IT for government and public sector
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News
14 Jun 2024
Post Office scandal victims in Scotland have convictions quashed
Scotland follows England, Wales and Northern Ireland in exonerating wrongfully convicted subpostmasters en masse Continue Reading
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News
13 Jun 2024
General election 2024: Labour promises to boost digital infrastructure
The Labour Party manifesto for the UK general election promises a new industrial strategy and an overhaul of planning rules to help support the digital and tech sector Continue Reading
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News
27 Jan 2023
Hive ransomware gang taken down after FBI hacks back
The FBI hacked into Hive’s servers, stole its decryption keys and then took down its servers in a major action that has successfully disrupted a prolific and dangerous ransomware operation Continue Reading
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News
25 Jan 2023
NCSC exposes Iranian, Russian spear-phishing campaign targeting UK
Spear-phishing campaigns likely linked to Iranian and Russian espionage activity are targeting persons of interest in the UK, warns the NCSC Continue Reading
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News
25 Jan 2023
UK Treasury recruiting digital currency leader
The UK government’s investigation into the merits of a central bank digital currency gathers pace at it looks for a team leader Continue Reading
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News
25 Jan 2023
Boards struggle to resolve cyber risk in digital supply chains
Accelerated digitisation of supply chains is introducing more cyber risk for which many organisations seem unprepared, according to the BSI’s annual report on supply chain risk Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
UK insurers need to up their game on cyber gaps, says PRA
Gaps and limitations in how insurers respond to cyber risk need to be addressed, according to the Bank of England regulator, the Prudential Regulation Authority Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
SSRF attacks hit 100,000 businesses globally since November
There has been a dramatic increase in attacks exploiting the ProxyNotShell/OWASSRF exploit chains to target Microsoft Exchange servers Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
Fake online contest makes Yahoo! most phished brand of Q4 2022
Yahoo! was the most frequently phished brand during the last three months of 2022, according to a report Continue Reading
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News
24 Jan 2023
Executive interview: Andrew Roughan, CEO, Plexal
Plexal CEO Andrew Roughan talks about how tech startups collaborate with the government to transform public services, the barriers to entry, and how the process can be improved Continue Reading
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News
23 Jan 2023
Royal Society calls on public sector to pilot privacy tech
The Royal Society says public sector bodies should lead the way in piloting privacy-enhancing technologies to unlock the value of data without compromising privacy and data rights, but lack of standards and incentives mean adoption is slow Continue Reading
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News
20 Jan 2023
Barclays Eagle Labs awarded Digital Growth Grant over Tech Nation
Barclays Eagle Labs incubator to take over Tech Nation’s role in administering UK government digital growth grant amid backlash from startup ecosystem Continue Reading
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News
20 Jan 2023
WhatsApp’s £4.8m fine raises questions for organisations using behavioural advertising
The Irish Data Protection Commissioner has fined WhatsApp, owned by Meta, in a case that will raise questions for organisations that rely on contracts rather than consent to comply with GDPR when offering behavioural advertising Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
UK seeks to ban sharing ‘positive’ Channel crossing videos online
Under UK government amendments to the Online Safety Bill, video footage that shows people crossing the Channel in a ‘positive light’ could be added to a list of illegal content that all tech platforms must proactively prevent from reaching users, while senior managers could face further criminal sanctions Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
Newham Council rejects use of live facial-recognition tech by police
Live facial-recognition technology should not be used by police in Newham until biometric and anti-discrimination safeguards are in place, according to a motion passed unanimously by the council, but the Met Police and the Home Office have indicated they will not suspend its use Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
Outdated IT infrastructure poses growing risk to UK Security Vetting
Delays to UKSV’s important work in safeguarding the country’s national security are in part down to a legacy IT estate in dire need of modernisation, says the NAO Continue Reading
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News
19 Jan 2023
Swedish government launches accelerated digitisation plan
The Swedish government has launched a four-year plan which will help to digitally transform the country’s public sector Continue Reading
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News
18 Jan 2023
David Anderson KC to review UK surveillance laws
Home Office commissions independent review of the Investigatory Powers Act, known as the snoopers’ charter. It will include a review of bulk datasets and government access to internet connection records held by phone and internet companies Continue Reading
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News
18 Jan 2023
Oracle and CBI: companies cautious, selective in 2023 IT, business investment
Oracle and the CBI are seeing much the same picture of cautious technology investment of UK businesses in 2023, in the context of long Covid and the energy price inflation crisis Continue Reading
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News
18 Jan 2023
Advisory board goal for Post Office scandal victims to be returned to rightful financial position
The board set up to monitor the compensation scheme for Post Office scandal victims agrees goal of returning them to the financial position they would be in had the scandal never happened Continue Reading
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News
17 Jan 2023
Claim IR35 reform repeal and U-turn cost the government ‘nothing’ called into question
After responding to a question about the cost of the government’s repeal of the IR35 reforms and its subsequent U-turn on the decision, the financial secretary has come under fire for claiming no additional costs were incurred by its flip-flopping Continue Reading
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News
17 Jan 2023
Crest throws support behind CyberUp CMA reform campaign
Cyber accreditation association Crest International has lent its support to the CyberUp campaign for reform to the Computer Misuse Act of 1990 Continue Reading
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E-Zine
16 Jan 2023
CW EMEA: Protecting the privacy of schoolchildren
In this month’s CW EMEA, we look at how schools in Germany have stopped using Microsoft Office 365 over lack of clarity over how data is collected, shared and used. We also delve into how former UK spy boss Richard Dearlove leaked names of MI6 secret agent recruiters in China to back an aggressive right-wing US campaign against tech company Huawei. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
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News
14 Jan 2023
Experts concerned over silence around government obligation to review UK surveillance laws
The government is required to review the UK’s surveillance law, the Investigatory Powers Act, but experts say they are in the dark about its plans. The National Crime Agency’s operation Venetic has highlighted the need for urgent reforms Continue Reading
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News
13 Jan 2023
Government given until autumn 2023 to create technology roadmap to support net-zero strategy
Review into the government’s progress in hitting its 2050 net-zero greenhouse gas emissions goal highlights need for more action on the technology front Continue Reading
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News
13 Jan 2023
Cabinet Office looks to expand public data sharing for digital ID
Cabinet Office seeks feedback on proposed legislation to enhance data sharing across the public sector, in support of the UK government’s ambition to have a single sign-on identity-check system for all public services Continue Reading
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News
12 Jan 2023
UK government completes trials of age estimation technology
Government-led trials of age estimation and verification technologies for the sale of alcohol in nightlife venues and supermarkets have been completed, with both government and retail lobbyists pushing for legislation that would allow retailers to adopt the tools for alcohol sales Continue Reading
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News
12 Jan 2023
Government accused of leaving umbrella company regulation in limbo by shelving enforcement body
The UK government is coming under pressure to reveal the state of its plans to regulate umbrella companies after it emerged that the enforcement body it promised to create is unlikely to materialise Continue Reading
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News
11 Jan 2023
Internet shutdowns cost global economy $24bn in 2022
Deliberate disruption of people’s access to the internet by governments is having a substantial economic impact and contributing to a range of human rights abuses, primarily against protestors Continue Reading
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News
11 Jan 2023
Microsoft fixes EoP zero-day on January Patch Tuesday
On the first Patch Tuesday of 2023, Microsoft fixed an elevation of privilege vulnerability in Windows Advanced Local Procedure Call, which has been actively exploited in the wild and may be co-opted into ransomware campaigns Continue Reading
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News
11 Jan 2023
Davos 2023: Pervasive cyber crime and cyber security gaps pose severe risk to organisations
Governments and organisations face tough trade-offs as they balance immediate problems caused by economic recession, energy shortages and rising interest rates with longer-term risks, including the impact of global warming Continue Reading
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News
10 Jan 2023
Insurer Beazley introduces catastrophe bond to ease cyber risk
Insurance company Beazley says that its $45m cyber catastrophe bond will help to protect its balance sheet and enable it to offer more cyber insurance cover Continue Reading
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News
10 Jan 2023
Former subpostmaster Alan Bates, who ‘pulled up trees and moved mountains’, turns down OBE offer
Alan Bates, who fought for decades to expose the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, says it would be inappropriate to accept an OBE when former Post Office CEO Paula Vennells still holds her CBE Continue Reading
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News
06 Jan 2023
Vice Society cyber gang targeted multiple UK schools
The Vice Society ransomware gang has made a habit of attacking educational institutions, and now appears to have struck multiple schools, colleges and universities in the UK Continue Reading
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Feature
05 Jan 2023
Securing low Earth orbit represents the new space race
The barriers to launching satellites into low Earth orbit are falling fast, and that brings new cyber security challenges Continue Reading
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News
04 Jan 2023
Diversity and inclusion figures high in New Year Honours List 2023
The New Year Honours List 2023 hailed those in the technology community who promote diversity and inclusion Continue Reading
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News
30 Dec 2022
Top 10 information management stories of 2022
Data for good is a theme of the information management stories of 2022 selected here. From tracking space junk, through medical kits for Ukraine, to professionalising data science to benefit society Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Dec 2022
The importance of improving data quality at source
Data replication crises have struck government and scientific data quality efforts. A lack of scrutiny over data being used at source has led to oversights from national statistics to financial auditing Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Dec 2022
How Finland develops its national plan for investment in innovation
A small country with limited resources, Finland carefully chooses strategic technologies to lead it into the future Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Dec 2022
Cyber security professionals share their biggest lessons of 2022
In the run-up to 2023, cyber security professionals are taking the time to reflect on the past few months and share their biggest lessons of 2022 Continue Reading
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News
29 Dec 2022
Top 10 technology and ethics stories of 2022
Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 technology and ethics stories of 2022 Continue Reading
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News
29 Dec 2022
Top 10 Nordic IT stories of 2022
Here are Computer Weekly's top 10 Nordic IT articles of 2022 Continue Reading
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Opinion
29 Dec 2022
How does red teaming test the ultimate limits of cyber security?
An expert ethical hacker reveals how he goes about carrying out a red team exercise Continue Reading
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News
28 Dec 2022
Complaints that NCA failed in duty of candour over EncroChat warrants ‘incredible’, court hears
NCA lawyers argue that a decision by an NCA intelligence officer to disclose notes of a key meeting after two-and-a-half years boosts her credibility as a witness Continue Reading
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News
28 Dec 2022
Top 10 government IT stories of 2022
The UK government has been in turmoil for much of 2022, but there’s been plenty going on around the digital transformation of the public sector and the UK economy Continue Reading
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News
22 Dec 2022
Top 10 cyber security stories of 2022
The war in Ukraine loomed large over the cyber security news agenda, but 2022 also saw growing awareness of open source security, discussion around cyber insurance, and more besides Continue Reading
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News
22 Dec 2022
Top 10 crime, national security and law stories of 2022
Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 crime, national security and law stories of 2022 Continue Reading
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News
22 Dec 2022
Top 10 cyber crime stories of 2022
Cyber crime continued to hit the headlines in 2022, with impactful cyber attacks abounding, digitally enabled fraud ever more widespread and plenty of ransomware incidents Continue Reading
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News
20 Dec 2022
Digital Economy Council: UK tech sector number one in Europe
Despite the tumultuous economic landscape, the UK has maintained its spot as having the number one tech sector in Europe, with its impressive investment figures Continue Reading
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News
20 Dec 2022
Four-day working week set to stay at Atom bank
Challenger bank Atom has formalised a four-day working week policy after a successful trial Continue Reading
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News
20 Dec 2022
Government shuts ‘Help to Grow’ doorway for SMEs
The government’s Help to Grow: Digital scheme, which aimed to help small businesses access productivity-enhancing software, has been closed, to the disappointment of TechUK Continue Reading
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News
20 Dec 2022
Top 10 IR35 stories of 2022
The implementation of the UK government’s IR35 reforms has continued to generate headlines for Computer Weekly in 2022 Continue Reading
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Opinion
19 Dec 2022
Security Think Tank: 2022 brought plenty of learning opportunities in cyber
At the end of another busy 12 months, Turnkey Consulting’s Andrew Morris sums up some of the most important takeaways for cyber pros Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Dec 2022
Top 10 storage and backup customer stories of 2022
Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 storage and backup customer stories of 2022 Continue Reading
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News
16 Dec 2022
UK unis implement new IP traffic policies to combat ransomware
Jisc will introduce new measures to protect UK universities and research institutions from ransomware attacks that exploit the Remote Desktop Protocol remote-access feature Continue Reading
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News
15 Dec 2022
Digital Ethics Summit: Who benefits from new technology?
Experts at the 2022 Digital Ethics Summit say expedited development cycles and obviously over-hyped PR material, in tandem with the public’s near-total exclusion from conversations around technology, is creating distrust towards the tech sector Continue Reading
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News
15 Dec 2022
NCA officer questioned in Investigatory Powers Tribunal over failure to disclose EncroChat notes
EncroChat hacking warrant was unlawful and in breach of human rights law, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal hears Continue Reading
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News
14 Dec 2022
Criminal Cases Review Commission calls on more convicted subpostmasters to come forward
The Criminal Cases Review Commission wants more former subpostmasters to come forward if they think they were prosecuted by the Post Office based on data from the error-prone Horizon computer system Continue Reading
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News
14 Dec 2022
Advanced Azov data wiper likely to become active threat
Check Point deep dives into an emergent data wiper strain known as Azov, which is making waves with hundreds of new samples being submitted to VirusTotal daily Continue Reading
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News
14 Dec 2022
Ethical hackers flex their muscles in 2022
Ethical hackers working through HackerOne programmes found 21% more vulnerabilities in 2022 than in 2021 Continue Reading
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News
14 Dec 2022
Microsoft fixes two zero-days in final Patch Tuesday of 2022
December’s Patch Tuesday is typically a light month for Microsoft, and this year proved no exception, but there are still several critical issues worth addressing, and two zero-days for defenders to pore over Continue Reading
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News
14 Dec 2022
New cyber approaches ease Registers of Scotland’s AWS migration
As the holder of the oldest national public land register in the world, Registers of Scotland has a storied history dating back centuries. Find out how Palo Alto Networks is keeping its processes and data secure as it goes all-in on Amazon Web Services Continue Reading
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News
13 Dec 2022
Crime Stoppers Tasmania debuts new reporting portal
Reporting tool will enable the public to share crime-related information with law enforcement agencies to support policing in Tasmania Continue Reading
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News
13 Dec 2022
EU issues draft data adequacy decision in favour of US
The European Commission has concluded that the United States does ensure an adequate level of protection for personal data transferred from the European Union and will now launch the process towards the adoption of an adequacy decision Continue Reading
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News
13 Dec 2022
The nature of the CISO role will be in flux in 2023
As cyber risk outpaces organisational defences, and cyber attacks and breaches cause more and more damage, the nature of the CISO role is entering a state of flux, according to a report Continue Reading
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E-Zine
13 Dec 2022
AI experts question tech industry’s ethical commitments
In this week’s Computer Weekly, the proliferation of ethical frameworks has done little to change how artificial intelligence is developed – we look at the challenges. We examine the future of the UK semiconductor sector as the government launches a review. And we hear how NatWest has put data at the heart of customer strategy. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
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Opinion
13 Dec 2022
Onwards to 6G - the UK government's 'bold plan' for a connected Britain
The UK telecoms minister outlines the government's thinking on developing a digital infrastructure for the connected age Continue Reading
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News
12 Dec 2022
Cloud-based fingerprint system for UK police nears completion
Police Digital Service announces that a new cloud-based fingerprint system developed under its Transforming Forensics programme is nearly complete, but data protection concerns around the use of US-based cloud providers remain Continue Reading
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News
12 Dec 2022
IR35: HMRC claims ‘potential’ legislative change in pipeline to address settlement offset issue
HMRC claims work on a ‘potential legislative solution’ is underway to ensure it does not collect more tax than is due when end-user organisations are found to have made errors in determining the IR35 status of their contractors Continue Reading
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Opinion
12 Dec 2022
Security Think Tank: Embrace prioritisation, people, imperfections
Security and IT professionals should try to make peace with their imperfections in 2023, says Nominet CISO Paul Lewis Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2022
Labour unveils plans to make UK global startup hub
The Labour Party has published a review into the UK startup landscape, which calls for a number of changes to help make the country a more attractive place for startups Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2022
Iranian APT seen exploiting GitHub repository as C2 mechanism
A subgroup of the Iran-linked Cobalt Mirage APT group has been caught taking advantage of the GitHub open source project as a means to operate its latest custom malware Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2022
Online Safety Bill returns to Parliament
MPs and online safety experts have expressed concern about encryption-breaking measures contained in the Online Safety Bill as it returns to Parliament for the first time since its passage was paused in July Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2022
IT system limitations a factor in passport delays
Limitations in the UK’s passport office IT system led to delays in applicants receiving their documents during a recent period of high demand Continue Reading
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Opinion
09 Dec 2022
Security Think Tank: 2022 changed how we thought about resilience
Increasing cyber resilience is at the heart of the people-processes-technology triangle, and 2022 saw shifts in all three of these aspects, says PA Consulting’s Sharon Shochat Continue Reading
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News
08 Dec 2022
Apple to tap third party for physical security keys
Apple is launching a number of new security protections, including the addition of third-party-provided hardware security keys Continue Reading
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News
07 Dec 2022
Google, MS, Oracle vulnerabilities make November ’22 a big month for patching
Vulnerabilities affecting the likes of Google, Microsoft and Oracle proved particularly troublesome in November Continue Reading
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Opinion
07 Dec 2022
Security Think Tank: As cyber pros, we need to articulate our needs better
There is always a lot to learn about security, but one of the most important lessons may not relate to technology at all, says Petra Wenham Continue Reading
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News
07 Dec 2022
Post Office scandal – “cock-up or cook-up”?
The second phase of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal raised more questions over who did what, when and where, with shocking revelations at every turn Continue Reading
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News
06 Dec 2022
Legacy IT magnifies cyber risk for Defra, says NAO
Some 30% of Defra’s applications are currently unsupported, magnifying cyber risk as the government department struggles to make progress on a digital transformation programme Continue Reading
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News
06 Dec 2022
EU fails to protect human rights in surveillance tech transfers
Transfers of surveillance technology from the European Union to African governments are carried out without due regard for the human rights impacts, the European Ombudsman has found after a year-long investigation into the European Commission’s management of an aid fund Continue Reading
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News
06 Dec 2022
Don’t become an unwitting tool in Russia’s cyber war
Researchers have turned up evidence that enterprise networks are being co-opted by Russian threat actors to launch attacks against targets in Ukraine. How can you avoid becoming an unwitting tool in a state-backed attack? Continue Reading
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Podcast
06 Dec 2022
AWS mutes trash talk at Re:Invent – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast
The team chats through the AWS Re:Invent conference, as well as an initiative for getting young women into cyber security, and how SAP Build travelled from Vegas to SAP users in Birmingham Continue Reading
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News
02 Dec 2022
Civil servants want more digital skills training, survey finds
Civil servants are keen to learn more about how to use technology, including artificial intelligence (AI) to improve public services, yet only 5% have received AI training Continue Reading
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News
02 Dec 2022
Post Office boosted its ‘coffers’ as Horizon system threw up unexplained shortfalls, inquiry told
The Post Office was ‘keen’ to make subpostmasters cover unexplained accounting shortfall as its business struggled, public inquiry hears Continue Reading
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News
01 Dec 2022
MI6 chief’s hacked emails attacked MI5 and betrayed British spy operations in China
Former UK spy boss Richard Dearlove leaked names of MI6 secret agent recruiters in China to back an aggressive right-wing US campaign against tech company Huawei. His emails were hacked and then leaked – probably by Russian intelligence Continue Reading
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News
01 Dec 2022
Financial benefits of government’s shared services strategy remain unclear, says NAO
Cabinet Office needs to do more to avoid previous failings, as several barriers remain to a successful implementation of the strategy to deliver shared back-office services for government, according to National Audit Office report Continue Reading
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Opinion
01 Dec 2022
Electronic Trade Documents Bill: Why we need to seize the day with distributed ledger technologies
Lord Chris Holmes pens his views for Computer Weekly on how the Electronic Trade Documents Bill, which he calls ‘the most important law you’ve never heard of’, could be a game-changer for the potential of distributed ledger technologies such as blockchain Continue Reading
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Opinion
01 Dec 2022
Ransomware: Is there hope beyond the overhyped?
Up-and-coming cyber concepts attack surface management and security mesh architectures seem to hold some promise in tackling ransomware, but they are a little way off maturity Continue Reading
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News
30 Nov 2022
Microsoft 365 banned in German schools over privacy concerns
German schools cannot legally use Microsoft Office 365 over lack of clarity about how data is collected, shared and used, as well as the potential for unlawful transfer of European citizens’ personal data to the US Continue Reading
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News
30 Nov 2022
Subpostmaster federation deliberately kept public in dark over computer problems
The federation representing subpostmasters deliberately suppressed information about computer errors that could have saved its members from devastating life-changing events Continue Reading
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News
30 Nov 2022
Latest LockBit ransomware versions have wormable capabilities
Sophos researchers have reverse-engineered the Lockbit 3.0 ransomware, shedding new light on its evolving capabilities and firming up links with BlackMatter Continue Reading
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News
30 Nov 2022
NIS regulations to be extended to cover MSPs
The UK government is moving ahead with plans to update the Network and Information Systems regulations to bring outsourcers and MSPs into scope Continue Reading
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News
30 Nov 2022
Scotland launches national digital platform for health and care
The online platform aims to give people access to their health and social care data, as well as provide staff with access to data to inform decisions about care Continue Reading
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Opinion
30 Nov 2022
Think technology, process, human risk to manage ransomware
Effective ransomware handling boils down to three core areas – technology, process and human risk Continue Reading
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News
29 Nov 2022
MoD signs three-year deal with AWS to bolster defence sector’s digital skills
UK Ministry of Defence is joining forces with Amazon Web Services to boost the defence sector’s cloud capabilities Continue Reading
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News
29 Nov 2022
‘Legal but harmful’ clause dropped from Online Safety Bill
Online Safety Bill’s ‘legal but harmful’ provision will be dropped by the UK government in favour of public risk assessments, tools to help users control the content they consume, and new criminal offences around self-harm Continue Reading
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News
29 Nov 2022
Government needs to do more for UK semiconductor industry, say MPs
Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee report says the government is putting the UK chip industry at ‘significant risk’ by failing to support it sufficiently, and calls on Whitehall to publish its semiconductor strategy immediately Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Nov 2022
How gamifying cyber training can improve your defences
Security training is the cornerstone of any cyber defence strategy. With ever-escalating online threats, it is now more important than ever that this training is an engaging experience Continue Reading
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Opinion
28 Nov 2022
Protecting children as they spend years in virtual worlds
To protect children online, we must now focus on pre-emptive and robust regulation around immersive technologies Continue Reading
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News
25 Nov 2022
Data management, backup becoming the CISO's responsibility
More and more CISOs are taking on responsibility for wider data management strategies, and this trend looks set to grow next year Continue Reading
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News
25 Nov 2022
Wales launches beta version of its own NHS app
NHS Wales has begun trialling the beta version of its patient-facing app ahead of plans for a full launch next year Continue Reading