IT news in your industry sector

Parliament passes sweeping Online Safety Bill but tech companies still concerned over encryption

Ofcom will consult on standards to enforce new powers, but tech companies remain concerned about the impact of the bill’s ‘spy clause’, which could require them to scan encrypted messages Continue Reading

Toyota car plant outage shows database capacity planning is vital

How could database deletes and re-organisation take out car production for 36 hours at 14 plants? We drill down into the details of database capacity planning Continue Reading

The most important law you’ve never heard of - the Electronic Trade Documents Act

The UK's Electronic Trade Documents Act has come into force, and it promises to make international trading easier, cheaper, faster and greener - but only if companies and government adopt its measures Continue Reading

Braverman puts pressure on Meta to pause end-to-end encryption plans

The home secretary is calling on Meta to halt its plans to introduce encrypted messaging services on Facebook and Instagram until the company puts measures in place to detect abuse Continue Reading

New revelations from the Snowden archive surface

A decade after Snowden exposed NSA’s mass surveillance in cooperation with the British GCHQ, only about 1% of the documents have been published – but three major facts can finally be revealed thanks to a doctoral thesis in applied cryptography by Jacob Appelbaum Continue Reading

Post Office employee changed story for witness statement used to destroy subpostmaster

Post Office inquiry hears how an auditor changed her story about a subpostmaster to help win court battle Continue Reading

Okta confirms link to cyber attacks on Las Vegas casinos

Okta CISO David Bradbury confirms widespread speculation about the high-profile cyber attacks on two Las Vegas casino operators, revealing that the threat actors responsible had indeed abused its services as they earlier claimed Continue Reading

Government pumps £10m into faster patient access to medtech

The funding aims to give developers support to rapidly develop innovative technologies that can address unmet clinical needs Continue Reading

UK wants international collaboration on AI for development

Foreign secretary James Cleverly uses speech at United Nations General Assembly to set out vision for potential of AI technology to speed up development in the world’s poorest nations Continue Reading

Nominet and European counterparts link up on intelligence sharing

The new European TLD ISAC, a collaborative project between top-level domain providers across Europe, aims to enhance their collective security posture to better protect internet users Continue Reading

Ending the online fraud epidemic

A different approach to managing personal data across the web is possible - and it could minimise online fraud, boost e-commerce, and help make the web more secure. So why isn't the government doing it? Continue Reading

Securing Eurovision’s online voting system against cyber attacks

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we discover how Once.net and Cloudfare defended the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest against cyber attacks. Our buyer’s guide continues to look at integrating software-as-a-service applications, with the governance of SaaS connectivity to the fore. Also, HCLTech’s Ashish Gupta relates how the company has embraced a new, pandemic-influenced, remote working model. And we find out how retail tech leaders influence their boards on transformation projects. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Government offers £600,000 to subpostmasters with overturned convictions

Subpostmasters wrongfully convicted of financial crimes based on evidence from faulty Horizon software will be offered £600,000 compensation by government Continue Reading

Unregulated DeFi services abused in latest pig butchering twist

Pig butchering scammers are taking advantage of the unregulated nature of DeFi crypto trading apps to siphon off even more money from their victims, according to the latest findings of an ongoing investigation Continue Reading

Government seeks industry views on cyber threat to UK CNI

The Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee is seeking evidence from the cyber sector as it launches an inquiry into the resilience of the UK's critical national infrastructure Continue Reading

TikTok fined €345m under GDPR for failing to protect children’s privacy

Data protection regulators warn social media companies to take all necessary measures to protect children’s privacy Continue Reading

Las Vegas mainstay Caesars Palace likely paid off ransomware crew

Caesars Entertainment, owner of the lavish Roman Empire-themed Caesars Palace casino in Las Vegas, has revealed it also suffered a ransomware attack, and appears to have paid off its hackers Continue Reading

Number of UK contactless payments rose by 30% last year

UK consumers are increasingly making contactless payments, with the number of payments using the technology up 30% last year Continue Reading

UK space sector needs more people with AI skills, according to survey

Space sector survey shows machine learning and artificial intelligence skills are highly sought after, as the industry struggles to recruit and retain people with the necessary talent Continue Reading

Manchester police data breach a classic supply chain incident

The developing data breach at Greater Manchester Police follows a cyber attack on the systems of a key supplier of ID services to the force Continue Reading

Data on over 3,000 Airbus suppliers leaked after breach

An emergent threat actor has leaked details of multiple sensitive Airbus suppliers after claiming to have accessed the firm’s systems having hacked customer Turkish Airlines Continue Reading

BlackCat on the hook for cyber attack that crippled Vegas casinos

The ALPHV/BlackCat ransomware operation claimed responsibility for an attack that forced MGM Resorts to shut down systems at some of Las Vegas’ most popular gambling venues Continue Reading

Bristol Uni to host one of Europe’s most power supercomputer clusters

A high-performance computer system being built at the University of Bristol will run thousands of GPUs to support research in artificial intelligence and scientific discovery Continue Reading

Government appoints Dave Smith as UK national tech adviser

The former Rolls-Royce technology director will take over the role of UK national technology adviser, following government recruitment campaign for the role in the wake of former tech adviser Patrick Vallance’s departure Continue Reading

CIO interview: Petra Tesch, Vizrt

Straight-talking when it comes to getting her messages across to the wider company, Vizrt CIO Petra Tesch revels in transformation and communication Continue Reading

As vehicle safety regulations loom, carmakers fret over cyber risks

Global, UN-backed car safety and security regulations come into force next year, and automotive bosses say they are not only unprepared, but “swamped” by a tide of compliance and security risks Continue Reading

GCHQ breached privacy rights of IT professional and security researcher, human rights court rules

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg finds UK intelligence services breached the privacy rights of two overseas nationals – an IT professional and a security researcher Continue Reading

BianLian ransomware gang holds Save the Children hostage

The dangerous and prolific BianLian ransomware gang claims to have stolen almost 7TB of data from NGO Save the Children, but thankfully the charity’s vital work on the ground appears to be unaffected Continue Reading

Banks less focused on metaverse technology than last year

Senior banking executives have reduced their focus on investigating metaverse technology in the past 12 months Continue Reading

Patch Tuesday: Microsoft fixes zero-days in Word and Streaming Service

September 2023 brings a light Patch Tuesday, with two zero-days and five critical vulnerabilities listed in the latest release Continue Reading

Ancient MoD IT systems could cause supply issues for frontline troops

Deliveries of inventory to the front line are being put at risk due to legacy IT systems and poor data, according to the National Audit Office Continue Reading

Whitehall only capable of ‘piecemeal’ digital transformation, says PAC

The Public Accounts Committee is unconvinced government will achieve its digital transformation ambitions as progress is thwarted by staff shortages and a lack of senior leadership engagement Continue Reading

US casino giant MGM Resorts battles 36-hour outage after cyber attack

Multiple systems at US hotel and casino operator MGM went down in the wake of the incident on 10 September, crippling several of Las Vegas’ most prominent casinos Continue Reading

Oxford’s Mini iFactory runs on S/4Hana

The factory, which is part of BMW Group’s digitised automotive production blueprint, iFactory, uses S/4Hana and SAP supply chain software Continue Reading

European enterprises to spend more on generative IT to close gap on US

European organisations are upping their spending on generative AI innovation, but face challenges recruiting the right people to support this Continue Reading

European fintech investment plummets, but more sustainable future lies ahead

Investment in European fintechs has seen a dramatic drop, but a more sustainable sector will result from investment discipline Continue Reading

Huawei launches OceanStor Pacific 9920 entry-level NAS

Huawei adds to its OceanStor Pacific NAS family, offering entry-level 9920 with up to 92TB per node which can be combined into clusters and also used as a SAN device Continue Reading

University of Glasgow launches Centre for data science and AI

Scottish university will apply artificial intelligence and data science to help solve some of the world's biggest challenges Continue Reading

Polish election questioned after Pegasus spyware used to smear opposition, investigation finds

Senate committee alerts prosecutors over potential crimes by public officials involved in purchasing Pegasus spyware used to monitor and smear political opponents Continue Reading

IR35: HMRC reportedly working to April 2024 start date for settlement offsets fix

HMRC is reportedly planning to roll out its fix for the double-taxation issue affecting IR35 compliance cases by April 2024 Continue Reading

Transforming healthcare with artificial intelligence

Discover how applying AI to healthcare can optimize the patient experience, drive efficiencies and reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases on the global healthcare system. Continue Reading

7 ways to prevent tech buyer's remorse

Tech buyer's remorse is on the rise due to factors such as lack of research, poor vendor communication and impulse buying. Explore seven tips to avoid tech buyer's remorse. Continue Reading

HSBC collaborates on hybrid quantum optimisation

The bank, which wants to be at the forefront of quantum computing, is looking at how it can manage collateral assets more efficiently Continue Reading

Deputy PM urges UK plc not to lose focus on cyber

In a speech at TechUK, deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden urges the cyber security community not to lose focus, and to do more to further collaboration across sectors Continue Reading

North Koreans using new zero-day to target security researchers

A threat actor linked to the North Korean government is continuing a long-running campaign targeting legitimate security researchers, using an as-yet undisclosed zero-day vulnerability to gain access to their victims Continue Reading

Sensitive NatWest customer files set to be returned after High Court agreement

Sensitive NatWest customer files set to be secured by bank after years in the home of a data breach whistleblower Continue Reading

HGS to provide contact centre support for One Login

The partnership between the Government Digital Service and Hinduja Global Solutions will see the supplier provide contact centre services for the digital identity platform Continue Reading

SME disaster recovery: Five key points to consider

We look at key DR considerations for SMEs, including RPOs, RTOs, infrastructure needed for effective continuity and the right combination of cloud and in-house provision Continue Reading

UK minister fails to reassure tech companies over encryption risk

Technology companies say reassurances by government ministers that they have no intention of weakening end-to-end encrypted communication services do not go far enough Continue Reading

Kent Digital tackles digital divide with refurbished laptops

The council has begun working with Circular Computing to support people who do not have access to laptop devices Continue Reading

Honeywell goes quantum to protect utilities from future threats

Honeywell and quantum computing specialist Quantinuum will integrate quantum-hardened encryption keys into future smart meters Continue Reading

GPs in Slough help control patients’ blood pressure through tech

The GP practices use digital technology to identify, diagnose and manage patients with hypertension Continue Reading

Government AI taskforce appoints new advisory board members

An initial progress report published by the Taskforce provides detail on new appointments to its external advisory board as well as rebrand to focus on “frontier” artificial intelligence Continue Reading

CXL in the datacentre: Boosting memory for hungry workloads

We look at CXL, how it revolutionises connectivity between memory components, potentially saves energy, and adds oomph to heavily memory-dependent workloads such as AI analytics Continue Reading

Duplicate waypoints root cause of Nats subsystem failover

Processing of waypoints that determine when a flight enters and leaves UK airspace caused the air traffic system to report a critical error Continue Reading

Hyundai to launch in-car payments in US

Hyundai will launch an in-car payments service in the US when the company’s latest car model is launched next year Continue Reading

Interview: Ashish Gupta, head of EMEA, HCLTech

It’s not just enterprises that changed their operating models during and after Covid, but also the suppliers that took them on the journey, HCLTech Europe’s head explains Continue Reading

French supreme court dismisses legal challenge to EncroChat cryptophone evidence

Defence lawyers plan to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights after the French supreme court disallowed an appeal over the legality of EncroChat evidence Continue Reading

Saudi Arabian fintech gets Mastercard boost

Saudi-based fintechs could soon benefit from Mastercard's extensive payments network Continue Reading

German court unclear whether intercepted EncroChat cryptophone messages are legally admissible

Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court is waiting to hear five complaints that could decide whether data from the hacked EncroChat phone network can be lawfully used in German courts, but situation remains unclear for now Continue Reading

CIO interview: Cynthia Stoddard, Adobe

Adobe's IT chief is looking to build on its cloud migration with widespread adoption of AI, machine learning and robotic process automation – as well as low-code/no-code software development tools Continue Reading

HPE storage comes with full IT stack, hybrid cloud and as a service

Storage profile: We look at HPE, its Alletra storage refresh, and Greenlake and the ways the company is re-branding as a full-stack provider across on-prem and hybrid cloud Continue Reading

Researchers find flaw in Mend.io security platform

WithSecure’s research team uncovered an authentication flaw in an application security platform developed by Mend.io, which has now been fixed Continue Reading

Hacked Electoral Commission failed Cyber Essentials audit

The Electoral Commission failed an NCSC Cyber Essentials audit on multiple counts at about the same time as cyber criminals breached its systems in 2021, it has emerged Continue Reading

Ryder Cup testbed to feature tech firsts in Rome

This year’s Ryder Cup will test out technology to improve how fans digitally consume the event while reducing the workload on IT teams Continue Reading

Government pumps £18.5m into autonomous vehicles

Government’s funding is part of a £50m pot going to 30 different ‘cutting-edge’ manufacturing projects, with the aim of boosting green technology innovation Continue Reading

NCSC names ex-NCC man as new CTO

New NCSC CTO Ollie Whitehouse joins from NCC Group, having also worked at BlackBerry and Symantec Continue Reading

Plymouth Uni spearheads research into wind farm cyber resilience

Project hosted at the University of Plymouth in Devon aims to develop cyber security measures to protect the UK’s increasingly important offshore wind farm assets Continue Reading

VMware builds vSAN Max, consolidates multicloud and online deployment

VMware launches new iteration of vSAN Max with up to 8.6PB of independently scalable storage, NSX gets a “+” as it unifies networks and Ransomware Recovery ups efficiency Continue Reading

London Stock Exchange plans blockchain-based market

The London Stock Exchange plans to have a blockchain-based trading venue available in the next 12 months Continue Reading

Met Police data platform goes £64m over budget

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we reveal a £64m cost over-run for the Metropolitan Police’s new record management system – and the thousands of support requests it’s caused. Our latest buyer’s guide looks at the issues around integrating software-as-a-service applications. And a leading flash storage firm says the age of spinning disk drives is almost over – are they right? Read the issue now Continue Reading

TUC launches AI taskforce for workers’ rights and societal benefit

The Trades Union Congress has launched what it calls an AI ‘taskforce’ to draft an AI and Employment Bill, aimed at safeguarding workers’ rights, early in 2024 Continue Reading

LockBit ransomware gang allegedly leaks MoD data after hit on supplier

The UK government appears to have become entangled in a LockBit ransomware attack after data was leaked from a third-party supplier online Continue Reading

How startup Once.net and Cloudflare secured the 2023 Eurovision vote

When the Eurovision Song Contest introduced paid-for public voting from outside Europe in 2023, it faced new cyber challenges. Learn how Dutch startup Once.net and Cloudflare teamed up to secure and support the big night Continue Reading

Ethical perspectives on ChatGPT

In the final of three essays, Marc Steen uses ChatGPT as a case study for how to use different ethical perspectives, and practical steps people can take to start incorporating ethics into their projects Continue Reading

Police Scotland five-year digital strategy approved

Police Scotland’s new strategy outlines how the force will approach and invest in its digital transformation over the next five years, but notes its ability to achieve its ambitions is subject to the availability of funding Continue Reading

IT experts issue new warnings over Online Safety Bill plans to weaken end-to-end encryption

BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, argues the government is seeking a technical fix to terrorism and child abuse without understanding the risks and implications Continue Reading

Border Target Operating Model gives update on digital border plans

The model aims to make smarter use of data and technology at the border, including a digital gateway for users to provide data and apply for licences and authorisations Continue Reading

Ducktail social media marketing malware rears its head again

Use of the Ducktail infostealer, which first popped up in 2022 targeting Meta Business accounts, seems to be increasing Continue Reading

Thousands of Klarna staff access ChatGPT Enterprise

Fintech unicorn Klarna has become an early adopter of the enterprise version of ChatGPT as it continues to focus on artificial intelligence Continue Reading

Home Office and MoD seeking new facial-recognition tech

The UK’s Defence and Security Accelerator is running a ‘market exploration’ exercise on behalf of the Home Office to identify new facial-recognition capabilities for security and policing bodies in the UK Continue Reading

Post Office to provide in-person identity checks for One Login

Partnership between the Government Digital Service and the Post Office will see postmasters and staff provide face-to-face identity checks for those unable to use the One Login app or website Continue Reading

GenAI outranks cloud as business IT strategic priority

Enterprise Strategy Group research on the use cases for generative AI shows it as strategic for corporate IT, with impacts on customer experience, software development and IT Ops Continue Reading

MPs say UK at real risk of falling behind on AI regulation

MPs in charge of scrutinising the UK government’s proposals for regulating artificial intelligence have warned that time is running out for the introduction of new AI legislation before 2025 Continue Reading

July sees huge jump in open banking payments

The number of open banking payments in the UK have doubled over the past year, according to latest figures Continue Reading

Met police data platform deployed with data protection issues

Met Police deploys integrated record management system despite data protection ‘compliance issues' that would inhibit its ability to retrieve data, meet its statutory logging requirements, and respond to subject access requests Continue Reading

Zurich Insurance slashes ServiceNow application development time

Insurance giant cuts time it takes to complete development of ServiceNow applications by days Continue Reading

Zero-day that forced Barracuda users to bin kit was exploited by China

Mandiant has published details of how a Chinese threat actor targeted high-profile users of Barracuda Networks' Email Security Gateway appliances, including government agencies of interest to Beijing's intelligence goals Continue Reading

Nats resorts to fail-safe manual process after technical hitch

Just a few hours of manual processing has resulted in a massive backlog in flights Continue Reading

Top-performing CISOs reserve time for professional development

Survey of chief information security officers conducted by Gartner sheds light on habits shared by the top-performing members of the profession Continue Reading

Is the data guardian hinting that Palantir should be ousted from NHS IT?

Nicola Byrne, the National Data Guardian, published a blogpost on the Gov.uk site on 24 August that seems to suggest Palantir should be excluded from the technology involved in the NHS Federated ... Continue Reading

CIO perceptions of vendor AI marketing

With all the recent press coverage, it's not surprising to see IT vendors clamouring to message around their AI creds. In a survey by Freeform Dynamics and the CIO WaterCooler, a bunch of IT ... Continue Reading

Bletchley Park to host UK government AI safety summit

An international collaboration event on artificial intelligence safety is being run at the site that was home to the world’s first programmable computer Continue Reading

NHS SBS to launch £1.5bn digital workplace solutions framework

NHS Shared Business Services is planning on a second iteration of its digital workplace solutions framework before the current one expires in August 2024 Continue Reading

NHS England calls on NHS organisations to take part in wireless trials

NHS organisations are encouraged to apply for funding for the wireless trials programme, which aims to explore how cutting-edge tech can improve patient care Continue Reading

AWS debuts Dedicated Local Zones with Singapore government as first customer

The new offering will be fully managed by AWS, built for exclusive use by a customer or community, and placed in a customer-specified location or datacentre Continue Reading

Inside Micron Singapore’s sustainability journey

The chipmaker has been doubling down on sustainability efforts in Singapore by tapping solar power, recycling water and waste, as well as treating greenhouse gases, in a bid to achieve net zero by 2050 Continue Reading

Six subpostmaster appeals to be heard in Scottish court

Scottish court will hear appeals against the convictions of six former subpostmasters based on evidence from a Post Office computer system Continue Reading

St Helens Council in Merseyside hit by ransomware attack

St Helens Borough Council is investigating a suspected ransomware incident targeting its systems, and is advising residents to be on the alert for follow-on phishing attacks Continue Reading

Cyber attacks in 2023 develop quicker as average dwell times plummet

The median attacker dwell time shrunk from 10 to eight days in the first seven months of 2023, and in the case of ransomware attacks it is down to just five days Continue Reading