IT news in your industry sector

France extradites Spanish EncroChat cryptophone distributors for complicity with organised crime

Three phone sellers have been extradited from Spain to France to face charges that they were complicit in the activities of criminal EncroChat phone users   Continue Reading

By

• Ter García
• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Putting APIs to work

In this week’s Computer Weekly, our latest buyer’s guide looks at application programming interfaces (APIs) and how they can connect internal and external business processes. We examine the challenges and opportunities of using AI in healthcare. And we find out how retailers are turning to specialist apps to reduce food waste. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Digital right to work checks officially go live

Under the new government guidance, employers can choose between 16 certified identity service providers to digitally check their employees legal right to work in the UK Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

StorPool takes its software-defined storage to the AWS cloud

Software-defined storage and block access specialist to offer its product on high-performance AWS bare metal and memory-intensive compute, while claiming improved latency Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra, LeMagIT
• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Security regulation cuts online payment fraud at 73% of retailers

New online payments security standard, Strong Customer Authentication (SCA), sees immediate fall in fraudulent payments to retailers Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Digital transformation is brewing at Heineken

In a presentation at the Digital Transformation Week conference in Amsterdam, Heineken’s data management director revealed some of the ways the company is using information technology to transform Continue Reading

By

• Pat Brans, Pat Brans Associates/Grenoble Ecole de Management

Surveillance tech firms complicit in MENA human rights abuses

Research finds companies are profiting from surveillance technologies that facilitate human rights abuses against migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in the Middle East and North Africa, with little to no oversight Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Interview: Rachel Hilliam, chair, Alliance for Data Science Professionals

Rachel Hilliam talks about the origins, mission and future plans for the Alliance for Data Science Professionals Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Enterprise Applications Editor

CDO interview: Danny Gonzalez, chief digital and innovation officer, London North Eastern Railway

The rail franchise is driving a wide-ranging digital transformation, encompassing back-office improvements and enhancing passenger experience Continue Reading

By

• Mark Samuels

Cost-of-living crisis could spur fintech adoption

The cost-of-living crisis could have a similar impact on fintech and digital banking as the Covid-19 pandemic did, inducing further innovation in the fintech sector Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Failure of Russia’s cyber attacks on Ukraine is most important lesson for NCSC

Russia has so far failed in its attempts to destabilise Ukraine through cyber attacks due to strength of Ukrainian, security industry and international efforts Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

AIOps for storage: Potential huge benefits, but lots of lock-in

Applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to storage can help to predict bottlenecks, diagnose I/O issues and recommend upgrades, but suppliers’ products are largely limited to their own hardware Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

Koch’s networking: Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

Matt Hoag, CTO of Koch Business Solutions, discusses networking as a service Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Essential Guide: Data Analytics in Healthcare

In the healthcare industry, a large amount of data is already being collected to generate insights on emerging conditions and to improve patient care. Yet, like other industries, the healthcare sector continues to grapple with issues such as data silos and security challenges that stand in the way of harnessing insights. Continue Reading

UK suffers third highest number of ransomware attacks globally

Based on an analysis of around 5,000 ransomware incidents, NordLocker has found that UK businesses, and small businesses in particular, are a priority target for ransomware gangs Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Whistleblower Peter Duffy calls for oversight of NHS records to prevent evidence tampering

A whistleblower has called for greater oversight in the handling of ‘safety-critical digital information’ across the NHS, in light of a number of cases that raise questions about data governance and record-keeping within the health service Continue Reading

By

• Tommy Greene

Russia ready for complete switch to domestic IT infrastructure

In a bid to counter sanctions imposed following its invasion of Ukraine, the Russian government is implementing a policy of import substitution in the country’s domestic IT sector Continue Reading

By

• Computer Weekly correspondent

Online Safety Bill needs complete overhaul, say rights groups

Civil society groups write to new digital minister to challenge various aspects of the upcoming Online Safety Bill, which they say threatens rights to privacy and freedom of expression Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

How the pandemic accelerated tech adoption in hospitality

The pandemic led to technology adoption across several sectors, with hospitality being no exception Continue Reading

By

• Glynn Davis

Most hackers exfiltrate data within five hours of gaining access

Insights from more than 300 sanctioned adversaries, otherwise known as ‘ethical’ hackers, reveal that around two-thirds are able to collect and exfiltrate data within just five hours of gaining access Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Robo investment platform adopts open banking-based payments

Nordic consumer investment fintech simplifies customer experience through open banking software from Mastercard-owned Aiia Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Guy’s Cancer collaborates with healthtech provider to digitise patient care

Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust has begun working with digital healthcare platform provider Carology to build capacity, drive efficiencies and improve patient experience Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

American football giants jet into digital age with HCLTech

US football clubs the New York Jets and New York Giants outsource their digital transformations to Indian service provider as they target improved fan engagement Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Broadcasters treat data science as niche and sporadic in use

Data science specialists at UK broadcasters conveyed a similar picture of niche use cases at Big Data London 2022 Continue Reading

By

• SA Mathieson

Keeping an IT business going during the Russian invasion

After heading home and discovering that his country had been invaded, Konstantin Klyagin was forced to make life-changing family and business decisions. Continue Reading

Making digital a key ingredient at Mondelez

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to snack giant Mondelez, the owner of Cadbury, about how AI and data are transforming its business. SAP is increasing support costs for the first time in years – we assess the impact on customers. And a Ukrainian tech CEO tells us how his company kept going despite the Russian invasion. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Bank warns of spike in online cost-of-living scams

Fraudsters are exploiting the cost-of-living crisis by tricking people into sending money to help friends and relatives pay bills, TSB has warned Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

How Russian intelligence hacked the encrypted emails of former MI6 boss Richard Dearlove

Hack by Russian-linked ColdRiver group exposed former MI6 chief Richard Dearlove’s contacts and email communications with government, military, intelligence and political officials Continue Reading

By

• Duncan Campbell , 2QQ Ltd, Sussex University

Data analysis and artificial intelligence key industrial strategy missions for Labour

Shadow business secretary announces Labour’s proposed industrial strategy, in which data would take a central role Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

More than 30 startups to join Plexal’s Cyber Runway accelerator

Now in its second year, the Cyber Runway accelerator has been designed to support firms at various stages of growth, as well as help the cyber security sector to improve on its diversity, inclusion and regional representation Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

element

An element is a fundamental item that can't be easily broken into smaller pieces. Continue Reading

By

• Gavin Wright

PoINT to offer on-site S3 object storage archive on disk and tape

Archival Gateway can cluster up to 256 tape readers to provide S3 object storage clusters capable of storing 50 billion objects per bucket, and giving throughput of 230GBps Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra, LeMagIT
• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

FCSA calls for government clampdown on cloned umbrella companies

One year has passed since the Freelancer and Contractor Services Association spoke out about the problem of umbrella company cloning, and it claims the authorities are not moving fast enough to tackle the issue Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

Conversation between two police officers formed basis of EncroChat warrant, court hears

The National Crime Agency did not seek a written explanation of a French hacking technique before applying for a surveillance warrant to use French “intercept” in the UK, a court heard Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Copenhagen Fintech connects its members to the world

Copenhagen-based startup initiative is driving fintech developments across the Nordic region, with Mastercard its latest global partner Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

The challenges of verifying AI for healthcare

Artificial intelligence promises to revolutionise healthcare, but even in areas such as medical imaging, where it is easy to spot AI errors, more research is needed Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

NCA ‘deliberately concealed’ information when it applied for EncroChat warrants, tribunal hears

Investigatory Powers Tribunal hears that the National Crime Agency made ‘serious and fundamental errors’ Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

IR35 reforms to be scrapped in public and private sectors from April 2023, government confirms

The government has confirmed that the 2017 and 2021 roll-out of the IR35 reforms to the public and private sectors, respectively, will be repealed in April 2023 Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

Post Office scandal inquiry chair intervenes in slow compensation progress

Chair of statutory public inquiry into the Post Office Horizon scandal has aired his disappointment over the slow progress in making interim payments to victims Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Mini-Budget 2022: HMRC tells firms to update payroll software ahead of November NI tax cut

HMRC is urging employers to ensure their payroll software systems are updated now, before the reversal of the previous government’s National Insurance tax hike kicks in Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

Tech Nation announces 13 startups for 11th Future Fifty cohort

Thirteen high-growth startups set to join Tech Nation’s 11th annual Future Fifty programme to help them scale further Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

CCS £2bn big data and analytics framework goes live

The Crown Commercial Service has launched a big data and analytics framework worth up to £2bn over the course of the agreement Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Dr Martens goes feetfirst into cloud-to-cloud backup

Iconic bootmaker laces up for a strategy to move all applications to the cloud, beginning with cloud-to-cloud backup for Microsoft 365 apps plus on-site VMware operations Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Privacy Pledge signatories dream of alternative internet

A group of privacy-focused organisations have come together to establish a set of principles for taking the internet back from big tech and surveillance capitalism Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

American Express recruiting thousands of tech professionals

Amex will add 5,000 IT professionals to its workforce in 2022 as digital products and services become the staple of the finance sector Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Contractors call for IR35 review and tax cuts in Chancellor’s mini-Budget

The contractor community is patiently awaiting the outcome of this Friday’s mini-Budget, with hopes for some concrete details on the Prime Minister’s proposed IR35 review and news of a corporation tax cut Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

NCSC publishes cyber guidance for retailers

The NCSC has published tailored advice to support online retailers, hospitality providers and utility services in protecting themselves and their customers from cyber crime Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

European Central Bank working on prototypes of digital Euro interfaces

European Central Bank’s digital Euro investigation phase is at the point of developing and testing systems that might interface with consumers Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

5G fixed wireless access services to see huge growth

Spending on 5G fixed wireless access services is set to explode globally over the next 12 months Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Thousands of customers affected in Revolut data breach

Digital challenger bank has warned its customers to be vigilant after their data was exposed in a cyber attack Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IHG attackers phished employee to deploy destructive wiper

A couple from Vietnam who claim to be behind a destructive wiper cyber attack on hotel operator IHG told the BBC how they orchestrated their operation Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Reports Uber and Rockstar incidents work of same attacker

Rockstar Games was hit over the weekend by an attacker who claimed to have accessed its Slack channel to steal data on an upcoming release, and may be the same person who compromised Uber Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NHS Scotland to transform population health through digital technologies

A collaboration between NHS Scotland, industry partners and academia aims to launch large-scale programmes to improve population health in the country through digital technologies and new patient pathways Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Dutch student team aims to enable uninterrupted drone cargo delivery

Dutch student team aims to make the world of flying more sustainable by creating a global network of autonomously flying cargo drones that can have their batteries swapped mid-air Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

How Lloyd’s of London is digitising

The centuries-old insurance market is transforming its complex IT estate through digital data. Continue Reading

A gold medal performance for networking

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we find out how the IT team behind the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham delivered a winning performance. We also look at how the centuries-old London insurance market is going digital, thanks to Lloyd’s of London. And we find out how low-cost high street stores succumbed to the inevitable and are going online. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Barnet Council awards Capita contract extension

Barnet Council has awarded Capita a contract extension as part of its transition away from a large contract with the supplier Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Uber suffers major cyber attack

Details are trickling out of an apparent ‘near total’ compromise of ride-sharing service Uber by an alleged teenage hacktivist Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

EU Cyber Resilience Act sets global standard for connected products

European Commission lays out proposed security regulations on device and software security to better protect consumers and drive global standards Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

New player pioneers ‘active cyber insurance’ for UK market

Arrival of US-based insurer Coalition in London will supposedly offer SMEs more options when it comes to cyber security insurance Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Organisations failing to account for digital trust

The vast majority of businesses are well aware of the importance of digital trust, yet very few have a dedicated staff role responsible for it, report finds Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ex-CISA head Krebs: Disrupt ransomware support networks to win the war

Speaking at an event hosted by data protection specialist Rubrik, former CISA director Chris Krebs calls for the security community to work collectively to kick out the supports from under ransomware gangs Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

US to see huge increase in embedded finance transactions

Retailers and other non-financial businesses are increasingly offering their customers financial services, such as credit and payment options Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

DDoS attacks on UK financial sector surged during Ukraine war

A quarter of cyber security incidents reported to the Financial Conduct Authority in the first six months of 2022 involved DDoS, with a likely link to events in Ukraine Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

AI Sweden connects the dots to keep the country competitive

How and why a centre dedicated to accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence technology has been created in Sweden Continue Reading

By

• Pat Brans, Pat Brans Associates/Grenoble Ecole de Management

Cisco confirms leaked data was stolen in Yanluowang ransomware hit

Cisco has confirmed that data leaked last week by the Yanluowang ransomware gang was that stolen during a May 2022 cyber attack Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

JP Morgan acquires fintech for payments modernisation

JP Morgan acquires cloud-native payments technology as it modernises its IT infrastructure Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Investment in UK fintech sees fall amid global turmoil

Investment in fintech drops, but because figures are distorted by last year’s records, it’s not as bad as it looks, says KPMG Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Blancco works with charity to provide IT for African schools

Blancco is providing data sanitisation and erasure software to The Turing Trust so that old IT equipment can be securely reused by school children in Sub-Saharan Africa, instead of adding to world’s growing e-waste problem Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

The story behind Sibstar, the fintech app for people suffering with dementia

Creator of app and debit card designed to support people with dementia relates how the idea developed. Continue Reading

Source responsibly: Tech sector efforts to root out forced labour are failing

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we analyse the technology industry’s failure to extirpate forced labour and slavery from its supply chains. We find out how cyber security firm Okta is rebuilding customer trust after a major security incident. And we discover how Caterpillar is modernising its data management to offer better customer service. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Mandiant floats off into Google Cloud

As planned, the acquisition of Mandiant will see the threat intel and incident response giant become a part of Google’s Cloud business Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Contractors lack confidence in prime minister to follow through with promised IR35 review

Contractor poll suggests lack of faith among freelancers about new prime minister Liz Truss honouring her pledge to review the IR35 rules Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

Mistakenly transferred $504m to be returned to Citigroup

Judge rules that creditors should return $504m that was accidentally transferred to them by Citigroup Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CISOs should spend on critical apps, cloud, zero-trust, in 2023

Faced with a global recession next year, security buyers should try to direct investment towards technology that protects customer-facing and revenue-generating workloads, say analysts Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NHS Business Services Authority goes to tender for £1.7bn HR system

Organisation is looking for an integrated workforce solution for the NHS, which includes NHS electronic staff record services Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Lloyd’s of London is digitally transforming through the front door

Centuries-old financial services organisation is transforming its complex IT infrastructure through digital data Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Interview: Keeping an IT business going during the Russian invasion

After heading home and discovering that his country had been invaded, Konstantin Klyagin was forced to make life-changing family and business decisions Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CW Europe: Why Russia could become the world’s biggest market for illegal IT

Faced with international sanctions and the departure of many global IT suppliers from Russia, companies there are seeking alternative, and sometimes illegal, routes to access IT products. Also read how new requirements are driving scientists and engineers in Europe back to the lab to start developing 6G technology. Continue Reading

Panasas’s double NAS offer aims at multiple analytics workloads

ActiveStor Flash and ActiveStor Ultra XL target I/O profiles from rapid AI/ML to processing-heavy modelling but remain firmly on-prem, with object and cloud declared ‘interesting’ Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Sweden is ideal breeding ground for a direct-to-consumer unicorn

Sweden’s socially driven technology prowess could soon yield an e-commerce unicorn digitising direct to customers Continue Reading

By

• Matthew Staff

NCSC CyberUK event heads to Belfast in 2023

National Cyber Security Centre’s annual CyberUK roadshow is crossing the Irish Sea to Belfast in April 2023 Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CGI gets ESA order to develop predictive routing tool for satellite constellations

Tool will support increased need to equip satellite networks with software-defined networking to deliver simplified management, better end-to-end network automation support and streamlined delivery of network services Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Luxembourg taps into innovation for better government tech

 Continue Reading

Russia could become the world’s largest market for illegal IT

 Continue Reading

Chinese APT using PlugX malware on espionage targets

China’s Bronze President APT is once again targeting government officials of interest to its paymasters, this time using forged diplomatic correspondence, according to the Secureworks Counter Threat Unit Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

India’s wake-up call on health data privacy

Health app developers and industry watchers in India are keeping an eye on data privacy following the reversal of the Roe vs Wade ruling in the US Continue Reading

By

• Pratima Harigunani

If you smell what the DCMS is cooking

The Liz Truss era is upon us, and while you might expect us to indulge in the kind of trite banter you’ve seen elsewhere online – an observation that real-life politics is very much imitating that ... Continue Reading

By

• Ryan Priest

Albania cuts diplomatic ties with Iran after cyber attack

In a global geopolitical first, the Albanian government has severed diplomatic ties with Iran and expelled its ambassador after it was targeted by an APT backed by Tehran Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Tech Nation Libra programme selects 35 scaleups for second cohort

The Libra 2.0 programme is designed to help underrepresented founders in the UK who are growing and seeking specific support for scaling up their business Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Hotel group IHG confirms cyber attack after two-day outage

IHG, the operator of hotel chains Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Intercontinental and Kimpton, says it has been targeted by an unknown threat actor Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

US remains favoured datacentre location for world’s hyperscale cloud and internet giants

Data released by Synergy Research Group confirms thatr the US remains the favoured location for hyperscale datacentres, but the analyst house predicts this could change in the years to come Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

VMware’s vSAN 8 gets a rebuild for the solid-state storage era

At VMware Explore 2022, we interview VMware’s John Gilmartin about the new, faster vSAN, plans to use DPUs, the vSAN+ cloud offering, and VMware Ransomware Recovery Continue Reading

By

• Yann Serra, LeMagIT
• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Digital identity is key to coping with surge in air travel

The International Air Transport Association’s One ID digital identity initiative will pave the way for seamless air travel from curb to gate and help airports cope with growing passenger traffic Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

IWGB to take Deliveroo to Supreme Court over riders’ rights

The legal challenge to establish riders as workers rather than self-employed comes months after Deliveroo and GMB signed a voluntary partnership agreement, which IWGB says does not grant riders the full range of rights they are entitled to Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Companies House to introduce digital ID system

Companies House will introduce a digital identity verification process for people wanting to register and run a company in the UK Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Bus company Go-Ahead fighting off cyber attack

Go-Ahead Group, which operates bus companies around the UK, says it is in the process of dealing with a cyber attack that may cause disruption to services Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

New prime minister Liz Truss urged to press on with IR35 and loan charge policy reviews

Contracting stakeholders are calling on Liz Truss to make good on her pledge to undertake a review of the IR35 rules when she became prime minister Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Datacentre Editor

Saudi Arabian organisations choose to outsource to improve cyber security posture

Overwhelmed by rising threats and a growing number of government mandates, many organisations in Saudi Arabia are looking for outside help to take care of cyber security Continue Reading

By

• Pat Brans, Pat Brans Associates/Grenoble Ecole de Management

Out with the old at Asda

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to Asda’s CIO, Carl Dawson, about the supermarket’s cloud-oriented renovation of its technology stack. We narrate the security woes at Twitter. And we examine best practices for data backup. Read the issue now. Continue Reading