Computerworld UK Public Sector

A stinky onion blooms in the Senate, say H-1B critics

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Patrick Thibodeau) — Wed, 22 May 2013 19:18:00 GMT

With the H-1B fight over and lost, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) lashed out, almost flailing in the minutes before the Senate Judiciary Committee's final vote Tuesday.

Hospitals deploy cloud-based Radiology Information System with Accenture

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Derek du Preez) — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:20:00 GMT

Accenture has completed the deployment of a cloud-based Radiology Information System (RIS) for five hospitals and 23 facilities within the NHS in Southwest England.

Miliband calls for G8 intervention on international tax reform for internet giants

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Derek du Preez) — Wed, 22 May 2013 12:02:00 GMT

Ed Miliband has called on the government to address international tax reforms at next month’s G8 summit, in the light of a number of internet giants being criticised for tax avoidance.

Apple defends offshore decisions that result in low taxes

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Grant Gross) — Wed, 22 May 2013 09:14:00 GMT

Apple pays a fair share of the taxes it owes the U.S. and other nations, its CEO said Tuesday, despite criticism from U.S. senators that the company is ducking taxes by shifting profits to subsidiaries that the company does not consider tax residents of any nation.

US power companies under frequent cyberattack

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Jeremy Kirk) — Wed, 22 May 2013 08:33:00 GMT

A survey of U.S. utilities shows many are facing frequent cyberattacks that could threaten a highly interdependent power grid supplying more than 300 million people, according to a congressional report.

Amazon Web Services gets FedRAMP certification for US government cloud use

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Mikael Ricknäs) — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:55:00 GMT

Amazon Web Services has finally received certification under the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program, which the company said will lower the cost of implementing its cloud services among government organizations and agencies in the U.S.

EU investigation could affect business from China's 4G deployment

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Michael Kan) — Tue, 21 May 2013 09:56:00 GMT

The European Union may be trying to protect its telecom equipment industry with its recent threat to investigate China over networking equipment imports. But the move could end up hurting the chances of Western vendors intent on supplying technology to China's upcoming 4G services launch, according to analysts.

US Defense Department approves Apple's iOS devices for its networks

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (John Ribeiro) — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:26:00 GMT

Devices built around Apple's iOS operating system have been approved by the U.S. Department of Defense for use on its networks, as the department moves to support multivendor mobile devices and operating systems.

T-Mobile drops challenge to FCC's net neutrality rules

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Grant Gross) — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:03:00 GMT

T-Mobile USA has dropped a pending challenge to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality rules.

Texas drone bill sparks a battle

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Jaikumar Vijayan) — Fri, 17 May 2013 19:26:00 GMT

The battle to find a balance between privacy concerns and the beneficial use of drones for commercial and law enforcement purposes is in sharp focus in a bill that's winding its way through the Texas legislature.

H-1B politics shifts to backroom as vote nears

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Patrick Thibodeau) — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:39:00 GMT

High-tech industry's leading advocate in the immigration bill fight, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), has bought himself some time, perhaps until Tuesday, to try get the immigration bill changed to the liking of the tech industry.

ODI urges government to be 'bold' on open data for business

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Antony Savvas) — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:03:00 GMT

The Open Data Institute (ODI) has welcomed the findings of Stephan Shakespeare in his Independent Review of Public Sector Information, and has called on the government to drive them forward, by "turning recommendations into real progress".

US senators begin contentious H-1B battle

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Patrick Thibodeau) — Wed, 15 May 2013 09:10:00 GMT

The Senate Judiciary Committee rejected the idea on Tuesday of requiring all H-1B employers to make a "good faith" effort in hiring U.S. workers before taking on an H-1b worker.

Tech may sink immigration bill if unhappy, Sen. Hatch warns

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Patrick Thibodeau) — Tue, 14 May 2013 18:34:00 GMT

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday began debate on more than 300 amendments to the comprehensive immigration bill, including a number of changes to sections on H-1B visas.

First California lawsuit over mobile privacy issues crashes

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Jaikumar Vijayan) — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:03:00 GMT

A California state court has dismissed a closely watched lawsuit charging that Delta Air Lines failed to comply with state privacy laws for mobile applications

Lottery Fund donates £15m to help tackle digital divide

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Antony Savvas) — Fri, 10 May 2013 23:05:00 GMT

The Big Lottery Fund (BIG) is donating £15 million to help tackle the digital divide through charity Go ON UK. The cash will help build skills that people and organisations need in order to take full advantage of support and services available online.

Coding and technology essential for an educated youth, says Gove

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Derek du Preez) — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:59:00 GMT

Education secretary Michael Gove has said that in order for future generations to call themselves educated, they will need to be able to code, as well as understand and influence technology.

3D-printable gun maker ordered to take down blueprints

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Lucas Mearian) — Thu, 09 May 2013 21:26:00 GMT

U.S. Department of Defense Trade Controls has apparently ordered Defense Distributed to removed the blueprints for a 3D printable gun from its website.

Hackathon shows how public sector data can be used for community apps

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Antony Savvas) — Thu, 09 May 2013 14:07:00 GMT

Google in east London hosted a two day "hackathon" last month to help demonstrate how open public sector data can be used to build apps for local communities.

£1bn of transactions go through public sector e-procurement platform

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Antony Savvas) — Thu, 09 May 2013 11:06:00 GMT

The UK public sector has now placed £1 billion of transactions through its e-procurement platform supplied by Procserve over the last five years, with 46 percent of deals completed in the last 12 months.

Syria 'disappears' from the Internet, security firm says

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (James Niccolai) — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:32:00 GMT

Internet traffic to and from Syria, which is in the midst of a civil war, appears to have dried up.

Proposed U.S. law aims to counter cybertheft with import bans

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (John Ribeiro) — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:29:00 GMT

A bill proposed in the U.S. Senate aims to block imports of products containing U.S. technology stolen online, a move that appears primarily directed at China.

HIPAA rules, outdated tech cost U.S. hospitals $8.3B a year

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Lucas Mearian) — Tue, 07 May 2013 08:41:00 GMT

HIPAA, along with outmoded communications technology, reduces the time available for patient care, according to a new survey of healthcare professionals

Florida restricts use of drones by law enforcement officials

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Jaikumar Vijayan) — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:09:00 GMT

A new Florida law restricts the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, by state law enforcement officials. It's the first law of its kind in the country.

U.S. IT services providers heartened by Senate immigration bill

cwukfeedback@idg.co.uk (Patrick Thibodeau) — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:09:00 GMT

Domestic IT services providers say the U.S. Senate's immigration bill could benefit them by raising the costs of their competitors that are based overseas.