What a week: top stories you may have missed
Strap
By Computerworld reporters | Published 09:00, 20 July 07
Privacy and data sharing is the hot topic this week, as the government proposes a raft of legislation changes. One measure would see HM Revenue and Customs provide data to private enterprises. Elsewhere the police could gain access to congestion charge data to help track terrorists.
Meanwhile, a former spammer tells all on how he used all the tools at his disposal to foil spam filters.
Editor's highlights
Four must-read articles on Computerworld UK this week:
Police gain access to congestion charge data to foil terrorists.
Data laws loosened around number-plate images.
Confessions of a reformed spammer.
"Ed" built a fortune sending emails touting pills and casinos.
ITIL still not being measured.
Only 27% of IT managers have directly measured the ROI from ITIL.
Lean methods drive Heathrow Terminal 5 development.
British Airways cuts costs as it prepares for the opening of Terminal 5.
Readers' choice
Computer virus has 25th birthday.
The first computer virus to appear in the wild is 25 years old.
Spammers dump images, pump stocks with Adobe documents.
Sun targets Linux users with OpenSolaris binaries.
Sun lures Linux users with binaries for its OpenSolaris Unix platform.
Microsoft v Mozilla browser flaw war escalates.
Bug lets Internet Explorer attack Firefox, researchers say.
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"It would seem that at present IT is almost an afterthought in both the public and private sector. The very fact that IT costs were not factored into the Olympic budget underlines this. Few decision makers and business leaders recognise the value of an efficient, well-managed and properly funded IT infrastructure. This ignorance leads to poorly managed, unstructured IT projects that are doomed to failure, which in turn leads to a lack of faith in IT; a vicious circle..."
From: Government left IT costs out of Olympic bid budget
Digging deeper: Data privacy debate
Government threatens data sharing onslaught.
Gordon Brown puts more data sharing powers in draft legislation.
Opposition MPs warn on 'piecemeal' data protection changes.
MPs slam draft legislation after Brown proposes new data sharing laws.
Lib Dems want 'full and public debate' on government data policy.
Clegg calls for open discussion on information sharing.
Digging deeper: Telecoms watch
Many firms 'unaware of Ofcom 0870 deadline'.
Nearly one in three still clueless.
UK broadband is 'too slow and expensive'.
UK customers pay more for a poor service.
Digging deeper: NHS dealings
UK broadband is 'too slow and expensive'.
Department of Health failed in duty to taxpayer, says PAC.
NHS Choose and Book system fails to meet half target uptake.
Flagship government policy for NHS IT still in trouble.
Digging deeper: Security watch
Spying scandal uncovers first phone switch rootkit.
Prime ministers, politicians and business leaders all hacked.
Government and contractors hit in targeted attack.
Criminals culled 200Mb information from about 500 computers.
Hacking extortionist resurfaces.
Ransom note claims blackmailer has personal data.
White papers
Make sure you know what your colleagues are reading. Get the most
downloaded white papers from Computerworld UK this week.
How SYSPRO Leverages a Lean Manufacturing Model to Enhance Profitability.
Strategies for Simplifying .NET Application Deployment.
Wireless Technology Vital to Increased Business Productivity.
