Social media technology
Social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have proved enormously popular, and while they are consumer focused, the principles of collaboration and information sharing that they embody are highly relevant for corporate IT. We analyse the latest trends in social media technology, social networking and explain how they can be applied to enterprise IT strategy.
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Feature
29 Apr 2025
The top challenges of influencer marketing and their solutions
Brands can partner with influencers to build credibility and connect with their audiences. However, marketers often struggle to find the right influencers and spot fake followers. Continue Reading
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News
28 Apr 2025
Digital twins critical for digital transformation to fly in aerospace
Technology consortium publishes whitepaper to address the challenges of digital twin adoption in the aerospace and defence industries highlighting requirements for successfully deploying these digital twin-enabling technologies Continue Reading
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News
09 Apr 2021
NCSC: Using your pet’s name as a password is very stupid
If your email password is still Rex, Rover or Mr Fluffles, it’s probably best to change it, the NCSC has said Continue Reading
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News
07 Apr 2021
Facebook ducks calls to apologise over huge data leak
Facebook gives its side of the story as data on millions of its users leaks, but is yet to apologise for security lapses that put half a billion people at risk of compromise Continue Reading
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News
07 Apr 2021
Digital Markets Unit starts work on codes of conduct for tech giants
Digital markets regulator officially launched to ensure tech giants such as Facebook and Google cannot exploit their market dominance to crowd out competition and stifle innovation online Continue Reading
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News
06 Apr 2021
Facebook data leak could be outside scope of GDPR
Regulators may be unable to do much about leaked data on 533 million Facebook users, as it seems to have been stolen before GDPR came into force Continue Reading
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News
29 Mar 2021
Big Tech eclipses telecoms and arms giants as biggest lobbying spenders
Facebook and Amazon are spending more on lobbying and campaign contributions than any other companies in the US, including those in the arms and telecommunications sectors that have traditionally been the highest political spenders Continue Reading
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News
25 Mar 2021
Facebook disrupts Chinese espionage operation
Social media giant’s in-house security team has tracked down and disrupted a long-running Chinese campaign targeting the Uighur Muslim minority Continue Reading
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Blog Post
24 Mar 2021
Bamby on thin ice
YouTube has claimed it rushed to remove an offensive rap advert before the Advertising Standards Authority’s verdict on it even came in. The promo for Bamby H2O, an artist with fewer Instagram ... Continue Reading
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News
12 Mar 2021
Web founder calls for ubiquitous, safe internet access for young people
Internet access has a direct correlation to GDP. On the 32nd birthday of the world wide web, its founder calls for improvements to safe access Continue Reading
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Blog Post
12 Mar 2021
What the Net can learn from car culture
In an open letter celebrating the birthday of the web Tim Berners-Lee and co-author, Rosemary Leith have called for better connectivity for young people in order to build a better post Covid world. ... Continue Reading
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News
11 Mar 2021
UK digital regulators set out plans to strengthen cooperation
Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum outlines plans for the coming year, marking a shift towards a more collaborative regulatory approach Continue Reading
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News
09 Mar 2021
UK's Starling Bank reaches unicorn status
UK app-based bank Starling reaches unicorn status following its latest round of funding Continue Reading
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News
03 Mar 2021
Pandemic brings good online sales growth for smaller retailers
IMRG data shows smaller retailers did ‘astronomically well’ in online sales growth after Covid-19 took hold last year Continue Reading
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News
01 Mar 2021
What it means to be born digital
We speak to Robert Wigley about his new book, Born Digital, which looks at the societal impact of Generation Z Continue Reading
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News
26 Feb 2021
Nordic startups strive to fuel international e-commerce transformation
Nordic startups are developing technology for retailers that want to improve the customer experience when buying online Continue Reading
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News
24 Feb 2021
Is Clubhouse safe, and should CISOs stop its use?
With more concerns being raised over the privacy and security of social media app Clubhouse, we consider whether security teams should consider restricting or stopping employees from using it Continue Reading
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News
24 Feb 2021
Internet companies should provide real-time data on disinformation, Lords told
Fact-checking experts tell House of Lords inquiry that upcoming Online Safety Bill should force internet companies to provide real-time information on suspected disinformation, and warn against over-reliance on AI-powered algorithms to moderate content Continue Reading
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News
23 Feb 2021
AI powers reputational damage insurance policy
Reputational damage has an immediate impact on a company’s share price, and brand loyalty built over many years can be lost in an instant Continue Reading
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News
18 Feb 2021
Swedish police fined for unlawful use of facial-recognition app
Sweden’s data watchdog has found that Swedish police failed to conduct the data protection checks required by law before using controversial facial-recognition tool Continue Reading
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News
15 Feb 2021
Digital investments will add £232bn to UK economy by 2040
The UK economy could grow by £232bn over the next two decades if investments in digital technologies continue Continue Reading
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News
11 Feb 2021
Verizon Business, Deloitte gain retail edge with 5G
Operator’s 5G and mobile edge compute technology, coupled with IT consultancy’s retail industry and solution engineering experience, aims to improve store operating efficiency and enhance the customer experience Continue Reading
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News
10 Feb 2021
Dating app users warned to watch out for scammers
A vast amount of money was lost to romance scammers last year, and with millions of people isolated in lockdown the problem is getting worse, according to a report Continue Reading
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Podcast
10 Feb 2021
Disinformation and the US DNC emails leak controversy – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast
In this episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, the team are joined by Bill Goodwin to discuss the role of disinformation in the 2016 Democratic National Committee emails leak Continue Reading
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News
09 Feb 2021
Facebook sued for data-sharing practices with third parties
Data protection claim filed in London against social media giant for its alleged failure to give at least one million users in England and Wales meaningful control over their personal data Continue Reading
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News
09 Feb 2021
Data breaches are a ticking timebomb for consumers
Damage from data breaches goes far beyond the impact to the target organisation – an obvious fact that is too often overlooked, says F-Secure Continue Reading
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News
04 Feb 2021
Revolut rewrites policy to include permanent remote working
Challenger finance firm Revolut is redesigning its office spaces and introducing permanent remote working policies Continue Reading
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Blog Post
03 Feb 2021
Funkier than a Moskito tweeter
The husband and wife who made hundreds of millions selling Bebo to AOL before buying it back for a relative pittance five years later have spent lockdown planning to relaunch the site (again). In a ... Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Feb 2021
Three approaches to remote collaboration for home workers
The coronavirus has led to working from home being the ‘new norm’. We look at how collaboration technologies could work in the long term Continue Reading
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News
29 Jan 2021
Commerzbank announces big job cuts and branch closures
German bank is closing hundreds of branches and cutting thousands of jobs as it reshapes for the digital age Continue Reading
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News
27 Jan 2021
Grindr complaint results in €9.6m GDPR fine
Norway’s data protection authority plans to apply a fine totalling 10% of LGBTQ+ dating app Grindr’s revenues over its data sharing practices Continue Reading
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News
22 Jan 2021
ICO resumes adtech investigation
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office was criticised for ending its investigation into alleged malpractice in advertising technology, but has now resumed its probe Continue Reading
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News
22 Jan 2021
Google threatens to cut off Australia
Google’s threat to end its Australian Search operation comes in the face of new legislation that would force it to pay media publishers for news content Continue Reading
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News
20 Jan 2021
HSBC closing more branches as customers turn to digital channel
Bank announces branch closures as it reshapes its network for the digital age Continue Reading
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Podcast
19 Jan 2021
Parler v AWS, digital schooling, ambulance data – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast
In this episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Caroline Donnelly, Clare McDonald and Brian McKenna discuss the purgation of Parler, the traumas of digital schooling and the South Central Ambulance Service’s use of data to support their operations during the Covid-19 pandemic Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2021
Click fraud levels reach new heights in pandemic
Small companies risk losing £10,000 a year, and enterprises as much as £520,000, to cyber criminals as click fraud volumes spike Continue Reading
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News
14 Jan 2021
All EU states can take data protection cases against Facebook, says EU court
An opinion from the European Court of Justice has the potential to lead to a flood of privacy complaints against Facebook if upheld Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Jan 2021
Big Tech's uneasy balance of capitalism, censorship
Big tech companies' enforcement of acceptable use policies following Capitol riots is questioned, as some say First Amendment rights to free speech should extend to social networks. Continue Reading
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News
13 Jan 2021
Court to rule on Facebook data sharing after Schrems drops legal challenge against Irish regulator
Irish High Court says it will issue a judgment as soon as possible over a draft decision by Ireland’s data protection commissioner to order Facebook to stop the transfer of data about EU citizens to datacentres in the US Continue Reading
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Opinion
13 Jan 2021
What does Brexit mean for the future of UK digital policy? A view from Europe
Any decisions by the UK government to diverge from EU policies and values over digital policy and regulation could cause real economic problems for UK businesses Continue Reading
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News
12 Jan 2021
Parler collapse opens door to phishing attacks
The shutdown of controversial social media site Parler, and the publication of huge amounts of user data scraped by ethical hackers, is giving cyber crime experts cause for concern Continue Reading
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News
08 Jan 2021
Tech sector reacts to Trump social media bans
Facebook, Instagram and others moved to limit US president’s social media access after the violence in Washington DC, but experts have condemned them for acting too slowly, while disinformation about the riots persists Continue Reading
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Blog Post
06 Jan 2021
Talk that talk
Brian Clough once said that if he was given a magic wand and wanted to improve the standard of UK life overnight, he would have Rupert Murdoch removed from this planet. For 12 hours on Tuesday 5 ... Continue Reading
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News
29 Dec 2020
Top 10 financial services stories of 2020
Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 financial services IT stories of 2020 Continue Reading
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Opinion
23 Dec 2020
It’s time to accept that disinformation is a cyber security issue
Tackling the manipulation of truth and facts is no easy task, and it’s time for the cyber security sector to take up the challenge Continue Reading
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News
22 Dec 2020
Top 10 retail technology stories of 2020
Computer Weekly looks at what 2020 had in store for the retail industry – just how did technology help retailers adapt to changing customer behaviour during the pandemic? Continue Reading
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News
17 Dec 2020
Dodgy browser extensions put social media users at risk
More than three million users of third-party browser extensions for Instagram, Facebook, Vimeo and others have been infected with malware, according to Avast Continue Reading
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Opinion
16 Dec 2020
Why our online harms laws will be good for tech
The UK's minister for digital infrastructure explains the government's thinking behind its proposals to regulate internet companies such as Facebook, Google and others Continue Reading
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News
15 Dec 2020
UK government unveils details of upcoming online harms rules
Online Harms Bill due early 2021 will introduce GDPR-style fines for technology companies that breach online duty of care rules Continue Reading
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News
10 Dec 2020
French regulators fine Google and Amazon over cookie policies
Google and Amazon rapped over their use of advertising cookies by the French data protection authorities Continue Reading
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News
10 Dec 2020
Cyber Helpline awarded lottery funding to support victims
The Cyber Helpline, a UK charity that provides emergency support to victims of cyber crime and online stalking, is to receive funding from the National Lottery Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2020
Calls for Facebook break up as US issues lawsuits for anti-competitive behaviour
Antitrust lawsuits issued by the US Federal Trade Commission and 48 attorneys general call for the breakup of Facebook following 10 years of anti-competitive behaviour Continue Reading
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News
08 Dec 2020
CMA sets out plan to regulate technology giants
With its new Digital Markets Unit, the CMA is hoping to curb the excesses of the internet, improve competition and give more choice to consumers Continue Reading
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News
07 Dec 2020
Grindr and others patch critical Android bug
Fixes for CVE-2020-8913 deployed as app developers shore up their defences against a disclosed Google Play vulnerability Continue Reading
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Feature
04 Dec 2020
Digital donations: retailers using technology to offer something back
Some charities require corporate support like never before, and retailers are finding new ways to use technology to facilitate donations Continue Reading
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News
04 Dec 2020
What next for the now-profitable app-based Starling Bank?
Starling bank is the first of the new breed of UK digital banks to make a profit, so where next? Continue Reading
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News
03 Dec 2020
Allied Irish Bank prioritises digital services as it cuts workforce
Bank is cutting its operating costs by 10% with job cuts and facility closures, but will continue to invest heavily in technology Continue Reading
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News
03 Dec 2020
Lax Android app developers putting millions of users at risk
Eight months after Google patched a critical vulnerability, developers have failed to update their apps, putting millions of users of apps such as dating services Bumble and Grindr at risk Continue Reading
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News
02 Dec 2020
Covid-19: Cyber criminals will target vaccine programmes
Interpol issues a global alert to law enforcement as the UK becomes one of the first countries to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for use Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Nov 2020
How retailers are using tech to cope with changing footfall
Customer behaviour was shifting long before the coronavirus pandemic accelerated the online shopping boom, so what technology are retailers using to keep stores relevant? Continue Reading
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News
27 Nov 2020
Lords propose making tech giants pay for using news
Digital platforms such as Google and Facebook profit from running adverts alongside publishers’ content, but no financial compensation is given for carrying that content, says Lords committee Continue Reading
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News
27 Nov 2020
UK government ramps up efforts to regulate tech giants
The Digital Markets Unit of the Competitions and Markets Authority aims to protect consumer privacy and lower barriers to entry for businesses Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Nov 2020
How retailers are using digital to engage with Covid Christmas shoppers
Christmas is likely to be different this year because of the pandemic, and there is likely to be an altered shopping experience. So how are retailers using digital to cope with this shift in festive shopping? Continue Reading
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News
23 Nov 2020
Amazon Swedish language site will expand reach of local retailers
Amazon launches Swedish language website and promises to make more products available in the Nordic region Continue Reading
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Blog Post
18 Nov 2020
Vax doesn’t have to be vexing
The Labour Party has called for emergency laws to prevent social media companies from playing host to anti-vaccine content. You’d’ve thought the ruling elite would have already got the memo to ... Continue Reading
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Feature
13 Nov 2020
Covid-19: How retailers are using technology to respond to changing shopping habits
As the coronavirus outbreak accelerates the shift in consumer behaviour, how are retailers using technology to keep customers engaged? Continue Reading
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News
12 Nov 2020
Online kids’ game Animal Jam confirms large breach
Cyber criminals have stolen data on 46 million Animal Jam player accounts via a third-party attack Continue Reading
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News
11 Nov 2020
EU aid funds used to train ‘unaccountable intelligence agencies’ in high-tech surveillance
Hundreds of documents obtained by campaign group Privacy International show how the EU is supporting surveillance programmes in the Balkans, the Middle East and Africa Continue Reading
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News
10 Nov 2020
Better data sharing needed to help children during pandemic
Closing gaps in data infrastructure will help the education sector respond better to children’s needs during the Covid-19 pandemic, says Open Data Institute Continue Reading
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News
09 Nov 2020
EU moves closer to encryption ban after Austria, France attacks
Draft resolution document setting up an EU-wide ban on end-to-end encryption is set to be waved through this week Continue Reading
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News
03 Nov 2020
GDPR lawsuit against Oracle and Salesforce moves forward
Class action suit seeks claims worth more than £10bn over the processing of personal information Continue Reading
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Opinion
28 Oct 2020
The Google antitrust case is more about politics than economics
It’s not entirely clear what economic reasons led the US government to try to tackle Google’s search monopoly, which suggests it is mostly about politics Continue Reading
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News
28 Oct 2020
Privacy and online safety are focus of new UKRI research funding
Online safety research centre of excellence will look into technology to boost privacy and tackle disinformation, fake news, conspiracies and other online harms Continue Reading
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Blog Post
22 Oct 2020
Chatting Schmidt
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt spends his webcam chat for the Wall Street Journal Tech Live event insisting we should all be grateful to the tech giants, despite the fact they’ve become, by his own ... Continue Reading
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News
15 Oct 2020
UK regulators lack the skills and expertise to cope with increasing use of algorithms
MPs told that multiple regulators will be needed to govern the ever-growing use of algorithmic systems in all areas of the economy and public sector Continue Reading
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News
14 Oct 2020
US Elections: Malicious internet domains spike as campaigns heat up
Internet domains related to the US presidential election are 56% more likely to be malicious than regular ones Continue Reading
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News
14 Oct 2020
Public data should not be held by US tech giants
One-off evidence sessions to follow up on the recommendations of the House of Lords AI Committee revisit the data and ethics debate Continue Reading
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News
12 Oct 2020
Five Eyes spy group again demands access to private messages
Spooks are once again calling for the tech industry to break end-to-end encryption in messaging platforms Continue Reading
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News
09 Oct 2020
Facebook critics’ webpage removed over false phishing allegations
Real Facebook Oversight Board alleges Facebook is trying to censor it for speaking out against the social media company’s behaviour Continue Reading
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News
07 Oct 2020
US lawmakers release big tech antitrust report
House Democrats have published a report on the monopoly power wielded by big tech companies and how to restore competition in digital markets Continue Reading
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News
05 Oct 2020
Facebook critics launch ‘Real Facebook Oversight Board’
Organisation formed as an ‘emergency response’ to address the ‘immediate risk’ posed by Facebook’s role in the US election Continue Reading
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News
05 Oct 2020
Fake news tops list of online concerns worldwide
Receiving false information is a greater worry than other online risks such as cyber bullying and fraud, says the Lloyd’s Register Foundation Continue Reading
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News
28 Sep 2020
TikTok ban stayed after last-minute court case
TikTok’s lawyers have staved off an imminent ban for the time being, after successfully arguing that it infringed rights guaranteed under the Constitution of the United States Continue Reading
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News
24 Sep 2020
Third-party code bug left Instagram users at risk of account takeover
A critical vulnerability in Instagram’s image processing could have allowed attackers to take over not just their victim’s account, but their entire device Continue Reading
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News
23 Sep 2020
Latest Tech Nation fintech cohort reflects diversifying sector
The latest group of fintechs accepted into Tech Nation’s growth programme reflects the diversification of a maturing sector Continue Reading
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News
23 Sep 2020
Major tech firms urged to end targeted ads to under-18s
An open letter to Google, Facebook and others is calling on the tech firms to take responsibility for protecting users of their services by ending behavioural advertising to children Continue Reading
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News
23 Sep 2020
Video gamers barraged with cyber attacks
From credential stuffing to SQL injection and DDoS, video game producers and players are seeing massive volumes of cyber attacks Continue Reading
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News
22 Sep 2020
Twitter investigates image cropping algorithm for racial bias
The algorithm’s consistent favouring of white faces in image previews has forced the company to investigate it for racial bias Continue Reading
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News
22 Sep 2020
Activision shoots down data breach claims
Gaming company denies there has been any data breach after up to 500,000 accounts appeared to have been compromised, but evidence mounts that credential stuffing attacks are to blame Continue Reading
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News
22 Sep 2020
Scam mobile apps spreading via rogue TikTok accounts
Malicious TikTok accounts are promoting a number of adware scam mobile apps Continue Reading
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News
21 Sep 2020
Royal Mint coin production freeze points to digital future for small payments
Royal Mint freezes production of certain coins as demand dries up amid changing consumer habits Continue Reading
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News
21 Sep 2020
Big questions to be answered over TikTok and WeChat reprieve
TikTok and WeChat seem to have received a stay of execution, but big questions and contradictions remain Continue Reading
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News
18 Sep 2020
US government deplatforms TikTok and WeChat
The Commerce Department of the US government has banned new downloads of TikTok and WeChat in the US, and announced new prohibitions on doing business with them Continue Reading
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News
17 Sep 2020
Swedish bank cuts branches and jobs, increases IT spend
Swedish bank is increasing investment IT to improve digital banking as it reduces its branch network Continue Reading
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Opinion
15 Sep 2020
The harsh reality for newspapers in the fight against Facebook, is that people won’t pay for news
The Australian media is the latest to try to get Facebook and Google to pay for using their news stories. That only exposes the fact that not enough readers want to do so Continue Reading
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News
15 Sep 2020
TikTok-Oracle partnership moves forward for consideration
Joint venture proposal could create thousands of jobs and secure TikTok’s future outside China Continue Reading
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News
14 Sep 2020
Microsoft drops out of TikTok talks, paves way for Oracle partnership
Microsoft confirms it is dropping out of the running to acquire the US operations of TikTok, leaving the way clear for an imminent partnership deal with Oracle Continue Reading
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News
11 Sep 2020
Facebook takes legal action against Irish privacy watchdog
Facebook’s legal action against the Data Protection Commission will attempt to preserve the company’s ability to transfer European citizens’ data to the US despite its lower privacy protections Continue Reading
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News
10 Sep 2020
Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to stop sending user data to the US
Irish privacy watchdog orders Facebook to suspend transfers of European citizens’ data to the US after Schrems II ruling that Europeans have no effective way to challenge American government surveillance Continue Reading
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News
03 Sep 2020
M&S and Ocado enter first week of online delivery partnership
Customers can now order M&S food through online supermarket Ocado’s website as part of an ongoing partnership between the two retailers Continue Reading
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News
02 Sep 2020
Asos launches TikTok brand campaign
Fashion brand Asos has launched a campaign on TikTok to bring awareness of its products to a wider audience Continue Reading
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News
27 Aug 2020
Tour de France 2020 fans to get virtual experience delivered by NTT
This year’s Tour de France was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. IT services company NTT has teamed up with event organiser ASO to offer a virtual experience to fans who cannot be at the roadside Continue Reading