IT for telecoms and internet organisations
Telecoms is one of the largest business sectors, and communications providers often have large IT budgets and are early adopters of new technologies. Our news and analysis of this important industry looks at how telecommunications firms, ISPs and other internet companies are using IT, and the regulatory issues that affect the services they provide.
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News
18 Sep 2024
M1 ditches 70% of legacy systems in cloud transformation drive
Singapore telco M1 is switching off 70% of its legacy systems by the end of 2024 and leveraging Salesforce to offer more personalised services Continue Reading
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News
16 Jul 2024
Incubator Plexal heads to Singapore for CyberBoost
Cyber startup hub Plexal expands its presence to Singapore through a new initiative, and sets its sights on helping new UK businesses break into the booming Asia-Pacific market Continue Reading
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News
22 May 2023
Facebook owner Meta fined record €1.2 billion over EU-US data transfers
Decision could have implications for other companies using Standard Contractual Clauses to share data between Europe and the US Continue Reading
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News
19 May 2023
Spanish lawyers claim police hacking of EncroChat cryptophones breaches human rights law
Lawyers speaking at the Madrid Bar Association question the legality of a cryptophone hacking which has led to arrests of organised criminals in multiple countries Continue Reading
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News
18 May 2023
Eticas outlines approach to ‘adversarial’ algorithmic auditing
Algorithmic auditing firm Eticas speaks to Computer Weekly about its approach to ‘adversarial’ algorithmic auditing, including its strengths and limitations, and how the process works Continue Reading
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News
11 May 2023
Investigatory Powers Tribunal finds NCA EncroChat hacking warrants were lawful
Investigatory Powers Tribunal refers questions over whether messages obtained from the EncroChat encrypted phone network are legally admissible back to the criminal court Continue Reading
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News
10 May 2023
UKtech50 2023: Vote for the most influential person in UK technology
Our judges have selected the top 50 leaders from a shortlist of more than 300 people – now it’s your chance to tell us who you think is the most influential person in UK technology Continue Reading
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News
09 May 2023
UKtech50 2023: 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 2023 Continue Reading
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News
08 May 2023
Chat control: EU lawyers warn plans to scan encrypted messages for child abuse may be unlawful
Leaked legal advice warns that European ‘chat control’ proposals to require tech companies to scan private and encrypted messages for child abuse are likely to breach EU law Continue Reading
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News
03 May 2023
Cyber Action Plan for Wales launched
The devolved Welsh government has set out four priorities in an action plan designed to foster cyber resilience, talent and innovation across the country Continue Reading
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News
03 May 2023
TikTok fixes vulnerability that could have exposed user activity data
A potentially dangerous vulnerability in the TikTok video-sharing platform was discovered by Imperva researchers, and has now been fixed Continue Reading
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News
28 Apr 2023
Government is playing ‘psychic war’ in battle over end-to-end encryption
Peers hear that the UK government is being deliberately ambiguous about its plans to require technology companies to scan the content of encrypted messages Continue Reading
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News
26 Apr 2023
Police Scotland receive formal notice about cloud system
Scotland’s biometrics watchdog has issued Police Scotland with an information notice over its deployment of a cloud-based digital evidence system, following disclosure of major data protection concerns by Computer Weekly Continue Reading
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News
26 Apr 2023
UK government introduces Digital Markets Bill to Parliament
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill will seek to level the playing field in digital markets by empowering regulators with new tools and powers to directly enforce competition and consumer protection laws Continue Reading
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News
24 Apr 2023
Amazon Web Services selects 14 startups for space accelerator
The cohort of startups will use AWS and its resources to accelerate the research and development of their technologies and boost their growth Continue Reading
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News
21 Apr 2023
UK biometrics watchdog questions police cloud deployments
The UK biometrics commissioner has warned that policing and justice bodies must be able to demonstrate ‘immediately and unequivocally’ that their cloud deployments are lawful Continue Reading
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News
21 Apr 2023
Prototype cyber tech has revolutionary potential
The so-called CHERI protection model developed at the University of Cambridge is showing great promise for future cyber security technologies Continue Reading
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News
20 Apr 2023
UK Emergency Alert Test sparks cyber fraud warning
Fraudsters and scammers are likely to use the upcoming test of the UK's new mobile Emergency Alert system as bait in their attacks, while misinformation and conspiracy theories spread Continue Reading
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News
20 Apr 2023
3CX incident may be world’s first double supply chain attack
It’s supply chain attacks all the way down as Mandiant publishes information suggesting that the 3CX software supply chain compromise was initiated via a prior software supply chain compromise Continue Reading
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News
19 Apr 2023
IT Priorities 2023: Budget optimism among EMEA IT leaders
IT leaders across the EMEA region are optimistic that their budgets will increase over the coming year Continue Reading
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News
19 Apr 2023
CyberUK 23: Alert over mercenary Russian threat to CNI
Russian hacktivists supportive of their government’s war on Ukraine are turning their attention to disruptive or destructive attacks on critical infrastructure in the UK, the NCSC has warned Continue Reading
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News
18 Apr 2023
Reduced spending on cloud services weighs European IT services market down
Reduced spending on cloud services in the EMEA region meant a year-on-year drop in total IT and BPO services spend Continue Reading
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News
18 Apr 2023
Tech companies and NGOs urge rewrite of Online Safety Bill to protect encrypted comms
The Online Safety Bill faces amendments in the House of Lords amid concerns that it could weaken the security of end-to-end encrypted communications for UK citizens Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Apr 2023
Why IAM systems are crucial for securing multicloud architecture
As business tools evolve into cloud-based services, organisations are finding themselves becoming ever more reliant on the cloud, but how can data be secured across so many different platforms? Continue Reading
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News
13 Apr 2023
Thousands at risk from critical RCE bug in legacy MS service
Thousands of organisations worldwide are at risk from three vulnerabilities – one critical – in a legacy Microsoft service that they may not be aware they are running Continue Reading
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News
13 Apr 2023
UK joins key allies to launch secure-by-design guidelines
The UK has joined international partners in sharing new advice to help technology companies embed security into the product design and development process Continue Reading
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News
12 Apr 2023
April Patch Tuesday fixes zero-day used to deliver ransomware
A zero-day in the Microsoft Common Log File System that has been abused by the operator of the Nokoyawa ransomware is among 97 vulnerabilities fixed in April’s Patch Tuesday update Continue Reading
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News
12 Apr 2023
Gartner: Rebalance cyber investment towards human-centric elements
Security decision-makers need to reprioritise their investment outlooks towards people, rather than technology, according to the latest market forecast from Gartner Continue Reading
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News
11 Apr 2023
UKtech50 2023: Help us find the most influential people in UK IT
Computer Weekly’s annual search for the 50 most influential people in UK IT is back – let us know who you would like to nominate for this year’s list Continue Reading
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Opinion
11 Apr 2023
Security Think Tank: Adopt a coherent framework for ID first security
With IAM central to enabling appropriate access to cloud-based services, identity first security is becoming a key trend for IAM in the cloud. Continue Reading
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News
05 Apr 2023
Quick-acting Rorschach ransomware appears out of nowhere
Emergent Rorschach ransomware strain is highly advanced and quite unusual in its capabilities, warn researchers, who say they have been unable to link it to any other known strains Continue Reading
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News
05 Apr 2023
Italy’s ChatGPT ban: Sober precaution or chilling overreaction?
Italy’s data protection authority issued a temporary ban on ChatGPT citing data protection concerns and alleged breaches of the GDPR. Is this a reasonable precaution, or a chilling restriction on personal freedoms? Continue Reading
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News
05 Apr 2023
Scottish police tech piloted despite major data protection issues
Scottish policing bodies are pressing ahead with a data sharing pilot despite data protection issues around the use of US cloud providers, placing sensitive personal data of tens of thousands of people at risk Continue Reading
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News
04 Apr 2023
TikTok fined in UK over unlawful use of children’s data
The ICO has fined TikTok £12.7m for breaches of data protection law, including unlawfully collecting data on children under 13 Continue Reading
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News
04 Apr 2023
Threat researchers dissect anatomy of a Royal ransomware attack
Trellix researchers share the inside track on a Royal ransomware attack that hit one of its customers in late 2022 Continue Reading
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News
04 Apr 2023
Over 90% of organisations find threat hunting a challenge
Understaffed security teams and high levels of background noise are making basic security operations tasks a chore for defenders, according to a report Continue Reading
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News
31 Mar 2023
Mounting Russian disinformation campaign targeting Arab world
Researchers have found evidence of a broad Russian disinformation campaign targeting Arabic-speakers in the Middle East and North Africa Continue Reading
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News
31 Mar 2023
Generative AI central to Accenture’s tech vision
Generative AI will play a central role over the next 10 years as the digital and physical world become more and more integrated Continue Reading
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News
30 Mar 2023
OSC&R supply chain security framework goes live on Github
The OSC&R framework for understanding and evaluating threats to supply chain security has made its debut on Github to allow anybody to contribute to the framework Continue Reading
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News
30 Mar 2023
NCSC issues revised security Board Toolkit for business leaders
National Cyber Security Centre calls on CEOs and senior business leaders to take a more hands-on approach to cyber resilience with the launch of revised board-level tools Continue Reading
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News
28 Mar 2023
Apple security updates fix 33 iPhone vulnerabilities
A larger-than-usual update to Apple’s mobile operating system fixes more than 30 distinct vulnerabilities, including two serious issues that may potentially affect device kernels Continue Reading
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News
28 Mar 2023
Ransomware attacks up 45% in February, LockBit responsible
NCC Group says it observed a surge in ransomware attacks in February, with LockBit, BlackCat and BianLian all highly active Continue Reading
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News
24 Mar 2023
National Crime Agency sting operation infiltrates cyber crime market
The UK National Crime Agency has tricked thousands of potential cyber criminals into registering with a fake website pretending to offer tools for creating DDoS attacks Continue Reading
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News
21 Mar 2023
Ransomware gangs harass victims to ‘bypass’ backups
Analysis reveals how cyber criminal gangs are turning to extensive, targeted harassment campaigns to force victims to pay up, even if their backups are in good order Continue Reading
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News
20 Mar 2023
BBC cracks down on TikTok after review
The BBC is asking staff not to install TikTok on corporate-owned devices without a justified business purpose, although its use will still be allowed to share media content with its audiences Continue Reading
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News
17 Mar 2023
UK TikTok ban gives us all cause to consider social media security
The UK government’s ban on TikTok should give all organisations cause to look into what information social media platforms are collecting on us, and what they are using it for Continue Reading
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News
16 Mar 2023
BEC attacks doubled in 2022, outstripping ransomware
Massive growth in the volume of Business Email Compromise or BEC attacks was linked to a surge in successful phishing campaigns, according to data from Secureworks Continue Reading
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News
16 Mar 2023
Mandiant: Dangerous MS Outlook zero-day widely used against Ukraine
A zero-day vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook that was fixed in the March Patch Tuesday update has likely been actively exploited by Russian actors for a year or more, and its use will now spread rapidly Continue Reading
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News
15 Mar 2023
Chinese Silkloader cyber attack tool falls into Russian hands
A loader tool used by Chinese cyber criminals seems to have been enthusiastically taken up in recent weeks by Russian ransomware operators Continue Reading
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News
15 Mar 2023
Microsoft patches Outlook zero-day for March Patch Tuesday
A highly dangerous privilege escalation bug in Outlook is among 80 different vulnerabilities patched in Microsoft’s March Patch Tuesday update Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Mar 2023
As Covid fades away, what’s the future of remote work in Europe?
Many IT leaders are still supporting some form of work from home, and a trend is beginning to take shape in Europe Continue Reading
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News
13 Mar 2023
MI5 to oversee new National Protective Security Authority
The new National Protective Security Authority will address various national security threats including state-sponsored cyber espionage against UK targets Continue Reading
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News
10 Mar 2023
Technology minister Michelle Donelan defends data reforms
Secretary of state Michelle Donelan has defended the government’s new data reforms as providing certainty for businesses while simultaneously retaining high standards of data protection, but industry figures are having mixed reactions Continue Reading
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News
08 Mar 2023
UK government introduces revised data reform bill to Parliament
Designed in close collaboration with technology businesses, the UK government is re-introducing an updated version of its Data Protection and Digital Information Bill to Parliament, which civil society groups say upends key safeguards Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Mar 2023
What can security teams learn from a year of cyber warfare?
With the passing of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, we reflect on the ongoing cyber war, and ask what security leaders can learn from the past 12 months Continue Reading
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News
03 Mar 2023
White House unveils National Cybersecurity Strategy
The strategy will focus on ensuring closer collaboration on cyber security between government and industry, while giving software and other tech companies a bigger role in combatting threats due to their resources and expertise Continue Reading
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Opinion
28 Feb 2023
Security Think Tank: Training can no longer be a compliance exercise
Historically, security training has tended to take a compliance-based focus, a ‘tick-box’ exercise using generic, off-the-shelf courses. This needs to change, says Hayley Watson of Turnkey Consulting. Continue Reading
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Opinion
27 Feb 2023
Cyber training in 2023 needs to drive measurable change
2023 will see more focus on security training programmes that not only provide employees with an understanding of the risks they face but more importantly drive measurable behavioural change, says PA Consulting’s Richard Allen Continue Reading
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News
23 Feb 2023
WithSecure proposes ‘undo’ button for ransomware
WithSecure’s Activity Monitor technology supposedly overcomes the shortcomings of sandbox test environments, and may be able to stop ransomware attacks from ever happening Continue Reading
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News
23 Feb 2023
Santander SME platform harnesses Salesforce
Bank platform that helps UK small and medium-sized enterprises expand export opportunities is built on cloud technology from Salesforce Continue Reading
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News
22 Feb 2023
UK forces lead live-fire cyber war exercise
The seven-day Defence Cyber Marvel 2 exercise put cyber responders from 11 countries through their paces Continue Reading
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News
22 Feb 2023
Researchers find new bug ‘class’ in Apple devices
A group of vulnerabilities in Apple products that stem from the ForcedEntry exploit used by spyware firm NSO constitutes a whole new class of bug, say researchers at Trellix Continue Reading
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News
22 Feb 2023
Dutch cyber security professionals experience stress akin to soldiers in war zone, claims expert
Cyber attacks are taking a heavy toll on Dutch IT professionals, with over a third reporting that their mental health suffers as a result Continue Reading
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News
22 Feb 2023
Half of cyber leaders to switch jobs by 2025, citing stress
A substantial number of cyber security leaders are plotting their great escape, saying the industry is leaving them too stressed to go on, according to a study Continue Reading
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Opinion
21 Feb 2023
Cyber security training: Insights for future professionals
Future cyber security professionals need soft skills as well as technical ones, says security educator Sudeep Subramanian Continue Reading
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News
21 Feb 2023
US government Strike Force aims to prevent adversaries from accessing disruptive tech
The US Strike Force law enforcement initiative will target rogue nation-states that pose a national security threat Continue Reading
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News
20 Feb 2023
Twitter 2FA changes bring more risks than benefits
Twitter’s approach to nudging users away from insecure SMS-based 2FA is being questioned over its logic Continue Reading
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Opinion
16 Feb 2023
Security Think Tank: New trends and drivers in cyber security training
Self-paced, interactive, bite-sized learning is becoming the optimum path for cyber security training in the workplace, says John Tolbert of KuppingerCole Continue Reading
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News
15 Feb 2023
Multi-purpose malwares can use more than 20 MITRE ATT&CK TTPs
Report warns of the development of increasingly sophisticated, multi-purpose malwares, and calls on defenders to play close attention to the MITRE ATT&CK framework to ward them off Continue Reading
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News
15 Feb 2023
Microsoft fixes three zero-days in February update
February’s Patch Tuesday update contains fixes for three previously unpublicised zero-days in Microsoft Office, Windows Graphics Component and Windows Common Log File System Driver Continue Reading
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Opinion
15 Feb 2023
MWC 2023: A critical time for CSPs to make wise investment decisions
As the telecoms sector gathers in Barcelona for the annual Mobile World Congress, communications services providers face a turbulent market that will require careful investments to be made Continue Reading
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News
14 Feb 2023
Vidar, nJRAT re-emerge as prominent malware threats in January
Trojans and infostealers once again dominate the list of most commonly observed threats, according to Check Point’s latest telemetry Continue Reading
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News
14 Feb 2023
Researcher exposes crypto scam network exploiting YouTube
A massive network of fake YouTube videos promoted by automated sock puppet accounts is reeling in hundreds of cryptocurrency enthusiasts and persuading them to hand over their money, WithSecure researchers found Continue Reading
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Opinion
14 Feb 2023
How to protect your business from fraud during a recession
This winter, the chilly winds of a global recession have fraudsters turning up the heat. PJ Rohall of SEON Fraud Fighters shares some guidance on how to bundle up against fraud Continue Reading
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News
13 Feb 2023
KPMG launches metaverse and digital twin hub in Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Arabian government’s commitment to investing in metaverse technology has attracted a KPMG centre of excellence to its shores Continue Reading
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News
13 Feb 2023
Security buyers lack insight into threats, attackers, report finds
The majority of cyber security purchasing decisions are made without proper insight into the attackers organisations are facing, according to a Mandiant report Continue Reading
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News
10 Feb 2023
Social media platform Reddit breached in phishing attack
An unspecified threat actor obtained access to internal documents, code and business systems at Reddit after stealing employee credentials in a phishing attack Continue Reading
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Opinion
08 Feb 2023
Security Think Tank: Poor training is worse than no training at all
Bad security training is a betrayal of users, a security risk, and ultimately a waste of money, but there are some reasons to be optimistic about the future, say Mike Gillespie and Ellie Hurst of Advent IM Continue Reading
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News
08 Feb 2023
Campaigners lament lack of movement on Computer Misuse Act reform
Westminster has opened a new consultation on proposed reforms to the Computer Misuse Act of 1990, but campaigners who want the law changed to protect cyber professionals have been left disappointed Continue Reading
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News
08 Feb 2023
Rakuten targets big edge deployments with Symworld Cloud
Japanese giant Rakuten bought Kubernetes management platform Robin.io and put it in 50,000-plus telco antennas. Now it aims Symworld Cloud at enterprise edge deployments Continue Reading
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News
06 Feb 2023
Cops make arrests and seize drugs after hacking Exclu encrypted messaging app
Police in the Netherlands, Belgium and Poland raided 80 addresses after covertly intercepting messages from the Exclu encrypted messaging app Continue Reading
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News
06 Feb 2023
The Security Interviews: How to overcome data protection compliance challenges
Complying with the vast swathe of data protection legislation around the world is complex, especially for smaller organisations without the necessary expertise. Could the compliance process be simplified, and if so, how? Continue Reading
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News
03 Feb 2023
FCA cracks down on misleading promos by social media influencers
Social media is becoming a major part of the FCA’s work in clamping down on misleading financial advertising and promotions, with multiple influencers rapped for their behaviour Continue Reading
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Opinion
03 Feb 2023
Security Think Tank: In 2023, we need a new way to cultivate better habits
Regular, small adjustments to behaviour offer a better way to keep employees on track and cultivate a corporate culture of cyber awareness, writes Elastic’s Mandy Andress Continue Reading
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Opinion
02 Feb 2023
Security Think Tank: Getting the training and development mix right
Rob Dartnall, CEO at SecAlliance and chair of Crest’s UK Council, describes the need for formal, varied and continuous development in the cyber security sector Continue Reading
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News
01 Feb 2023
Romance fraudsters stole £65m from Brits since 2020
Online romance fraudsters have scammed Brits out of £65m in the past three years, according to retail bank TSB Continue Reading
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News
01 Feb 2023
Cloud security top risk to enterprises in 2023, says study
A PwC study finds senior executives expect cyber attacks on cloud services to increase significantly this year Continue Reading
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News
01 Feb 2023
UK Cyber Council and ISACA launch audit, assurance programme
The UK Cyber Security Council has teamed up with ISACA to partner on a new audit and assurance programme for security pros Continue Reading
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Definition
31 Jan 2023
meta description tag
A meta description tag is a snippet of HTML code in a web page header that summarizes the content that's on the web page. Continue Reading
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News
31 Jan 2023
MPs warned of AI arms race to the bottom
Expert tells Parliamentary committee that tech companies developing artificial intelligence are cutting corners and placing safety on the backburner, opening up ‘enormous risks’ for the future of AI Continue Reading
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News
27 Jan 2023
Lords question ‘extensive’ government online safety powers
Digital minister Paul Scully defends government Online Safety plans to give secretary of state powers to direct Ofcom Continue Reading
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News
27 Jan 2023
Hive ransomware gang taken down after FBI hacks back
The FBI hacked into Hive’s servers, stole its decryption keys and then took down its servers in a major action that has successfully disrupted a prolific and dangerous ransomware operation Continue Reading
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News
25 Jan 2023
Boards struggle to resolve cyber risk in digital supply chains
Accelerated digitisation of supply chains is introducing more cyber risk for which many organisations seem unprepared, according to the BSI’s annual report on supply chain risk Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
Chinese IoT suppliers expose UK businesses to espionage and data theft
Chinese companies supplying network components, known as IoT modules, post a greater long-term threat to UK security than the now banned 5G supplier Huawei, according to a study by a Chinese expert and former diplomat Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
UK insurers need to up their game on cyber gaps, says PRA
Gaps and limitations in how insurers respond to cyber risk need to be addressed, according to the Bank of England regulator, the Prudential Regulation Authority Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
SSRF attacks hit 100,000 businesses globally since November
There has been a dramatic increase in attacks exploiting the ProxyNotShell/OWASSRF exploit chains to target Microsoft Exchange servers Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
Fake online contest makes Yahoo! most phished brand of Q4 2022
Yahoo! was the most frequently phished brand during the last three months of 2022, according to a report Continue Reading
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Opinion
23 Jan 2023
The rise of fraud in pop culture is impacting consumers’ digital trust
Shows such as The Tinder Swindler and Inventing Anna were big money-earners for Netflix in 2022, but Onfido’s Mike Tuchen says their popularity risks damaging consumer trust Continue Reading
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News
20 Jan 2023
WhatsApp’s £4.8m fine raises questions for organisations using behavioural advertising
The Irish Data Protection Commissioner has fined WhatsApp, owned by Meta, in a case that will raise questions for organisations that rely on contracts rather than consent to comply with GDPR when offering behavioural advertising Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
Mailchimp suffers third breach in 12 months
Email marketing service Mailchimp has suffered its third data breach in a year, but has been praised for being open about its latest attack Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
UK seeks to ban sharing ‘positive’ Channel crossing videos online
Under UK government amendments to the Online Safety Bill, video footage that shows people crossing the Channel in a ‘positive light’ could be added to a list of illegal content that all tech platforms must proactively prevent from reaching users, while senior managers could face further criminal sanctions Continue Reading
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News
17 Jan 2023
Cloudflare urged to clamp down on pirates, counterfeiters
A whitepaper produced by brand protection specialist Corsearch calls on Cloudflare to do more to stop online content piracy and sales of counterfeit goods Continue Reading