IT security

IBM pushes back against US government data requests

Technology giant IBM says the US government has ‘no jurisdiction’ to request data from its European entities Continue Reading

Campaigners plan legal action over NHS data sharing

Privacy coalition aims to force NHS Digital to push back its plans to scrape medical information on millions of patients into a central database Continue Reading

NHS Digital’s GP data-scraping plan must be publicised and delayed

The UK government must launch a national awareness campaign and delay this month’s planned GP data slurp, say privacy consultants Ben Rapp and Sara Newman Continue Reading

Updated standard contractual clauses will provide ‘legal certainty’ for transfer of data

Organisations have 18 months to update data transfer agreements, known as standard contractual clauses, or SCCs, to continue sharing data outside the European Union Continue Reading

DNS attacks on the rise in APAC

Attacks on the domain name system in Asia-Pacific grew by 15% last year, with Malaysian organisations seeing the sharpest rise in damages among countries in the region Continue Reading

Towards Joined Up Action on On-line Harms, Fraud and Cybersecurity

We have to join up the debate and put cybersecurity into business, economic and social context. Hence the importance of the Digital Policy Alliance and its groups. Continue Reading

HSBC offers all businesses scam awareness app

HSBC is sharing information on the latest scams and how to defend against them thorough its latest app, available to all businesses Continue Reading

Security Think Tank: Printers can’t be an ‘add-on’ in your cyber strategy

Though rarely discussed in a cyber context, the prevalence of connected printers and MFPs does pose security risks both technological and physical. What does a print security strategy need to take into account? Continue Reading

BCS: Lack of communication over NHS GPDPR ‘astonishing’

The Chartered Institute for IT has warned that millions of people are not being properly informed of NHS Digital plans to harvest their data Continue Reading

Secrecy around EncroChat cryptophone hack breaches French constitution, court hears

French lawyers claim that investigators are unlawfully withholding details of a cryptophone hacking operation in a case that could impact UK prosecutions Continue Reading

Government action on ransomware epidemic gathers pace

The US government steps up action against ransomware operators, while the UK’s NCSC publishes guidance on preparing to deal with a ransomware attack Continue Reading

Reports raise alarm over Huawei access to Dutch networks

Espionage accusations raise security questions for Netherlands organisations using Chinese supplier’s equipment and services Continue Reading

Norway’s auditor general lifts lid on energy industry’s cyber security risks

Auditor General’s Office questions the security posture of Norway’s energy industry Continue Reading

Tories fined over email data protection breaches

The Conservative Party broke the law by failing to properly keep records of who had unsubscribed from its mailing list Continue Reading

FireEye sold to private equity, Mandiant regains independence

FireEye has agreed to sell its products business and name to a private equity consortium, while Mandiant will spin out as an independent threat intel business Continue Reading

Pandemic a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ chance to reshape security

The volume of remote working has made it hard to paint an accurate picture of the true state of enterprise cyber security, but it presents an opportunity to change things up Continue Reading

Scottish businesses missing out on Cyber Essentials benefits

More than a third of Scottish businesses do not believe they are adequately prepared to deal with a cyber security incident Continue Reading

Security Think Tank: Steps to a coherent print security strategy

Though rarely discussed in a cyber context, the prevalence of connected printers and MFPs poses security risks both technological and physical. What does a print security strategy need to take into account? Continue Reading

What the Telecommunications (Security) Bill means for UK industry

The Telecommunications (Security) Bill is intended to reinforce the security of the UK telecommunications infrastructure, but what are the implications for industry? Continue Reading

Buying a VPN? Here’s what you need to know

VPNs are an effective cyber security tool for businesses and remote workers, but there are many things to consider before purchasing and implementing one. We explore some of these Continue Reading

Security Think Tank: Printer risks go deep into IT history

Though rarely discussed in a cyber context, the prevalence of connected printers and MFPs does pose security risks both technological and physical. What does a print security strategy need to take into account? Continue Reading

Long-term thinking is vital to secure UK’s critical infrastructure

To face down the threat of cyber warfare against UK CNI, the government needs long-term thinking that looks beyond the next general election cycle, says Advent-IM’s Mike Gillespie Continue Reading

European-led consortium investigates quantum cryptography

The arms race to a quantum internet is under way – the European Commission is looking at secure critical national infrastructure and member state comms Continue Reading

Exagrid pays $2.6m to Conti ransomware attackers

Backup appliance specialist hit by Conti ransomware in May with cyber criminals downloading employee and customer data, confidential contracts and source code Continue Reading

Ex-IT manager stole over £800,000 from NHS trust

A former senior IT manager at an Essex NHS trust has pleaded guilty to defrauding his employer out of more than £800,000 Continue Reading

Microsoft brings APAC policymakers together in security council

Microsoft’s APAC public sector security council will meet once a quarter to share threat intelligence and best practices for combating cyber threats Continue Reading

Inept cybersecurity education and training feed into skills gap

Learn why former infosec instructor and author of 'How Cybersecurity Really Works' advocates for changes to security education and training to alleviate the industry skills gap. Continue Reading

Network reconnaissance techniques for beginners

In this excerpt of 'How Cybersecurity Really Works,' author Sam Grubb breaks down common network reconnaissance techniques used by adversaries to attack wired networks. Continue Reading

When should you use AWS IAM roles vs. users?

Access management is critical to securing the cloud. Understand the differences between AWS IAM roles and users to properly restrict access to AWS resources. Continue Reading

Privacy experts concerned over NHS data collection plans

Security and data privacy experts warn NHS Digital that its data collection plans could increase risk and cause a public backlash Continue Reading

Essential Guide: How APAC firms can ride out the pandemic

In this Essential Guide, we examine the impact of Covid-19 on Asia-Pacific businesses, how they have responded and important lessons that can be learned as they ready themselves for the post-pandemic world. Continue Reading

Industry reflects on three years of GDPR

Looking back on 12 tumultuous months, we assess how GDPR has weathered the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, and consider what the coming year may hold for data protection Continue Reading

Loss of 150,000 police records made worse by management failures

The loss of 150,000 records from a number of national policing systems was caused by a human coding error, but made worse by process and management failures Continue Reading

Security ops teams struggle to switch off at home

Spiralling stress levels among SOC and IT security teams can be attributed mainly to alert overload, says Trend Micro Continue Reading

CW Nordics: Denmark takes a top-down approach to gender equality in tech entrepreneurship

Tech Nordic Advocates has adopted a new approach to closing the gender gap in Danish technology startups, looking to emulate Canada’s top-down approach. Also in this issue, find out the state of play with the adoption of open banking in Europe. Continue Reading

NGOs file complaints against Clearview AI in five countries

Privacy and human rights organisations have asked data protection regulators in the UK, France, Austria, Italy and Greece to investigate controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI Continue Reading

More data stolen in January 2021 than in all of 2017, says report

The volume of data being stolen through breaches is growing steadily and shows no sign of slowing, according to a report from Imperva Continue Reading

Millions of pounds lost to crypto fraud on social media

More than £63m has been lost nationally by victims of investment fraud via a social media platform, says Action Fraud Continue Reading

Lessons from the Post Office Horizon Case

The presumption of the machine functioning properly in practice, means that the prosecution can rely on the presumption that a computer was operating reliably at all material times. It needs to be ... Continue Reading

GCHQ bulk interception programme breached privacy rights, Strasbourg court rules

European Court of Human Rights finds that the UK’s bulk surveillance programme breached citizens’ privacy rights Continue Reading

Policies key to revolutionising Identity Governance and Administration

The proliferation of digital identities, applications, data, security threats and compliance requirements means that Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) has never been more important, but not all organisations are approaching it in an effective and efficient way Continue Reading

CyberSprinters game gives kids a head start, says NCSC

An online game for primary schools, clubs and youth organisations will teach children aged seven to 11 the fundamentals of staying safe online Continue Reading

Threat of group GDPR legal action haunts CISOs

The vast majority of security leaders questioned for a new report say they are concerned about the possibility of group legal settlements against them following a serious data breach Continue Reading

McAfee to change terms of auto-renewing consumer plans

Consumers who found their McAfee antivirus contracts auto-renewed will be able to get out of their contracts and get their money back Continue Reading

Industry reflects on three years of GDPR

Looking back on 12 tumultuous months, we assess how GDPR has weathered the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, and consider what the coming year may hold for data protection Continue Reading

Legacy vulnerabilities may be biggest enterprise cyber risk

While high-profile cyber attacks and zero-days grab headlines, statistics gathered by network security specialists Cato suggest CISOs should be addressing legacy threats Continue Reading

Air India is latest victim of Sita hack

Data on millions of people who flew with Air India between 2011 and 2021 appears to have been compromised in the recent Sita supply chain attack Continue Reading

Dutch researchers build security software to mimic human immune system

Software could help IT systems develop immunity to some cyber attacks in a similar way to how the body fights infection Continue Reading

How Bureau Veritas migrated 85% of its applications to the AWS cloud

In six years, France-based services giant BV has migrated 115 applications to the AWS cloud, mostly using in-house expertise. We talk to the company’s IT director Continue Reading

MEPs urge European Commission to revise UK adequacy decisions

Members of the European Parliament are calling for the European Commission to ensure EU citizens have greater privacy rights Continue Reading

Why the security stack needs to move to the edge

Akamai’s chief technology officer Robert Blumofe makes the case for a decentralised security model to address cyber threats that are emanating from the network edge Continue Reading

CyberUK, bees and datacentres, Red Cross digital mapping – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

In this episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Caroline Donnelly and Brian McKenna are joined by Alex Scroxton, security editor, to discuss CyberUK, bees and datacentres, and the British Red Cross’ use of digital mapping to combat Covid-19 Continue Reading

Lack of developer attention to cloud security prompts alerts

The personal data of over 100 million Android users may have been put at risk through a variety of cloud service misconfigurations Continue Reading

Create a remote access security policy with this template

The expansion of remote work has created complicated security risks. Get help developing and updating a remote access security policy. Download our free template to get started. Continue Reading

Pandemic tech use heightens consumer privacy fears

Report on consumer attitudes to privacy finds evidence of a “heightened sense of fear” as digital footprints expand inexorably Continue Reading

Malicious scans for at-risk systems start minutes after disclosure

Statistics collated by Palo Alto Networks reveal malicious actors begin scanning the internet for systems at risk of new CVEs within minutes Continue Reading

Throwback Thursday: Even data fragmentation has gone virtual

If there’s one thing that our report Storage Anywhere and Everywhere from eight years ago reminds us, it’s that the risks of uncontrolled data growth are nothing new. As our contribution to the bit ... Continue Reading

HP taps micro virtual machines in endpoint security

HP’s Wolf Security technology stack uses an endpoint security controller to run computing tasks in micro virtual machines so that any potential malware can be isolated and contained Continue Reading

UK government publishes framework on automated decision-making

The framework focuses on making the use of algorithms and automated decision-making systems within the public sector more ethical, transparent and accountable Continue Reading

Reports of stolen Irish health service data being leaked online

Leaking of deeply confidential and personal information on patient healthcare marks a new low for the criminal Conti gang Continue Reading

Barclays first bank to publish online scam refund details

All banks must be transparent about the proportion of victims of authorised push payment fraud they refund, says consumer rights organisation Which? Continue Reading

Flexxon bakes AI into SSDs to fight unknown threats

Singapore-based Flexxon has developed a solid-state drive that uses artificial intelligence to fend off malware and other unknown threats Continue Reading

From Talk to Action - Joining up Cyber, Resilience, Fraud and On-line Safety Skills.

The current pipeline supplies less than half the demand. Most of that demand is not for full-time professionals with technical skills. It is for those with the people skills to manage business risk ... Continue Reading

Microsoft EU Data Boundary dubbed ‘smoke and mirrors’

Data protection experts claim Microsoft’s decision to create an EU Data Boundary is a tacit admission that it routinely transfers and processes the personal data of European citizens outside the bloc Continue Reading

Government response to National Data Strategy consultation depicts data as ‘asset, not threat’

Government responds to consultation with a promise of delivery, putting an emphasis on data as an asset, not a threat, and finding respondents keen on levelling up Continue Reading

Cisco acquires Kenna Security amid security expansion

Cisco announces a new acquisition alongside service enhancements around XDR and SASE in support of its security customers Continue Reading

Irish High Court dismisses legal bid by Facebook over EU-US data transfers

Latest twist in long-running legal battle sees Facebook lose legal bid to prevent the Irish Data Protection Commissioner suspending its transfer of data about European citizens to the US Continue Reading

Australian budget lends support to digital economy

Australia’s A$1.2bn Digital Economy Strategy ticks most of the right boxes, but some industry experts say areas such as broadband infrastructure and artificial intelligence are still underfunded Continue Reading

Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack has grave consequences

The ramifications of a major ransomware attack against a US fuel pipeline operator could spread far and wide Continue Reading

The real-life consequences of ransomware attacks

In this week’s Computer Weekly, after a ransomware attack shut a major US oil pipeline, we examine the real-life consequences for organisations facing similar threats. We ask the experts for their top tips in reducing datacentre running costs. And we hear how data science skills are helping government make better decisions. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Conti ransomware syndicate behind attack on Irish health service

More details continue to emerge of the significant ransomware attack on Ireland’s HSE Continue Reading

NCSC study to probe disability and neurodiversity in cyber

National Cyber Security Centre and KPMG have launched a new diversity study aiming to capture benchmarks on disability and neurodiversity in cyber Continue Reading

Government seeks input on supply chain security

Amid concerns that too few companies are addressing vulnerabilities in their supply chain, DCMS is opening a consultation on new measures to enhance security Continue Reading

Colonial Pipeline paid $5m ransom, reports say

Colonial Pipeline may have paid a significant ransom within hours of being attacked, it has emerged, but it’s unlikely the story ends here Continue Reading

Irish health service hit by major ransomware attack

IT systems in hospitals across Ireland have been switched off following a significant ransomware attack Continue Reading

Dutch police used deep learning model to predict threats to life

Dutch police developed a deep learning model in their EncroChat investigation to predict which messages contain serious threats to life Continue Reading

The shape of fraud and cyber crime: 10 things we learned from 2020

While a pandemic-driven increase in cyber crime and an exacerbation of existing fraud trends were, to a large extent, to be expected, the LexisNexis Risk solutions UK cybercrime report 2020 still contained a few surprises Continue Reading

Okta and Auth0 to expand APAC coverage

Okta’s acquisition of rival Auth0 will enable both companies to expand their footprint in the Asia-Pacific region as demand for identity management services soars amid the pandemic Continue Reading

NHSX data strategy due in ‘a few weeks’

NHSX director of policy and strategy Simon Madden says the long-awaited strategy is expected to “trigger huge debates” on issues such as access, choice and transparency, and will be published in draft form shortly to allow for consultation Continue Reading

Publishing exploit code does more harm than good, says report

Disclosing exploit code before patches are available gives malicious actors a ‘massive’ head-start, says Kenna Security Continue Reading

Biden beefs up public-private security cooperation

Joe Biden has signed a new Executive Order to harden US cyber security and government networks, with an emphasis on information sharing Continue Reading

CW Benelux: Netherlands university launches centre of expertise in applied AI

Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences has launched a centre of expertise in applied artificial intelligence, and students from all faculties of the university will learn how to apply AI in their field of study. Also in this issue, read why a training ‘roadmap’ is needed to get Netherlands police officers up to speed with tackling cyber crime. Continue Reading

Refuge launches tech safety site for domestic abuse victims

Created with the help of survivors, Refuge’s resource site offers guidance on protecting yourself from tech-enabled domestic abuse Continue Reading

CISOs weathered the pandemic well, but at personal cost

Over 80% of CISOs think their existing security capabilities stayed strong during the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic, but now face stress and burnout on an unheard-of scale Continue Reading

Verizon DBIR underscores year of unprecedented cyber challenge

Verizon 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report draws predictable conclusions as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic continues to be felt Continue Reading

UK government publishes Online Safety Bill draft

Bill builds on previous commitments by the government, which has added new measures to uphold democracy and freedom of speech while making tech giants more accountable Continue Reading

Inside DarkSide: Researchers share intel on break-out cyber gang

Security researchers swap information on the newly famous DarkSide ransomware gang, the group that doesn’t appear to understand what ‘being a criminal’ actually means Continue Reading

CyberUK 2021: NCSC encourages startups to invest in cyber

National Cyber Security Centre is launching bespoke cyber security guidance aimed at the UK’s valuable startup community Continue Reading

UK to fund national cyber teams in Global South

Government will commit millions of pounds to supporting vulnerable countries in establishing cyber capacity Continue Reading

Microsoft fixes four critical bugs on lighter Patch Tuesday

Four critical RCE vulnerabilities put users of various Microsoft products at risk, and should be patched right away Continue Reading

The Security Interviews: Why helpful bots could hurt vaccine roll-outs

Earlier this year, spikes in traffic to websites containing information about Covid-19 vaccines were attributed by Imperva to automated bots scraping data. Why is that a problem? Continue Reading

UK Plc invited to sign up for Early Warning of cyber incidents

The launch of the Early Warning incident notification service is among the enhancements being made by the NCSC to its service packages Continue Reading

NCSC cyber guidance targets cloud and home working

The NCSC’s refreshed cyber security guidance for larger organisations places particular emphasis on cloud, home working and ransomware Continue Reading

Collaboration key to success of UK’s Cyber Security Council

The founders of the UK’s Cyber Security Council have been setting out their plans to professionalise the cyber sector at the NCSC’s CyberUK 2021 event Continue Reading

Government to reform Computer Misuse Act

Home secretary Priti Patel will explore reforming the Computer Misuse Act as calls mount for the 31-year-old law to be updated to reflect the changed online world Continue Reading

SolarWinds CEO calls for collective action against state attacks

SolarWinds CEO tells NCSC’s CyberUK conference he is exploring the possibility of collaborating with other companies on collective cyber action against attacks backed by nation states Continue Reading

Swedish court finds ambiguities in hacked EncroChat cryptophone evidence

Defence lawyer claims evidence obtained by hacking the EncroChat encrypted phone network has ‘no legal’ value following Swedish appeal court ruling Continue Reading

Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack has grave consequences

The ramifications of a major ransomware attack against a US fuel pipeline operator could spread far and wide Continue Reading

NCSC Active Cyber Defence blocks surge of pandemic scams

The NCSC responded to a surge in online scams last year as it moved to protect both the general public and critical national services during the pandemic Continue Reading

APAC career guide on cloud computing

Besides having engineering chops and certifications, aspiring cloud professionals should have curiosity and soft skills to succeed in the evolving cloud computing landscape Continue Reading