Author Archives: Simon
SafeNet Acquires British Cloud Authentication Firm Crytocard
The “Magic Quadrant for User Authentication” report produced by Gartner predicts that by 2017 the number of organisations using Cloud based services as delivery options for refreshed user authentication will increase by 40%. It is an exciting time for the industry as is apparent from the recent SafeNet acquisition of British firm Cryptocard. In 2008 the company previously acquired Ingrian Networks. Then in 2009 the company acquired Aladdin Knowledge Systems. …
Cyberterrorism – Are You At Risk?
The energy sector is a sitting duck when it comes to cyberattacks; don’t let your business be caught in the same pond. According to Ludolf Luehmann, IT manager at Shell Europe, the petroleum industry needs to be concerned about the growing risk of sophisticated hacker attacks One of the most recent sources of concern is the Stuxnet computer worm, a powerful new virus that was launched in March or April …
Loose Data Affecting Student Career Prospects
Students are not facing the most prosperous times with regards to career prospects but recent data suggests that many are concerned about data they post online affecting their chances of getting a job. In fact of the 500 students surveyed in a study conducted by ICO, 42% expressed concern that personal data hanging around online may affect whether companies would take them on. Christopher Graham, Information Commissioner stated “In touch …
Roaming Security Issues
Workers today are roaming all over the place and using a huge number of devices which includes tablets, smart phones, netbooks and laptops. “We cease to respect the boundaries of a single machine,” according to SAP’s head of product architecture and technology strategy, Sethu Meenakshisundaram. The days where desktops were static with a data centre residing in the background running all applications, protected by a firewall are behind us. Data …
Server Sales flying with cloud Buzz
The Cloud Computing movement is thought to lead to huge growth in server sales over the next few years. According to IT analyst IDC sales will surge to $9.4 billion over the next four years. By 2015 it has been estimated that 1.2 million systems will be deployed, underpinning Public Cloud deployments. That is a compound annual growth rate of 21%. Furthermore there will be 570,000 servers which will be …
The Medical Cloud
A new Cloud base platform has just been launched by the NHS in order to allow secure access to medical records. The idea is to speed up communication between patients, consultants and general practitioners through accessing files through the internet. Patients will have the ability to view their data via a number of devices and control exactly who has access to their records. Furthermore they can request to have their …
Can the UK become to Cloud Computing what Switzerland became to banking? (Part 2)
This is the second part of a two part series. Part 1: Can the UK become to Cloud Computing what Switzerland became to banking? (Part 1) In the first part of this blog, I summised that the adoption of Cloud services was being dramatically slowed by a cultural reluctance to entrust personal or corporate data into the hands of unknown providers, particularly if those providers are located in a geographically …
Can the UK become to Cloud Computing what Switzerland became to banking? (Part 1)
The current hype surrounding Cloud Computing extols the virtues of having access to your data, at anytime from anywhere. So the theory of Cloud Computing goes, it doesn’t matter where your data is stored so long as you have continuous access to your applications and documents. This view of the Public Cloud does not take into consideration some fundamental technical and cultural concerns around data security and data protection. One …
Are ICT suppliers feeling the Age of Austerity chill?
With the Age of Austerity now well underway and the first twinges of cutback pain being felt, how are the ICT providers to the public sector faring? The Coalition has made much of the efforts by Francis Maude and the Cabinet Office to rein in existing contracts and the ‘put up or shut up’ approach to securing better deals for the taxpayer. But are the boom times really over for …
Time for change in Government IT
The government says it is seeking significant savings on IT spending as part of the Coalitions overall cost cutting measures To achieve this, a radical new perspective on implementing Government IT systems will be needed according to the Institute of Government. The IoG say that the government’s handling of IT is locked in a “vicious circle of costs and failures” and moves at a “glacial” pace, according to a report. …
