News

Privacy and data protection

• June 12, 2025 12 Jun'25

  UKtech50 2025: the longlist of the UK’s influential tech leaders

  Each year, Computer Weekly launches a search for the most influential people in UK IT, asking the tech community who it thinks should be in the top 50 – here is the longlist of everyone nominated for 2025

• June 12, 2025 12 Jun'25

  Apple encryption row: Does law enforcement need to use Technical Capability Notices?

  History shows that law enforcement can bring successful prosecutions without the need for the Home Office to introduce ‘backdoors’ into end-to-end encryption

• June 11, 2025 11 Jun'25

  WhatsApp seeks to join Apple in legal challenge against Home Office encryption orders

  WhatsApp today applied to intervene in an Investigatory Powers Tribunal case that is considering the UK’s ability to issue a technical capability notice on Apple to ‘weaken encryption’

• June 11, 2025 11 Jun'25

  Government using national security as ‘smokescreen’ in Apple encryption row

  Senior conservative MP David Davis says the Home Office should disclose how many secret orders it has issued against telecoms and internet companies to Parliament

• June 11, 2025 11 Jun'25

  Cyber Bill at risk of becoming a missed opportunity, say MPs

  An APPG report warns that the government’s flagship cyber security legislation is too narrow in its scope and risks missing opportunities to embed resilience at the heart of the British economy

• June 09, 2025 09 Jun'25

  US lawmakers say UK has ‘gone too far’ by attacking Apple’s encryption

  US politicians are calling for Congress to rewrite the US Cloud Act to prevent the UK issuing orders to require US tech companies to introduce ‘backdoors’ in end-to-end encrypted messaging and storage

• June 06, 2025 06 Jun'25

  UK ICO publishes AI and biometrics strategy

  The UK data regulator has outlined how it will approach the regulation of artificial intelligence and biometric technologies, which will focus in particular on automated decision-making systems and police facial recognition

• June 06, 2025 06 Jun'25

  CISOs must translate cyber threats into business risk

  To manage risk effectively and secure board-level buy-in, CISOs must stop talking about technology and start speaking the language of business, according to a senior Check Point executive

• June 05, 2025 05 Jun'25

  UK’s error-prone eVisa system is ‘anxiety-inducing’

  People experiencing technical errors with the Home Office’s electronic visa system explain the psychological toll of not being able to reliably prove their immigration status in the face of a hostile and unresponsive bureaucracy

• June 04, 2025 04 Jun'25

  NCSC sets out how to build cyber safe cultures

  The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has published guidance for security teams and leaders on how to foster accessible and appropriate cyber security cultures in their organisations

• June 04, 2025 04 Jun'25

  Investigatory powers: Guidelines for police and spies could also help businesses with AI

  Computer Weekly talks to Muffy Calder, technology advisor to the UK’s investigatory powers commissioner, about privacy, intrusion and artificial intelligence

• June 04, 2025 04 Jun'25

  Microsoft outlines three-pronged European cyber strategy

  Microsoft chair Brad Smith outlines an expansive cyber programme targeting governments across Europe with enhanced threat intelligence and support

• June 04, 2025 04 Jun'25

  Infosecurity 2025: SMEs feel on their own in the face of cyber attacks

  Project findings to be presented at Infosecurity Europe 2025 highlight vulnerability of SMEs to cyber attack

• June 02, 2025 02 Jun'25

  US cyber agency CISA faces stiff budget cuts

  CISA is one of several US agencies facing drastic budget cuts under the Trump administration

• May 30, 2025 30 May'25

  Dutch businesses lag behind in cyber resilience as threats escalate

  While non-IT business professionals in the middle of their careers face the most disruption from AI, professionals in the IT services sector and their employers must prepare for change

• May 29, 2025 29 May'25

  Gov.uk Wallet open to public sector bodies

  Government departments can soon begin to add documents to Gov.uk Wallet, as the Government Digital Service publishes guidance for public sector bodies on how to use the smartphone app

• May 28, 2025 28 May'25

  UK biometric surveillance exists in ‘legal grey area’

  The rapid proliferation of ‘biometric mass surveillance technologies’ throughout the UK’s public and private sectors is taking place without legal certainty or adequate safeguards for the public

• May 23, 2025 23 May'25

  Essex Police discloses ‘incoherent’ facial recognition assessment

  An equality impact assessment of Essex Police live facial recognition deployments is plagued by inconsistencies and poor methodology, undermining the force’s claim that its use of the technology will not be discriminatory

• May 22, 2025 22 May'25

  Microsoft raises posse to target dangerous Lumma malware

  Microsoft, along with a consortium of partners, has seized and disrupted a significant part of the Lumma malware-as-a-service network used to steal data and funds

• May 21, 2025 21 May'25

  NCSC: Russia’s Fancy Bear targeting logistics, tech organisations

  The NCSC and its partner agencies have blown the whistle on an extensive campaign of malicious cyber attacks orchestrated by the Russian state Fancy Bear operation

• May 21, 2025 21 May'25

  Capital One pushes out data tokenisation

  Organisations using the Databricks and Snowflake platforms will be able to use Capital One’s Databolt tool to secure their data

• May 20, 2025 20 May'25

  Retail cyber attacks hit food distributor Peter Green Chilled

  Cold chain services provider Peter Green Chilled, which supplies the likes of Aldi, Sainsbury’s and Tesco, has been forced to halt operations after succumbing to a ransomware attack

• May 19, 2025 19 May'25

  Chinese cyber spooks lure laid-off US government workers

  A Washington DC-based think tank has published evidence that Chinese intelligence services have been running a network of digital ‘front’ companies targeting laid-off government workers as recruits

• May 19, 2025 19 May'25

  Legal Aid Agency breach may encompass millions of people

  Legal Aid Agency says the data of anybody who applied for legal aid over the past 15 years has been compromised in a cyber attack

• May 19, 2025 19 May'25

  Gartner: Most firms not tapping cloud’s full potential

  Organisations have not fully leveraged the full potential of cloud and must navigate emerging trends such as artificial intelligence, multicloud complexity and security perceptions to stay competitive

• May 16, 2025 16 May'25

  The Security Interviews: David Faugno, 1Password

  David Faugno, co-CEO of 1Password, discusses how his background led to him joining the company and why maintaining profitability is a key factor in overcoming the challenges of switching markets.

• May 15, 2025 15 May'25

  NHS asks suppliers to sign up to cyber covenant

  NHS digital and security leaders call on their suppliers to commit to a cyber security charter as the health service works to improve its resilience in the face of growing threat levels

• May 14, 2025 14 May'25

  Why we must reform the Computer Misuse Act: A cyber pro speaks out

  Britain’s outdated hacking laws are leaving the UK’s cyber practitioners hamstrung and afraid. Security professional Simon Whittaker reveals how he nearly ran afoul of the Computer Misuse Act, and why he’s speaking out for reform

• May 13, 2025 13 May'25

  M&S forces customer password resets after data breach

  M&S is instructing all of its customers to change their account passwords after a significant amount of data was stolen in a DragonForce ransomware attack

• May 13, 2025 13 May'25

  Australian data breaches hit record high in 2024

  More than 1,100 data breaches were reported in Australia last year, a 25% jump from 2023, prompting calls for stronger security measures across businesses and government agencies

• May 07, 2025 07 May'25

  Meta awarded $167m in court battle with spyware mercenaries

  WhatsApp owner Meta is awarded millions of dollars in damages and compensation after its service was exploited by users of mercenary spyware developer NSO’s infamous Pegasus mobile malware

• May 07, 2025 07 May'25

  Europe leads shift from cyber security ‘headcount gap’ to skills-based hiring

  Research from Sans Institute reveals European organisations are leading a global shift in hiring priorities, driven by regional regulatory frameworks

• May 07, 2025 07 May'25

  UK at risk of Russian cyber and physical attacks as Ukraine seeks peace deal

  UK cyber security chief warns of ‘direct connection’ between Russian cyber attacks and physical threats to the UK

• May 07, 2025 07 May'25

  DSIT aims to bolster expertise with year-long secondments

  To drive forward its Plan for Change, the Labour government is looking to hire 25 experts for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Fellowship programme

• May 07, 2025 07 May'25

  UK critical systems at risk from ‘digital divide’ created by AI threats

  GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre warns that a growing ‘digital divide’ between organisations that can keep pace with AI-enabled threats and those that cannot is set to heighten the UK's overall cyber risk

• May 06, 2025 06 May'25

  Data issues cost Australian businesses nearly A$500k annually

  Research reveals Australian organisations are losing an average of nearly half a million dollars annually due to poor data integrity, hindering their ability to leverage AI and eroding their competitive edge

• May 02, 2025 02 May'25

  Government and Ofcom disagree about scope of Online Safety Act

  MPs heard different views from the online harms regulator and the UK government about whether and how the Online Safety Act obliges platforms to deal with disinformation

• May 01, 2025 01 May'25

  Thomas Herdman’s legal battle over Sky ECC encrypted phone distribution set to enter fifth year

  Computer Weekly speaks to Julie Kawai Herdman, daughter of Thomas Herdman, the only person in custody for distributing Sky ECC encrypted phones

• April 30, 2025 30 Apr'25

  AI in national security raises proportionality and privacy concerns

  AI could enable investigations to cover far more individuals than was ever previously possible, which is why oversight is needed

• April 25, 2025 25 Apr'25

  M&S suspends all online sales as cyber attack worsens

  M&S shuts down online sales as it works to contain and mitigate a severe cyber attack on its systems

• April 22, 2025 22 Apr'25

  Ofcom bans leasing of Global Titles to crackdown on spoofing

  Telco regulator Ofcom is cracking down on a loophole being exploited by cyber criminals to access sensitive mobile data

• April 22, 2025 22 Apr'25

  Investigatory Powers Tribunal has no power to award costs against PSNI over evidence failures

  Investigatory Powers Tribunal judges have called for the Home Secretary to step in after finding they have no powers to award costs against government bodies that fail to disclose evidence

• April 17, 2025 17 Apr'25

  Standard Chartered grounds AI ambitions in data governance

  The bank’s group chief data officer, Mohammed Rahim, outlines how the bank is modernising its data infrastructure and governance practices to support its AI initiatives

• April 16, 2025 16 Apr'25

  Footballers object to processing of performance data

  Football players are seeking to gain more control of their performance data through ‘stop processing’ requests, in an attempt to strike a better balance between firms’ commercial interests and the data rights of footballers

• April 15, 2025 15 Apr'25

  Hertz warns UK customers of Cleo-linked data breach

  Car hire giant Hertz reveals UK customer data was affected in a cyber incident orchestrated via a series of vulnerabilities in Cleo managed file transfer products

• April 15, 2025 15 Apr'25

  The Investigatory Powers Tribunal explained

  The Investigatory Powers Tribunal is a semi-secret judicial body that has made significant legal rulings on privacy, surveillance and the use of investigatory powers. What does it do and why is it important? 

• April 14, 2025 14 Apr'25

  Meta settles lawsuit over surveillance business model

  Meta settles lawsuit over use of personal data in targeted advertising, opening up the possibility of other UK users raising legal objections to its processing

• April 14, 2025 14 Apr'25

  Government faces claims of serious security and data protection problems in One Login digital ID

  The Government Digital Service was warned about serious cyber security and data protection problems in its flagship digital identity system, with insider claims that the data of three million users may still be at risk

• April 11, 2025 11 Apr'25

  AI surveillance towers place migrants in ‘even greater jeopardy’

  The use of autonomous surveillance towers throughout the English coast forces migrants into increasingly dangerous routes and contributes to their criminalisation

• April 11, 2025 11 Apr'25

  Met Police to deploy permanent facial recognition tech in Croydon

  The Met Police is set deploy permanent live facial recognition cameras on street furniture in Croydon from summer 2025, but local councillors say the decision – which has taken place with no community input – will further contribute the ...