offices, shows research

Workers have claimed they are forced to use poorer technology when outside of the main office
April 13, 2018 13 Apr'18
Addressing consumer concerns will drive success for open banking

Experts say consumers will feel more comfortable about sharing their data as part of open banking once more valuable use cases become available
April 12, 2018 12 Apr'18
SFO expands use of AI after successful trial in Rolls-Royce investigation

Serious Fraud Office builds on trials of artificial intelligence in criminal investigations by rolling out a new data management platform
April 11, 2018 11 Apr'18
CBI calls on government to get post-Brexit regulations right

Ensuring the UK gets rules and regulations right is key to a thriving economy, and convergence with the digital single market is critical for tech companies, according to the CBI
April 10, 2018 10 Apr'18
European CIOs have budget balancing act ahead of them

There is some consensus among European CIOs on budget rises across the continent, but less so on what to invest in
April 10, 2018 10 Apr'18
HS. focuses on global scaling for healthcare startups in new accelerator programme

HS. is trying to enable healthcare startups to scale internationally as part of its accelerator programme
April 10, 2018 10 Apr'18
What Amazon’s ideal robot looks like

Robots should be available at the fingertips and work in tandem with humans and other machines to improve task efficiency, says the chief technologist of Amazon Robotics
April 09, 2018 09 Apr'18
HSBC adopts fintech to fight money laundering

HSBC is using technology from a fintech startup to help it monitor transactions for potential money laundering
April 09, 2018 09 Apr'18
US tax cuts and dollar’s decline propel datacentre spending

Gartner’s latest spending forecast shows the strongest growth in IT spending, which it expects to total $3.7tn in 2018, up 6.2% from 2017
April 06, 2018 06 Apr'18
Why Lufthansa went back to the drawing board with its HR IT project

Aviation group says it is confident of landing a company-wide IT project following a sometimes turbulent journey
April 05, 2018 05 Apr'18
Deutsche Bank system replacement already paying back

Deutsche bank is replacing a complex IT infrastructure that helps its traders operate and automates regulatory compliance processes
April 05, 2018 05 Apr'18
Pfizer tech startup accelerator will be a shot in the arm for healthcare innovation

Pharmaceutical giant invites startups to apply for its second Healthcare Hub: London accelerator, with the chance to share £50,000 funding
April 05, 2018 05 Apr'18
Microsoft outlines approach to intellectual property

Enterprises will own patents and industrial design rights that result from new technology jointly developed with Microsoft, among a raft of intellectual property principles unveiled by the software giant
April 04, 2018 04 Apr'18
Tech City and Tech North merge to support startups nationwide

Southern and northern groups finalise merger to become Tech Nation as government pledges £21m in funding
March 28, 2018 28 Mar'18
Organisations can use GDPR ambiguity to contest fines in court, experts say

Businesses can use the vagueness of the regulation to argue against fines in court, say experts
March 27, 2018 27 Mar'18
Arsenal uses Innovation Lab accelerator to improve worldwide fan experience

Arsenal’s Innovation Lab programme has enabled collaboration with “world-class” startups to offer the best experience for fans in the future, says the club’s IT director
March 27, 2018 27 Mar'18
Capgemini turns to tech startup to identify ‘most engaged’ teams

Technology and consulting services firm Capgemini is using technology from a startup company to poll its employees’ views and provide feedback from managers every week. It is discovering what it takes to create “engaged teams”
March 26, 2018 26 Mar'18
Ransomware publicity heightened awareness but other threats remain, experts say

Due to several high profile attacks over the past year, ransomware is now well known across organisations, but there are other threats to be aware of, say cyber security experts
March 24, 2018 24 Mar'18
Government must improve quality and awareness of childcare website, say MPs

Treasury Committee says government should launch websites only when they can cope with the expected workload, after childcare website was down for 160 hours last summer
March 23, 2018 23 Mar'18
Telefonica cuts HR running costs by 40% as it replaces hundreds of ageing IT systems

Multinational telecoms group Telefonica is on the verge of completing a project to replace 175 incompatible HR IT systems with a cloud service covering more than 40 countries
March 21, 2018 21 Mar'18
Shared services project is about user needs, not tech, says strategy director

If you’re hoping for the government’s shared services strategy to “break revolutionary ground” in terms of tech, you’ll be disappointed. It’s about serving user needs – not tech – says its strategy director Andy Helliwell
March 21, 2018 21 Mar'18
Singapore government outlines its approach to IoT

Avoiding supplier lock-in, driving open standards and tapping modular platforms are part of the approach that the Singapore government has taken in implementing the internet of things in the city-state
March 20, 2018 20 Mar'18
Researchers use AI, big data and machine learning to find best place in the world to live

West Perth in Australia and Hebden Bridge in the UK are among the top locations ranked by machine learning tool in SAS project
March 19, 2018 19 Mar'18
Tech firms not “walking the walk” when it comes to diversity

Despite high-tech firms claiming to have a good track record in diversity, most do not consider it when making business decisions
March 16, 2018 16 Mar'18
Employers face hiring crisis as AI replaces mid-skilled jobs

Artificial intelligence could replace two-thirds of existing jobs within 20 years, and employers will face growing difficulties recruiting skilled staff
March 16, 2018 16 Mar'18
Majority of organisations unaware of costs and responsibilities for cloud outages, research finds

Most companies are unaware about the costs associated with a cloud outage and who is responsible for getting systems back online
March 16, 2018 16 Mar'18
Tech won’t solve Brexit UK-Ireland border challenges, say MPs

There is no evidence of any technical solution “anywhere in the world” that would help avoid physical infrastructure at the UK-Ireland border post-Brexit, according to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
March 13, 2018 13 Mar'18
Public sector organisations ill-prepared for GDPR

Public sector organisations in the UK need to do much more to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation rule on providing information to citizens about details held about them
March 12, 2018 12 Mar'18
Regulator takes tougher line than expected on surveillance warrants

The Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office has signalled to government that it will take a tough line when scrutinising surveillance warrants under the controversial Investigatory Powers Act
March 08, 2018 08 Mar'18
How banks can make sense of digital disruption

Banks and financial institutions need to go back to basics, deconstruct their core banking processes and strive for zero defects in building applications, says the IT head honcho of Malaysia’s CIMB Bank
March 08, 2018 08 Mar'18
Tech City targets companies outside of London for next cohort in accelerator programme

Tech City UK has placed more of an emphasis on companies outside of the capital for its next accelerator cohort
March 07, 2018 07 Mar'18
Cyber attacks up nearly 20% in 2017

Research by SonicWall shows there were 9.32 billion malware attacks globally last year, but ransomware attacks fell by 71%
March 07, 2018 07 Mar'18
Banks more confident than other sectors in face of digital disruption

Banks have accepted the changes brought about by digital disruption and are confident that new technologies will be core to their business success, according to a survey by Fujitsu
March 02, 2018 02 Mar'18
Nesta challenge leverages Open Banking to help small businesses

Innovation foundation invites enterprises of all sizes to compete for a share of a £2.5m prize fund in the second phase of its Open Up Challenge
March 02, 2018 02 Mar'18
Vast majority of consumers unaware of Open Banking consequences, research finds

Research shows most consumers have little or no knowledge of the Open Banking regulation and how it will affect them
March 02, 2018 02 Mar'18
Wearables join mobiles as high-growth payment methods

Banks must develop broad contactless payment strategies if they are to keep pace with consumer demand
March 02, 2018 02 Mar'18
New privacy fears as IT challenges delay surveillance oversight body by a year

IT challenges have delayed government plans for an independent body to authorise requests to access the public’s internet and phone records by nearly a year, raising new legal and privacy concerns
March 01, 2018 01 Mar'18
Pizza Hut customers can now pay for meals with Mastercard Qkr mobile app

Pizza Hut has joined a number of UK restaurants in enabling customers to pay at the table using the Mastercard Qkr app
February 28, 2018 28 Feb'18
Open Banking could bring an extra £1bn to UK economy

As a result of the Open Banking initiative, an additional £1bn could be available to drive the UK economy forward
February 28, 2018 28 Feb'18
Government must rewrite illegal sections of Snoopers’ Charter, court told

A court has been asked to give ministers until July 2018 to rewrite powers to require phone and internet companies to retain data on the population. The government acknowledges parts of surveillance regime are unlawful
February 26, 2018 26 Feb'18
Surveillance watchdog investigates security risks of GCHQ IT contractors

The investigatory powers commissioner is reviewing the security arrangements for IT contractors that have access to live computer systems at GCHQ holding highly sensitive records on the UK population
February 23, 2018 23 Feb'18
More than a quarter of UK shoppers prepared for wearable contactless payments

Mastercard research shows a growing number of shoppers are prepared to make purchases with smartwatches, rings and bracelets
February 21, 2018 21 Feb'18
Manchester Science Partnerships opens competition to drive data science and tech startups forward

Manchester Science Partnerships has begun a competition for startups to win free desk space at its Tech Incubator
February 20, 2018 20 Feb'18
University of Cambridge to host ethical hacking challenge

Cambridge is hosting its 2018 hacking challenge, aiming to captivate students and address the cyber security skills shortage