IT for government and public sector

What next for GDS?

Digital government has lost momentum, according to MPs. As the Government Digital Service enters its “third era”, what will it do to regain its authority and deliver real change? Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Government looks into digitising cultural collections with AI

A government report and trial investigate possibilities around mapping and connecting digitised cultural material with emerging technologies Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Cross-government collaboration is key to overcoming legacy IT issues

Senior civil servants highlight some of the challenges with legacy IT systems and what can be done to overcome them Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

The UK’s digital identity policy conundrum

The UK government’s recent consultation on digital identity suggests that past mistakes and assumptions have yet to be resolved – a different, more user-centric vision is required Continue Reading

By

• Colin Wallis, Kantara Initiative

Civil service chief appeals to ‘wise, experienced, powerful’ IT leaders to apply for CDIO job

John Manzoni explains why the new government digital leader will carry the power and authority of a Whitehall permanent secretary Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief
• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Defra chief digital information officer steps down

John Seglias is leaving the department most impacted by Brexit to join National Grid, after four years in the civil service Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Government insists 'nothing sinister' about web user data gathering

Government Digital Service responds to allegations that personal data gathered through Gov.uk portal could be used to target political messaging to citizens Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Government relaunches search for chief digital and information officer

The role, which will tackle issues such as eradicating legacy and leading data strategy, has been redesigned and elevated at permanent secretary level Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Universities tempting targets for cyber criminals, warns NCSC

As hundreds of thousands of students prepare for the new academic year, universities have been warned that they are at high risk of cyber attack Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Emotet phishing botnet returns from summer vacation

The Emotet phishing trojan-turned-botnet is back in action after a three-and-a-half month break, say threat researchers Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Robotics and Automation: UK must tackle skills, immigration and SME challenges

Home-grown skills may not be enough to enable the UK to build on the government's Industrial Strategy and push robotics and automation Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Northwestern cuts storage costs in half with Komprise

Komprise’s Deep Analytics helps university classify and migrate research data to cheaper disk and cloud as it cuts storage costs from $1.1m to $680,000 per annum Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

The five software testing techniques every software developer should know about

Five simple testing techniques that will help developers test their software systematically, thoroughly and quickly Continue Reading

By

• Brian Hambling

Network Rail to use automation and analytics in tunnel examinations and station security

Operator Network Rail will tap into its £357m R&D fund to back innovation competitions aimed to improve assessment of more than 600 rail tunnels and station surveillance Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Ecuador citizens’ data breach holds lessons for enterprises

What caused the mass breach of Ecuadorian citizens’ data, and what can businesses learn from it? Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Gartner Catalyst: Prepare for web giants crushing your industry

Companies like Amazon and Alibaba are taking a bigger chunk of the customer journey, but they are also spreading across industry sectors Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Councils awarded funding to boost online services

Local authorities received more than £750,000 in the second round of the Local Digital Fund, aimed at improving citizen offerings in areas such as housing and payment Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

NHSX emphasises need for ethical patient data access

The health service's digital unit welcomed the launch of Health Data Research hubs, but stressed that it will control the design of research collaborations Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Police use of algorithms needs stronger safeguards to prevent bias, report says

A study by the Royal United Services Institute calls for new code of practice to guide use of algorithmic tools in policing Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton , Senior reporter

Ditch hoodies and hackers to encourage diverse security recruitment

The cyber security industry needs to address a systemic image problem if it is to succeed in recruiting more diverse teams Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

When AIs go to war: Autonomous cyber weapons ‘inevitable’

CISOs must start thinking about how to engage with intelligent, adaptive, non-human attackers, says Trend Micro’s Rik Ferguson Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch banks to work together in fight against money laundering

Dutch banks are sharing expertise and resources to help reduce money laundering through their accounts Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Justice system transformation sees delays and reduction of scope

“Ambitious” timescales and scope for £1.2bn modernisation of services had to be scaled back, says NAO report Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Industry opposition to no-deal Brexit hardens, says TechUK

A survey of TechUK members has found that 71% believe a no-deal Brexit at the end of October will negatively affect them in spite of their preparations Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The right way to get on with building UK tech success is to get a Brexit deal now

The UK technology sector does not want a no-deal Brexit, and recognises the damage it would cause. If we're leaving the EU, the Prime Minister needs to get a deal Continue Reading

By

• Julian David, TechUK

Government seeks views on post-Brexit security alignment

The government has called for views on its proposals to align the UK’s post-Brexit cyber security policy to that of the European Union Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

ICO to probe government over Gov.uk data collection plan

The ICO is to look into the government’s leaked data collection plans over fears they may breach the law Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UN agency Unicef praised for response to accidental data leak

The UN’s children’s agency has disclosed an inadvertent leak of personal data belonging to users of its online learning platform Agora Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CW Europe: Dutch authorities call temporary halt to datacentre construction

Two Dutch municipalities are putting all datacentre construction on hold while they put together a strategy to help them control developments. A local alderman said datacentres take up a lot of space and place a large burden on the electricity grid. Also read how France is racing ahead of Germany in making the most of service companies in India, and about Google’s plans for a new datacentre and technology training hub in Finland. Continue Reading

Mirai descendants dominate IoT threat environment

Attacks leveraging compromised IoT devices are growing in size, scale and frequency, report security experts at F-Secure and Trend Micro, with Mirai-related botnets a major source of trouble Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Government departments urged to publish R&D spending roadmaps

Issues including funding concentration in the “golden triangle” of London, Oxford and Cambridge must be addressed, according to a Science and Technology Committee report Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Could Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings' ‘secret’ data sharing plan work?

Prime minister Boris Johnson and his controversial special advisor, Dominic Cummings, are “secretly” working on a plan to gather citizen data from across Whitehall to be used for targeting ... Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

UK consumers want biometrics but fear driverless cars and AI

Report also shows many adults across the country have never heard of the internet of things or big data Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

GDPR non-compliance worse than feared

Over half of UK businesses do not yet appear to be fully GDPR-compliant, and many have de-prioritised their compliance efforts Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UK calls for cyber capacity-building at UN security group

The UK’s representative to a United Nations cyber security working group has called for increased investment in capacity around cyber security Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Tech startups can boost UK shipping market after Brexit

Increased connectivity and propositions based on tools such as AI and blockchain can provide opportunities to the shipping sector after Brexit, says report Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

BT gears up to take on rogue drones

BT’s Enterprise unit is offering customers an anti-drone security solution to protect their physical sites from intrusion Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ministry of Defence unveils innovation priorities

Artificial intelligence and 3D printing are among the key areas of focus for the Ministry of Defence's latest approach to emerging tech Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Is there substance in Boris Johnson’s full-fibre broadband vision?

The new prime minister made a bold promise to roll out full-fibre broadband across the country by 2025 – but it’s a challenging task that requires serious investment and planning Continue Reading

By

• Julian David, TechUK

A tech boost for social care

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we explore how local authorities across the UK have been looking at assistive technologies, ranging from collaborative robots to voice assistants, to support delivery of adult social care services. We also look into the ramifications of HMRC targeting 1,500 GlaxoSmithKline IT contractors. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

How UK councils are using technology to support adult social care

As budgets dwindle and central government delays the creation of an overarching strategy around the future of care, local authorities are looking into innovations such as robotics and voice assistant technologies to ease the pressure on resources. Continue Reading

Terror watchlist faces reform after court rules it violates rights of people entering US

A secret US terrorist database containing information on more than 1.2 million people – who face repeated interrogations, detentions and electronic searches – violates constitutional rights, a US judge said last week Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Social engineering a factor in virtually all cyber attacks, report claims

Almost every single cyber attack will, at some stage, require a human to be tricked into doing something, according to research by Proofpoint Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Loyal Dutch IT professionals not being rewarded enough, survey shows

Companies warned they could lose loyal IT staff because salary rises do not match those on offer from rival employers Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

Towns invited to bid for connectivity boost

Some 100 places in England are eligible to get resources from the £3.6bn fund aimed at creating local jobs and economic growth, with broadband as a key priority Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Royal Navy readies autonomous technology push

A competition ran by new accelerator NavyX will seek to find mature ideas around the approach to improve operations and increase efficiency in maritime operations Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Security pros doubt officials can enact effective security laws

Elected officials cannot be trusted to enact effective cyber security legislation and social media firms should be subject to strict privacy regulation, according to most information security professionals in a survey Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

New funding announced to tackle online child abuse

Government announces £30m of new cash to tackle online child harm as part of Spending Review 2019 Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Businesses need to keep investing in tech and hope to avoid a no-deal Brexit

A no-deal Brexit could have serious consequences for the UK tech sector and skills base, making it more difficult to recruit technology specialists and hire freelancers Continue Reading

By

• Albert Ellis, Harvey Nash Group

Gartner: Eight ways blockchain can support governments

Distributed ledgers are not just limited to finance and smart contracts. Gartner explores how blockchain can tackle government inefficiencies Continue Reading

By

• David Furlonger, Gartner

Post Office changes IT leadership reshuffle decision

The Post Office has changed its IT leadership reshuffle weeks after announcing its original plan Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Nearly £1m of EU funding to boost tech skills in UK SMEs

An initiative led by the Department for Work and Pensions will focus on enhancing skills in rural locations to unleash competitiveness in areas such as agritech and biorenewables Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Interim GDS boss gives preview of priorities

Alison Pritchard sets out key areas of attention for the digital service, from analytics to Brexit work Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

UK organisations join quantum comms pilot

Four UK companies are taking part in a pilot project to build the most secure communication infrastructure in Europe Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Dutch virtual reality can help reduce teacher shortage worldwide

Dutch lecturer uses virtual reality to improve teaching and developments are being watched by the Teachers Task Force of Unesco Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

GDS reveals details of digital identity pilot for passport data checks

The Government Digital Service (GDS) has published details of the planned pilot project for opening up passport data to companies that wish to offer digital identity services. GDS recently held a ... Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Government confirms GDS minister

Simon Hart appointed minister for implementation, with responsibility for the Government Digital Service Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Location analysis expands Nordic telco’s range of services

Nordic telecoms company works with startup to offer services to businesses through location data analysis Continue Reading

By

• Alex Cruickshank

UK gets first millionaire ethical hacker

Six months after the first millionaire ethical hacker was announced, five more have been recognised, including a Briton, who have collectively discovered nearly 5,000 vulnerabilities Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency hit by IT workers’ strike

DVSA tech staff are on a month-long strike over working conditions and expect their action to affect the IT workload at the government agency Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Government investigates matching geospatial data with AI

Report looks into the commercial opportunities of matching location data with a number of emerging technologies Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Targeted cyber attacks, including ransomware, on the rise

Governments and healthcare institutions are prime targets of ransomware operators, a report shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Gov.uk Verify’s £40m bill for losing Experian

The Government Digital Service (GDS) insists that its plans for Gov.uk Verify “remain on track” despite the withdrawal of three of the five remaining identity providers (IDPs) supporting the ... Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Building a 5G city: Bristol’s valuable lessons for the UK’s digital future

West of England Combined Authority is taking part in DCMS’s 5G Testbeds and Trials programme, exploring applications for tourism and entertainment. We find out how it is applying its learnings to life in Bristol and Bath Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CIO interview: Network Rail plans digital factory to accelerate modernisation

The operator will enhance its multimillion-pound IT strategy with a sharper focus on areas including mobile, data and cultural change for digital transformation Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Ransomware has evolved into a serious enterprise threat

Ransomware has seen a resurgence since the start of 2019, with cyber criminals changing code and tactics to target enterprises and local authorities for higher ransom payments, McAfee researchers warn Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Councils deliver savings through digital initiatives

Projects under the Digital Channel Shift programme reported fivefold return on investment Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

IR35 reforms: HMRC defends off-payroll rules guidance against "woeful" IPSE jibes

HMRC promises there are more preparatory materials in the pipeline to help the private sector prepare for the April 2020 IR35 rules, after IPSE brands its current guidance "woeful" Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Three more identity providers to withdraw from troubled Gov.uk Verify programme

Three of the five companies supporting the government's troubled digital identity scheme are pulling out, raising further questions over the viability of the £175m programme Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Security pros reiterate warning against encryption backdoors

The majority of security professionals believe countries with government-mandated encryption backdoors are more susceptible to nation-state cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

A helping hand from the Nordics in the eye of the GDPR storm

Nordic IT companies are well suited to supporting enterprises in their data protection projects, even though openness is more natural to them Continue Reading

By

• Matthew Staff

Student Loans Company appoints chief information officer

Stephen Campbell will be leading a complex transformation programme and handling problems including high staff turnover Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

NHSX aims for mental health services transformation

Digital unit of the NHS has started a discovery process focused on children and young people Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

CW Nordics: Copenhagen woos tech startups

Copenhagen offers all the advantages startups need to get off the ground and many are setting up with the intention of staying there for the long haul. Also read how shipping giant Maersk is employing a cloud-first strategy to disrupt competition and build innovation, and why three Finnish banks are sharing a core IT platform. Continue Reading

French national research centre insources with Rubrik backup

France’s national research organisation wanted to insource IT back from Atos and built its private cloud on VMware across two locations with Rubrik appliances for backup Continue Reading

By

• Pierre Berlemont

Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 29

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Brian McKenna, Caroline Donnelly and Clare McDonald take a look back at the last 28 podcasts ahead of the summer podcast pause Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Enterprise Applications Editor
• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK
• Clare McDonald, Business Editor

Healthcare faces triple cyber threat, says FireEye

Criminal and nation-state cyber attackers are increasingly targeting the healthcare industry to steal data, carry out espionage and cause disruption, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHSX kicks off discovery process to revamp screening

The digital unit decides to prioritise improving the delivery of services and starts discovery exercise Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Government opens new round of digital funding for councils

Grants of up to £350,000 will be invested from the £7.5m Local Digital Fund for local authorities to enhance their projects focused on innovation Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

How AI will transform technology leadership

Addressing issues around data and defining strategies that will attract top talent are among the key challenges discussed at the Computer Weekly CW500 Club Continue Reading

YPO debuts £400m datacentre and cloud framework for local councils and schools

Procurement management organisation YPO has set live a public sector framework designed to support local authorities and educational institutions embrace hybrid cloud Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Buyers think SD-WAN is too expensive and complicated

Building and maintaining an SD-WAN is perceived as a complicated endeavour, and the industry’s messages are not getting through, says a new report Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Q2 shows ransomware proliferation, Kaspersky warns

Ransomware modifications have more than doubled in the past year, the number of ransomware families has grown, and the number of attempted infections is up nearly 50% Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

ICO to probe facial recognition at King’s Cross

UK privacy watchdog is to investigate whether the use of live facial recognition technology at King’s Cross complies with data protection laws Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK government advances plans for National Robotarium

Edinburgh-based facility National Robotarium is hoped to support the growth of national smart robotics companies Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

NHS readies data-driven health checks

The government takes another step towards ramping up use of data-driven technologies in the public health system, with expected benefits including reduced pressure on public resources Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Australia needs to get digital identity right

A top Ping Identity executive urges Australia to put more focus on digital identity management following the government’s efforts to lay the groundwork for an open banking regime Continue Reading

By

• Beverley Head

Latest Post Office Horizon problems fixed with software update to blame

The Post Office has fixed the latest problems with its Horizon system, affecting hundreds of branches Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

2019 set to be another record year for data breaches

The number of data breach incidents continues to rise and looks set to reach another record this year, with the business sector first in the firing line, according to a mid-year breach report Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Publicly accessible biometric database highlights key failings

The discovery of a publicly accessible database of biometric information highlights failings by the supplier, the need for supply chain security, and the challenges of using biometric data Continue Reading

NTT Security partners with Europol

Link-up is part of a commitment to share strategic information with partners and law enforcement to bolster threat intelligence in the global fight against cyber crime Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government drives surge in outsourcing spend

Back-office transformation is a key area of focus for the government as new deals continue to flow despite economic uncertainty, according to research Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

What 5G applications will transform your business?

The UK’s mobile network operators have started work on their 5G roll-outs, but what applications are most likely to gain enterprise traction for the new standard? Continue Reading

By

• Rene Millman

HS2 rolls out augmented reality for staff training

Immersive technology will support processes around the development of high-speed railway’s London super hub before it is built Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

South Wales Police starts facial recognition trial despite opposition

The use of the facial recognition app by South Wales Police marks the latest deployment of controversial facial recognition technology by police forces in the UK Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Department for Work and Pensions claims payments progress

Key milestones were completed as the government department seeks to evolve its service delivery with innovations such as distributed ledger technologies Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Hundreds of Post Office branches hit by new Horizon problem

Subpostmasters suffering slow running and frozen terminals while Post Office searches for a fix to issues apparently caused by a software update Continue Reading

By

• Nick Wallis

Prime minister to launch fast-tracked visas for skilled workers

Prime minister Boris Johnson has urged government departments to work on a new fast-tracked visa for those skilled in sciences, and may scrap other visa caps to attract top talent Continue Reading

By

• Clare McDonald, Business Editor

F-Secure warns of F5 Big IP-related security issue

F-Secure has discovered security issues relating to an F5 device that it says could potentially turn hundreds of thousands of load balancers into beachheads for cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Whistleblowers: James Glenn’s battle with Cisco opens new front on cyber security

James Glenn, a 42-year-old security specialist, fought a 10-year legal battle with Cisco after blowing the whistle on serious security flaws. He lost his job, but has no regrets Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly