IT news in your industry sector

Standard Life overhauls IT department and cuts jobs

Insurer Standard Life is to axe a number of IT staff following a review of its IT and operations division. Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Framework accelerates safety-critical defence systems development

Manufacturers and academics are collaborating in a 3.5 million project to create a software modelling framework that will speed up the development and certification of safety-critical systems used in aerospace and defence. Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Government mutual will be a beacon for IT procurement

The pension administration mutual being set up by the government will be the first of a wave of new business models that could shake-up central government outsourcing contracts. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

The reality behind the hype: Government cloud computing

This article from Gartner offers advice to public sector organisations thinking of deploying cloud computing and assess the progress made by governments in their use of the cloud. Continue Reading

— computerweekly

Centrica CIO quits to join HP

David Bickerton, the global chief information officer at Centrica, has resigned from the utilities giant to join Hewlett-Packard. Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Government opens its procurement heart to IT suppliers

The government has promised more openness with suppliers and published its first forward-looking pipeline of business, with £25.9bn of IT projects. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CIO IT Budget Benchmark 2011–2012

The IT Budget Benchmarking Survey assesses IT spending, staffing, and outsourcing levels from more than 175 organisations. Continue Reading

— ComputerWeekly.Com

Olympic volunteers to use virtual communication

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (Locog) is to deploy virtual meeting rooms to enable its 6,000 staff and volunteers to communicate during the Olympics. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Bridging the information gap

The pace at which modern business tends to move has resulted in a situation where centralised decision-making struggles to keep up. Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Buss, IDC Manufacturing Insights

MIT scientists take a step closer to artificial intelligence

Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed an analogue silicon chip with 400 transistors that emulates the activity of a brain synapse in the first step to building truly intelligent systems. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How to embed innovation in the corporate culture

This paper from Kurt Salmon identifies the common inhibitors to innovation and how to overcome them, and sets out some important principles that can help. Continue Reading

— Computerweekly.com

Special report on EMC

This 8-page special report from Computer Weekly, packed with graphs and diagrams, is essential reading for anyone considering EMC as a supplier. Continue Reading

— Computer Weekly Bitpipe

Rentokil moving HR system into cloud with Workday SaaS

Rentokil Initial is moving the management of its 66,000 human resources to cloud based software from Workday. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Forensics key to effective info security, says E&Y

Intelligence-led security strategies are the most effective in eliminating vulnerabilities and preventing IP theft through enabling informed change, says consultancy firm Ernst & Young. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Tesco trials in-store and online augmented reality technology

Tesco is trialling augmented reality (AR) technology in-store and online to change how customers interact with products. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

IT security not always part of cloud decision, says IDC

Cloud adoption is outstripping security concerns, says Eric Domage, programme manager for IDC in Europe. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Biffa ups virtualisation in infrastructure refresh

Biffa Waste Services is reducing the number of physical servers it uses from over 150 to about 25 as it accelerates its existing virtualisation strategy. Continue Reading

UKtech50: Honouring the 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 - the CIOs, industry executives, public servants and business leaders driving the creation of a high-tech economy. Continue Reading

By

• Faisal Alani, UK at eBay

Computer Weekly wins digital publishing award

Computer Weekly has won a prestigious publishing industry award for the product development of the year. Continue Reading

UKtech50 2011: Vote now!

Voting has begun to find out who is the most influential person in the UK IT community. Continue Reading

By

• Faisal Alani, UK at eBay

RBS takes SAP off-the-shelf

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is replacing an in-house legacy core banking system with an off-the-shelf system from SAP. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Thai floods could impact revenues and prices, says Dell

Computer maker Dell says flooding in Thailand is causing a worldwide shortage of PC hard drives that will last into the first quarter of 2012 and could impact the company’s revenues. Continue Reading

TfL seeks BI worth £750,000

Transport for London (TfL) is setting up a framework agreement for a business intelligence tool worth up to £750,000 million to help reduce its number of head office locations. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

CIO Interview: IT should drive company innovation, says SAP's Oliver Bussmann

Driving innovation has become one of the key roles of the chief information officer, says Oliver Bussmann, CIO at business software maker SAP. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Rethinking Managed Print Services (MPS)

This paper looks at the reasons why organisations operating a heterogeneous print environment should consider an independent MPS provider. Continue Reading

— Computer Weekly Bitpipe

Social media is more than a number of "likes"

The number of “likes” on Facebook, is not a measure of success according to Anthony Bradley, co-author of The Social Organisation. Continue Reading

New deputy CIO must possess change management skills, says Bill McCluggage

The new government deputy CIO will need a fresh set of skills to manage public sector ICT transformation, Bill McCluggage the current deputy CIO told Computer Weekly. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

EDF fined £1.3m for hacking into Greenpeace computers

A Paris court has fined French energy firm EDF £1.3m for hacking into Greenpeace computers to find out about the environmental group’s plans to block four planned nuclear power plants in the UK. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Computer Weekly Technology Industry Survey

This in-depth research from Computer Weekly and Mortimer Spinks, provides a must-read analysis and insight into UK IT salaries. Continue Reading

— Computerweekly.com

The market landscape for print security

This report is gives an overview of the security risks of the print environment , the market landscape, best practices for a print security strategy. Continue Reading

— CW Bitpipe

Welcome to the new-look ComputerWeekly.com

Computer Weekly has launched its brand new website - the most important online development in the brand’s 45-year history. Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

TCS bags rare megadeal and 1,900 more UK workers

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) business process outsourcing (BPO) subsidiary, Diligenta, has won a deal with life insurer Friends Life worth £1.37bn. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Adobe to change mobile Flash player strategy and axe European jobs

Adobe plans to abandon its Flash player for mobile browsers and cut 750 jobs across North America and Europe as part of a reorganisation. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

CIO interview: Tony Prestedge, COO, Nationwide

Tony Prestedge took over as COO at Nationwide in 2010, mid-way through a five-year transformation project. He tells Karl Flinders how the company is transforming its business through a £1bn investment in technology, how the IT department changed from a development shop into an integrator Continue Reading

CIO interview: Martin Davies, head of technology at Bet365

The success story of £5.4bn-per-year online gambling company Bet365 is nothing to do with luck and everything to do with technology. Continue Reading

London cybersecurity conference: a missed opportunity?

World leaders gathered in London. Our prime minister and foreign secretary hosted all the luminaries and dignitaries. Was it worth it? Continue Reading

— Computerweekly.com

Analysis: Intelligence key to security business case

Information security is becoming an increasingly important part of any business as the value of information assets continually grow, as do the threats from cyber crime and espionage. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

RBS and Natwest online banking down after maintenance glitch

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Natwest customers were unable to access online or telephone banking over the weekend after maintenance issues. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Everything Everywhere to reinvest £450m windfall

Mobile phone operator Everything Everywhere is to reinvest profits made from the upcoming sale of its 1,800MHz spectrum in the UK's mobile network, following criticism that the sale of a public asset would be diverted to German and French shareholders. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

City University London unveils scholarship for information leadership course

City University London has launched its IBM Enterprise Computing scholarship to award a place on its Masters of Information Leadership (MIL) course. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

US and EU hold first joint cybersecurity exercise

The US and EU are holding their first joint cybersecurity exercise in Brussels on 3 November 2011, involving more than 20 EU member states and supported by the EU's cybersecurity agency Enisa and the US Department of Homeland Security. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

SAP on track to achieve 2011 greenhouse gas emissions target

Enterprise software maker SAP decreased greenhouse gas emissions by 2% per employee in the quarter ended 30 September, compared with the same period in 2010, according to the company's quarterly sustainability report. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford

BT second quarter sales fall 2% despite 166,000 new broadband customers

BT sales fell 2% in its fiscal Q2 despite the addition of 166,000 broadband customers and continued growth in its Openreach and Global Services businesses. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Amazon launches lending library for Kindle e-reader users

Amazon has launched a lending library service to allow Kindle e-reader users to borrow e-books. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

GB Group buys Capscan for £11.2m

Identity management technology company GB Group has acquired address management company Capscan for £11.2m. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

The consumerisation of IT: it’s a trickle, not a tide, but you still need to be ready

If media headlines and supplier claims are to be believed, organisations today are faced with an unstoppable tide of many different types of personal device connected to the corporate network Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

The top five SME security challenges

Best practice in IT security and compliance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is often seen as a "grudge purchase", but SMEs face the same threat as larger organisations - just without their budgets. Continue Reading

By

• Lisa Kelly

MoD calls on academics, industry and inventors to pitch cyber security ideas

The Ministry of Defence is calling for innovative solutions from academia and industry to protect and secure UK interests in cyberspace. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government trials voice recognition for Universal Credit benefit claims

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is testing a voice recognition system to authenticate claimants of its flagship Universal Credits system, as part of the department's work on identity assurance (IDA). Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Hague calls for collaboration to realise full potential of cyberspace

It is increasingly clear that countries with weak cyber defences and capabilities will find themselves at a serious strategic disadvantage given the rise of state-sponsored cyber attacks, according to foreign secretary William Hague. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Migration committee calls for opinions on minimum salary for IT staff on ICT visas

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) is calling for opinions on whether the minimum pay of £40,000 is set at the right level for overseas employees brought to the UK on Intra Company Transfer visas (ICT) Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Government earmarks £10m for Identity Assurance

Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has earmarked £10m for implementation of the government's Identity Assurance (IDA) programme, with the cash coming from its £650m cyber defence fund - with the potential for more near £1bn of savings if the project is a success. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Japan may be facing sustained cyber attack

Japan's mapping agency is the latest in a series of government agencies to be targeted by hackers, raising fears that the breaches are part of a series of sustained attacks. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Barclays customers unable to log into online bank accounts

Barclays has confirmed some customers are unable to log into online bank accounts and are experiencing slow response times Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Samsung overtakes Apple in global smartphone shipments

Samsung has overtaken Apple in worldwide smartphone shipments after Apple suffered its lowest levels of shipments in two years Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Facebook admits to 600,000 cyber attacks a day

Facebook has revealed that every 24 hours it receives around 600,000 logins to the social networking website from impostors attempting to access users' messages, photos and other personal information. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UKtech50: We launch the search for the most influential people in UK IT

Computer Weekly has launched the second annual UKtech50, the definitive list of the real movers and shakers in UK IT - the leaders driving the creation of a high-tech economy. Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

UK security strategy draws on growing expertise across Whitehall

The UK's soon-to-be-released cyber security strategy includes input from policy makers across government, says Nigel Harrison of the Office of Cyber Security and Information Assurance (OCSIA). Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Open University expands computer-aided teaching portal for educators worlwide

The Open University has completed the second stage of a £2.5m Department of Education funded initiative to deliver computer-aided teaching to the classroom. Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Survey finds UK IT jobs concentrated in London and south-east England

With software houses and the financial services sector creating by far the most permanent IT jobs, career opportunities are being condensed into south-east England. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

US Tennis Association cuts costs running Citrix XenApp in Amazon cloud

The US Tennis Association (USTA) is reducing disaster recovery, hosting, helpdesk and licencing costs after choosing to run its Citrix XenApp environment in Amazon's Web Services (AWS) cloud. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

HP announces U-turn to keep PC division after Whitman completes internal review

HP has reversed its decision to spin-off the company's PC division following an internal review by CEO Meg Whitman, who replaced form head Leo Apotheker in September. Continue Reading

Analysis: What is the secret sauce in SAP's success?

SAP notched up the seventh consecutive quarter of double-digit growth in software and software-related services, but with the last major upgrade to SAP's core enterprise resource planning (ERP) product way back in 2005, how is the company achieving record growth? Warwick Ashford reports Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IP network critical to video technology at FA’s St George's Park development

The Football Association (FA) is implementing the latest networking and video technology at its coaching and education centre. The St George's Park centre will be the FA's second major centre alongside Wembley, where operations are currently centred. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Case Study: How RBS built a business case for virtual desktops to cut costs

With an annual technology spend of £1.5bn, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) wanted to move 55,000 of its users to a virtual desktop platform to change the way its employees work and cut costs. Mark Diamond, CIO at RBS, shares his lessons learnt in building a business case for virtual desktops and "tying down" suppliers Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Analysis: What is the secret sauce in SAP's success?

The last major upgrade to SAP's core enterprise resource planning (ERP) product was released in 2005, so how is the company achieving record growth? Warwick Ashford reports Continue Reading

US and Canadian subscribers sue RIM over Blackberry service outage

Blackberry maker Research in Motion (RIM) is facing legal action by consumers in the US and Canada for the three-day services outage in mid-October caused by a core switch failure in RIM's infrastructure. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

How Unilever took control of its software

Unilever has automated the processes it uses to manage its software globally through a service which has saved millions of pounds, reduced the complexity of its software portfolio and improved security. Continue Reading

Amazon sees profits plummet 73% as company eyes iPad’s market share

Amazon's profits plunged 73% to $63m in Q3, as it invested to take on the iPad with its e-readers and Kindle Fire tablet computer. Sales grew 44% to $10.88bn, boosted by pre-orders for the Amazon Kindle Fire. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

One in five IT staff expected to quit current employer within 12 months

One in five IT staff are likely to leave their current employer next year in search of more interesting projects and career opportunities, while 80% feel they need a job change to progress their career, according to exclusive research. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

John McCarthy, father of Artificial Intelligence and creator of LISP language, dies aged 84

The artificial intelligence (AI) community is mourning the death of John McCarthy, the US scientist who invented the LISP computer language at the heart of this field of study. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Commonwealth launches web portal to connect two billion citizens

The Commonwealth Secretariat has launched a social media portal to enable the two billion citizens of its 54 member states to collaborate on common issues. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

New skills initiative aims to help young people into IT security career

A new skills development initiative hasbeen launched to encourage more young people to start a career in information security. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Microsoft claims most Android smartphone manufacturers now pay patent fees

Microsoft has claimed most Android smartphone manufacturers now pay the software giant patent fees. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

UK broadband speeds increase, but thousands left in the slow lane

Thirty percent of UK internet traffic is now at speeds above 5Mbps, an increase of 70% compared to last year. Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Wikileaks turns to fundraising as US finance companies cut off donations

Wikileaks has stopped publishing whistle-blowing information to concentrate on raising funds in the face of bankruptcy. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange says a blockade by US finance companies has cut off 95% of the organisation's revenue from donors. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Apple loses tablet market share as iPad yields 27% to Google Android devices

Apple's share of the tablet market has shrunk 29% to 67%, as Google's mobile operating system Android took a chunk out of the company's global sales during the last quarter this year with a rise of 27% from 2.3% for the same period a year earlier. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Why do big IT projects fail? Part one: The professionals

Academics, CIOs, lawyers, a professor of outsourcing, a consultant and an investigative journalist answer the question on the minds of many a business and IT professional: Why do big IT projects fail? Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

HP will not replace retiring CTO Shane Robison

Hewlett-Packard has announced its chief strategy and technology officer, Shane Robinson, will retire at the end of October - and won't be replaced. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Photos: Best features of Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich - Android 4.0

Google has introduced the latest version of its mobile operating system (OS), Android 4.O, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Research in Motion unveils Blackberry BBX mobile operating system

At the Blackberry DevCon Americas 2011 conference, RIM said its BBX OS combines elements of its Blackberry OS platform and QNX OS. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Intel posts record third quarter profits on back of netbook PC sales growth

Intel's Q3 results saw sales grow 28% year-on-year to reach $14.2bn, up $3.1bn. Profit grew 17% year-on-year to reach $3.5bn, up $513m. Intel's PC client group sales increase 22% compared to 2010 figures to $9.4bn. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

VMworld 2011: Kaiser Permanente splits systems support to reduce helpdesk toll

Kaiser Permanente, a supplier of electronic patient records to US clinicians, has re-engineered its IT service delivery to split high availability and performance. This will allow it to streamline support and maintain a life-critical medical system. Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Password chaos linked to network breaches, survey finds

A fundamental lack of IT security awareness in enterprises is potentially paving the way for a further wave of data breaches in 2011, a survey of 300 international IT professionals has shown. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IBM shares fall after slow revenue growth in third quarter

IBM shares fell almost 4% after its third quarter results were announced as investors worried about cancelled IT projects and slower spending on technology. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

European Commission proposes €9.2bn investment for high-speed broadband

As part of the proposals, the European Commission (EC) will outline targets to improve broadband speeds and prioritise rural areas. Continue Reading

By

• Jenny Williams, University of Gloucestershire

Technology is top of the chops in RBS savings memo

The Royal Bank of Scotland's investment banking business is making cuts to its technology budgets and forcing contractors to take holidays as it identifies areas where savings can be made. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CESG approves first encrypted USB flash drive for 'top secret' data classification

The UK government's technical security advisor CESG has approved the Eclypt 600 Enhanced Nano encrypted USB memory stick to be used for data classified as "secret" and "top secret." Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

RSA: Tim Berners-Lee calls for a new breed of information security systems

World Wide Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee has called on the IT security industry to develop a new breed of systems that make it easier to manage the use of personal data. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

What does Oracle's release of Fusion Applications mean for its customers?

After what seemed an interminable development period, Oracle has finally released its Fusion Applications and a public cloud. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

Unix co-creator and father of C, Dennis Ritchie dies age 70

US computer scientist Dennis Ritchie - one of the co-inventors of the Unix operating system and the C programming language - has died at 70 after a long illness. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CIO interview: Gerry Pennell, CIO, London 2012 Olympics

With less than 10 months to go, London 2012 CIO Gerry Pennell is fully focused on the task of delivering a project that simply cannot miss its deadline. Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Gartner: IT staff need new skills to manage big data

Enterprises will need to reskill their IT department if they are to successfully manage the explosive growth of data within their organisation, claims analyst group Gartner. Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Photos: Business apps for the iPhone

In this photo story we look at the apps that make the iPhone a business smartphone. Continue Reading

By

• Faisal Alani, UK at eBay

Aviva reduces costs by 30% with cloud-based HR system

Aviva claims to have saved over £1m a year in reduced software licence fees after completing the first stage of a project to replace its Oracle-based HR systems with a cloud-based service. Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

CIO interview: Adam Gerrard, chief technology officer, LateRooms

The new IT chief at travel firm LateRooms talks about his plans for IT transformation to support a period of intense international business growth. Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

CW500: Martin Taylor, head of infrastructure and service delivery, Mitchells & Butlers

In this CW500 Club video, Martin Taylor talks to Computer Weekly editor in chief Bryan Glick to share his practical advice on how to move to the cloud. Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

85 sub-postmasters seek legal support in claims against Post Office computer system

Over 80 sub-postmasters are interested in taking legal action against the Post Office in relation to an allegedly faulty computer system. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Video is future of communication, claims Cisco CEO John Chambers

Video will be the future for all forms of communication, claims John Chambers, CEO of networking company Cisco. Continue Reading

By

• Kathleen Hall, TechTarget

UBS systems detected $2bn rogue trader fraud, admits CEO Sergio Ermotti

UBS interim CEO Sergio Ermotti has admitted systems in the banks IT infrastructure detected the unauthorised trading of the rogue trader who cost UBS over $2bn, but nothing was done about the warning signals. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA