IT for government and public sector

Smart Cities: The anywhere working city

This report from Microsoft presents a vision for the development of smart cities which bring together technology, architecture and people. Continue Reading

— ComputerWeekly.com

The Pirate Bay is latest site to be hit by DDoS attack

The Pirate Bay has become the latest high-profile website to be hit by a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Court stops Dutch party sharing Pirate Bay links

A court in The Hague has ordered a political party in the Netherlands to stop publicising ways to get around blocks to Swedish file-sharing site, The Pirate Bay Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber attackers increasingly targeting applications, research shows

Web and mobile applications are the new frontiers in the war against cyber attack, according to an HP cyber security risks report Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Troubled RPA systems to be replaced by 2015

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is to roll out a new payments system for the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) by 2015 Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

The future of Government operations: Digital citizen survey

This report from Accenture looks at the challenges facing the public sector in offering digital services. Continue Reading

— ComputerWeekly.com

Government snooping plans unveiled

The Queen's Speech has revealed that the government still plans to make it easier for security and police services to spy on e-mails, phone calls and internet activity Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

London to test urban operating system

London is to test an operating system developed to support the smart cities of the future to keep buildings, traffic and services running smoothly. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK to expand cyber info-sharing hub after initial success

A public/private cyber security initiative exposed a campaign of malicious emails targeting UK defence companies, Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Why the public sector is turning to multi-sourcing

Sarah Burnett explains why the public sector is moving from single sourcing to multi-sourcing, in an age of austerity. Continue Reading

By

• Sarah Burnett, NelsonHall

What UK citizens think about digital government

Two-thirds of UK citizens already use the internet to interact with government, according to Accenture research. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

European copyright ruling good for IT innovation, say lawyers

The top European court's ruling on copyright is good news for innovation, say lawyers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

US to legislate to protect Facebook passwords from employers

The US is planning legislation that will protect Facebook passwords from prying employers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

G-Cloud cost £4.93m to set up, says Maude

The government’s G-Cloud programme and CloudStore cost £4.93m to set up, Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said in response to a parliamentary question. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Half of UK networks vulnerable to APTs

Many UK corporate networks are vulnerable to advanced persistent threats (APTs), a survey has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government launches MyCSP mutual project

The government has launched the first of a planned series of mutuals which take public services and split the ownership between government, staff and private sector. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Infosec 2012: Unscrubbed hard drives a threat to business, says ICO

Unscrubbed hard drives on computers that are decommissioned and sold on represent a significant risk to business Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Internet security body to tackle SSL problems

The Trustworthy Internet Movement (TIM) is to tackle implementation and governance internet communication protocol (SSL) as its first project. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Patching alone can deliver 80% protection

Keeping software up to date with security patches can deliver 80% protection from cyber threats, says security firm Secunia. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK firms see competitors as greater cyber attack risk than criminals

More than half of UK firms expect a cyber attack in the next six months, but see competitors as a greater risk than criminals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Open standards are about the business model, not the technology

Software companies, abuzz with lobbyists and patent lawyers over government open standards, are similar to the record industry 10 years ago. Continue Reading

By

• Mark Thompson, Exeter Business School and DIGITLab

Supercomputers will reach 'exascale' speeds within decade

Supercomputers will be powerful enough to simulate the human brain within seven years, says founder of Top500 list. Continue Reading

Staff at IT services firm CSC protest redundancy policy

Workers at IT services giant CSC in the UK are holding a lunchtime protest today (19 April) to protest at the company’s redundancy policy Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Government unaware how much it pays for e-mail services

Government departments do not know how much they are spending on e-mail services, according to research by Computer Weekly. Continue Reading

HP losing grip of EDS’s Ministry of Defence contract

HP’s grip on a flagship Ministry of Defence contract could be weakening after CSC took over a key outsourcing deal. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Transforming IT at HM Revenue & Customs - Phil Pavitt, CIO for HMRC

HMRC CIO Phil Pavitt talked to the CW500 club about IT transformation. These are his slides with a report of his talk. Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin & Faisal Alani

Busy security patch month for Microsoft administrators

Microsoft has released six patches, four critical, for 11 vulnerabilities in Office, Windows and various server products in its April security update. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CIO interview: David Jones, CIO, Crown Prosecution Service

CPS CIO David Jones is leading a comprehensive technology revamp to modernise operations across the entire criminal justice system. Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Department of Health and CSC in deadlock over Lorenzo records system

The Department of Health and CSC failed to meet the deadline to agree new terms for the troubled electronic records systems Lorenzo Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

South West police roll out £1.1m central data repository

Police forces in the South West of England are going live with a £1.1m data sharing system across the region Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Euro crisis: Key questions CEOs and CIOs should ask each other

With a potential economic crisis looming in the Eurozone, Gartner offers a checklist of questions that CIOs and CEOs should ask each other. Continue Reading

— ComputerWeekly.com

STFC ploughs £30m into high performance computing centre with IBM

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) has signed a £30m deal with IBM to develop high performance computing (HPC) Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Everywoman in Technology Awards 2012: Winners

See all the pictures, including the winners, from the Cisco Everywoman in Technology Awards 2012 Continue Reading

By

• Kayleigh Bateman, Computer Weekly

UK business fears impact of new EU data protection framework

More than half of senior UK IT managers in large enterprises believe the proposed new EU data protection framework will cost their business more money, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Eight UK universities awarded excellence in cyber security research status

The first eight UK universities have been awarded 'Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research' status Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Warwickshire-based company to revamp data protection following breach

A Warwickshire-based company has committed to taking action to protect personal data, following a breach of the Data Protection Act Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Department for Work and Pensions outsources IT for universal credit welfare to India

The government is outsourcing IT development for the universal credit welfare programme to India despite promises to keep data projects in the UK Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Information management: lessons from the public sector

Freeform Dynamics identifies the lessons organisations can learn from the public sector's approach to information management Continue Reading

By

• Martha Bennett, Forrester Research Inc.

Half of education institutions victims of mobile IT theft

According to research, 45% of UK education establishments claim to have had mobile IT equipment stolen during the last three years. Continue Reading

By

• Kayleigh Bateman, Computer Weekly

Birkbeck College consolidates servers to cut PUE rating to 1.3

Birkbeck College has consolidated four equipment rooms into one £700,000 datacentre with a PUE rating of just 1.3 Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

UK hacktivist cases should spur business to action, says lawyer

The last of four alleged UK members of hacktivist group LulzSec has appeared in Westminster magistrates court in London Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Hampshire and Oxfordshire councils sign SAP ICT partnership

Hampshire County Council and Oxfordshire County Council have signed an ICT partnership to save £1m, focusing on SAP systems for HR and financial services Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

SourceForge takes down Anonymous operating system

The open-source collaboration website SourceForge has taken down an Ubuntu Linux OS project purportedly affiliated with online hactivist group Anonymous, after a review by security experts Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

BBC cyber attacks highlight difficulty of attribution

The BBC has said it is was targeted by cyber attacks following a campaign by Iran against its Persian service, but stopped short of accusing Tehran of ordering the cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Interview: Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude on open data

Francis Maude, Cabinet Office minister, talks to Computer Weekly about the importance of open data to the UK economy. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

NHS trust to use iPads for real-time access to patient records

An NHS trust in the Midlands is planning to equip medical staff and community nurses with iPads to give real-time access to patient records on the move. Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

IT as a driver of M&A success

This report from Ernst & Young examines why IT considerations are not given adequate attention in the due diligence prior to mergers and acquisitions. Continue Reading

— ComputerWeekly.com

Councils meet first superfast broadband deadline

All but two local authorities have met government deadlines to submit plans to roll out superfast broadband Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Systems integrators 'charge more in paperwork than SMEs do in delivery’

A systems integrator asked for more money from the government for an IT product proposal than an SME was able to deliver the actual service for. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Government’s shared services strategy failing, says NAO

The government’s £1.4bn shared services centres have failed to achieve value for money, according to a report from the National Audit Office (NAO) Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

FBI informer Hector Xavier Monsegur aids in arrest of LulzSec hackers

Authorities in the US, UK and Republic of Ireland have arrested seven suspected members of hacktivist group LulzSec, including Hector Xavier Monsegur, who helped investigators Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHS trusts to be freed from CSC contract commitments

The Department of Health has proposed a deal with CSC to release trusts in the National Programme for IT from their contractual obligations to use software from the troubled supplier. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Somerset Council to bring Southwest One services back in house

Somerset County Council is seeking to bring key services back in house from Southwest One , the troubled joint-venture it created with IBM in 2007. Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

RSA 2012: IT security experts urge enterprises to ban smartphone BYOD schemes

Enterprises should ban employees from using their own smartphones for work, a panel of IT security practitioners told the RSA Conference 2012 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

DWP tenders for £25m IDA services

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has tendered for a £25m identity assurance (IDA) framework to create a marketplace of providers across the public sector. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Does the PSN need to happen before the cloud?

The deployment of public services networks (PSN) will need to happen before widespread uptake of CloudStore services occur, IT heads said at a roundtable meeting. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Post Office reveals plans for identity assurance services

The Post Office is tendering for hardware and software which will enable it to be a provider of the government's Identity Assurance (IDA) services.    Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

OSSIM update enables cyber threat intelligence sharing

The latest update to the Open Source Security Information Management (OSSIM) base system includes a mechanism for sharing cyber threat intelligence. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Google bypassed IE too, says Microsoft

Microsoft has accused Google of bypassing the privacy settings of Internet Explorer users after Safari faux pas Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CIO priorities 2012: Ali Jaffri, ICT manager, Gallions Housing

Ali Jaffri, ICT manager at Gallions Housing, talks about the challenges of 2012. Continue Reading

Government launches CloudStore and names G-Cloud suppliers

The government has launched its CloudStore, a catalogue of 1,700 cloud-based, pre-approved IT services now available for the public sector to buy. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Cisco wants EU to reconsider Microsoft Skype deal

Cisco is calling on European Union authorities to reconsider the unconditional approval of Microsoft’s $8.5bn acquisition of Skype. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

The problem with Open Data

Although clearly a good thing in theory, Open Data risks increasing the digital divide and social inequality unless approached right. Continue Reading

By

• Tony Roberts

President of European Parliament critical of Acta

After a weekend of public protests against the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Agreement (Acta), the president of the European Parliament has added his voice to those of critcs. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IE update top priority for Patch Tuesday

Microsoft releases nine bulletins addressing 21 vulnerabilities in its monthly Patch Tuesday security update on 14 February Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government takes on proprietary software lobby in open standards battle

The government wants to push through open standards against vested interests keen to maintain the dominance of proprietary systems. Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

LinkedIn Q4 revenue more than doubles

Social networking site LinkedIn has reported 2011 fourth quarter revenue of $167.7m, up 105% from Q4 2010; and net income of $6.9m, an increase of 30% Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cisco back on acquisition trail after record quarter

Cisco Systems has reported record revenues of $11.5bn for the second fiscal quarter that ended 28 January 2012, up 11% on the year-ago quarter, and profits of $2.6bn or 47 cents a share, up 27%. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Greater Manchester Police deploys two-way CMS

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has implemented a case management system from STL Technologies that has a two-way interface with the Crown Prosecution Service’s system. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

More than half of government projects behind schedule

More than half of major government projects are behind schedule, according to the head of Whitehall's Major Projects Authority. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

UK to take part in weekend protests against Acta

Protests against the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Agreement (Acta) have been organised across Europe, with most set to take place on 11 February. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FBI investigates Anonymous intercept of call with Scotland Yard

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is looking into how a conference call with Scotland Yard was intercepted by a member of the activist hacking group Anonymous. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

St. Helens and Knowsley NHS trust signs £1.3m storage deal

St. Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has signed a £1.3m deal with EMC as part of its five-year plan to overhaul its storage infrastructure. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Fewer than a third of UK organisations plan mobile security projects

Despite the media hype around the adoption of mobile technologies and the need to secure them, relatively few UK organisations are planning mobile security projects, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Oracle and SAP worst for government ERP cost differences

Oracle and SAP have been singled out as having the most inconsistent prices for ERP systems across government departments. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

ICO fines Midlothian Council £140K for data breaches

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has imposed its highest penalty yet of £140,000 on Midlothian Council for breaching personal data Continue Reading

MEP quits as thousands protest ACTA signing

A European MP has resigned after thousands of people in Poland protested against the international anti-counterfeiting trade agreement (ACTA) Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

EC publishes proposed data protection reforms

European Justice Commissioner, Viviane Reding, has unveiled the new European data privacy framework that includes new regulation. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Advocacy group La Quadrature du Net rallies opposition to ACTA

As controversial anti-piracy legislation stalls in the US, a European group of free internet supporters, La Quadrature du Net, calls for a halt to similar legislation in the European Union. Continue Reading

NHS Trust saves £1m a year with text reminder service

Barts Hospital and the London Hospital NHS Trust have saved nearly £1m a year with an automatic appointment reminder text service. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Apple aims to improve working conditions for technology workforce

Apple has published a list of all suppliers for the first time and says it will allow independent observers into its facilities around the world to monitor working conditions. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Rupert Murdoch attacks Barack Obama over online piracy legislation

News Corp chief Rupert Murdoch has accused Barack Obama's administration of siding with "Silicon Valley paymasters" as two anti-piracy bills go through US Congress. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHS Trust to appeal £375k data loss penalty

An NHS Trust is to appeal against a proposed monetary penalty of £375,000 after after patient records were stolen from a hospital and sold on eBay. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fighting fraud in government

Cybercrime has emerged as a growing threat to public sector organisations, this research from PwC reveals. Continue Reading

— computerweekly.com

ICT curriculum for GCSE is scrapped

The government is to scrap the teaching of GCSE ICT in schools this September, with plans to replace the subject with the “rigorous” teaching of computer science and programming subjects. Continue Reading

Healthcare IT is a beneficial force, say doctors

IT in the NHS has had a bad press in recent years as a result of the problems associated with the now defunct £12bn NHS National Programme for IT, but most doctors in England believe IT improves patient care. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Accenture bolsters public sector skills

Services giant Accenture has recruited two former civil servants to its ranks to boost its UK and global public sector services capabilities. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Olympics resale site still offline after two days

The Olympics tickets resale site has been offline for more than two days, after tens of thousands of people clamoured online buy unwanted tickets on 6 January. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Ramnit worm steals 45,000 Facebook passwords

A computer worm has begun targeting Facebook accounts and has stolen at least 45,000 login credentials from users, say security researchers. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

British Waterways Scotland signs £2.3m ICT deal

British Waterways Scotland has signed a £2.3m deal with business technology company Amor Group to develop its ICT systems. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Hacktivists plan to use satellites to by-pass internet censorship

Hacker activists plan to launch communication satellites to overcome the threat of internet censorship. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Top 10 SME IT stories of 2011

For small businesses, 2011 has been another tough year, with many continuing to batten down the hatches as the economy continues to stall. But at the same time it has also been a year of technological innovation, both in terms of SMEs using the latest technology to drive down costs and also bringing new ICT innovations to the market. Read our top ten articles outlining the technology landscape for small businesses in 2011. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Atos to provide £8m GP data mining system

IT services company Atos has won an £8m five-year contract to provide a computer system which will retrieve patient information across GP practices. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

How HP played a key role in RAF air crew support in Libya

The Ministry of Defence has praised HP over its Advanced Mission Planning Aid system, most recently used to support air crew in Libya. Continue Reading

DWP seeks £200m identity assurance framework

The Department for Work and Pensions has issued a contract notice for a £200m framework agreement to provide identity assurance services for 21 million people on benefits Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

CIOs believe cloud, SaaS, consumerisation and mobility increase risk

Business models such as cloud computing and trends such as the consumerisation of IT, social media and mobility are exposing performance blind spots in IT management, a CIO survey has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cloud leaves many firewalls wanting – but could automation prove the silver bullet?

Most companies rely on firewalls, but the IT landscape is changing and so must approaches to security. Is there a silver bullet? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Martha Lane Fox launches Government Digital Service

The launch of the Government Digital Service will “fundamentally transform the lives of millions,” says digital champion Martha Lane Fox. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall

Adobe to release out-of-cycle patch for latest vulnerability

Adobe has issued a security advisory about a newly discovered and still unpatched vulnerability in Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat which is being used in "limited, targeted attacks in the wild". Continue Reading

UKtech50: Meet the 50 most influential people in UK IT

Computer Weekly has announced the final listing for the second annual UKtech50, the definitive list of the real movers and shakers in UK IT. Continue Reading

By

• Computer Weekly Staff