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Autumn 2014 Issue 47 |
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GLOBE: UN
Adopts Resolution on Bridging Digital Divide The UN General Assembly today adopted a draft resolution that
aims at using information and communications technologies for development, a
significant victory for developing countries, led by With regard to the resolution, India stressed that it should
focus firmly on using information and communications technologies for
development and bridging the digital divide and not be hijacked by concerns
over snooping and electronic surveillance. In his explanation of the vote on
the resolution, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Asoke
Mukerji said adoption of the resolution is a "win-win solution" for
all and is a "welcome tiding" for all multilateral negotiation
processes at the United Nations as it succeeded in traversing "seemingly
unbridgeable positions to the eventual solution" after a "long
drawn period of protracted negotiations" spanning nearly six months.
"Most importantly, it retains the focus firmly, on using ICT's for development
and bridging the digital divide," he said. "We have been able to
secure the centrality and supremacy of the UN General Assembly in this
process, the review has been mandated as an 'intergovernmental negotiation
process' which takes into account inputs from member states, observer states,
observers and all relevant WSIS stakeholders." "We were supposed to find the way out on five things in
this resolution: timing, structure, format, participation and outcome of the
overall review. The draft that completed silence procedure successfully is an
ample testimony on the best way forward on all these five counts,"
Mukerji said. The overall review, while respecting the mandate of the Tunis
Agenda, will address the new challenges that have emerged since 2005, with an
emphasis on using ICT's for development. Further, the centrality of the UN
General Assembly to this process, as the only mandated body to conduct the
overall review, has also been affirmed. The Tunis Agenda was a WSIS consensus
statement adopted in November The resolution decided that the overall review will be concluded
in December 2015 by a two-day General Assembly high-level meeting to be
preceded by an inter-governmental preparatory process that also takes into
account inputs from all relevant stakeholders of WSIS. The intergovernmental
negotiation process would begin in June 2015 and lead to an
inter-governmentally agreed outcome document for adoption at the UNGA meeting.
The process retains the ownership of the preparatory meetings and the final
outcome document with member states alone. Mukerji said the resolution
ensures that leaders, "at the highest possible level" will meet at
the high-level plenary meeting in December next year to adopt the outcome of
the intergovernmental negotiations. The resolution was adopted with members reaffirming that
science, innovation and technology, including information and communications
technologies, are essential enablers and drivers for the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals and the promotion of the economic, social and
environmental components of sustainable development and should be given due
consideration in the elaboration of the post-2015 development agenda. Mukerji
assured From
http://www.outlookindia.com/
Many of “With
Deloitte Private Connect we have positively embraced the disruption to the
accounting and tax profession on account of cloud technologies and created an
offering that transforms the way business owners experience accounting
services.” Hill says Connect combines shared ledger accounting, automated
bookkeeping and benchmarking, an online portal and dashboard as well as many
other digital technologies, “to redefine the way our private clients work
with us, in real time, on any device. Every business owner dreams of spending
less time in the business and more time on the business. Less time on
day-to-day transactions, paying staff and suppliers and scrambling to balance
the books. More time on the bigger picture and the things that helped them succeed in the first place. Until now, that's been
easier said than done. Deloitte Private Connect is changing all that.” Two apps are
core to the Connect solution: • Transact
automates bookkeeping. Invoices are digitally scanned and authorised for
online payment while business owners digitally sign tax returns, approve BAS
statements and year end accounts, raise queries and store documents securely
online • Analyser
enables business owners to access live financial reports and business
analytics, including profitability, cash flow, growth and trend analysis. Key
performance indicators can be customised, live ‘what-if’ analysis performed
and alerts set up to keep on top of the metrics that matter. From http://www.itwire.com
CANADA: The
Three V’s of Big Data – And the Security Risks That Come with IT We’ve been hearing the phrase “big data” being tossed around
among companies, industries, and organizations for some time now – but what
does it really mean? For Jerrard Gaertner, president of the Canadian
Information Processing Society, big data presents a lot of potential for
businesses, the public sector, and all kinds of industries – but any work
with big data needs to be done with data security in mind. While he teaches
courses on this topic at So what is big data? For Gaertner, he characterizes it as having
at least three V’s: - Volume This is huge amounts of data – not just gigabytes or terabytes,
but potentially petabytes or exabytes. - Variety Big data includes a variety of data, which aren’t just housed
within Excel files or Word documents. This can include every file format out
there, Gaertner said. - and Velocity. “Most big data installations – you can’t necessarily control how
quickly the data comes in,” he said. For example, he mentioned how many
companies have marketing departments that do sentiment analysis, meaning they
analyze tweets on Twitter, posts on Facebook, or other areas of social media
to figure out how a new product is performing in the marketplace and how
people feel about it. However, given this is social media and Twitter users
alone can create as many as 5,000 tweets a second, those seeking to harness
big data can’t control how much data is coming in, nor how quickly, Gaertner
said. Given how so many businesses and industries want to tap into big data
and the insights it can bring, it’s not surprising people are eager to just
upload their data and start using open source software from frameworks like
Apache Hadoop. Still, Gaertner told the audience of security professionals this
is where security and risk management come in. He named a number of factors
that need to go into a strong, effective implementation of big data, such as
creating appropriate research facilities, using relevant data sources,
ensuring the hardware used has the capacity to process the data, using the
right software and analytics tools, training staff in proper procedures – the
list goes on. However, a large chunk of that list requires security
professionals to lend a hand, and people can’t just be left alone to play
with big data without safeguards and controls, he said. “Does the [chief
security officer] or privacy officer know you’ve dumped all the information
you own into a bucket and you’re playing with it?” Gaertner said, adding one
of the biggest risks with big data is putting all of an organization’s data
in one place, or all of its eggs in one basket. He added security professionals also need to ask about the
“provenance” of the data, or where it came from. After all, there are
business risks, ethical risks, and privacy risks to using data from just
anywhere and not adequately protecting it. And of course, one of the most
important pieces of security in any organization is to ensure employees are
well-trained and educated in understanding the risks, especially when it
comes to big data. That’s even more important than relying upon the tools and
layers of defense set up to protect an organization’s data. “You’re all
security professionals,” Gaertner said to the room. “You know – never rely on
the technology. It’s people, people, people.” From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
Cyber security is the most important issue that China has to
address in developing its new media, according to a report released Wednesday
by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.After the whistleblowing of former
U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, the think tank
believes that cyber security is relevant to a country's political and cultural
safety, more than just information security.The United States is the world's
sole power to adopt an offensive strategy in the cyber world, while China and
Russia can only resort to a defensive strategy, meaning the defense of their
cyber space will become a strategic priority, according to the report.The
think tank advised Chinese authorities to raise their capacities in
self-defense and formulate an effective defensive strategy. From http://www.news.cn/
Three Indonesian cities, Sleman, Bantul and From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The government will urge companies to ensure thorough management
of information in the wake of massive leaks of customer data at major
education service provider Benesse Corp., Economy, Trade and Industry
Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Friday. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry will send related documents on Monday to the Japan Business
Federation—the largest Japanese business lobby, known as Keidanren—and other
organizations, in order to ask companies to take measures necessary to
enhance their information control systems. Motegi said at a press conference
he thinks that the data leak scandal at Benesse occurred as there were
problems with many people concerned, including those in charge of managing
internal personal information. The minister suggested that companies need to
fully check whether personal data they received from third parties, such as
name list brokers, have been obtained legally. In a related development, the
ministry decided to revise the guidelines on the law protecting personal
information by the end of September. In the high-profile data leak case, a
male system engineer was arrested and indicted for allegedly stealing
personal data on a large number of Benesse customers in violation of the
Unfair Competition Prevention Law. From
http://the-japan-news.com
Participants in the public service session agreed that we are in
need of innovation in public services in order to improve the quality of life
of the people, wherever they are. During the e-government session, attendees
agreed that innovation in e-government would improve the efficiency and
transparency of government. For this, technological advances and the active
participation of citizens must come first. Also, in a modern society, an
e-government should focus more on creating value instead of looking at simply
reducing expenses. The four-day forum wrapped up with the adoption of the
Seoul Joint Communiqué. It stated that, "The innovation plan should
center around citizens. They should be allowed to
participate in the whole process of designing, developing policies and
providing services. "Civil participation can be a useful tool to improve
regional development from both the functional aspect and democratic aspect. From
http://www.korea.net
The New
Zealand Government will be presenting its Open Government Partnership (OGP)
Action Plan in July, Internal Affairs Minister, Peter Dunne has announced.
The action plan will be built around improving public services, increasing
public integrity, more effectively management public resources and creating
safer communities. OGP is an international partnership of 64 countries
committed to making their governments more open accountable and responsive to
citizens. The Government is committed to building greater transparency in
public services, the Minister highlighted. Citizens can monitor the progress
of public service reform programmes, such as the Better Public Services (BPS)
programme for which progress reports are made available by the State Services
Commission. “New Zealanders can judge for themselves how the Government is
performing across the ten results areas [of the BPS programme]. Regularly
communicating progress helps to engage citizens and businesses in the
Government’s programme and provides a platform for greater citizen
participation,” Dunne said. The New
Zealand Public Service is also engaging more with citizens in service design,
using data more effectively to target interventions, joining forces to
achieve results and shifting funding across traditional boundaries to change
the way services are delivered. From http://www.futuregov.asia
The Singapore Government has awarded a S$26.5 million (US$21
million) contract to Accenture to develop a national case management and
information system that will coordinate the delivery of social services to
individuals and families in need. Implementation of the system, called the
Social Service Net (SSNet), will start in the third quarter of 2015, the
Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and Infocomm Development
Authority of Singapore announced. The SSNet will allow service providers to
manage and share information about individual cases, and also host assessment
tools. Safeguards will be put in place to ensure that information is shared
on a needs basis and used responsibly, according to the MSF. Chan Chun Sing
(pictured), Minister for MSF, said: “Even after it is developed, it will take
time for help agencies – from voluntary welfare organisations as well as the
government - to transit to the new system. We will provide the necessary
support, and work closely with all partners to ensure a smooth transition.” From
http://www.futuregov.asia
Agencies such as DoD are adopting social business, digital
technologies, and open standards in surprising ways. Organizations of all
sizes and verticals, from Fortune 500 conglomerates to government agencies,
are enjoying the productivity of enterprise social networking and open-source
software. I know many readers will be surprised that I included
"government agencies" in the previous sentence. However, swift
changes are taking place as that sector adapts to the collaboration benefits
of social business tools. In fact, government agencies are adopting social
business, digital technologies, and open standards in some surprising ways. For example, take a look at the Defense Department's All
Partners Access Network (APAN), formerly known as the Asia Pacific Area
Network. Hosted by US Pacific Command, the APAN community is the premier unclassified
information sharing and collaboration enterprise for the United States
Department of Defense (DoD). APAN provides the DoD and its mission partners
with community spaces and collaborative tools to help them plan, train, and
respond to business requirements and mission objectives. APAN makes these
tools available over the open Internet, so individuals and organizations that
do not have access to traditional DoD systems and networks can participate in
information sharing and collaborative events. More specifically, during the Government agencies can also benefit from more traditional
collaboration tools, such as email and, more specifically, open-source email.
Open-source email offers increased security and hosted data features to meet
government agencies' unique security needs. However, there is a myth surrounding
open-source that such solutions are not secure. This is simply not true. On
the contrary, the thousands of developers that participate in the software
review and issue-resolution process make sure that open-source solutions are
more secure than various other options. Furthermore, many government agencies
often will not implement a piece of software in a security-critical
environment if the agency itself cannot examine the source code for flaws.
That is where open-source software excels -- its transparent development
allows businesses to investigate and test security for themselves. Open-source email is especially attractive to government
agencies due to the fact that they can adjust the system to fit their unique
security nuances, including those related to location-based privacy and
compliance concerns. Furthermore, government organizations can add layers of
encryption to their open-source email systems through integrations with a
variety of third-party antivirus and encryption solutions. For example, the
Peruvian government has a policy that agencies must use open-source software
in order to increase security, privacy, and encryption levels for sensitive
and confidential information. This led one government agency to turn to
open-source email, recognizing that it drives rapid innovation and allows for
integration with a variety of anti-spam, antivirus, and encryption solutions.
Have you seen other examples of government agencies and organizations
embracing social technology and open-source solutions? If so, please add them
in the comments section. From
http://www.informationweek.com/
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African
Internet Governance Forum Concludes on Policies to Enable Internet Access Over 470 participants drawn from the government, private sector,
academia, research institutions, technical committee, civil society
organisations, media, and other stakeholders from over 41 countries attended
the 3 rd African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) held on 10 to 12 July "The mobile-broadband penetration in Africa reaches close
to 20 percent in 2014, up from 2 percent in 2010 and although all regions
continue to show double-digit growth rates in mobile broadband penetration,
Africa stands out with a growth rate of over 40 percent - twice as high as
the global average." She said that the key to making Internet Governance
a success at both the sub-regional and regional levels is facilitating
ownership and active participation at the national level. "National
internet Governance foras on represent a critical foundation for expanding
Internet access in our respective countries," she added. Omobola
Johnson, Nigerian Minister for Communication Technology of the stressed the
catalytic effect of the internet in such sectors as finance and health.
"In "Key to these linkages is the availability and use of ICTs
between patients, health works and health specialists; the impact has been
better maternal and infant healthcare, safer deliveries and reductions in
maternal and infant mortality. This, she stressed, is a notable achievement
for a State that was ranked by the World Bank in 2008 as having the highest
maternal deaths in South West Nigeria. In other developments, Ms. Denton
reported that a follow-up Summit held in October Several recommendations ensued on policies to enable internet
access; Content creation, dissemination and use to educate the public towards
innovation and creativity in content development; Internet as engine, growth
and development and the need for policies that drive affordability of the
internet and encourage broadband access policy; on the IGF and the Future of
the Internet Ecosystem and the need to enhance the multistakeholder
cooperation within the AfIGF to increase the participation of all
stakeholders in the transition of IANA functions; Enhancing Digital Trust;
the need to encourage and respect Human Rights online as well as offline; the
need for countries to migrate from IPv4 to IPv6; and encourage the
implementation and management of dotAfrica, among others. From
http://allafrica.com/
Brief background After the EU Court of Justice ruling requiring search engines to
comply with ‘take down’ requests from individuals, Google has been trying to
comply with the more than 90,000 requests it has received. It has removed
approximately half of these so far from its European searches. It’s been a
struggle since the ruling: how to decide who and what should have a right to
be taken down, how to identify the person requesting the take down, the sheer
numbers of requests, etc. And companies, newspapers, journalists and other
media outlets have been openly against this ‘take down’ move as their
articles are no longer appearing in search engine searches. ‘Right to be removed’ causes flood of requests First, after going through the massive task of removal requests
that Google managed, there was widespread criticism about the links Google
removed. So they reinstated some of the links. The search engines have
continued to struggle to balance the need for transparency with the need to
protect people’s identities. They are dealing with a difficult process thanks
to the vague EU Court of Justice ruling. But still the EU regulators are not
happy. EU regulators unhappy with Google Google had included a notice on search results pages where links
were removed alerting people when stories or information was removed.
Regulators and data protection groups were not happy with this so, instead,
Google’s European search results now show a message on nearly every search on
a ‘name’ that results ‘might’ have been removed. Google also did the right
thing and alerted websites and businesses that the links were being removed.
This, in some instances, ironically resulted in more publications writing
about it and brought it back into the public eye. So, job well done, EU courts. The EU wants to set regulation worldwide The EU summonsed representatives from Google, Yahoo and
Microsoft to argue that the removals should be global and not just in If they also block sites from being informed, this would seem to
go against basic transparency principles and websites will be left wondering
what happened to their articles that are now no longer available in Google
searches around the world. The issue and problem is still with the original
EU ruling: that people should have the right to require removal of
embarrassing, criminal, political or otherwise historical information they
are not proud of on the internet. The result of the privacy groups, data
protection groups and regulators in the EU pushing may well result in Google
ending up in European courts faced with legal action by member EU countries
for many years to come. We can only hope it stays there. From
http://www.startupsmart.com.au/
Regulating
the Web: Does the Internet Need Its Own Bill of Rights? Does the internet need its own bill of rights? It's not the first time that Rodotà, a well-known and respected
figure who served for many years as member of the European Parliament, was
involved in a similar project: back in 2006 he was among the first to propose
a 'constitution for the internet', but time was not ripe for its adoption.
The committee's introductory session also defined a series of topics to work
on, including internet access as a universal right; net neutrality; freedom
of information; the need to find a balance between transparency, the rule of
law and privacy; protecting users against the misuse of their data by online
companies; and digital literacy. The committee's finished proposals will be
presented at an interparliamentary "meeting of fundamental rights"
organised by the EU presidency in Rome in October, and will also be subject
to public consultation in Italy on the Civi.ci platform, where the work of
the country's Commission on Constitutional Reforms is published. The initiative was promoted by Chamber of Deputies' president,
Laura Boldrini. "The internet — it's an essential bridge to access
knowledge and relationships. But it needs rules. Rules don't limit liberty,
but they are needed to guarantee it. The constitutional approach to rules is
fundamental to guarantee that those rules are written to be just," she
said. The idea of regulating the internet has always been controversial, as
it might seem difficult to draw a clear line between establishing a set of
rules and limiting freedom of expression and access to knowledge. Boldrini
herself, shortly after being elected as president of the chamber, was accused
of trying to censor the web, when, in 2013, after receiving insults and
physical threats on blogs and social networks, she invoked measures to
"stop the internet anarchy". However, the bill of rights has
nothing to do with censorship, she maintains — as does Rodotà, who also dismisses
the widespread idea that the internet, as it currently stands, is not
regulated. "The internet is full of laws," he said.
"Actually, we are used to accept and sign many 'terms of service' that
are very binding and that put an enormous power into service providers'
hands." The question therefore is not whether the internet is regulated
or not, but who does the regulating, he said. Some recent developments — from
the European Court of Justice ruling that introduced the so-called 'right to
be forgotten', to the Italian data protection authority's decision that
Google should change the way it collects, handles, and stores users' data
seem to hint at the fact that legislators are beginning to step in, in Europe
at least, in what used to be a space where companies were largely free to set
their own rules. Time, however, is short, just a little more than two months'
work, before the meeting in From
http://www.zdnet.com/
Russian
Internet Freedom in Doubt as Putin Signs New Laws Targeting Facebook, Twitter Russian President Vladimir Putin has authorized a new law that
forces Internet companies conducting business in the country's borders to
store Russian citizens’ data there, further tightening the government’s grip
on Russians' online activity. The Russian Duma (the national legislature)
passed the bill upon its first reading earlier this month. Putin’s signature
on the law now means that popular U.S.-based companies like Twitter, Google
and Facebook will need to establish data centers in In June the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) also forced
companies to encrypt the personal data of their customers using algorithms
developed in From
http://www.ibtimes.com/
LATIN AMERICA: From
http://www.telecompaper.com/
NORTH
AMERICA: Among the organizations that are great generators of paper,
arguably governments rank in the top three. So it was no surprise that the B.C.
information and privacy commissioner has discovered 33,000 boxes of records
are sitting in storage waiting to be properly archived — and growing at 3,000
boxes a year. The main problem, Elizabeth Denham said in a report issued
Thursday, is that in 2003 when the B.C. archives became part of the Royal
British Columbia Museum a chargeback system was created for archiving records
— $ The report notes that Finally, the commissioner’s report recommends modernizing the
current legislative framework. “The Document Disposal Act was designed in
1936 and is not capable of addressing 21st-century records management. From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
The district also reveals plans to hire its first chief data
officer to direct transparency efforts. On Monday, July 21, Washington, D.C.,
unveiled two major plans for it’s open data strategy, the first being the
launch of a new Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) processing system, and the
second are its plans to hire a chief data officer to oversee an open data
policy and portal. Mayor Vincent Gray made the announcements simultaneously
through mayor.dc.gov, his official Web page, and via Twitter later in the
day. According to the city release, the “DC Government Public FOIA Portal,”
the official moniker for the system, allows claims for public records to be
submitted and received in one centralized hub for 50 city agencies, and will
include plans for additional agencies to be added later. Requestors can track
the status of submissions, read recent FOIA released documents, and staff can
monitor how timely FOIA requests are answered. Current regulations require
staff to respond to each request within a minimum of 15 business days. The
portal's vendor, FOIAXpress, was credited by the city for its “effective use”
by federal agencies such as the General Services Administration and the
departments of Justice and Homeland Security. The city also cited the Board
of Ethics and Government Accountability’s Office of Open Government as a
consultant for the purchase. CHIEF DATA OFFICER & OPEN DATA POLICY Equally notable, if not more so, is the city’s plans to adopt an
open data policy that calls for the hire of a chief data officer and
construction of a citywide open data portal. The portal is scheduled to launch
within 30 days, and the order requires agencies to publish data sets on a
regular basis that fall into 15 different categories on such topics as
budgetary information, city correspondence, employee salary records,
administrative procedures and commonly requested FOIA documents. Linked with
the information release, the open data policy requires department data to be
published in an open format -- meaning it can be easily downloaded, searched
and retrieved by common Web applications. While an exact date hasn’t been set
to hire a chief data officer, who will collaborate with departments on the
transparency initiatives, it’s likely a hire may be announced soon as plans
already are underway for agencies to report on open data efforts by Oct. 1.
“The executive order I am issuing today sends an important message to
District government agencies and the public: Everyone wins when we make it
easier for the public to understand the workings of the District government,”
Gray said, adding that he's eager to see how civic developers use open data
for city apps. From
http://www.govtech.com/
US Set to
Pass Phone Unlocking Bill CTIA gives muted response to new legislation; Competitive Carriers
Association applauds move. The U.S. House of Representatives has voted
unanimously in favour of a new law that will make it easier for consumers to
unlock their phones and connect to other mobile networks. Crafted by
congressmen Bob Goodlatte and Patrick Leahy, the Unlocking Consumer Choice
and Wireless Competition Act was approved by the Senate on 15 July, and will
now pass to the White House where it will be signed into law. "The bill
Congress passed today is another step toward giving ordinary Americans more
flexibility and choice, so that they can find a cell phone carrier that meets
their needs and their budget," said President Barack Obama, in a
statement late last week. In 2012 the Copyright Office declared that
unlocking phones violated software copyrights protected under the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act. As a result, customers were not permitted to unlock
their device without their operator's permission. The Unlocking Consumer
Choice and Wireless Competition Act was introduced
after a petition opposing the Copyright Office's decision garnered more than
114,000 signatures. "This law will protect consumer choice by allowing
flexibility when it comes to choosing a wireless carrier. This is something
that Americans have been asking for and I am pleased that we were able to
work together to ensure the swift passage of legislation," said
Goodlatte, in a statement. "The bipartisan Unlocking Consumer Choice and
Wireless Competition Act puts consumers first, promotes competition in the
wireless phone marketplace, and encourages continued use of existing
devices," added Leahy. The new law's approval elicited a more muted
response from CTIA, which represents the interests of the "It is important to note that CTIA's members already
committed to a set of voluntary principles that enable consumers interested
in unlocking their devices to do so. Nonetheless, we greatly appreciate the
care that chairmen Leahy and Goodlatte took in crafting their legislation and
avoiding the imposition of any new regulatory obligations on wireless
providers," he said. While the big four do offer to unlock devices, it
is worth noting that each one has its own set of seemingly piecemeal rules
that limit the practice to particular circumstances. he
Competitive Carriers Association (CCA), which lobbies for smaller players,
was much more upbeat than CTIA. "All consumers, no matter where they
live, work or travel, should have the ability to take the device of their
choosing to the carrier that best meets their needs and desires," said
CCA chief executive Steven Berry, in a statement. "I thank Congress for
working on this important consumer issue and taking this last step to send a
bill to the president's desk." From
http://www.totaltele.com/
House Passes
Three Cyber Bills The House of Representatives passed three bills on July 28
designed to protect U.S. critical infrastructure against hacking by boosting
information sharing, advancing cyber technologies and improving the
Department of Homeland Security's cybersecurity workforce. One measure, by
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas), would
codify and enhance DHS's National Cybersecurity and The House also passed a bill by Patrick Meehan (R-Pa.) that
would direct the DHS secretary to submit to Congress a plan for research and
development of cybersecurity and physical security technologies. According to
a Congressional Research Service summary, the legislation would also have the
secretary report on DHS's use of public-private research consortiums to
develop technologies for critical infrastructure protection. The third bill,
by New York Democrat Yvette Clarke, would require the DHS secretary to
develop classifications for cyber expertise used in the department and make
those classifications available to other federal agencies, according to a CRS
summary. While the first two measures were approved by voice vote, this bill
was put to a recorded vote. It passed, 395-8. The Senate is considering a
related bill that would authorize DHS to pay cyber experts more and retain
them with bonuses, which the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Committee approved in May. From
http://fcw.com/articles/
ITU, ETSI Align ICT Environmental Impact Standards The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and European
Telecommunication Standardisation Institute (ETSI) have agreed a standardised
way to assess the direct environmental impact of ICT goods, networks and
services, as well as their indirect impact on greenhouse gas emissions of
non-ICT industry sectors. The jointly developed specification has been
created in acknowledgement of the importance of providing industry with tools
to provide a lifecycle assessment of the environmental impact of its
activities. It was partly driven by a need to avoid a proliferation of
methodologies which would cause confusion to the industry. The Methodology
for Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of ICT goods, networks and
services, known as ITU-T L From
http://www.telecompaper.com/
UN Adopts
Resolution on Bridging Digital Divide The UN General Assembly today adopted a draft resolution that
aims at using information and communications technologies for development, a
significant victory for developing countries, led by With regard to the resolution, India stressed that it should
focus firmly on using information and communications technologies for
development and bridging the digital divide and not be hijacked by concerns
over snooping and electronic surveillance. In his explanation of the vote on
the resolution, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Asoke
Mukerji said adoption of the resolution is a "win-win solution" for
all and is a "welcome tiding" for all multilateral negotiation
processes at the United Nations as it succeeded in traversing "seemingly
unbridgeable positions to the eventual solution" after a "long
drawn period of protracted negotiations" spanning nearly six months.
"Most importantly, it retains the focus firmly, on using ICT's for
development and bridging the digital divide," he said. "We have
been able to secure the centrality and supremacy of the UN General Assembly
in this process, the review has been mandated as an 'intergovernmental
negotiation process' which takes into account inputs from member states,
observer states, observers and all relevant WSIS stakeholders." "We were supposed to find the way out on five things in
this resolution: timing, structure, format, participation and outcome of the
overall review. The draft that completed silence procedure successfully is an
ample testimony on the best way forward on all these five counts,"
Mukerji said. The overall review, while respecting the mandate of the Tunis
Agenda, will address the new challenges that have emerged since 2005, with an
emphasis on using ICT's for development. Further, the centrality of the UN
General Assembly to this process, as the only mandated body to conduct the
overall review, has also been affirmed. The Tunis Agenda was a WSIS consensus
statement adopted in November The resolution decided that the overall review will be concluded
in December 2015 by a two-day General Assembly high-level meeting to be
preceded by an inter-governmental preparatory process that also takes into
account inputs from all relevant stakeholders of WSIS. The intergovernmental
negotiation process would begin in June 2015 and lead to an
inter-governmentally agreed outcome document for adoption at the UNGA
meeting. The process retains the ownership of the preparatory meetings and
the final outcome document with member states alone. Mukerji said the
resolution ensures that leaders, "at the highest possible level"
will meet at the high-level plenary meeting in December next year to adopt
the outcome of the intergovernmental negotiations. The resolution was adopted with members reaffirming that
science, innovation and technology, including information and communications
technologies, are essential enablers and drivers for the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals and the promotion of the economic, social and
environmental components of sustainable development and should be given due
consideration in the elaboration of the post-2015 development agenda. Mukerji
assured From
http://www.outlookindia.com/
New
Anti-Spam Legislation Is 'A Mess' Says Internet Lawyer Starting July 1, businesses and some other organizations are
going to see big changes with the implementation of federal anti-spam
legislation. Beginning Canada Day, businesses that send texts, emails,
instant messages, Facebook messages, or any other type of electronic
commercial message, will have to meet a number of very specific requirements.
Every electronic message will have to include the full name of the sender,
their mailing address, website, phone number and the ability to unsubscribe —
which the company must act on within 10 days. "Just about everyone that
communicates with any of their customers and members needs to think about
what sort of impact this legislation might have on them," said internet
and privacy lawyer David Fraser. He said the legislation, written 10 years
ago, is designed to eliminate nuisance emails. But Fraser calls it "a
mess" saying it's "onerous, complicated
and cumbersome," and doesn't address the realities of today. Legislation too broad He said many businesses don't think of themselves as being
spammers and said the legislation is too broad. "Last weekend my son and
a friend decided to have a lemonade stand and if this had taken place after
July 1 and they had emailed around to the neighbours to let them know about
this lemonade stand, they would have been regulated under this legislation.
They would have been considered to be a spammer even if they had done that on
behalf of a charity," said Fraser. He said he has spoken to business
owners who think they're compliant when they're not. He said the legislation
puts too much of a burden on businesses and is costing his clients money for
legal fees, not to mention teams of employees focused on ensuring businesses
are compliant. Alyssa Buchanan, manager at the Hefty fines for those who don't comply This legislation, designed to reduce emails, is actually causing
an increase in them, as companies reach out to their customers, seeking their
consent to send them emails after the July 1 deadline. Those who don't comply
with the legislation risk hefty fines of up to $1 million for individuals and
up to $10 million for businesses. Fraser said, generally, it will be enforced
by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission and he
gets the sense that "they're very excited at the prospect of strapping
on a badge and becoming law enforcement officers. "I
haven't gotten a sense that they're taking a wait and see approach or that
they're going to take a particular remedial approach, in terms of helping
businesses become compliant if they're found to have messed up. I have a
feeling they're going to be pretty aggressive out of the gate, looking for
some quick wins and looking for some companies to make examples out of." From
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/
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The Chinese government on Tuesday released a television program
about online terrorist propaganda by the East Turkestan Islamic Movement
(ETIM).According to the documentary, audio and video files promoting
terrorism are directly linked to terrorism and violence, including the
attacks in Urumqi on April 30 and May 22 that killed three and 39 people
respectively.The program says that such audio and video materials have been a
feature of almost every terrorist attack, with a police investigation finding
that some of it had been published by the ETIM.The State Internet Information
Office (SIIO) said the amount of audio and video materials put online by the
ETIM, which is listed by the United Nations Security Council as a terrorist
group, has shot up in the past few years.In 2013, police tracked 109 terror-related
audio and video files produced by the movement, compared with Besides promoting terrorism, ETIM videos also offer tutorials on
how to make explosives and how to use weapons, according to the documentary.It
indicates that the videos are produced outside Many of the videos were transmitted via mobile phones, Fang Nan,
an official in charge of the Internet emergency response department of the
SIIO, told Xinhua.Li Sheng, a professor with the Xinjiang Development
Research Center under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said, "People
involved in East Turkestan terrorist acts must have seen videos inciting
violent Jihad and separatism."The Chinese government has vowed to
strengthen its management of the Internet, telecommunication market and illegal
publications.The authorities are working to prevent terrorist materials
produced overseas from being spread in China, delete such information online,
punish website servers hosting it and urge Internet companies to meet their
responsibilities.More than 30 websites including Sina, Tencent, Baidu and
Taobao signed a letter of commitment on Friday to meet their responsibilities
in the campaign.Waging a people's war against terrorism, the SIIO encouraged
the public to provide it with tip-offs regarding online terrorist information
and promised rewards of up to 100,000 yuan (16,260 U.S. dollars) for those
who offer important clues. According to Fang, the Chinese government has also been
promoting international cooperation on stemming online terrorism. The SIIO
has reached consensus on cracking down on terrorist and violent videos with
more than 10 major overseas websites, the official added.The documentary by
China Central Television was made with the support of the SIIO, the Ministry
of Public Security and the State Council Information Office.Filled with
graphic footage of terrorists' training episodes and their terrorist
killings, it was released to educate Internet users on the consequences of
spreading terror and violent videos.It is also aimed at reminding Internet
companies of their responsibilities in the battle against such material. From http://www.news.cn/
The government will urge companies to ensure thorough management
of information in the wake of massive leaks of customer data at major
education service provider Benesse Corp., Economy, Trade and Industry
Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Friday. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry will send related documents on Monday to the Japan Business
Federation—the largest Japanese business lobby, known as Keidanren—and other
organizations, in order to ask companies to take measures necessary to
enhance their information control systems. Motegi said at a press conference
he thinks that the data leak scandal at Benesse occurred as there were
problems with many people concerned, including those in charge of managing
internal personal information. The minister suggested that companies need to
fully check whether personal data they received from third parties, such as
name list brokers, have been obtained legally. In a related development, the
ministry decided to revise the guidelines on the law protecting personal information
by the end of September. In the high-profile data leak case, a male system
engineer was arrested and indicted for allegedly stealing personal data on a
large number of Benesse customers in violation of the Unfair Competition
Prevention Law. From
http://the-japan-news.com
From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
S. Korea, From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
The South Korean government said Monday that it will introduce
alternative online payment systems to offer foreign shoppers easier, simpler
access to local shopping malls as part of its deregulation drive to boost the
economy. The financial authorities removed the authentication system that
limited foreign shoppers from making direct purchases and caused
inconveniences in May, but many shops and stores are still using the process
for payments of more than 300,000 won (US$293), citing security concerns. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
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The Mines and GeoSciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources in the Philippine Iloilo City, with a
population of over 420,000 residents, expects to complete the geohazard
assessment and mapping of the 19 priority local government units (LGUs) in
the region before the month of June ends. Leo Van Juguan, the Director of MGB
in From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has ordered the
National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to suspend
four key projects, including the planned auction of The NBTC also needs to reallocate this 1,800MHz via auction to
bid winners to serve the existing 1,800MHz users of TrueMove and Digital
Phone Co (DPC), who have yet to migrate to other networks after the
companies' state concessions ended last September. The NBTC has permitted
TrueMove and DPC to continue using the 1,800MHz spectrum but only until
September to serve customers who have yet to move to other networks. On
Monday, the NBTC sent details of the four projects to the NCPO for
consideration. However, the papers were returned to the NBTC yesterday
morning with notes from NCPO chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha, instructing the
watchdog to suspend the projects temporarily, pending a complete scrutiny by
the junta.NBTC secretary-general Takorn Tantasit said yesterday that he would
submit this case to the NBTC board for consideration today. He added that the
telecom and broadcasting committees would clear all doubts in the projects
with the NCPO. If the NCPO approves the projects after receiving the
clarifications, the projects could go ahead as planned. Projects in question Takorn said only two out of these four projects are in question
- the auction of two licences of the 1,800MHz spectrum and the planned
giveaway of vouchers to all households to buy any of the following: a digital
TV set-top box, a cable TV set-top box, a satellite TV set-top box, and a TV
with digital TV function for digital TV programmes. One clause of the
1,800MHz licence auction is that the NBTC will go ahead with the auction even
if there are only one or two qualified bidders. This might risk attracting
possible legal challenge by any parties arguing that the condition promotes
low competition in the auction. Regarding the distribution of free vouchers,
there is still disagreement among parties if the NBTC should allow people to
use vouchers to buy cable and satellite TV boxes, instead of only the digital
TV set-top box and TV with digital TV function. Some also questioned if the
Bt1,000 voucher price is appropriate.
Representatives of 12 digital TV channels on Monday submitted a the letter to
the NBTC urging it to allow people to use vouchers to buy cable and satellite
TV boxes, saying the satellite and cable TV operators are their rivals. Regarding the NCPO's call to the NBTC to improve its organisational
structure, Takorn said he did not want to interpret what the NCPO meant by
it. He declined to confirm reports that the NCPO wanted to disband the NBTC.
Jon Eddy Abdullah, chief executive officer of Total Access Communication
(DTAC), said he hoped the NBTC could soon clear all doubts regarding the
projects and issue a new licence-auction timeline to telecom operators soon.
"We look forward to participating and we will support in any way to help
the NBTC and the NCPO to bring more and faster Delayed projects The NCPO has ordered the National Broadcasting and
Telecommunications Commission to suspend four key projects until some doubts
can be cleared. The projects are: _ The auction of two licences of the 1,800MHz spectrum in
August, with combined starting price of more than Bt23 billion _ The auction of two licences of the 900MHz spectrum in
November, with combined starting price of more than Bt19 billion _ The distribution of free vouchers to households to buy digital
TV set-top boxes in August, with voucher subsidy worth Bt25 billion _ The planned auctions to provide Universal Services Obligation
projects worth more than Bt20 billion From
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/
From
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
NA Wants New
Laws on Citizens' Data Management The National Assembly's National Defence and Security Committee has proposed that the draft law on Citizen Identification
includes a chapter with regulations on developing, managing and using the
national citizens' database. The chapter should also deal with the links
between this database and other "specific" databases, the committee
said at a meeting of National Assembly's Standing Committee yesterday. The
proposal was made after the committee reviewed the draft law and received
comments from deputies. Nguyen Kim Khoa, Chairman of the National Defence and
Security Committee, said that the national citizens' database would be the
combination of all specific databases compiled by various ministries and sector.
It can be shared by ministries, sectors and agencies, thus allowing for more
efficient and effective use of resources in collecting and exploiting the
data, he said. Khoa also announced that his committee, which was assigned to
the review the draft law, agreed that every Vietnamese citizen would be
issued a personal identity card with a 12-digit code. The ID card would be issued as soon as a baby is born and would
replace the birth certificate, Khoa said, adding that the move would ensure
equality among citizens regardless of their age in accordance with
Constitution 2013 approved last year. At present, only citizens who are above
14 years of age are eligible to have ID cards. As citizens under 14 are yet
to have stable identifying characters like fingerprints, their cards will
carry the names of parents. The cards will be changed once they turn 14.
After the birth of a child is reported to the commune or ward administration,
authorised officers will collect the needed information including name, gender,
date of birth, place of bird, nationality and parents' information. The
information will be transferred to the police for issuance of an ID card for
the baby that will carry lifetime validity for administrative transactions.
Truong Thi Mai, Chairwoman of the NA's Committee for Social Affairs, said
that the citizen identification cards with codes are expected to reduce
administrative paperwork, as citizens would be required to report their basic
personal information only once, after which they can use their ID code when
working with administrative agencies. She asked for an estimate on the number
of administrative papers that would be removed and the number that would be
retained. Mai also wanted to know if information that is likely to change
frequently, like health insurance and social insurance, would be included in
the database for the ID card. Tran Van Ve, a member of the draft law board
from Ministry of Public Security said that the ID card would carry
information from 16 fields, so some paperwork would remain. Dao Trong Thi,
chairman of the NA's Committee for Culture, Education, Adolescents and Child
Affairs, said that it was necessary to clarify mechanisms for updating and
accessing the national citizen database. "There will be no simplifying
of administrative procedures or application of information technology if
officials at communes or wards collect and transfer citizens' information
manually to the police for ID card issuance," Thi said. Later in the
afternoon, the NA Standing Committee also discussed several issues related to
the revised People's Court Organisation Law. The deputies asked for more
clarity on certain terms like "judicial power" or "judicial
precedent" to ensure their consistent application. They also discussed
the tenure of judges at different levels, agreeing that judges for the
Supreme People's Court should be entitled to work until retirement without a
limit on their tenure unless they take up other work. They also agreed that
judges at lower levels should have five-year tenures, which, once completed,
can be extended by a 10-year tenure. From
http://vietnamnews.vn
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A policy which bars the media from publishing any news
criticising members of law enforcement agencies might tarnish the image and
dignity of the law enforcers, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB)
chairperson Sultana Kamal said yesterday while criticising the National
Broadcast Policy-2014. “Under the constitution, people have the right to know
and the right to information. The constitution empowers people to express their ideas,
thinking and ideology through the media, but unfortunately the broadcast
policy will take away every right and stop persons from thinking in their own
way. This is against the Right to Information Act (RTI Act),” she observed.
She, however, said: “We are not against the broadcast policy. We are
discussing clauses that will affect the rights of individuals and
organisations, and the RTI of the people.” She made these observations at a
press conference at a hotel to explain the TIB’s position on the National
Broadcast Policy. TIB officials were present at the meet. “When a police officer, an Army officer, or an activist of TIB
does something wrong, we usually say that the police/Army and TIB did it, as
they represent their organisations. All these wrongdoings come to light
through the media. So, we cannot accept anything that can stop the media from
presenting the issues to the people; we are against such clauses,” the human
rights activist said. “We will not allow anything which is against our
muktijuddha (Liberation War), our Constitution and the fundamental rights of
the people,” she clarified. TIB presented a written paper at the press
conference, where it claimed that the government has framed the broadcast
policy to gag the media and speakers at TV talk-shows. The civil society
organisation said the controversial policy empowers the information ministry
to gag the electronic media till the government appoints the broadcasting
commission. TIB expressed apprehensions that the government’s inability to
tolerate criticism could lead it to use the proposed broadcast commission to
shut down any electronic media organisation and harass journalists. “If the
government really wants to form an independent commission, it should select
people who never engage in politics and sit with groups concerned to make it
media-friendly,” it said. TIB observed that the government has made it a
practice to issue broadcasting licences only to those who toe its line. From
http://www.theindependentbd.com/ "The government proposes to formulate a new policy aimed at
meeting the challenges posed by lack of quality and research,” said From
http://southasia.oneworld.net/ Instructions
from the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT); Civil Services
(Preliminary) Examination, 2014 Candidates taking Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination,
2014, being conducted by the Union Public Service Commission on 24 August,
2014 may note the following:- 1. The Paper II of the CSE (Preliminary) is of
200 marks and 2 hours duration. It contains a section on English Language
Comprehension Skills (Class X Level). It contains some questions based on a
few paragraphs in English. 2. The Union Government has decided that for the
Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2014 to be held on 24th August,
this section on English Language Comprehension Skills (Class X Level) will
not count for gradation or merit. 3. The Paper-II would contain a section on
English Language Comprehension Skills (Class X Level). Candidates must
therefore note that they do not have to answer the questions on this English
Language Comprehension Skills (Class X Level) section. These questions will
not be evaluated. 4. However, the duration of the Paper II would remain 2 hours
and candidates can utilize the entire time in answering all questions except
those in the Section containing English Language Comprehension Skills (Class X
Level). 5. The maximum marks for Paper II would be “200 minus the marks
earmarked for the English Language Comprehension Skills (Class X Level)”. 6.
Candidates must note that the section on English Language Comprehension
Skills (Class X Level) would not count towards gradation or merit. Even if
they attempt it, marks will not be counted for gradation or merit. From
http://pib.nic.in/ The Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that the people
who talk about good governance have not changed their policies so far. “There are politicians who do not have confidence in the public
service. Their opinion is to reduce the public sector work force. Even now
they have not changed. They have trust only in the private sector. They say
that the public sector is not efficient. They believe in other methods to
create good governance. They still believe in their old ideas. We have
changed our policies from 2005. We trusted the public service. We have
confidence in the public sector. We have the confidence that the public
sector can provide a better service. No matter how carefully we work, there
are some who escape our sight. It is possible for racketeers to escape your vigilance”,
the president further added. The president also said, “you are not only
imposing taxes, but protect the culture, artifacts, environment and wildlife.
You have that responsibility. You are able to fulfill your duties today
without fear. The public service is not there to harass people. We have to
assist the public with the proper legal procedures.” “Love your country. The country needs your service. The country
is developing now. We have risen to a middle income economy now from a
defendant economy. Be proud of your country. Do not allow to reverse the
freedom won. You need to make your contribution, said President Rajapaksa.
The land where the new building is at present, was to be sold to a
Singaporean Company by the then UNP Government. The ownership of the land was
retained by the Customs Department following trade union action led by
President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was the Opposition Leader at that time. The President who was the Prime Minister in 2005, laid the
foundation stone for the building. The building which resembles a ship in the
sea. The President also opened the From
http://southasia.oneworld.net/ |
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Ministry of Communications and High Technologies of Azerbaijan
will deal with the regulation of disputes among communication operators
regarding the issue of the inter-operator communications, according to the
ministry's provision approved by the head of state on June 19. In accordance
with the provision, curbing monopolistic activities of businesses entities
and the elimination of unfair competition in the market are included to the
authority of the ministry. The work in this area will be conducted together
with the Ministry of Economy and Industry of Azerbaijan. However, the main
task is to ensure healthy competition in the market and consumer protection.
The ministry will directly participate in the issue of protection and
regulation of the use of frequency resources. The rules of using electronic
means will be determined and monitoring will be conducted on the
electromagnetic interference in this regard. In accordance with the law
"On Telecommunications", the certification of telecommunication
devices and equipment, as well as registration of mobile devices in
accordance with the rules of the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan will be
organized. The powers of the department also include the allocation to
operators and the definition of rules for the use of the number resources
(with country code) with the possibility of portability, as well as the
regulation of registration of domain names of high level. Important significance
in the regulations was paid to the control of the postal communications in The ministry will deal with the creation and technical support
of telecommunication networks for special purpose of public authorities. All
necessary measures will be taken on the protection of radio space and
expansion of coverage zone of digital television and radio broadcasting in
the country. Great attention will be paid to the development of
"e-government", expansion of e-services, infrastructure development
of digital signatures, etc. From
http://en.trend.az/
From
http://news.az/ The Azerbaijani Ministry of Communications and High Technologies
and the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the
president of Azerbaijan prepared a draft bill "On public information
systems and information resources," the ministry stated Aug. 13. The
draft bill has been prepared and submitted to the government in accordance
with paragraph 2.2 of the decree of the president of Azerbaijan dated
February 5, 2013 "On approval of the "e-government" portal and
measures of extension of electronic services", according to the report.
The main criteria for the formation, management and security of the public
information systems and resources indicted in the bill are their integration
and elimination, identification of the rights and duties of entities of
public information systems and resources, as well as regulation of the issues
arising in relationships created between them, the report says. From
http://en.trend.az/ CIS states are going to sign an agreement on implementation of
the principles of inter-operator payments in relation to international
communication services, including roaming, Kazakh official said. Askar
Zhumangaliyev, head of From
http://news.am/
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Asia-Pacific
Forum Spotlights Need for Regional Connectivity Asia-Pacific
countries will gather in The ESCAP
session is being held against the backdrop of high public debt levels and
declining international development assistance, which has affected Asia-Pacific
growth and contributed to rising income inequality, both within and between countries
in the region. A Ministerial Round Table on the theme of the 70th session,
“Regional connectivity for shared prosperity”, on the opening day of the
ministerial segment will focus on transport, ICT and energy connectivity and
multi-sectoral and cross-border cooperation. At a media launch on 6 August,
ESCAP Executive Secretary Shamshad Akhtar will present the key findings of
the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2014, the Commission’s
flagship publication, outlining the latest macroeconomic projections and
policy advice for the region. On the second day of the ministerial segment,
Asia-Pacific Government leaders and policymakers will join a panel discussion
on sustainable development and development finance to suggest policy options
for addressing existing and emerging vulnerabilities. From http://pacific.scoop.co.nz
ICT Experts Tackle Challenges of Digital
Divide in Asia-Pacific Region People
standing in the dark, on a cliff beside the ocean. The moonshine reveals the
silhouettes of half a dozen men. They are reaching for the sky with their
mobile phones, screens lit up in the night. This is the winning photograph of
the World Press Photo contest 2014 by John Stanmeyer. It depicts the reality
of millions of people today. The silhouettes in the picture are attempting to
reach a mobile phone signal to be able to connect with their loved ones.
APJlogo72_iconIn the Asia-Pacific region, development of the ICT (information
and communications technology) sector is rapid. But here, expensive sim
cards, bad mobile and internet connection are a part of everyday life. ICT,
being an important part of any country’s basic infrastructure in the same way
as roads or ports, enables exchange of ideas and information. The United
Nations Economic and Social Commission for Digitally
divided According to
the UN report, the Asia-Pacific region is the most digitally divided in the
world. The report emphasises decreasing the digital divide between countries
to prevent building up of other types of inequality across geography, gender,
age groups, as well as levels of income and education. In the Asia-Pacific
region mobile connectivity varies from 13 subscriptions to 181 subscriptions
per hundred inhabitants. The same kind of variation exists for internet penetration;
from one internet user to 90 internet users per a hundred inhabitants.
Internet penetration in the Pacific small island developing states (SIDS) is
around 20 percent, when the highest connectivity is in Telecommunications
growth Remote
village Odland
remembers a trip to a remote village in Indonesian
tweets Region
inequalities Xanana
Gusmão, Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, is worried about regional
inequalities. “The important corridor that I see in the Asia-Pacific region
is how to develop an integrated plan in a more equitable way. Just look at
the ASEAN countries, we have many levels of development,” he says. There are
many obstacles before the region can be fully connected in terms of ICT.
Odland from Telenor describes the challenges in From http://pacific.scoop.co.nz
The Facing the
future Tech-savvy
citizens expect transparent and accountable government, according to Michael
Pratt, Tackling
integration challenges Despite the
mantra of digital engagement, governments face common challenges to make this
a reality, Commissioner Pratt said. One challenge involves integrating
dispersed sites, reducing duplication, as well as offering easy links to
information and services. The NSW government’s inventory of internet sites
and customer-facing services include 900 portals, 400 shop-fronts, 102
contact centres, 8,000 landlines, and 52 sites that support just
transactions. An integrated Service NSW web site, launched in July 2013, is
making it easier to transact with government. More than 3 million hits are
recorded, and this traffic continues to grow. Getting the
customer inside Commissioner
Pratt added that the blueprint is to fully integrate dispersed sites, while
making it easier to source services and information, as and when needed. A
future redesign involves bringing the “customer inside,” while improving the
business of government. This inter-connectedness means architects have no
choice but to design content with end-users in mind. The velocity of change
is increasing at a rapid pace. Governments need to catch up, while ensuring
services remain transparent and accountable. Under a broader integration
strategy, Service NSW now offers a single contact number and 24 hour 7 days a
week service to customers. Demystifying
procurement Support for
transparency was reinforced by Paul Dobing, executive director, NSW
Procurement at Finance & Services NSW. He noted that technology is both
disruptive, and an enabler for change. Agencies need to explore innovative
ways to procure ICT goods and services. A buyer-seller marketplace comes with
a myriad of complexities and ambiguities. To be transparent and open involves
reducing layers of bureaucracy, and paring back the hoops to do business.
Among recent innovations, a dedicated NSW Procurement web site called ProcurePoint
makes it easier to establish, negotiate, and manage contracts. This site
offers a watch-list of new projects and contracts. It enables suppliers to
source details, join preferred panels, or interact using password access. Opening up
government Across the
Tasman, in From http://www.futuregov.asia
Australian
Government Takes Step Back from Open Government Partnership The
Australian Government has taken a step back from its participation in the
international Open Government Partnership (OGP). In May 2013, the government
had announced that it will join the OGP, which the current administration is
now reconsidering. Finance Minister Mathias Cormann recently told the parliament
that the previous government had earlier “decided to join the Open Government
Partnership”, but the new government is now “considering whether to formally
join” the partnership. Currently, it has an “observer” status in the member
meetings. John Sheridan, Australian Government Chief Technology Officer,
added that “ From http://www.futuregov.asia
Digital challenges Proposed
reforms ensure that New
Zealanders need confidence in privacy laws, while appreciating their
information is in safe hands. “Our proposals will put strong incentives in
place to ensure businesses, government departments and other organisations
take privacy seriously.” Large amounts of personal information is being
stored online and transmitted digitally. “This has benefits, but also poses
potential risks. It’s now possible for huge amounts of data to be released in
a single privacy breach, potentially affecting large numbers of people.” The From http://www.futuregov.asia
Labour
Unveils Digital Strategy Labour has
added to its policy blitz this week with plans to boost the information and
communications technology sector including establishing 1200 "digital
apprenticeships" and a new support package for small technology startups.
"A Labour Government will support the ICT sector to make New Zealand a
tech-savvy nation and put ICT at the heart of our economic upgrade
strategy", Labour Leader David Cunliffe said in an announcement on the
fringes of the NetHui conference in Auckland today. Mr Cunliffe said that
while apprenticeships were already on offer in the telecommunications,
engineering sectors and also for technicians, there was no apprenticeship for
"information technology" itself. The only places where people could
currently get a formal qualification in information technology was outside the workplace at a private training
enterprise, polytech or university, and there was largely an absence of
opportunities to qualify through a mix of study and on the job training. Labour would
establish a "clear career pathway" for people to gain a nationally
recognised diploma or certificate qualification in ICT and once that was in
place would fund 400 additional tertiary training places each year for three
years to provide the academic component for those qualifications. "This
will help to encourage more people into the industry who were previously put
off by the prospect of having to undertake training off job and in their own
time, and prefer the option of learning while earning." Labour says the
policy would cost $2.1 million in the first year increasing to $6.3 million
by the third year. A Labour Government would also establish "Garage
Grants" - a support package of up to $10,000 available to support
entrepreneurs 'in transforming their clever idea into something big".
Along with the cash, which would be available via the Ministry of Business
Innovation and Employment, the scheme would also see applicants receive
"individual training, mentoring and support from successful entrepreneurs".
Labour says the scheme would cost up to $ Other planks
of Labour's policy include the establishment of a dedicated Chief Technology
Officer who would report directly to the Prime Minister and Cabinet on
technology issues. Labour also says the technology sector will benefit from
its plan to offer businesses tax relief through an accelerated depreciation
regime and its research and development tax credits. Science and Innovation
Minister Steven Joyce said Labour's plans for the sector were "not
up-to-date and poorly thought through"."They propose grants and
accelerated depreciation for start-ups and don't seem to know that those are
already happening. They propose a Chief Technology Officer when the
Government already has a Chief Information Officer performing a similar role."
He said Labour had "truly missed the mark on ICT skills".The demand
in ICT is primarily for graduate-level software designers and programmers,
not in the trades. That's why we're investing nearly $30 million dollars in
our ICT grad schools for final year undergraduate and postgraduate training."
Labour would be "far better to endorse that approach," Mr Joyce
said. From http://www.nzherald.co.nz
Mobile Phone Recycling
Scheme Secures Government Support RE: From http://www.cellular-news.com
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AFRICA: The NEPAD e-Africa Programme invites applications for an online
training programme "Internet Governance in Applicants must meet the certain requirements which include
being a citizen of a member state of the African Union, be literate and have
good command of the English language and have reliable Internet access.
Applicants with an undergraduate degree may have an added advantage and
preference will be given to individuals living and working in From
http://allafrica.com/
As the demand for open government rises, it becomes even more
critical to facilitate meaningful interactions between citizens and government-
namely addressing the most relevant issues through methods that will result
in greater levels of civic participation and ultimately positive impact.
Parallel to rising expectations, governments have to meet this growing civic
demand with capacity constraints and in tightening budget environments; in
practical terms, this requires a focusing of efforts on citizen preference.
However, measuring citizen demand and preferences for e-government is a
critical step, and many questions about creating meaningful online public
engagement remain. What does public awareness of these new rights look like
in From
http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/
EUROPE:
Open governance means all citizens have a right to access
information and to participate in government, policies are in place to
promote and realise transparency, accountability and participation, and that
the right tools exist to carry out these policies. Most importantly open
governance should improve citizens’ lives. The Open Governance Scorecard
assesses whether the legal conditions needed for open governance are in place
in a country. The results of the scorecard, which are summarised in this
document, help governments, civil society groups and other key stakeholders,
including members of the public, to assess the legal provisions needed to
ensure open governance, to identify the current legal gaps as well as to
track a country’s progress over time. This information will allow advocates
to make recommendations and governments to pursue reforms. The scorecard has been developed by Transparency International
(TI), together with other expert organisations working in this field. To
date, five Transparency International national chapters from Africa, Europe,
Latin America and From
http://www.i-policy.org/
NORTH
AMERICA: It isn’t easy to look ahead — hindsight is always 20-20 goes an
accurate saying. So when a group of Internet experts were asked recently by
the “The experts in this survey noted a broad global trend toward
regulation of the Internet by regimes that have faced protests and stepped up
surveillance of Internet users,” the column notes. “They pointed out that
nations such as On the other hand,
Jim Hendler, a professor of computer Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute and architect of the Web, wrote, “If anything, it is privacy that
will have to give way to openness, not the other way around… Repressive
governments will be working hard to stop the spread of information. As today,
there will be both good and bad news continually in that area, but over time
more integration, access, and sharing will be a driving force.” There were
other trends gleaned from the answers, including fears trust will evaporate
on the Internet because of increased government and corporate surveillance.
It’s a lengthy and thought-provoking piece that has no obvious answer to many
of the questions it raises. That makes it a good read. From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
Despite moves by the Obama administration toward digital
transparency and open data, the President Barack Obama has made e-government a priority since
taking office in 2008 and signed an open data executive order in 2013. Data.gov,
the federal government's data repository, turned Regionally, The Human Capital Index for North America is much higher than
the HCI for all the other subregions: From
http://www.nextgov.com/
Open
and Social - New Path for Government Agencies Agencies such as DoD are adopting social business, digital
technologies, and open standards in surprising ways. Organizations of all
sizes and verticals, from Fortune 500 conglomerates to government agencies,
are enjoying the productivity of enterprise social networking and open-source
software. I know many readers will be surprised that I included
"government agencies" in the previous sentence. However, swift
changes are taking place as that sector adapts to the collaboration benefits
of social business tools. In fact, government agencies are adopting social
business, digital technologies, and open standards in some surprising ways. For example, take a look at the Defense Department's All Partners
Access Network (APAN), formerly known as the Asia Pacific Area Network.
Hosted by US Pacific Command, the APAN community is the premier unclassified
information sharing and collaboration enterprise for the United States
Department of Defense (DoD). APAN provides the DoD and its mission partners
with community spaces and collaborative tools to help them plan, train, and
respond to business requirements and mission objectives. APAN makes these
tools available over the open Internet, so individuals and organizations that
do not have access to traditional DoD systems and networks can participate in
information sharing and collaborative events. More specifically, during the Government agencies can also benefit from more traditional
collaboration tools, such as email and, more specifically, open-source email.
Open-source email offers increased security and hosted data features to meet
government agencies' unique security needs. However, there is a myth
surrounding open-source that such solutions are not secure. This is simply
not true. On the contrary, the thousands of developers that participate in
the software review and issue-resolution process make sure that open-source
solutions are more secure than various other options. Furthermore, many
government agencies often will not implement a piece of software in a security-critical
environment if the agency itself cannot examine the source code for flaws.
That is where open-source software excels -- its transparent development
allows businesses to investigate and test security for themselves. Open-source email is especially attractive to government
agencies due to the fact that they can adjust the system to fit their unique
security nuances, including those related to location-based privacy and
compliance concerns. Furthermore, government organizations can add layers of
encryption to their open-source email systems through integrations with a
variety of third-party antivirus and encryption solutions. For example, the
Peruvian government has a policy that agencies must use open-source software
in order to increase security, privacy, and encryption levels for sensitive
and confidential information. This led one government agency to turn to
open-source email, recognizing that it drives rapid innovation and allows for
integration with a variety of anti-spam, antivirus, and encryption solutions.
Have you seen other examples of government agencies and organizations
embracing social technology and open-source solutions? If so, please add them
in the comments section. From
http://www.informationweek.com/
How
to Approach Declining Federal IT Spending More efficient federal information technology systems will
require fewer dollars, according to a new report from Deltek that predicts
agency IT spending will fall from $101 billion to $94 billion in five years.
Deltek factors in IT spending that often is left out of the overarching
budget numbers, such as technology for the judicial and legislative branches
and the intelligence community, as well as IT embedded in large defense
systems. Today’s technology offerings and policies promise savings down the
road, including data center optimization, strategic sourcing, shared services
and cloud computing, Deltek said. “This transition to a leaner federal
government — and the ability to sustain it — requires technologies that
facilitate the consolidation, integration and standardization necessary to
develop uniform IT platforms known as Common Operating Environments,” Deltek
said. The one-enterprise perspective will shrink budgets in the long term,
Deltek predicted. Still, agencies will need cybersecurity and data analytics
technology to support their mission priorities, the report said. The Defense
Department in particular will need intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance
and health IT, Deltek noted. Smaller budgets are the new normal and will
remain that way, even if sequestration ends. “Agency leaders want more
control of where cuts happen,” said John Slye, Deltek analyst. “This means
redefining priorities and acquisition strategies to fit within new budget
realities.” From
http://www.nextgov.com/
New
Gov. Mike Pence said he wanted state and local government
databases and transparency websites combined into a single, easy-to-use
performance-monitoring center that could reveal overlooked efficiencies and
track the progress of his "road map" goals. Already a mainstay of
businesses and baseball teams, "big data" has arrived in Are you satisfied with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles? The BMV
earned a 96.1 percent customer satisfaction rating in April,
probably because the average visit time — also on MPH — was just 13.45
minutes. Think there's too much government in From http://www.govtech.com/ Why
Federal IT Reform Is Getting Cheaper The latest plans to overhaul how the government buys and manages
information technology are significantly less expensive than the ideas that
circulated last year, according to nonpartisan projections. The version of
the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act currently making its way through the
Senate would cost $30 million over five years, according to a new estimate
from the Congressional Budget Office. That’s far less than the $145 million CBO
projected last November for similar legislation. The pricier FITARA would
have established a central collaboration center to advise
agencies on their IT procurements. Participating departments would have paid
for this through fees that currently go elsewhere, but CBO still estimated
the government would need to spend an additional $18 million a year for it,
or about $80 million of the $145 million projection for nearly five years.
The center was stripped from both the Senate bill and the most recent version
to pass the House. Even without it, the Senate version, which is somewhat
truncated, still looks cheaper, according to estimates. But Rep. Gerry
Connolly, D-Va., warned against putting too much stock in CBO projections,
which he said have an unenviable track record for accuracy. “They often
dismiss savings because they claim that they can’t measure them,” he said in
an interview. The government budgets about $80 billion a year for IT. “The
bill isn’t in place and we can’t see yet how it will effectuate savings and
efficiencies,” he said. “But if it does, which is the whole point of this,
you’re talking about potentially billions of dollars every year.” Sen. Tom
Carper, D-Del., who introduced his chamber's legislation with Sen. Tom
Coburn, R-Okla., told Nextgov he is hopeful his bill will be taken up by the
full Senate soon. Connolly and Darrell Issa, R-Calif., bipartisan sponsors of
the House version, both expressed to Nextgov confidence the Senate and House
measures could be reconciled. “The differences are certainly resolvable,”
said a spokesman for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
The House bill had the backing of industry, according to Trey Hodgkins,
senior vice president for the public sector at the Information Technology
Industry Council. “We supported the Senate version of the bill, too, but we
believe they should add back some of what they took out,” he said, citing
language to improve the acquisition workforce and facilitate the move to
cloud computing. From
http://www.nextgov.com/
Most
Information Commissions Fail Transparency Test Information commissions — watchdogs for the transparency regime
under the RTI Act — are some of the most opaque
organizations according to an independent report. Of the 29 commissions in
the country, only 17% have the facility of online filing of appeals and
complaints, 42% do not display information on the cases that will be heard
that day or that week, 58% do not display the updated status of pending
appeals and complaints while 35% do not have a system of making their orders
public within a reasonable timeframe. The report prepared by Commonwealth
Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) also revealed that there was a steady increase
in the number of RTI queries in 2012 as compared to the previous year. While More than three-fourths of the commissions do not have a website
in the local language. The CIC and state information commissions of
Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, About 58% of commissions including Arunachal Pradesh, Assam,
Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya
Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar
Pradesh and West Bengal do not provide data on disposal of cases and pendency
of appeals and complaints. Nineteen of the 29 commissions have made their
orders public but the commissions of Arunachal Pradesh, From
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
The New Order of Global Network Depends on Equality and Joint
Governance Internet governance requires peaceful
coexistence and the cooperation of the entire international community, with
the goal of building a peaceful, confident, open and cooperative network,
through the establishment of a multilateral, transparent and democratic
system. During his recent speech to the Congress of Brazil, President Xi
Jinping said that the development of the Internet has introduced new
challenges to the sovereignty, security and development of all countries. In
the information sector, the right of sovereignty of any country should not be
denied. There can be no double standards acccording to which any country can
abuse others to defend its own security. The Chinese proposal on internet
governance must become the voice of justice against any attempted hegemony on
the Internet, defending the right of sovereignty and maintaining
international peace and development of mankind. In the Internet age, information is virtual, while national benefits are real. As the Internet
has become ever more deeply integrated into human development, and has become
the "digital driver" of economic and social development of all
countries, so it has also become a new arena for international political
struggles. Certain countries with economic and technological advantages spare
no effort to filter information and export their values to other countries,
especially to countries in the process of development, attempting to monopolize
the international political voice, and even to intervene and control the
internal agendas of other countries. In order to prevent the internet from
becoming a new field of international political struggle and the sector most
affected by hegemonism and power politics, all countries of the world need to
urgently explore a new order of internet governance. At present, the reason for the
inherent vulnerabilities of the Internet governance system lies in the
inequality of political and economic power among countries in development and
consequently the unfair international political and economic order. First,
the imbalance is reflected in the differing ability of countries to use the
Internet, and the digital divide in Internet technology among countries
remains enormous. For example, as internet technology originated in the This digital divide leads to an imbalance
of power in internet governance. Some countries, using their advanced
technology, control the rules of Internet governance. They do not simply
exploit other countries economically, but also use the internet as a shortcut
to steal national and business secrets. Finally, the structural imbalance in
the utilization capacity of the Internet and the imbalance of power in the
governance system creates double standards in the responsibility
of governance. America is particularly prone to levelling unjustifiable
accusations against other countries, while they themselves do whatever they
want on the internet including watching everyone, stealing secrets, and
invading privacy and sovereignty. The Internet, which has become
humanity's "second space of existence" ,
should not be a lawless aren where the major powers dominate. Only joint
governance of the whole international society, based on equality, democracy
and justice, will make it possible to achieve security and common benefits.
In the struggle against Internet hegemony, the key point is to apply the same
criteria in the "same world and the same internet". As President Xi
Jinping highlighted, in the field of information "It cannot be that one
country is safe while others are exposed, still less should one country be
allowed to seek absolute security at the expense of the security of other
countries." Internet governance requires the peaceful coexistence and
cooperation of the entire international community, with the goal of building
a peaceful, confident, open and cooperative space network, through the
establishment of a multilateral, transparent and democratic system. The
author is sub researcher Law Institute of the From http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ Commission
Seeks New Ways to Govern the Internet Innovative approaches to governing the internet are needed, say
experts from a new global internet policy commission set up to find and
propose such solutions to governments over the next two years. Intelligence
contractor Edward Snowden’s exposure of online surveillance by the US-government
has shaken the multi-stakeholder model of internet governance by undermining
trust among stakeholders, according to Tobby Simon, a member of the Global
Commission on Internet Governance (GCIG). The commission started work in May
after being established in January by think-tanks Chatham House and the
Centre for International Governance Innovation to “provide a strategic vision
for the future of internet governance”, addressing how to preserve innovation
while avoiding risks such as cybercrime, for example. “Multi-stakeholder control of the internet is necessary given
that the internet is a global resource.” Laurent Elder, GCIG Its members come from around the world, including Laurent Elder, a research advisor for the GCIG and director of
the Information and Networks program for Researching the kinds of global policies that will safeguard an
open internet is a key need, agrees Ashnah Kalemera, programme officer at
CIPESA (Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and “Access, affordability and connectivity, which are the key
concerns for Sub-Saharan Africa, are not adequately represented or debated
with the same vigour as the National Security Agency, Snowden and WikiLeaks.”
Yet by documenting “global good practice”, the GCIG could also address
broader issues surrounding internet policy, says Elder. “[The GCIG] will help
develop specific policies to ensure that the internet is a beneficial tool
for countries rather than anything else,” he says. “It will help answer some
of the bigger questions around the way the internet should be governed.” From
http://www.scidev.net/
Government
Requests for Twitter Information Climb Twitter on Thursday released a new transparency report showing a
steady rise in government requests for information from the globally popular
one-to-many messaging service. The number of requests for information from
governments climbed 46 percent from the second half of last year to 2,058,
according to Twitter. The report, the fifth from Twitter to date, was
viewable online and showed what portion of those requests
were granted. The San Francisco-based firm said it received requests
for account information from a total of 54 countries, but that the bulk of
the demands came from the From
http://news.yahoo.com/
A broad-based, multi-stakeholder approach to the governance of
the internet is essential to social progress and economic development.
Inspired by the NETmundial meeting in Sao Paolo, Brazil in April 2014, the
World Economic Forum is hosting a meeting of leaders from government,
business, civil society and academia in Geneva on Thursday August 28 to
develop ways to help carry forward the spirit of NETmundial through further
dialogue and concrete cooperation (See Initiative description, FAQ and
meeting documents below). From
http://www.weforum.org/
Net
Tightened on Asia-Pacific Corruption with Network Launch Anti-corruption authorities and law enforcement agencies from
the 21 APEC economies have opened a ground-breaking new channel for the
exchange of sensitive case information, significantly enhancing their ability
to combat large scale corruption and bribery affecting the Asia-Pacific
market. Officials shared detailed insights into on-going criminal
investigations and prosecutions for the first time on an APEC-wide basis
during the inaugural meeting of the APEC Network of Anti-Corruption Authorities
and Law Enforcement Agencies, or ACT-NET, which just concluded in “By building a multilateral platform to strengthen work-level
exchange and case cooperation, and expand channels for anti-corruption and
law enforcement partnership, we could cut off the escape route of corrupt fugitives,”
Fu explained. ACT-NET will deepen the exchange of legal procedures and
investigative techniques used to pursue corrupt officials and assets, and fight
business bribery. It also affords opportunities to share successful
cross-border law enforcement cases and develop future joint projects and
capacity building measures. “Criminals don’t stop at borders,” said US
Ambassador to China Max Baucus. “So we must work together to stop them and
fight graft internationally as well.” “Whether it is bribery, embezzlement,
or the misuse of public funds, corruption is corrosive,” he noted. “It scares
investors and stifles economic growth. It decreases investment and trade. And
that costs jobs for people in all of our economies.” Each year, corruption costs economies globally more than USD2.6
trillion, or five per cent of total gross domestic product, according to the
World Bank. It is also estimated to increase the cost of doing business by
more than ten per cent. APEC economies agreed to establish a network of anti-corruption
and law enforcement authorities last year in From
http://www.apec.org/
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The Supreme People's Court (SPC) on Friday launched a video
network that allows petitioners against legal verdicts to have their appeals
filmed and transmitted to higher-level courts.As part of efforts to create
more channels for petitions, the SPC has regulated that petitioners can apply
for use of the new channel either at the court that gave their case's
first-instance verdict or the lower court whose jurisdiction covers their
place of residence.If the verdict that petitioners want to complain about had
been dismissed by the higher people's court, they will be eligible to express
their complaints to the SPC through the video system, which links more than
3,300 courts nationwide at present, according to the regulation.However, if
their cases were not handled by the higher people's court, their complaints
will be jointly received and discussed by the SPC and a higher people's
court, according to the regulation.SPC Vice President Jing Hanchao said the
creation of the video network is an effort to reform the court's petition
system, and expressed hope that the move will make it easier for people to
make complaints.Earlier this year, the SPC opened its official online
petition platform. From http://www.news.cn/
Big Data Used by Pollution is getting worse in China's capital city, and the
Beijing government is using technology to help fix some of the problems.The
Beijing municipal government has reached a deal with IBM to use the tech
company's advanced weather forecast and cloud computing technologies to solve
the stubborn smog problem in the city.Facing serious environmental pollution
problems, the Chinese government has promised citizens that it will take
measures to improve the environmental situation. To handle the haze and pollution
problems, it is necessary to enhance data collection and monitoring and
forecast abilities. Beijing has reportedly established an early warning
system with data from 35 monitoring stations and the system can warn about
heavily polluted weather three days in advance and adjust traffic volume
accordingly.Under the agreement signed by the two parties, the Beijing
municipal government will become an partner of IBM's ten-year Green Horizon
project, targeting the Chinese market. This project aims to use IBM's
forecast and data collection abilities to predict the occurrence of smog.Meanwhile,
because of From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Participants in the public service session agreed that we are in
need of innovation in public services in order to improve the quality of life
of the people, wherever they are. During the e-government session, attendees
agreed that innovation in e-government would improve the efficiency and
transparency of government. For this, technological advances and the active participation
of citizens must come first. Also, in a modern society, an e-government
should focus more on creating value instead of looking at simply reducing
expenses. The four-day forum wrapped up with the adoption of the Seoul Joint
Communiqué. It stated that, "The innovation plan should center around citizens. They should be allowed to participate in
the whole process of designing, developing policies and providing services.
"Civil participation can be a useful tool to improve regional
development from both the functional aspect and democratic aspect. From
http://www.korea.net
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Indonesian e-government has the potential for “quick advancement”
through the creation of a national ICT policy and e-government strategy, and
by the strengthening of public servants’ capacity, according to the 2014
United Nations (UN) E-Government Survey. “There is potential for quick
advancement of countries like… From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
E-Government
Requires Better Trained Citizens and Officials, Says Indonesian Mayor As From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Why
Three Indonesian Cities Formed a Joint Secretariat Three Indonesian cities, Sleman, Bantul and From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
To assess the growing economy of the business process
outsourcing (BPO) in Davao City, the Davao del Norte Information and
Communication Technology (DavNor ICT) was created. The ad-hoc committee,
composed of 11 persons from various agencies, was the result of a Focus Group
Discussion (FGD) among ICT players in Davao del Norte spearheaded by the
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). About 36 participants from the academe, call center agencies, Internet cafés, and local
government units participated in the FGD. According to Edwin Banquerigo, DTI
provincial director, they brought together the industry players to strengthen
the individual player’s capabilities to join the loop of ICT Davao. Atty.
Samuel Matunog, chairman of the ICT Davao, Inc., said the province can go
beyond contributing talents to an ideal area for ICT investors. Matunog said
that the province just have to improve two major elements in the ICT industry
– Internet connectivity and supply of energy. On the other hand, National ICT
Confederation of the From
https://ph.news.yahoo.com/
The Government agencies in the From
http://www.futuregov.asia
From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Singapore’s Success - The Inside Story on Its
2014 UN E-Government Rankings Rise The United Nations report highlighted several other initiatives
from Ÿ Joined-up
government - The Alliance for Corporate Excellence (ACE) is a multi-agency
programme run by the Ministry of Finance that groups together systems and
operating environments for human resources, finance and procurement into a
shared system. This enables government agencies to share knowledge, data and
best practices in a more straightforward and timely way. Ÿ Open data -
The National Environment Agency (NEA) provided real-time information to other
agencies and the wider public to engage and promote environmental ownership
in the country. It contributed to the development of 86 environment datasets
and 17 spatial datasets for the Ÿ Digital
inclusion - Ÿ Connected
government - An IDA spokesperson said: “We are humbled that our efforts in
e-government, such as expanding our e-government service offerings and
service delivery channels, has gained recognition. As we continue to innovate
and set high standards for ourselves, we also hope to learn from other
nations to further improve the public service delivery in From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Online electronic services run by the public service
departments, such as Customs, are expected to be able to provide 60 per cent
satisfaction by the end of next year and 80 per cent by the year 2020. The
target was proposed at the "Information and communications technology (ICT)
development is a driving force to boost socio-economic development and globalisation.
It helps businesses and local government improve the
competitive index and administrative reform," vice chairman of the
central city's People's Committee, Phung Tan Viet said at the opening
ceremony. "The event is a major forum for leaders of provinces and
cities to share experiences and discuss how to create more favourable
conditions for development of ICT and smooth operation of the e-Government
plan," Viet said. Nguyen Quang Thanh, deputy director of "And we're aiming to apply more digital procedures to 1,200
public services for the city's 56 communes, precincts and departments."
Tong Viet Trung, deputy general director of the military telecommunications
giant (Viettel Group) said the group had been developing e-Government to
serve Smartphone users and other mobile devices. "Previously,
e-Government on mobile phones had been limited to message services," he
said. "The mobility application is also set for education and health
services as well as online payments and digital invoices. This will save
applicants time and money." Thai Vinh Lieu, deputy secretary of Quang
Tri Provincial Party, said leadership was a key role in accelerating IT
applications and e-Government in some provinces. Do Ngoc From
http://vietnamnews.vn
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Bangladesh on Monday formally launched the ‘National Web Portal’
opening up a new horizon and a unique window for ensuring transparency and
accountability in government activities, and building a developed, prosperous
country free from hunger and poverty. The public portal containing 25,043
websites of various government organizations in various tiers having over 2
million contents started its formal journey marking the International Public
Service Day. From
http://newsfrombangladesh.net/ From
http://www.i-policy.org/
6 Things That Indian IT, Telcos Expect from
New Government From
http://www.siliconindia.com/
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A two-day national workshop on the role of Single Window and IT
systems for full implementation of the e-governance concept is organized in
Yerevan within the framework of the UNDP implemented “Enhancement of the
Border Management Capabilities at Bagratashen – Sadakhlo BCP between Armenia
and Georgia” (BSIBM) project. The
objective of the workshop is to familiarize representatives of relevant
border management agencies in better detail with measures required for
introduction of the e-governance system by applying the Single Window
principle and up-to-date IT solutions. The workshop is facilitated by Mr.
Arvo Ott, Managing Director of the “EU always stands ready to support the Government of Armenia in
implementation of its reform agenda, and share its vast experience
particularly in the area of e-governance and introduction of its components at
the national level using appropriate IT solutions and procedural approaches”,
he added. Grigori Malintsyan,
UNDP IBM Programme Manager, noted that introduction of the Single Window/One
Stop Shop principle will be a significant step forward to achieve the defined
reform goals in the border management sector and ensure compliance with
relevant international standards.
Aram Tananyan, Acting Chief of Staff of the National Security Council
of the Republic of Armenia, expressed an opinion that comprehensive introduction
of the Single Window system in Armenia will enable simplification and
streamlining of border crossing and customs procedures at border crossing
points in order to avoid duplication of functions and unnecessary controls. The “Provision of Equipment and
Infrastructure for the Bagratashen-Sadakhlo Border Crossing Point between From
http://news.am/
Two more e-services of the State Committee for Property Affairs
of Azerbaijan are integrated into the "e-Government" portal
(E-Gov), says the report of the Information Technology Centre (ITC) of the
Ministry of Communications and High Technologies of Azerbaijan on Aug. 19.
The report notes that the following services are available: - Underwriting
services of documents and requests in connection with the registration of a
notifications of holding real property that is the subject of the mortgage; -
Underwriting services of documents and requests in connection with the
liquidation of the notifications of holding real property that is the subject
of the mortgage Currently the number of electronic services of SPC has
reached 30. An information service on real estate from the state register of
immovable property will be available to the public in the near future. E-Gov
is a key tool for supporting work with the citizens and the public and
private sectors. It aims to reduce the number of documents requested from
citizens due to the fact that different bodies will interact with each other
online. Access to E-Gov is carried out using a digital signature, the
identification data of the private entrepreneurs and citizens, verification
data (login and password) as well as mobile authentication system which can
be obtained in electronic form after the registration on E-Gov. From
http://en.trend.az/
The Uzbek Central Bank is participating in the electronic
government system. The bank is
taking part in this system by means of realization and implementation of the
project called 'Clearing system for real-time calculation of retail payments,
taking into account the further integration with the service providers'
billing systems, according to the bank's message. This project has been included into
the projects list of the electronic government's information systems complex,
said the message. The clearing
system provides connection with the information systems of the State Tax
Committee of Uzbekistan when making the payments. The system also makes it possible to
automate the tax levies accounting without using paper receipts, to interact
with the billing systems of the electricity, gas, utilities, internet
services providers and mobile communication operators, as well as to conduct
retail payments using bank cards.
The universal payment tool and the subscriber identification are used
when making payments via the Uzbek Central Bank's clearing system. All subscriber data is entered into
the State Tax Committee's information system and the service providers'
billing systems, what gives them the opportunity to conduct stable
accounting. A network schedule
for creation of a clearing system and realization of the project has been
developed and approved as part of the National Information and Communication
System of Uzbekistan. The schedule of introducing the system and technological instructions
for the systems' interaction with the information systems of the State Tax
Committee, Uztransgaz JSC, Uzbekenergo SJSC, and the country's commercial
banks, have been approved as well. From
http://en.trend.az/
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The
Australian Bureau of Meteorology has redesigned its web site for smartphone
users, making it quicker and easier for people to access The Bureau
of Meteorology’s web site is one of the most popular web sites in From http://www.futuregov.asia
Australia
Geoscience Agency Reveals Open Government Datasets Prior to Govhack Event The
Geoscience Australia, the national agency responsible for providing
geoscientific advice and information to the Australian government, hosted a
DataJam session last week in the lead up to the bigger GovHack event to
promote open government. The GovHack event encourages software developers and
web designers from government, industry, academia and the general public, to
come together to explore ideas and encourages innovation using freely
available government data in an effort to promote open government. DataJam
gives potential GovHack participants a sneak peek at the official datasets
that are available, ahead of the main GovHack event which will take place in
July. As the national geoscientific agency, Geoscience Geoscience From http://www.futuregov.asia
The
Australian government has launched an open source browser-based map which
allows citizens and businesses to easily visualise open data from agencies
across the government. “This is a central application that integrates data
from various providers - including open government directory (data.gov.au),
federal and state government departments - and helps users to visualise it on
a central browser-based platform, said Tim Mackey, Enterprise Architect,
GeoScience In the
demonstration, Mackey showed how users can zoom and tilt the map, and choose
data by type or source. Users can also perform 3D data visualisation.
Currently the data sets come from the Bureau of Meteorology, Bureau of
Statistics and GeoScience From http://www.futuregov.asia
OK to Store Data Offshore, Says Government The
Government has signalled an end to its policy of requiring government
departments and agencies to get permission before storing information
offshore. Analyst group Ovum has welcomed the finding in the Federal
Government’s Commission of Audit that there is too much red tape around
storing data offshore, and that current policies are impeding the
implementation of cloud computing. “The Commonwealth Government has been slow
to adopt cloud computing. A reliance on bespoke, legacy systems, concerns
about the security and privacy of placing public data in the cloud, and
general risk aversion all impede progress,” said the report. Now, as part of
its reduction of red tape policy, and possibly to satisfy the desires of US
based IT companies, the Federal Government seems set to end the policy,
announced last August under the previous Labor Government. The policy
requires government CIOs to seek the permission of both their own minister
and the Attorney-General before storing citizen information outside of From http://www.itwire.com
Australian Government Preparing Open Data
‘Toolkit’ to Guide Agencies The
Australian Government is preparing an Open Data Toolkit to consolidate
policies and guidance for agencies managing and sharing government data.
“This Toolkit will consolidate policy, guidance, case studies and technical
advice on how to manage, publish and share government data more effectively
and efficiently for greater benefits to the public service, industry and the
broader community. The Toolkit will be updated on a regular basis as new
information, guidance, best practices and policies emerge, and you can
subscribe to wiki updates there,” the data.gov.au team wrote in its latest
blog. At the state level, the South Australian Government is developing an
Open Data Toolkit, it announced in its Action Plan to Advance Open Data in
November 2013. “The Office of the CIO will publish material that will form an
Open Data Toolkit designed to assist agencies to discover, classify and
publish data using open data standards.” The data.gov.au
team is also looking to integrate the portal with other government data
portals. This will include “metadata sharing with….. the
new national spatial map index (FIND at find.ga.gov.au) and integration with
the upcoming National Map,” it said. The functionality of data.gov.au has
been improved “for easier discoverability and comparability of data”, the
team wrote. The Finance Department is also working with other agencies so
that users can find data more easily. It has “been in touch with other jurisdictions
about sharing search metadata to make data across jurisdictions more
discoverable across portals. We’ll announce more about that soon,” the team
added. The data.gov.au team is also preparing for its upcoming hackathon, GovHack.
On 11-13 July, the event will bring together government, businesses and
citizens to reuse and mashup government data in 11 locations across From http://www.futuregov.asia
Government
Backtracks on Metadata The
Government now says that the metadata it wants to access will not include an
Internet user’s browsing history. But there is still confusion over just what
it does include. The Government’s confused – and confusing – metadata
retention policy continues to cause it problems. Communications Minister
Malcolm Turnbull, who was not part of the original decision, has been forced
to contradict Attorney-General George Brandis over whether it would or would
not include the address of websites visited. Senior officials of law enforcement
agencies have also weighed into the debate, offering their own efforts at
clarification, while arguing that their powers to access information should
be increased. The process is looking increasingly shambolic. ASIO head spook
David Irvine made a rare public appearance on Friday, fronting a media
conference with deputy commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, Andrew
Colvin. “We don’t want to observe minutely everyone’s surfing of the web or
anything like that,” he said. “This is not
some great mass surveillance exercise or mass invasion of privacy of every
citizen in He
reportedly had very strong words to say to his colleagues on the stupidity of
this strategy. His reaction now seems justified, given the disastrous
attempts by George Brandis and Prime Minister Abbott to explain the concept
of metadata. Now Turnbull, not for the first time, has had to try to clean up
a mess not of his own making. He and Brandis met with Telstra on Thursday,
and were behind the idea of the press conference by ASIO and the AFP.
Meanwhile opposition to the metadata retention proposals has grown, helped
considerably by the publicity given the issue by the Government’s inept
handling of it. It’s a classic balls-up. Outside of the Government and the
agencies being given more money to confront the terrorist threat, it is hard
to find anyone with a good word to say about the policy. One of the main
arguments against it is the demonstrated reality that law enforcement and
surveillance agencies, once given greater powers, tend to use them for
purposes beyond their original intent. Edward Snowden’s revelations about the
US National Security Agency’s abuse of its powers, and many documented
occasions of Australian police forces misusing the data they can access, are
testament to this. If data is available, it will be misused. Then there
is the cost of it all. Tony Abbott said it will cost nothing, because telcos
and ISPs are already collecting the data the Government wants to access. This
assertion has been roundly refuted, most recently by From http://www.itwire.com
The New
Zealand Government will be presenting its Open Government Partnership (OGP)
Action Plan in July, Internal Affairs Minister, Peter Dunne has announced.
The action plan will be built around improving public services, increasing
public integrity, more effectively management public resources and creating
safer communities. OGP is an international partnership of 64 countries
committed to making their governments more open accountable and responsive to
citizens. The Government is committed to building greater transparency in
public services, the Minister highlighted. Citizens can monitor the progress
of public service reform programmes, such as the Better Public Services (BPS)
programme for which progress reports are made available by the State Services
Commission. “New Zealanders can judge for themselves how the Government is
performing across the ten results areas [of the BPS programme]. Regularly
communicating progress helps to engage citizens and businesses in the
Government’s programme and provides a platform for greater citizen participation,”
Dunne said. The New
Zealand Public Service is also engaging more with citizens in service design,
using data more effectively to target interventions, joining forces to
achieve results and shifting funding across traditional boundaries to change
the way services are delivered. From http://www.futuregov.asia
New Software
'To Simplifies ICT' for Govt Agencies A new all-of-government office productivity software service
will help agencies streamline their support systems as they focus on
transforming their customer services, says Government Chief Information
Officer, Colin MacDonald. The contract for Office Productivity as a Service (OPaaS)
has been awarded to From
https://nz.finance.yahoo.com/
New Zealand Government
Departments Report Efficiency Gains from Open Data 72% of
government departments in From http://www.futuregov.asia
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EUROPE:
New Report on State of The European Commission just published a report on the
telecommunications market and regulation in the EU, showing that investment
in the field starts to grow again, data traffic is growing quickly, together
with an increase in VoIP calls. However, huge discrepancies still exist among
EU countries. The main findings of the report: Industry revenues again declined in 2013 but investment is
beginning to grow; Use of traditional telephony services is decreasing as internet
(VoIP) services become increasingly popular; Data traffic is growing quickly; Mobile voice call and data prices are higher in the EU than in
the Only From
https://ec.europa.eu/
LATIN
AMERICA: Analogue TV switch-off will commence in As it stands, the 700-MHz spectrum band is being used by
analogue TV services. However, on Tuesday the ministry announced that the
analogue switch-off will begin in April 2016 and will run until November
2018, freeing up the 700-MHz band for From
http://www.totaltele.com/
NORTH
AMERICA: So far in this three-part blog series, we’ve focussed on the
growing domination of digital marketing to influence consumers and what’s
needed to harness the digital channel for effective marketing. Today to
conclude the series, we’re focusing on developing a roadmap to success in
digital marketing. 1. Innovation and strategies The best path for driving up marketing performances and
conversions is by creating innovative customer experiences, and by creating
specific strategies for media, brand, price and product. For example, brands
such as P&G and Converse are already creating interactive experiences
that are designed to capture their customers’ attentions and create tailored
engagements. In a similar fashion, telecom companies use data analysis to
help them create new innovations such as remote health checks or home
monitoring systems. 2. The cross-channel experience The transition between different channels, and in particular the
transition between the digital and analogue world, needs to be made as
seamless and as frictionless as possible. When a customer walks into a store
to look at a product that they are thinking of purchasing and have reviewed
online, the people in the store should already have an idea of what that
customer wants, and should greet them in readiness of this. To enhance the
cross-channel experience even further, companies need to look at ways of
synchronizing the content across different platforms, from smart TVs to
tablet and smartphone apps. 3. Enabling operations Companies need to adopt approaches that are flexible and agile,
to create technology and customer-focused business models that support an end-to-end
marketing approach in order to deliver an interactive and relevant
experience. Coca-Cola are among the business leaders
in this approach – by merging their individual departments they are creating
the necessary flexible approach. 4. Using analytics To maximize the return on marketing resources, structured
analytic techniques regarding customer data need to be undertaken. One of the
roles for the CMO in this new marketing structure is to focus more on the
customer, rather than the services and products offered by the company. A CMO
is in fact becoming a CXO (Chief Experience Officer). In understanding
customer behaviours along the entire purchasing journey a CXO will be able to
manage the consumer experience in as streamlined and as synchronized a way as
possible. This change in role with mean the CXO will become the new leader of
the product management strategy by understanding how the connected consumer
experience is driven across multiple channels. This will include strategic
requirements such a flexible user interface and a unified way of looking at
consumer data, and crucial enablers such as operating models and technology
platforms. The CXO will also play a crucial role in making sure that a
multi-channel approach plays the central role in the business’s strategy as a
whole. 5. How a marketing organization matures How a marketing organization matures, and how talented they
become in driving their own destiny in the digital eco-system will be
evaluated using three factors: a) Unification Most multi-brand companies concentrate upon the creation of
efficiencies by unifying their marketing services across key sectors. Such an
approach has so far only met with limited success as it remains the way of
the business world for budgets to be fragmented, meaning that unified service
groups still have to compete with external service providers for funding. The
true working model needs to unify both local and global concerns in a way
that can be managed at the local level. b) Integration Budgetary issues will remain between analogue and digital media
as long as the digital realm is seen as being a separate marketing function.
Recently, one company turned down offline media for a particular promotion in
the belief that search marketing would generate the results that were
desired. This decision resulted in an overall reduction in the volume of
searches, which in turn led to a negative impact on the performance of the
marketing program as a whole. This kind of experience will be repeated unless
companies address the challenges of the addition of digital channels to the
whole marketing infrastructure and adopt an integrated approach instead. c) Talent mix CMOs need to make such the marketing team they are building has
the right mix of talents, as well as managing their own skill-set. Marketing
functions urgently need to have the right kind of people on board who have
expertise in engineering customer experiences. This will enable the team to
address two core business capabilities: Cross-channel optimization – the ability
to define patterns and exact opportunities in cross-channel information and
data. Cross-channel management – the ability to create customer experiences
that are optimized and integrated seamlessly across the different digital
channels. Marketing departments need to focus on developing and broadening
their digital capabilities as they move towards a fully integrated digital
approach. Moving beyond digital The new role of the CMO and marketing departments means more
than just a structural change. It means a complete change of the marketing
mindset where the focus is upon embracing every aspect of digital channels to
best serve the increasingly demanding consumers of today, and in as seamless
a manner as possible. No one really anticipated how the internet would
completely revolutionize nearly every aspect of human existence, and in
particular how consumers now interact with the world of business and
commerce. Companies need to be more proactive than reactive when the next
stage of the digital revolution comes around, whatever form that may take.
Businesses that keep an exact focus on creating personalized and relevant
consumer experiences based on data analysis and emerging technologies will be
the ones that are best prepared. From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
Legislative mandate to consolidate IT services has produced
results, state leaders say. By consolidating previously sprawling IT services
under one agency, the State of "I was able to work with the legislative authors and tell
them, 'I can guarantee you efficiencies, but nobody has ever looked at the IT
footprint of the entire state. We may be underinvesting. So I cannot guarantee
you savings, but I can guarantee you efficiencies,'" she said. The
savings that were subsequently achieved are, sadly, not cash in hand that she
gets to work with but "mostly cost avoidance," she said. To come up
with the $27.4 million savings figure, she looked specifically at
"easily quantifiable comparisons to prior purchases." These are
mostly "the easy kinds of wins you get from consolidated
procurement," she added. Some of the "softer" savings, not
factored into that calculation, include the ability to more easily reassign
IT staff between agencies now that they have been redefined as employees of
MN.IT. Achieving savings has not required layoffs, partly because IT staff
retirements are significant enough that attrition takes care of any reduction
in staff required by leaner IT operations, she said. Parnell said she manages with an emphasis on good communication,
conducting annual listening tours in an effort to connect with IT staff in
all the agencies. "They're the frontline experts, particularly in the
unique needs each of the agencies have, and we can't afford to lose
them," she said. To manage state IT services in a comprehensive way,
Parnell's staff first had to develop an IT reference model with common
definitions of IT services, so that their costs and metrics could be tracked
in common terms. The state now operates more-central services, in what it
calls the MN.IT cloud, and is taking advantage of software as a service
(SaaS) offerings such as Gmail as the state email system. Through benchmark
studies of other states, Parnell confirmed that Bragging rights for savings come from more efficient operations
for established services. There is still plenty of room for more efficiency,
Parnell said. For example, the state has about 20 different case management
systems in use by different health and human services agencies. "We're
not going to go reduce the number of those systems immediately, but as
systems come up for replacement or refreshment, we're going to look at
whether there are opportunities for them to be shared among agencies -- or
else, we can look at SaaS offerings." Although the consolidation push
might to some extent have been made possible by the emergence of technologies
such as virtualization, it was just as much a management issue. The
redundancy that had grown up around IT operations across state government
"probably didn't do anyone any favors," she said. However,
whittling it down when "there had not really been any inventory of IT
systems was kind of a daunting task," she added. "At the same time,
we've been lining up with changes in the industry," Parnell said.
"In terms of being able to take advantage of cloud offerings and
software as a service, I think the timing is pretty good." From
http://www.informationweek.com/
Information
Builders Brings Self-service Data Analysis to the Today at its 2014 Summit User Conference, Information Builders,
a leader in business intelligence (BI) and analytics, information integrity
and integration solutions, announced the launch of WebFOCUS InfoDiscovery.
The web-based, self-service visual analytics tool is designed to help
analysts, power users and business users visually analyze complex data,
create insights and enhance decision-making across the organization. InfoDiscovery
is a flexible solution that enables self-service visual analysis for all
stakeholders, ensuring that the right tool or app is available to meet the
given need and facilitating information access and sharing across the
enterprise. InfoDiscovery enables analysts to retrieve and decipher data from
spreadsheets, departmental databases, enterprise data warehouses and
third-party data sources faster than ever before in a true self-service
environment. The solution also allows power users to combine charts, graphs,
maps and other data sources to create sophisticated visualizations and publish
dashboards made accessible via InfoApps™. InfoDiscovery gives users the
ability to visually analyze more data than ever before with the assurance
that the data is secure, auditable, shared and governed. InfoDiscovery's Server and Repository features enable users to
share works in progress with other authors and facilitate collaboration as
author numbers grow. Upon completion, visualization projects are housed in
the solution's secure, adaptive InfoDiscovery Portal, which streamlines and
accelerates the deployment of InfoDiscovery visualizations for all levels of
users. Results can be easily shared as needed across other WebFOCUS
environments for larger deployments. InfoDiscovery aggregates and visualizes
large volumes of data from multiple business dimensions, allowing users to
uncover critical findings that often go undetected in other summarized
reports and dashboards. The solution also features advanced geographical
analysis with the help of intuitive, compelling maps that blend
spatially-related data with external demographic or market information.
Mapping visualization helps users better understand customer trends, locate
inventory and detect fraud. Additional InfoDiscovery features include: High-Speed Analytics Sandbox: The tool's hybrid, in-memory
columnar data store can be used to house large volumes of data and enable
lightning-fast retrieval, aggregation and calculation. Larger numbers of
users can be accommodated without a massive drain on memory when multiple
data sources are used with this technique. Massive Scalability: InfoDiscovery
is easily scalable, even among users outside the firewall, and there is
little degradation of processing speed or performance as the amount of users
and data grows. Governance, Version Control and Auditing: Unlike other data
discovery tools, InfoDiscovery allows users to "visualize
responsibly" by offering metadata management, user monitoring, data
quality management and enhanced security. This provides true accountability,
eliminating flawed insights and inconsistent answers. Enterprise-Class Security: InfoDiscovery delivers a robust
out-of-the-box solution with security controls that can be administered at
different levels to efficiently and seamlessly prevent data sharing with
unauthorized users. Powerful security features include single sign-on,
metadata-based deployment, multi-tenancy templates and a fine-grained
security model. "Information is the fuel that drives companies forward.
Helping key stakeholders easily access data and glean meaningful insight is critical
for organizations looking to remain competitive in today's marketplace,"
said Gerald Cohen, president and CEO of Information Builders.
"InfoDiscovery is designed to open up visual information access and
analysis capabilities to a wide group of users, equipping even more
stakeholders with the intelligence and insights needed to improve decision
making. The launch of InfoDiscovery speaks to Information Builders'
commitment to equip customers with the best BI and analytics solutions
available today." From
http://finance.yahoo.com/
ALLDATA Collision Goes ALLDATA LLC, the leading provider
of manufacturers' automotive repair information and solutions for the
professional collision and automotive service repair industries, has launched
ALLDATA Mobile for collision shops. "Productivity equates to
profitability in collision shops," said ALLDATA President Jeff Lagges.
"Working on a tablet frees estimators and technicians to access OEM
information right where they need it -- at the car. Now, the same OEM
information that Collision shops have been using on desktop and laptop
computers is available wirelessly on a tablet." Adding the mobile
capability to ALLDATA Collision S3500 gives estimators and technicians the
power to quickly access OEM collision repair procedures, diagrams, diagnostic
information and technical service bulletins anywhere in the shop. It saves
even more time and ensures accurate vehicle selection by automatically
recording and translating VINs directly from the vehicle. "ALLDATA
Mobile for collision shops can greatly increase shop efficiencies,"
added Lagges. "These days, a competitive advantage goes to the shop with
a reputation based on speed, accuracy and fairness. ALLDATA Mobile is an
essential tool for ensuring a successful outcome." From http://finance.yahoo.com/ Information
Builders and Arrow to Expand Market Reach of Self-service Business
Intelligence Solutions Information Builders, a leader in business intelligence (BI) and
analytics, information integrity and integration solutions, today announced
its partnership with Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions, a global provider
of business computing solutions. The company will distribute Information
Builders' WebFOCUS Express offering, a solution designed to deliver the
advanced BI benefits enjoyed by large enterprises to smaller organizations.
Information Builders' WebFOCUS Express offering helps business users transform
data into knowledge without the need for IT. By putting the power in the
hands of a broader user group, WebFOCUS Express allows smaller organizations
-- or specific departments within larger organizations -- to obtain the
far-reaching BI functionality traditionally limited to large enterprises or
advanced analyst roles. The solution equips Arrow customers with the ability
to integrate all information sources, improve business insight, facilitate
faster responses, and enhance productivity. "Robust BI and analytics solutions are tools that
organizations of all types and sizes must actively use to achieve success in
today's business environment," said Gerald Cohen, president and CEO of
Information Builders. "All companies, regardless of size, should have
access to the BI tools they need to understand and make positive use of the
information generated by their organizations. Information Builders is
thrilled to be partnering with Arrow to extend the power of BI to a greater
pool of potential users and ensure that more companies have the tools needed
to make informed decisions, improve business processes, and boost revenue."
"The addition of Information Builders' WebFOCUS to the Arrow portfolio
is key to building out our Analytics Solution
Practice," said Mark Taylor, vice president of enterprise servers,
systems, and software, Arrow ECS. "This product set will complement our
current offerings with its proven performance, ease of use, and self-service
abilities of WebFOCUS Express to organizations across the globe." Arrow
will distribute two versions of WebFOCUS Express via its solution provider
network, a software-only version for IBM Power Systems running Linux and an
Intel version running both Linux and Windows. As part of the partnership,
Arrow will also manufacture and distribute an IBM Power Systems Linux
Appliance version of WebFOCUS Express in both From
http://finance.yahoo.com/
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Checks on online sales of food and drugs will be tightened, China
Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) said Wednesday.Online sellers should be
licensed to sell food and drugs, according to a draft regulation on online
sales of food and drugs unveiled by the CFDA to solicit public opinion.Manufacturers
are required to obtain permits to sell food, health food, cosmetics, and
medical apparatus and instruments online while drug producers and wholesalers
are forbidden to sell products to online consumers.The CFDA will crack down
on false advertising. Information about certain drugs is not allowed to be published
online, including stupefacient, psychotropic substances and
radiopharmaceuticals.According to the draft regulation,
trading platforms are asked to check qualifications of food and drug sellers. From http://www.news.cn/
MediaTek and Acer will cooperate in the Internet of Things
sector to promote cloud applications, wearable devices, and the Internet of
Things technologies.The news was announced during Computex Taipei 2014. The
cooperation between MediaTek and Acer will focus on open platforms and it
will be based on the Acer Open Platform.Stan Shih, chairman of Acer, and
Ming-Kai Tsai, chairman of MediaTek, announced that with the cooperation,
MediaTek will join Acer's Build Your Own Cloud project. In addition, the two
parties will team to develop the Internet of Things and wearable device
business opportunities.Shih said that the cooperation between MediaTek and
Acer is like the cooperation between Intel and Microsoft 30 years ago.
However, the two parties will not have the "winner takes all"
concept, and they will only fight for cloud computing business opportunities.Financial
terms of the deal were not revealed. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Tencent Cloud Opens
Outside Mainland Tencent Cloud will officially launch its Hong Kong data center
by the end of this week, marking the start of the Chinese Internet giant's
globalization strategy in the cloud computing sector.Tencent Cloud's Hong
Kong data center will reportedly focus on the Asia Pacific, Europe and
American regions, providing comprehensive cloud computing services to those
marketplaces. With With the help of Tencent Cloud's servers in Hong Kong, those
companies will be able to rapidly and conveniently implement their overseas
businesses.While the rest of the world is making it easier for Chinese
companies to setup server operations overseas, this still doesn't make it
easier going the other way — foreign companies are still unable to setup
Internet Service Provider facilities and gain an ISP license in China to
directly control and run server farms or cloud computing services. For
example, Amazon is beta testing its nascent Amazon Web Services cloud
offering in From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Suning Launches
Crowdsourcing Services for Chinese Hardware Startups Chinese electronics retailer Suning Commerce Group announced the
launch of its crowdsourcing platform, which creates a one-stop service
platform from innovation to sales for consumers and developers.Suning said
that the sales goal of this platform is CNY25 billion in 2015 and it is
expected to reach CNY45 billion by 2017.Wang Zhe, executive vice president
for Suning's product operation headquarters, said that Suning's crowdsourcing
platform is a comprehensive solutions provider, offering crowdsourcing
services for businesses at various stages of growth. He says that Suning will
provide its full industrial supply chain of crowdsourcing resources, covering
industrial design, product development, big data, cloud service, content
services, financing, manufacturing, quality control, brand licensing,
marketing, sales channels, logistics management, and post-sales services.Suning's
crowdsourcing platform will first focus on From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Midea Predicts Profit
Up 50% as Alibaba Cloud Strategy Takes Hold Chinese home appliances group Midea is expecting a huge jump in
its 2014 earnings.The company published its semi-annual performance
prediction for 2014, stating that during the first six months of 2014, the
company's net profit is expected to increase by between 45% and 60% over the
same period of last year; its earnings will reach between CNY6.059 billion
and CNY6.686 billion; and its earnings per share will be about CNY1.44 to
CNY1.59.Prior to this announcement, Midea's executives were increasing
investment in the company's stock and the total investment reached CNY122
million. This represented their confidence in the performance of the company.Midea
Group said that since the beginning of 2014, when the company launched its
smart home strategy named M-Smart and teamed with Alibaba for cloud computing
strategic cooperation, the company's prospects have improved. With those
moves, Midea aims to apply "Internet thinking and technologies" to
promote an industrial model and operations model transformation of its
traditional home appliances industry. In 2013, Midea reportedly completed the
development of its smart products in eight categories. For 2014, they will
accelerate the launch of new smart products and plan to develop 25 product
categories.In addition, Midea will enhance
e-commerce development. In March 2014, the company established its own
e-commerce subsidiary responsible for its flagship store on Tmall.com and the
operation of its official online store. The e-commerce company will adopt big
data technology to analyze user purchase behavior to help improve
development, manufacturing, logistics, e-commerce IT system, and member
management systems.For logistics, Midea's wholly-owned logistics subsidiary
has already established 143 service platforms, covering 31 provinces, cities,
and autonomous regions in From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Chinese Internet
Shoppers Gain More Payment Options for Overseas Buys Chinese Internet payment service provide Alipay has reached a
deal with American online payment company Stripe to provide enhanced overseas
shopping payment experience to Chinese users.With the cooperation, Alipay's
Chinese users will be able to complete payment at overseas vendors who can
accept payment via Stripe.Patrick Collison, co-founder and chief executive
officer of Stripe, said by using Stripe's payment software, vendors will be
able to tell if the customers are from Chinese mainland, and they can provide
an Alipay payment option to those customers. Collison said that at present,
Stripe allows online vendors to implement trading with 139 kinds of currency
as well as Bitcoin. The company also plans to cooperate with popular online
payment service providers in regions where the credit card is not commonly
used.During Stripe's financing in January 2014, the company's evaluation
reached USD1.75 billion. Its investors included Khosla Ventures, Sequoia
Capital, and Founders Fund. Over its four-year operation, Stripe has gained
over USD120 million from investors.Over the past year, Alipay has been
expanding into overseas markets and now allows Chinese users to pay at more
overseas vendors. The company's latest cooperation includes a partnership
with South Korean e-commerce website Lotte.com. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Chinese Internet Group
Buying Hits New High as Older Websites Die China's Internet group buying trading volume reached a new peak
of CNY5.93 billion in June, representing a year-on-year increase of 127%.Chinese
independent group buying navigation website Tuan800.com recently published
its Chinese group buying market statistics report for June 2014, which stated
that 95.229 million people participated in group buying during the month, a
year-on-year increase of 110%; and the number of group buying options
available in the month reached 1.18 million, a year-on-year increase of 196%.In
addition, the report revealed that during the first half of 2014, China's
group buying trading volume reached CNY29.43 billion. Though it set the
record of best semi-annual performance again, the result did not meet
expectations, which was CNY31.51 billion for the first half of 2014.Among
various group buying products, dining and hotels were the fastest growing
sectors and they both realized 1.3 times increase over the same period of
last year. During the first six months of 2014, the trading volume of the
food and dining group buying was CNY16.66 billion, a net increase of CNY9.54
billion year-over-year; while the trading value of hotel group buying was
CNY3.29 billion, a net increase of CNY1.83 billion.The report showed that the
trading value of the top five Chinese group buying websites accounted for
over 99% of the total trading value and the number of group buying websites
continued to decrease in the country. By June 2014, there were only 176 group
buying websites left in From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Alibaba's Cloud Gaming Platform Hopes to Foster
Family Values Even though its founder pledged to avoid online gaming because
his son developed an online game addiction, Alibaba has now launched its own
cloud gaming platform.Cloud gaming at Alibaba aims to merge game interaction
and data operation on cloud servers and transmit the real-time pictures back
to the TV screens of users. With this new service, users will be able to play
games via Internet TV and high-speed broadband without downloading games.For
the initial stage, Alibaba's cloud gaming platform reached a deal with EA's
"Need for Speed", Konami's "World Soccer Winning Eleven
2014", 2K's "NBA2K14", and Warner Bros. Interactive
Entertainment's "Batman: Arkham City". In the future, the platform
plans to introduce over 50 cloud games.Meanwhile, content and game providers
like Wasu, EA, Gameloft and Glu Mobile will become partners of Alibaba,
aiming to develop film, TV, music, game and education sectors in the future.
So far, Alibaba and Wasu have jointly offered 6,000 films, 150,000 hours of
TV programs, and 1,000 episodes of variety shows on Alibaba's platform.Statistics
provided by Alibaba to local media revealed that Chinese families spend 3.8
hours on average on entertainment each day. Of that total, 12.7% of them
watch TV, 40% play on their smartphones, and 60% of family members said they
did not communicate at home. Liu Chunning, president for Alibaba's digital
entertainment business unit, said that they want to change the situation and
bring the family together again through these games.Jack Ma, founder of
Alibaba, is known in the Chinese Internet community for discouraging his
company from entering the online game sector in the past. The son of Ma and
his wife Zhang Ying apparently was an online game addict a few years ago, and
the affliction apparently impacted Ma's investment focus. There is no word
from Alibaba why the company has shifted its focus to games now. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Lenovo's Internet
Business Platform Unveils Smart Consumer Products Lenovo Group announced in Beijing that the company has launched
an Internet business platform named Lenovo New Business Development and the
platform also released the first batch of three innovative products: smart
glasses, smart air purifier, and smart router.Adopting equity participation
and collaboration methods, Lenovo NBD opens its software and hardware
development, market, channel, and service resources to the world's top start-up
teams. With this model, Lenovo will work together with those teams to develop
products that better meet customer demands and provide smarter products and
services.As the first move of Lenovo NBD, this platform launched its first
batch products, covering smart glasses, smart air purifier, and smart router.
The smart glasses have two modes, which are M100 for industrial users and New
Glass for ordinary consumers. The products are results of Lenovo's
cooperation with U.S. Vuzix and Beijing Yunshi Zhitong, respectively. Both
products are specially designed for Chinese users with a Chinese-language
operating environment and applications.The smart air purifier products
include LUFTMED D300, LUFTMED D600 and New Air X330, which were development by
Lenovo and Germany-based Luftmed. Those products can reportedly filter PM2.5
particles by over 99% and can realize up to 500-cubic-meter air circulation
each hour.In addition, the smart router named Newifi developed by Lenovo and
Chengdu Diting Technology can prevent Internet phishing and fraud. It also
features a user-friendly interface, offline download, and private cloud
application.Apart from the new products, NBD's online platform NewBD.com was
also launched. This platform has three major sectors: product introduction, B From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Wanda Will Invest CNY5 Billion
for E-commerce Development Wang Jianlin, chairman of Wanda Group, announced during the
company's semi-annual work conference that the company will focus CNY5
billion to enhance the group's online commerce efforts.Wang revealed that
Wanda will cooperate with China's largest e-commerce providers to establish
Wanda e-commerce and the first-phase investment will be estimated at CNY5
billion. Wanda e-commerce aims to discover a profit-making model in about
three years.According to information revealed by Wang, Wanda Group's assets
reached CNY460 billion in the first half of 2014, a year-on-year increase of
21%; and its revenue was CNY92.07 billion, a year-on-year increase of 24% and
achieving 38% of the annual target of the company.Meanwhile, Wang said that
during the first half of 2014, the customer traffic of Wanda Plaza retail
outlets reached over 720 million people, marking a significant increase
compared with the 500 million people during the same period of last year. The
total customer traffic for the entire year of 2014 is expected to reach over
1.5 billion people. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Priceline Invests in U.S.-based Priceline Group Inc. is investing USD500 million
through a convertible bond to grab up to 10% of China-based online travel
firm Ctrip.com International Ltd.With the investment, Ctrip has granted
Priceline permission to acquire Ctrip shares in the open market over the next
twelve months, so that combined with shares convertible under the bond,
Priceline may hold up to 10% of Ctrip's outstanding shares. Upon purchase of
the convertible bond, Priceline will acquire the right to appoint an observer
to the Ctrip board of directors.Expanding on the existing commercial
relationship established in 2012, the global partnership between the world's
largest online travel group and China's largest online travel company will
significantly promote tourism to and from China by allowing Ctrip's customers
to reach Priceline's global portfolio of over 500,000 accommodations outside
of Greater China, and Priceline Group's customers to reach Ctrip's over 100,000
accommodations in Greater China.The new terms of the agreement build upon a
history of cross-promoting accommodations inventory between the companies. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
If cell phone subscribers can receive services from other mobile
phone carriers without changing their actual phones, the convenience of using
mobile phones will be greatly improved. In using mobile phones, including
smartphones, customers insert a subscriber identity module (SIM) card
containing their subscription information into the phone before using it.
Each mobile phone company puts “SIM locks” on the handsets so that subscribers
cannot use their cell phones with other firms’ SIM cards, with the aim of
preventing customers from switching to other companies. If customers transfer
to other companies, they have to buy new phones from the companies to which
they want to switch. The Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry intends
to oblige mobile phone carriers to remove SIM locks for handsets from fiscal
2015 as corralling customers with the locks narrows the range of customers’
choices for phones and service providers. Each time customers change to other
mobile phone companies, they have to also stop using phones which they had
long used, a situation with which many mobile phone users may not be
satisfied. It is natural that mobile phone carriers are being ordered to remove
the SIM locks. The three major mobile phone carriers—NTT Docomo, KDDI and
SoftBank—have monopolized the market with an almost uniform set of services
and rates. In other countries, such as the In 2010, the communications ministry asked mobile phone firms on
a voluntary basis to remove their SIM locks, but there has been limited
success. It can be said that the mobile phone industry has not changed its
negative approach to the ministry’s request, resulting in the ministry
resorting to ordering them to do so. Mobile virtual network operators, which
offer communication services at a low rate, have recently appeared, but they
hold only a 4 percent share in the market. In taking advantage of the removal
of SIM locks, it is expected that the number of new entrants into the market
will increase, which will lead to the diversification of rates and
communication services. If mobile phone companies do not take a
user-unfriendly approach to the order, such as by setting a high fee for
removing the locks, the effectiveness of having the locks removed will not be
seen. We hope each mobile phone company will respond actively to the
ministry’s move. In some cases, voice telephone communication did not work well
when customers changed to other companies’ SIM cards. Mobile phone companies
are required to explain the possibility of such trouble to customers in an
earnest manner. It cannot be denied that corralling customers with SIM locks
has fostered a fruitless competition for customers. In the mobile phone
industry, a business practice continues wherein mobile phone companies pay
sales agents an incentive so that the agents can largely discount the
smartphones, which are originally priced at tens of thousands of yen, and
entice customers of other companies’ phones to change to their subscription.
The business practice is beneficial for those who often change their
smartphones. However, the incentive money is covered by communication fees
paid by users. If long-time subscribers are ignored in such a manner, many of
them will express their discontent. Mobile phone companies need to become aware
of the stern look coming from their customers. From
http://the-japan-news.com
When Park Tae-hak opened an online men's clothing shop in 2009,
he found the domestic market too small and competitive. Rather than struggling
in the saturated local market, Park decided to take his outfits to
fashion-conscious youngsters abroad who were developing an appetite for the
K-pop star style. In 2012, he opened his online shopping mall in three
foreign languages -- English, Chinese and Japanese -- and provided
international shipping and customer service. Overseas sales that year tripled
from 2009 as customers in Asia, North America and From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Online
Mall for Best Korean Products Opens to Overseas Buyers From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Science
Ministry Urges Tech Firms to Expand Investment From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Gov't
to Boost Fair Competition Among MVNOs From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
SK
Telecom Forges Ties with Nokia for From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Korean
Firms Top in Smartphone Patent Applications LG ranked second in semiconductor materials and processes with
1,223 patent applications. TSMC of Taiwan ranked third, with 1,057 patent
applications, followed by Toshiba of Japan and IBM of the From
http://www.korea.net
S.
Korean Tech Firms in Race for Extended South Korea's major tech players have expanded the battery
capacities of their flagship smartphones over the past years, data showed
Monday, as they engaged in a fierce competition over wider displays and
faster networks. Samsung Electronics Co., the world's No. 1 maker of
handsets, saw its battery capacity of the Galaxy 5S model reach 2,800mAh, up
87 percent from the 1,500mAh posted by the Galaxy S smartphone released in
June 2010. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
From
http://www.korea.net/
S. Korean Manufacturing Wanes, IT on Forefront From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
IoT
Market Potential Not as High in The Internet of Things (IoT) industry, hailed by many as a new
source of profit across the world, may not be such a lucrative market for From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
S. Korean
Firms Grab 68 Pct Share of Global Dram Market in Q2 Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top memory chip maker, and
smaller local rival SK hynix Inc. accounted for 68 percent of the global
dynamic random access memory (DRAM) market in the second quarter, industry
data showed Sunday. According to the data compiled by market researcher
DRAMeXchange, the combined market share of Samsung and SK hynix climbed 3
percent on-quarter in the April-June period, well ahead of the 25.7 percent
combined market share for From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Website
Operators Banned from Storing ID Numbers Website operators can no longer keep resident registration
numbers that had been collected in their servers after a two-year grace
period expired on Sunday, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) said. The
data privacy law was enacted in August 2012 as part of government efforts to
prevent identity theft following a series of hackings into the nation's large
portals and financial companies. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
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Ooredoo From
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
SingTel, one of the main telecommunication operators in From
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
The farecard data indicates how many commuters are entering and
leaving the transit stations and telecommunications data will estimate where
the travellers come from and where they are headed after leaving the station.
This aggregated data gives a mobility pattern of From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The In a separate press statement, URA’s Director of Information
Systems, Applications, Goh Siow Chong said, “As the land use planning authority
of From
http://www.futuregov.asia
More people are upgrading to This works out to 500,000 people across the three telcos paying
extra every month. As a double whammy, all telcos have nearly doubled the
rates for excess mobile data use since January. SingTel and M1 charge S$10.70
(US$8.59) for each extra gigabyte (GB), capped at S$188 (US$150.96) a month,
while StarHub charges S$8.56 (US$6.87) per GB, capped at S$85.60 (US$68.74) a
month. Analysts say that many consumers are busting their monthly caps as
they have yet to change their habits. Nomura Securities managing director
Sachin Gupta said: "Have a look on trains and buses: People are glued to
their handheld screens for their Korean drama or YouTube fix." While
there are smartphone apps that help people track their data consumption, most
are not using such apps. The next step for some users is to upgrade to pricier plans with
higher data allowances. One person who has done that is engineer John Wong.
After busting his 3GB limit by 5GB earlier this year, he upgraded his data
bundle to 7GB the next month. "I'm trying to use public Wi-Fi as much as
possible to stay below my current limit," said Wong, 36.Maybank Kim Eng
analyst Gregory Yap expects such upgrades will become more commonplace - an
outcome that telcos are also expecting. But while telcos seem to have the
winning formula at present, there is still a large group of people on the
older 12GB From
http://www.asianewsnet.net/
Singapore
SMEs Can Now Tap on Enhanced iSPRINT Scheme SINGAPORE: Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will get another
leg up in their efforts to transform their businesses using IT, after the
Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) announced its enhancements to the
Increase SME Productivity with Infocomm Adoption and Transformation (iSPRINT)
on Wednesday (Aug 20). The enhanced iSPRINT scheme incorporates the S$500
million ICT for Productivity and Growth (IPG) programme, announced by Deputy
Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam during the Budget Speech earlier this
year. With this, companies can apply for the benefits via one scheme, instead
of two, IDA said in its statement.
Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications and Information, said
on Wednesday: "Global and technological trends have made the businesses
highly competitive and SMEs must make use of technology to compete and
succeed. The opportunities and possibilities are there, it is up to you
(SMEs) to take advantage of the resources the Government has provided.” He
was speaking at the opening of the 16th Annual SMEs Conference and 17th
Infocomm Commerce Conference, organised by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (SCCCI). There are three main enhancements to the scheme: 1. Piloting new sector solutions Aimed at helping SMEs tap into productivity and technology
solutions, such as robotics, IT vendors and SMEs can partner to pioneer new
and scalable solutions to automate and transform the sector. Depending on the
expected sector impact, SMEs will be able to receive support of up to 80 per
cent, capped at S$1 million per SME, for the solution. The financial support
will be disbursed directly to the vendor, and SMEs need not claim for it. 2. Deploying proven sector solutions For SMEs looking to implement proven IT offerings, they can pick
from a growing list of packaged solutions. The IDA will support these
projects with up to 70 per cent of the deployment costs. Again, no claims
from the SMEs are needed as the money will be disbursed directly to vendors. 3. Fibre broadband and Wireless@SG services SMEs can enjoy high-speed connectivity with support from IDA if
they adopt any IT solutions in the enhanced iSPRINT scheme. Specifically,
their fibre subscription plans of at least 100Mbps will be subsidised, with
further support for them to implement Wireless@SG services and adopt
cloud-based and data analytics technology at their premises. "We have
been supporting about 8,000 SMEs so far for different types of
projects," said IDA Development Group's Assistant Chief Executive Khoong
Hock Yun. "Some of the projects, especially those done at a sectorial
level, have been fairly impactful, increasing their revenue and decreasing
their costs, increasing their business efficiency. Those are the ones that
can scale up. Our target is to reach about another 10,000 SMEs." From
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/
The information and communication technology (ICT) market in the
first half of the year is expected to have declined by 15-20 per cent as
people did not have the confidence to purchase new products. Pathom
Indarodom, chief executive of digital-media firm ARIP, said the ICT market in
the first six months of the year would drop by as much as 20 per cent, since
people had put off purchasing hardware. The smartphone market is stable.
"The ICT market still has room [to grow] in the medium-to-low-end market
since there is still potential for purchases of new gadgets. This market
should maintain its potential for the next three years. Therefore, ICT
companies such as Lenovo and Asus have focused their business on the medium
and low-end markets," he said. He also predicted that the ICT market
would rebound in the second half as customers replace their old computers
that are bundled with the now-obsolete Windows XP operating system. Moreover,
the ICT market this year will be dominated by individual consumer, since the
government has delayed its purchases. ARIP yesterday kicked off an ICT
exhibition in From
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/
Unregistered e-commerce websites will be fined between VND20-30
million (US$952-1,428). This follows the issuing of Decree 185/2013/ND-CP on
consumer protection and trading in fake or banned goods. It came into effect
in January. Under the decree, trading in fake products on e-commerce sites is
subject to fines of VND40-50 million ($1,904-2,380). Fake goods will be confiscated
and the website will be forced to suspend operations from six months to a
year. The domain name may also be revoked. According to online.gov.vn from
the Ministry of Industry and Trade, about 1,889 online retail services are in
their process of providing information. Another 175 e-commerce providers are
undertaking registration with the Viet Nam E-Commerce and Information
Technology Agency (Vecita) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade. This
number is quite small compared to the thousands of sites in operation.
Recently, Vecita and the Ha Noi Market Watch Department fined namvietvn.vn
VND30 million ($1,410). Managed by Nam Viet Industrial Production Company in
Hoang Mai District, the site had not been registered. Hoa Nam Import-Export JSC was also fined VND30 million for the
same offence. Other companies such as TechLand and Ho Guom
Develop-ment&Investment Ltd Co and watch shop 88 also face administrative
fines. Tran Vinh Nhung, deputy director of the HCM City Department of
Industry and Trade said, the city had more than
144,000 e-commerce sites of which 85,996 sites were operational. However,
only 2 per cent were registered. Nguyen Van Minh deputy director of Long An
Province's Department of Industry and Trade said the management of e-commerce
websites needed close co-ordination between authorised bodies. Director of
Vecita, Tran Huu Linh, said there was a need to raise awareness of the need
for businesses to comply. Nguyen Ngoc Dung from the From
http://vietnamnews.vn/
Online Bill
Payment Garners Popularity EVN plans to offer discounts on electricity bills to any person
paying bills electronically five days before it is due to encourage individuals
and enterprises to use the service. At the beginning of 2014, General
Department of Taxation informed that there were 366,000 enterprises declaring
taxes via the Internet. They have cooperated with banks to pay taxes
electronically to 15,000 enterprises by the end of this year. Besides
electricity and tax payments, many enterprises in other fields accept
transactions through internet banking. Remarkably, there are projects where
the collection and managing of tuition fees is done through "SSC school
card" and the e-banking service of HCM City Education and Training
Department. Seeing great potential in the market, many large banks like
Vietcombank, Techcombank, VPBank, ACB and Tienphongbank have diversified their
services. VPBank has concentrated on developing internet banking since 2009
and chosen it as their major business. The bank has completed a range of functions for "VPBank
online" service and coordinated with enterprises in fields of electricity,
water and insurance along with aviation and consumption. At the same time, it
has also developed high class facilities like giving deposits online to enjoy
attractive interest rates and collecting iCash to obtain gifts. VPBank has
also participated in a system of the first nine banks to provide inter-bank
super-express money transfer of Smartlink that helps customers transfer money
immediately with high limit and at low costs. For enterprises alone, VPBank
has signed up with customs, taxation and treasury bodies to implement
services for collecting money for the State budget, and guaranteeing taxes
for import-export goods electronically. From
http://vietnamnews.vn/
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The state-run Teletalk mobile phone operator has been urged to
modernise and expand its network across the country. The call came at the
third meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Posts,
Telecommunications and Information Technology Ministry on Monday. From
http://newsfrombangladesh.net/ Mobile phone handsets are getting costlier with the new budget
levying 15 percent VAT on its import.Presenting his new budget for 2014-15
fiscal on Thursday, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said
the move aimed to help the local industry flourish. From
http://newsfrombangladesh.net/ Sri Lanka Telecom says it is boosting the island's broadband
connectivity with its high capacity fibre optic backbone and expanding
international cable links. SLT has been licensed to build the national fibre
optic network, where capacity will be made available to other operators.
Chief executive Lalith de Silva says the firm had invested heavily in the
backbone network."We truly believe in sharing communication and ICT
infrastructure towards achieving the development goals of the country,"
he said in a statement. The firm says it has invested 57 billion rupees (485
million US dollars) in its network since 2007. The firm was also partnering
in a 24 Terabit per second, SEA-ME-WE 5 (South East Asia - Middle East - From
http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/ Sri Lanka IT
industry to Collaborate with Universities Online From
http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/ Sri Lanka
Firm Sells Banking Software to Fortunaglobal, a From
http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/ From
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Bakcell, The First Mobile Operator and The Leading Mobile
Internet Provider of Azerbaijan, has been awarded by the famous international
The Business Year (TBY) publication. Bakcell was announced "The Mobile
Internet Provider of the Year" at the presentation ceremony of the
"The Business Year: Azerbaijan-2014" edition organized by the
Azerbaijani Presidential Administration and TBY magazine. "We are
pleased to be awarded The Mobile Internet Provider of the Year. Our research
indicates that we are still the market leaders in dongles and in small screen
data but, for us, the focus was on moving people onto using the internet on
their handsets, rather than laptops. The Sür@ (Bakcell "We are pleased to award Mobile Internet Provider of the
Year to Richard Shearer, CEO of Bakcell. The development of Internet
applications for mobile phones has revolutionized not just the ICT sector but
has changed the way we live and do business forever. This year's Mobile Internet
Provider of the Year has pioneered this space in As one of the largest national non-oil investors, Bakcell today
continues making large investments in the economy of From
http://en.trend.az/
Azercell
Telecom Introduces Advantageous Offer for The leader of Namely Azercell provides the highest mobile Internet in the
country - 5,5 Mbit/s, which is the sign of
leadership in the mobile Internet, according to official researches by Ookla
Net Index. Moreover, the rise of mobile Internet consumption rate among
Azercell subscribers has increased by over 120 percent, while every second
subscriber is an active user of the mobile Internet. Within last two years,
the price of 1 MB mobile Internet from Azercell Telecom was decreased by 13
times. Along with reliable communication, unique services, Azercell continues
to please its subscribers with the range of beneficial campaigns and tariff
plans. Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996 and has sustained the leading
position on the market since the first years. Azercell has introduced a
number of technological innovations in The number of Azercell's subscribers stood at 4.5 million people
as of late 2013. Azercell deployed From
http://en.trend.az/
Azercell
Launches Free Smartphone Campaign Azercell Telecom, the leader of country's mobile telecommunications
market is launching a new Free Smartphone campaign, a message from the
company said on July 10. All SimSim subscribers of Azercell, i.e. new,
current, and those ported using MNP, are eligible to join this new campaign
between July 9 and December 31, 2014. Per the campaign rules a subscriber
visits Azercell's dealer shops or Express office, pays 99 AZN to SimSim
number's balance and gets year-long calls to all parts of the country, SMS
and Internet, as well as, and most importantly, a Free Smartphone from
Azercell. A subscriber can join this campaign only once using the number
registered under his name and the charges from the balance will be made
against the currently used tariff plan. Along with the leadership in the
field of telecommunication services, Azercell also aspires to lead in other
innovative areas, including creating for its subscribers the opportunity to
benefit from the latest technologies and solutions. Today the company is
capable of expanding its subscriber base both from the technical and customer
service perspectives and invites all those, who wish to be part of the 4.5
million subscribers' family to enjoy the advantages of high-quality
communication, to join its network. Azercell is committed to providing its subscribers with reliable
communication, professional customer care and cutting-edge technologies and
solutions, as well to offer them a broad number of campaigns, services and attractive
tariffs. Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996 and since the first years
sustains a leading position on the market. Azercell introduced number of
technological innovations in From
http://en.trend.az/
Volume
of E-Commerce Market Makes Up $1.6 Million in As of January-June 2014, the volume of the electronic-commerce
(e-commerce) market totaled 1.3 million AZN in From
http://en.trend.az/
Revenues of ICT Sector in Mobile communications have provided more than 60% of revenues.
Information and communication services for a total amount of AZN 862 300 000
were provided to organizations and people of From
http://news.az/ From
http://en.trend.az/
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Digital
Economy ‘Under Pressure’ The global
digital economy is doing reasonably well, but is still suffering from the economic
downturn, especially in INTERNET SERVICES Enjoying the
strongest rate of progress, with growth rates of around 20% a year. At this
pace (predicted to slow slightly to 16% in the coming years), online services
compared to core DigiWorld markets will increase from 5% in 2012 to 10% in
2017. The markets are also being changed from the inside, from both a
sectoral and geographical standpoint. Internet services
comprises several sub-groups. Social media sites, mobile apps and OTT
video are the most dynamic today: all reporting over 30% growth in 2013 – and
more than 40% and even 50% for social networking sites, on average, over the
past three years. Together, they account for around 20% of OTT markets. The
cloud is another source of growth, with revenue rising by close to 30% per
annum, and singlehandedly accounts for more than a quarter of online revenue,
followed by search and e-commerce which are growing by around 20% a year. EQUIPMENT Global
growth in core DigiWorld markets in 2013 varied from segment to segment:
ranging from +6.2% for telecommunications hardware to -5% for consumer
electronics. Between the two, computer hardware markets grew by 4.2% last
year. TELECOM AND TV SERVICES Telecom
services’ growth rate has been shrinking for the past five years and dropping
to +2.5% in 2013. The other two services segments performed virtually on par:
+4.5% for IT and software and +4.4% for TV services. Over-The-Top (OTT) OTT is in
many ways making the rules. Any discussions about the future of the digital
economy must focus on business models that are compatible with an all-IP
value chain that places most applications and services outside the network.
Despite the balance of power being tipped in favour of the top Internet
platforms, the report says the future is still relatively open for the
taking. Despite its demise being announced on a near daily basis, linear
television will be with us for some time to come – not least because it
generates more than 90% of all TV revenue. But profound changes, which are
putting tremendous pressure on industry players, are redrawing the global TV
landscape. These changes include: # the swift development of on-demand services, and notably SVOD. # the
gradual disappearance of the technical distinction between distribution on
managed networks and online distribution, which will open the way to
increased competition for control of retail distribution. # the IPTV model being called into question, and
cord-cutting leading to the emergence of broadcast + OTT solutions. European Telecoms: the three challenges A long
journey still lies ahead for # price wars
that threaten telcos’ ability to invest in new generation infrastructure; # a single
European telecoms market, which includes cross-border deals and the creation
of truly pan-European players; # achievement of the margins and critical mass needed to
reinvent the telco business model, in an environment being dictated by
powerful Internet companies. From iTWire Asia-Pacific
to Witness 17.9 pc Rise in Digital Advertising This Year Just like in
2012 and 2013, the region will boast the second-biggest share of digital ad
spending worldwide, trailing only Despite its
large share of the total digital ad market, From http://www.medianewsline.com
More than
one in 10 Australians aged between 18 and 34 had bought prescription drugs
online in a bid to save money, a new health report launched Monday showed.
The Consumer Health Management Trends Report indicated the worrying number of
people risking their health by purchasing over- the-counter medicine through
the Internet. The research, commissioned by Good Price Pharmacy Warehouse,
also showed almost half (46 percent) of Australians had used the Internet to
self-diagnose as it was quicker and cheaper than visiting a general
practitioner (GP). According to the new budget from the coalition government
last month, patients should pay 7 AU dollars (so-called
"co-payment") for per GP visit in the future. The measure,
described by the government as "a modest price signal," is designed
to dissuade patients from claiming medicare benefits for unnecessary
consultations, local media said. However, more and more people said this
measure may become a burden of their life. Anthony Yap, Good Price Pharmacy
Warehouse director, said the findings were a clear indicator of negative
consumer attitudes towards high prescription charges and GP fees. According to
him, in this weakened economic climate, consumers are increasingly seeking
out cheaper alternatives for what they perceive as over-priced treatments and
services. "The seven dollar GP fee and increased script surcharge
announced in last week's budget are likely to drive even more people to seek
health advice and cheaper medication online," he said.
"Unfortunately, the prospect of budget cuts and lower disposable incomes
cause people to overlook the risks associated with buying online such as
counterfeit products which could make them ill," he added. While the
majority of people had opted for the Internet over a GP for health advice,
doctors and pharmacists still topped the list when it came to the most
trusted sources of health information. According to the findings, more than
three-quarters of Australians said they trusted their GP above anything else
for health advice and information compared to just five percent who named the
Internet as their preferred source. The report also explored consumer
attitudes and behaviors towards herbal medicine and revealed a growing
preference for natural remedies as an alternative to over-the-counter
medications. Some 54 percent had used a natural remedy to treat their
condition with more than eight in 10 (83 percent) claiming it worked as well
as or better than prescription or over-the-counter medicine. From Xinhu NBN Co
Sticks with Service Stream Service
Stream has retained its contract to connect premises to the NBN across most
of From http://www.itwire.com
Mobile
Coverage Complaints Down, but Excess Data Charges Up The Telecommunications
Industry Ombudsman (TIO) received 36,256 new complaints in the first quarter
of the year. That is less than last year, but complaints about excess data
charges have increased significantly. The volume was 8.7 % more than in
October-December 2013, but 9.4% less than at the same time in 2013. The data
is contained in the TIO’s quarterly TIO Talks report, released today. For the
third quarter in a row, the TIO received less than 20,000 complaints about
mobile services, which make up about half of all complaints. Complaints about
mobile phones themselves have dropped 19.4% when compared to the same quarter
last year. "The reduction in mobile phone complaints is mainly due to
fewer complaints about faults, which have almost halved compared to the same
time last year," Ombudsman Simon Cohen said. But an emerging issue in
mobile complaints is excess data usage charges. The TIO data shows that while
complaints about problems like slow data speeds have decreased 67% compared
to last year, disputes over excess data charges have increased 30%. As the
speed of phones and networks has increased, so has the data used by
consumers,” said Cohen. “But the plans they sign up for may not be matching
their needs.” New
complaints about Internet and landline services increased 20.6% and 15.9% respectively, caused by a higher number of fault and
connection related complaints. Year on year, the increases were modest – 4.8%
for Internet and 2.9% for landline complaints. One in three Internet billing
disputes also included issues with faults or connections. A common theme in
these complaints was dissatisfaction with having to pay for a service that
was faulty or had not been connected by the agreed date. "Where services
are not connected or operating, it is not fair for consumers to be charged
for the service. This has been an emerging issue in the last year,"
Cohen said. TIO Talks also says mobile apps and in-app purchases charged
through consumers’ mobile bills should be covered by Mobile Premium Services
(MPS) Code, following complaints about apps that are hard to distinguish from
MPS, but are not covered by the code. From http://www.itwire.com
The
Australian data centre services market recorded revenues of $698 million in
2013; a growth of 17.2% over 2012. Revenue from co-location services
increased by almost 17% during 2013 and accounted for about 69 percent of
total market revenue. Managed hosting services revenue grew by 18%.Analyst
group Frost & Sullivan's ‘Australian Data Centre Services Market “A growing
proportion of Australian companies are outsourcing their data centre
requirements, so both co-location and managed hosting services are expected
to grow strongly over the next few years,” says Harpur. “The most
significant challenge faced by Australian organisations running their own
data centres are the lack of IT manpower or lack of skills or resources
internally. Factors compelling demand for data centre services include
increased adoption of high-bandwidth consumer applications such as social
media and high definition video, greater consumption of cloud-based
solutions, the increasing number of cloud service providers and the
complexity in managing IT environments and end-points which is a barrier to
organisations operating in-house captive data centres,” says Harpur. Strong
local demand for data centres has attracted investments from both local and
global service providers, with significant new builds over the past few years
in The report
found that the main reason users chooses data centre outsurcng is security
(62%) – way ahead of cost (44%), which was only in fifth place. Frost &
Sullivan predicts data centre services revenue growth in “The main
carrier neutral data centre service providers, especially NextDC, Global
Switch, Equinix and Digital Realty, will be key drivers of growth. All major
carrier neutral providers have established a strong presence across From http://www.itwire.com
‘Digital Disruption’ to
Cost Banks $27 Billion The report
says that to stave off the competition from online non bank organisations
such as PayPal the banks will need to spend more than $1 billion in an “IT
arms race” to upgrade their core banking systems over the next four years.
The report says cloud and smart mobile devices as the main ‘digital disruption’
culprits. The biggest and most immediate threat is to the $9 billion payments
market, where PayPal and various mobile payment systems are increasingly
popular. In the longer term the $28 billion loans business is under threat,
from players like Google and PayPal and massive Chinese e-commerce player
Alibaba, which listed recently on the New York Stock Exchange and is moving
into western markets. "Often these players understand their customers,
perhaps because they run a market for their goods (e.g. Alibaba) or know
their spending habits (e.g. Google Wallet, PayPal). From http://www.itwire.com
From http://www.futuregov.asia
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AFRICA:
Tech savvy individuals have turned to social media websites like
Facebook and Twitter in order to access news that is not censored or governed
in any way. Individuals also utilise the service in order to bypass
mainstream media which includes: television, radio and newspapers. This is according
to a report jointly published by the Media Institute of “Much to the delight of the young social media users, social
media has changed the face of the media landscape by making information
sharing ‘easier, faster and quicker. They can now easily and freely bypass
the severely censored mainstream media to access, produce, distribute and
exchange information and ideas. More importantly, the social media has
afforded the young people an opportunity to speak in their own voices, not
mediated by the mainstream media.” The research surveyed 100 people aged
between 10 and 24 years old in all four regions of From
http://www.itnewsafrica.com/
The benefits of broadband Internet are well-documented: for each
10-percent increase in penetration, a country’s gross domestic product (GDP)
can increase by as much as 1.5 percent. In addition, broadband Internet
brings citizens access to new job opportunities, health services and
possibilities for digital engagement with their government. However, citizens
of the European Union (EU) who live in rural and economically disadvantaged
areas have little access to broadband Internet, and therefore miss out on the
wide range of opportunities it offers. Today, only 18 percent of rural
households in “Our partnership
with the EU on broadband Internet is of core strategic importance to the
World Bank and its clients,” said Carlo Maria Rossotto, Lead ICT Specialist
for the World Bank’s Transport and ICT Global Practice. “We see an
opportunity to collaborate on knowledge generation and innovative funding
mechanisms that can accelerate high-speed Internet access in developing countries.”
The World Bank will bring deep technical assistance and global experience to
the “Connected Communities” initiative. Our team of seasoned practitioners
and policy experts will cooperate with the European Commission to help
develop business models, scale up project components, and explore private and
public financing options. “Through the introduction of competition and
appropriate regulatory incentives, a country like Lithuania has now the
highest fiber-to-the-home penetration in Europe, and Romania has some of the
fastest Internet infrastructure in the continent,” explained Randeep Sudan,
ICT Practice Manager. “The chance to cooperate with the European Union to
share our global knowledge, while learning from these and other best practice
cases, will be highly beneficial for developing countries that wish to
embrace the digital economy.” The initiative’s targets for its digital agenda include: 100 percent of EU households have 30 megabits per second (mbps)
broadband by 2020 (currently 64 percent of households) 50 percent of EU households have 100 mbps broadband by 2020
(currently only three percent of households) The “Connected Communities” initiative will bring together a
diverse range of governments, organizations, companies and other parties to
collaborate on key local, national and regional challenges. Through this
cooperation, the European Commission, World Bank and other partners will
offer practical solutions and financing to help isolated and underserved
communities achieve their vision for broadband Internet. From
http://blogs.worldbank.org/
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has signed an order
prohibiting anonymous access to Wi-Fi in public places. The order Medvedev
signed on August 8 requires users of Wi-Fi in restaurants, parks, the subway,
and other public areas to register when logging onto the Internet. Access
will only be available after users provide their full names, confirmed by an
ID. Hardware must be identified also. Russian authorities have been
tightening controls over use of the Internet and access to the World Wide
Web. A recent law requires bloggers with more than 3,000 daily readers to
register with the country's mass media regulator, Roskomnadzor, and conform
to the regulations that govern From
http://www.rferl.org/
LATIN
AMERICA: The government of From
http://www.telecompaper.com/
NORTH
AMERICA: When I regularly rode public transit to work I’d quickly scan
email and the news headlines on my smart phone to get a head start on the
day’s work. (The rest of the time I’d read a newspaper — I’ve told readers
before I’m a Luddite). I wouldn’t spend a lot of time online because I was
conscious of not getting close to a data limit. But I always wondered if my
habit would change if municipal buses had free Wi-Fi. If I lived in From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
Electronic prescriptions in the ONC reported e-prescriptions recorded such a huge jump over the
past five years because of financial incentive programs for doctors to adopt
the technology, including the Medicare Improvements for Patients and
Providers Act and the Electronic Health Record Incentive Programs, which went
into operation in 2011 and through this April paid doctors and hospitals just
under $24 billion to adopt health record technology. From
http://www.nextgov.com/
Turning
Big Data into Better Health Outcomes Population health management is a multifaceted, many-layered
endeavor that nevertheless has a common theme: the need for data and the
ability to mine it for actionable information. A broad spectrum of health
care players -- individual providers, hospital systems, payers, local public
health departments and federal agencies -- are all in some way addressing
population health management. The approach involves identifying populations,
assessing their disease status and developing appropriate responses, such as
management programs for chronic diseases. Those activities require access to
data -- and plenty of it. "You can't do population health management
without data," said Fred Goldstein, interim executive director of the
Population Health Alliance. Dr. Jon White, director of the health IT
portfolio at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, said data -- or
the lack thereof -- influenced his decision to leave his medical practice and
join the government. AHRQ's work in population health includes evaluating
hospital safety via data analysis. "It became painfully obvious that having the right
information at the right time is really important for delivering great
care," White said. "I didn't have the information where I needed it
when I was in practice." The good news for organizations pursuing
population health is that they have more data than ever. The Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services have provided financial incentives for the
adoption of certified electronic health record (EHR) systems by physicians
and hospitals through its meaningful-use initiative. Information formerly
confined to paper charts is now in electronic form, and a new generation of
wearable health-oriented devices promises to generate another stream of data.
However, privacy and security considerations complicate the collection of
data, and technology also contributes to the problem. Although EHRs free data
from paper records, they can inhibit the aggregation of data across medical
providers using different systems. Other issues are quality and the
"normalization" of data so analysts can make meaningful
comparisons. And then there's the need to build an infrastructure capable of
crunching all those numbers. Why it matters Population health management is a key element of the Obama
administration's efforts to reform health care. The Medicare shared-savings
component of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), for example, focuses on Medicare
beneficiaries as a population. Under the law, accountable
care organizations -- groups of providers who coordinate the care of Medicare
patients -- receive a portion of the savings that result from better quality
and lower costs. According to the law, the program "promotes
accountability for a patient population." In general, population health
management dovetails with the ongoing shift from reimbursing providers for
the number of procedures they perform to paying them based on the value they
deliver. "Part of that value is measuring your ability to manage the
health of the population that has been assigned to you," said Cynthia
Burghard, research director for accountable care IT
strategies at IDC Health Insights. In a report released in April, IDC Health
Insights said the increasing interest in population health and data analytics
is also being influenced by the objectives of the "Triple Aim,"
which the Institute for Healthcare Improvement defines as improving the
patient experience of care, enhancing the health of populations and reducing
the per-capita cost of care. More than 75 percent of health care costs can be attributed to
chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, according to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. White called chronic diseases the
foundational problem in health care and said chronic disease management and
population health programs share a common IT remedy. "The tools we need
to more effectively attack it are the same ones we need for population
health," he added. The Department of Veterans Affairs is among the federal
agencies building IT systems for population health management. Last year,
VA's Business Intelligence Service Line consolidated regional data warehouses
into a central Corporate Data Warehouse. VA uses the data to identify
high-risk populations that need extra care and examine readmission rates,
among other activities, said a spokeswoman for Microsoft, which is working
with the VA on the project. The Corporate Data Warehouse uses Microsoft's SQL
Server, business intelligence tools, Windows Server and From
http://fcw.com/
Smart
Cities on the Rise, Report Says According to a new report, the number of smart cities is expected
to increase four fold over the next 11 years. More cities are reaching into
their coffers for smart infrastructure investments. By 2025, there will be at
least 88 smart cities worldwide, up from From
http://www.govtech.com/
"We think of it as 'one customer, one city'," says
Rosetta Lue, the city's chief customer service officer and director of Philly
311. "Philly 311 was created five years ago to stop the transferring of
calls and blame games that hurt city government credibility. And we're using
technology to take that process to another level." Having one short
number, 311, to call for all city
government services has improved phone communications, but as Philadelphia
residents moved to using social media, mobile apps, and more feature-rich
websites, the city has had to expand the service to meet increased demand.
The Philly 311 mobile app, in particular, has become a handy item for
residents, says Lue. The app, developed and managed by popular mobile startup
Public Stuff, allows citizens to quickly make requests -- such as to remove
graffiti or replace a burned-out street light -- and attach
photos with the request. The request is routed to the correct administrator
in the appropriate department. City agencies can post updates about fixes and
answer questions via the app. Other users can "like" and comment on
requests. The Philly 311 app will be integrated with the enhanced Salesforce.com
CRM platform so staff can better manage requests and track and analyze data. For its part in augmenting the Salesforce.com CRM platform,
Unisys is building new interfaces to connect current work order systems with
Philly 311. It will also provide post-production support,
improve the search functionality on the phila.gov site, and train call center
agents and city neighborhood liaisons. The overarching goal of the new
Salesforce.com CRM app and environment, says Lue, is to keep all the data
coming in from different sources in sync. "We'll be better able to
aggregate data to get the most accurate picture of what the pain points and
needs are in specific neighborhoods," says Lue. In addition to better
data analytics, Lue points out that the updated system will include more
detailed city maps on the website and the mobile app as well as integrate the
work order systems of city departments with Philly 311. "So a reported
pothole will be put into the 311 database, but it will also be included as
part of the streets department's work order system. The streets department
doesn't currently have access to submitted photos and cannot update citizens
about fixes, but they'll be able to do those things." A pilot project
for the enhanced Philly 311 service was completed in June using groups of
city employees and citizens. A citywide rollout will be completed by the end
of the year. From
http://www.informationweek.com/
OECD
Launches Interactive Website on Regional Well-being Life expectancy, air quality, safety and other indicators of
well-being can vary dramatically within countries, depending on which region
you live in. Looking beyond national averages is vital to get an accurate
picture of quality of life and to guide local government policy. The OECD
today launched a regional well-being website based on an interactive map
covering the Organisation’s 34 member countries. It rates 362 sub-national
regions with a relative score out of “Where people live has a huge effect on their quality of life,”
said Rolf Alter, OECD Public Governance and Territorial Development Director,
presenting the website at a conference of the EU Committee of the Regions in From
http://www.oecd.org/
Global
Passenger Information System (Display, Announcement, Emergency Communication,
Infotainment, Passenger information systems are solutions from IT vendors to
transport service providers which helps these
operators to provide real time scheduling information to the passengers.
These solutions act as a medium for interaction between transport service
providers and the passengers. In this report passenger information systems
refer to the IT solutions and systems which are used to provide real-time
information on arrival and departure, and other features such as news
broadcast, emergency communication, and in-transit entertainment. With the
evolution of new telecommunication technologies and increased adoption of
smartphones, the demand for in-transit connectivity also increased.
Technologies such as In the airways segment, the adoption was very high in early
stages but later the adoption was observed quite high in railways and now in
roadways. Railways segment accounts for highest revenue generation but the
growth rate is significantly high in roadways segment. The same trend will be
followed for next few years. In 2014 railways segment is the highest
contributor in passenger information systems market revenues and it will
remain on top for the next 5 years. As mentioned above, high growth in
urbanization is one of the prime factors driving this market.
In the geographic regions, such as Asia Pacific and Major challenges in this market include legacy systems, and poor
infrastructure. The cost of replacing old legacy systems or up gradation will
be high which hamper the overall adoption rate of passenger information
systems. On the other hand, there are region which still lacks the basic
networking and communications infrastructure which is backbone for passenger
information systems. In near future, both of these factors will affect
significantly the adoption rate but with time the impact of these two factors
will be diminished. For the market sizing and forecasting, several
assumptions have been taken into consideration such as economic, regulatory,
and technological. For instance, exchange rates, one of the economic factors,
are expected to have a moderate rating of impact on this market. Therefore,
dollar fluctuations are expected to not seriously affect the forecasts in the
emerging APAC regions. From
http://finance.yahoo.com/
New
Spectacular Room Designs Website Launches with Key Information for Homeowners New website with up-to-date information on Spectacular Room
Designs has been launched by Real Room Designs. The company is encouraging
Homeowners to visit the site to leave feedback for future interior room
design topics and updates. Additional updates and new features can be expected in the
future. Interested parties can view the website at http://realroomdesigns.co.uk.Partner
Derek Johnston described the new website in this way:”There has been a lot of
positive feedback surrounding http://realroomdesigns.co.uk and the
information that it provides. Real Room Designs is committed to making
continual improvements and adjustments so that all Homeowners have access to
the latest information on Spectacular Room Designs. It is the goal of Real
Room Designs to become the leading resource for reliable information on
issues of interior room design impacting Homeowners.”Real Room Designs
welcomes new website visitors to take a look at the numerous features
available, and to submit feedback for the next round of updates. From
http://www.nbc26.tv/
APEC Turning
to ICT to Support Aging Populations Better information and communications technology access and
service delivery is needed to boost living standards and innovative growth as
populations age within the Asia-Pacific and increase
pressure on shrinking workforces and budgets. Senior policy officials from
APEC member economies and private sector representatives confronted the scope
of the demographic challenge facing the region’s economies during an APEC
workshop this week in “Massive increases in digital data, the rise of cloud computing
and public use of smart phones are among the game changing factors guiding
the direction of our cooperation,” explained Nur Sulyna, who is also Head of
International Affairs, Legal and Commission Secretariat at the Malaysian
Communications and Multimedia Commission. “By making ICT more accessible to a
greater number of people, including the elderly and people with disabilities,
and enhancing public and private data use, we can do a lot to create
paperless environments and reduce operating costs for businesses and
economies,” added Professor Toshio Obi, Director of the APEC e-Government
Research Center at Waseda University and overseer of member economies’
multiyear project on ICT for aging society. “We are creating new e-APEC
strategy.” APEC economies are focused on the development of training courses
for ICT trainers of the elderly and disabled, assessing the impact of wider
ICT adoption and fostering policies that accelerate the production and
commercialization of industry innovations that cater to people with special
needs. Further emphasis is on the strengthening of online government
services. This includes the exchange of strategies and best practices for optimizing
technology infrastructure, back office speed and data use based on inputs
from companies and citizens. “The clock is ticking for Asia-Pacific economies
to address the dual challenges of aging populations and declining
birthrates,” concluded Dr Alan Bollard, the APEC Secretariat’s Executive
Director. “Coordinated efforts to widen ICT access and improve service
delivery are helping to raise living standards for the region’s seniors. They
are also opening new opportunities for businesses and the next generation of
entrepreneurs vital to long-term productivity and growth.” The APEC
Telecommunications and Information Working Group will meet on 29 September-3
October in From
http://www.apec.org/
ADB-funded
E-trike Project Hits Snag Due to Higher Costs The Department of Energy’s electric-tricycle (e-trike) program
has hit another bump in the road towards initial rollout, further delaying
the Asian Development Bank-funded $504-million project. In an interview,
Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla told The STAR that the government
will likely rebid the supply contracts of the first 3,000 e-trike units this
year following issues raised against potential suppliers and the lack of off-takers.
Petilla said majority of the interested local government units (LGUs) which
are the potential beneficiaries of the project have backed out upon learning
that suppliers have increased the cost of the e-trike units. Based on initial
talks between the suppliers and its off-takers, a DOE source explained that
manufacturers offered each e-trike unit at only P200,000.
But during recent negotiations, the source said qualified suppliers have
raised indicative prices per e-trike unit to about P305,000. Still, the source said the price the suppliers are offering the
LGU beneficiaries is still cheaper than the commercially available e-trikes
which cost at least P Petilla, however, said their request came to no avail and as
such, the DOE will not consider anymore LGUs with no seal of good
housekeeping as beneficiaries once the the supply contracts are finalized.
The energy chief said they are targeting to rebid the supply contracts this
year, with the rollout of the first 3,000 units seen by next year. Under the
program, the DOE was supposed to roll out the first batch or 3,000 e-trike
units this year. An auction was held in August last year with manufacturers
from The $504-million e-trike project is a joint undertaking of the
DOE and the ADB. The program is funded through a $300-million loan from the
ADB, $105-million loan and grant from the Clean Technology Fund, and
Philippine government’s $99-million counterpart funding. The project seeks to
reduce the country’s fuel imports and lessen annual carbon dioxide emissions
by replacing 100,000 of the 3.5 million gasoline-powered tricycles currently
operating in the From
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/
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A government report on China's human rights said Monday that
Internet has "dramatically" expanded the space of freedom of
speech.Chinese netizens post and forward 250 million microblog messages and
over 20 billion WeChat and other instant messages every day, said the report
on China' s human rights in 2013, issued by the
State Council Information Office.Internet has become one of the most
important channels for the public to express its opinion, the report said."Chinese
people enjoy extensive freedom of speech," the report said. "Within
the range allowed by the Constitution and other laws, the public can discuss
political issues freely."The public can express opinions through
Internet forums, blogs, personal webpages, social networks, online
literature, online videos and other Internet platforms, according to the report.The
report quoted the statistics from seven websites including Sina and Tencent
as saying that, among the 20 topics that received the most attention on line
in 2013, the top 12 received over 2 million posts each, and the top one over
45 million posts. Chinese netizens discussed a wide range of topics, including
lawsuits, people's livelihood, individual rights and interests protection,
doctor-patient disputes, and corruption, the report said.By the end of 2013,
the number of netizens in China reached 618 million and Internet coverage
rate 45.8 percent, according to the report.The country now has about 120
million Internet forum or bulletin board system (BBS) users, 437 million blog
and personal webpage users and 278 million social network users.Effective
realization of freedom of speech ensures that the public oversee the
government, the report said.Many local government websites in China have
mailboxes to receive letters from the public, while the central discipline
inspection agency, Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate
have opened tip-off websites. From http://www.news.cn/
Two rounds of electronic savings bonds worth up to 40 billion
yuan (6.56 billion U.S. dollars) will be issued by China's Ministry of
Finance (MOF) next week.They will be the third and fourth issuance of such
bonds this year, according to a ministry statement on Wednesday.The third
issuance is worth 24 billion yuan and carries a term of three years with a
fixed annual interest rate of 5 percent. The fourth issuance of five-year
bonds is worth 16 billion yuan at a fixed annual interest rate of 5.41
percent, the MOF said.The bonds will be issued from June 10 to 19. Interest
will be calculated from June 10 and paid annually, the statement said.The
bonds will be available to individual investors at the Industrial and
Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, China
Construction Bank, Bank of Communications, Bank of Beijing, Bank of Shanghai
and China Guangfa Bank, it said.Electronic savings bonds are considered more
convenient than other types, as interest can be paid directly into investors'
accounts. From http://www.news.cn/
Big Data Could Help The Other search data involving population movements, weather conditions
and geographical factors can also help with flu predictions through
scientific analysis, Gao said. "These are gaps that the data can help
fill to supplement the traditional flu monitoring system."US search
giant Google launched a similar predictive tool in 2008 called Google Flu
Trends, "which inspired us to create a Chinese one", Lai said.Gao
added that other medical conditions and issues such as digestive tract
diseases, food poisoning, smoking control and infectious outbreak response
might be included in the project.But some experts questioned the credibility
of such analysis, saying huge datasets do not necessarily guarantee validity.Last
year, science journal Nature reported that Google Flu Trends had
overestimated the peak Christmas flu season in 2012 by 50 percent.Lai said
that the project will adjust and fine-tune the data by repeatedly comparing
the data-generated trends with traditional flu surveillance results.Other
factors affecting the validity of the analysis, like the rapidly increasing
use of smartphones, the rural-urban gap in Internet access and segmented
search engine users, will all be considered to increase accuracy, he said. From http://www.news.cn/
60% of The number of Chinese Internet users who use their mobile phones
to get online hit 686 million by June 2014, up 5 percent from December,
consultancy EnfoDesk said Monday in a statistical report.Of all the 686
million mobile Internet users, 60.2% are male, said the statistical report on
China's mobile Internet for the first half of 2014.People under the age of 30
account for 61 percent while the ratio of the young and middle aged users is
on the rise.33.2 percent of male users have a high school education and 22.5
percent serve in the manufacturing or service industry. It was also
discovered that 20.6 percent are without a stable income.Instant messaging
services are the most preferred among China's mobile Internet users, who spent
84.1 percent of their online time using them.The latest data from EnfoDesk
also shows that active WeChat users numbered at 359.87 million by May,
finally surpassing QQ Mobile (307.33 million users). By the end of 2013, QQ
Mobile enjoyed the highest number of active users among all mobile apps. From http://www.news.cn/
China's Internet industrial association on Thursday issued a
proposal on credit building and good faith in the cybersphere.The proposal by
the Internet Society of China and 22 Chinese websites called on Internet
businesses and netizens to use the Internet and operate their websites in
accordance with law, honestly and in good faith, while resolutely opposing
the fabricating and spread of false information, malicious libel, fraud,
piracy and other online mischievousness.It also urged the websites not to
provide a platform for illegal and discredited activities.The proposal is
said to be part of the industry's efforts to implement a State Council plan
released last month for building social credit system, the country's first
special national plan in this area.Major news portals and commercial websites
should take the lead in promoting the value of good faith and credibility and
enhance their self-discipline, said Ren Xianliang, vice director of State
Internet Information Office. From http://www.news.cn/
China's netizen population, the world's largest, reached 632
million by the end of June, an industry report showed on Monday.Figures from
the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) showed that there were
14.42 million new Internet users in the first six months of the year.Compared
to the 53.58 million new Internet users added last year, the increase in the
first half of this year was relatively small.According to Liu Bing, the
center's deputy director, this is partly because declining smartphone sales
have led to fewer new netizens.Official statistics showed that in the first
three months of 2014, shipments of smartphones hit 100 million, down 24.7
percent from the same period last year.According to the report, about 178
million Internet users were rural residents, accounting for 28.2 percent of
the entire online population, the report said.The number of mobile Internet
users totaled 527 million as of June 30, up 26.99 million from the end of
2013, the CNNIC report said.According to the report, the 34th of its kind
since 1997, Chinese netizens spent a weekly average of 25.9 hours on the
Internet, an increase of 0.9 hour from the figure recorded in the second half
of 2013.In addition to online shopping and entertainment, China's online
population also surfs the Internet for financial and medical services,
according to the report. From http://www.news.cn/
Majority of Chinese Minors
Under 10 Use Internet More than 60 percent of minors are exposed to the Internet
before they are 10 years old, and 23.8 percent before the age of 6, according
to a 2013 report on minors' use of the Internet released by Chinese Young
Pioneers Business Development Centre.Earlier reports revealed that 17.5
percent of minors used the Internet before reaching From http://www.news.cn/
Chinese Courts Open Tip-off
Websites Chinese courts at all levels have launched websites for
collecting tip-offs of illegal conduct by staff, the Supreme People's Court
(SPC) has said.All intermediate courts and most of grassroots courts have
launched their websites in recent days, and connected to the sites already
run by the SPC and all higher people's courts.The SPC launched its site in
May 2009. In February 2011, all higher people's courts had tip-off websites
of their own and the SPC started to push the concept at all four levels of
courts.People can access tip-offs websites of all courts through the SPC
(jubao.court.gov.cn). Upper courts can guide and monitor lower courts through
the system.Zhou Qiang, president of the SPC, said each tip-off should be
taken seriously to establish the authority of the law and judicial
credibility. From http://www.news.cn/
Chinese Classified
Listings Website Closes USD200 Million Round Chinese lifestyle information website Ganji.com has gained new
investments of USD200 million with investors such as Tiger Fund and Carlyle
Group.Yang Haoyong, chief executive officer of Ganji.com, revealed that the
company plans to launch its initial public offering in June 2015.Yang said
Ganji.com will "not be listed with the second position" and the
company aims at three firsts. It eyes the first position for operating
revenue in the classified information industry in From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
SoftBank Corp, From
http://www.japantoday.com
Govt Looks to Robots to Solve Nation’s Woes The government plans to use robots as a key measure in dealing
with labor shortages and the nation’s aging society, and will boost support
for development in several priority areas, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned. According
to the government’s robot strategy, which is aimed at achieving the
widespread adoption of inexpensive, user-friendly robots before other countries,
the government will focus on four fields—nursing care, agriculture,
infrastructure inspection/disasters and factories. Through subsidies and
other support measures, it aims to take the initiative in the field of
robotics, where international competition is increasingly fierce. The strategy also sets a target for
boosting the scale of the domestic market for robots, aiming to increase it
from about ¥700 billion in 2012 to about ¥2.4 trillion in 2020. The government
will announce the plans this week and include them in its new growth strategy
to be compiled in late June. In step with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and
Paralympics, the government plans to hold an event tentatively called the
“Robot Olympics,” where countries from around the world would compete over
the efficiency and performance of their robots. According to a government estimate, the nation will need about 1
million more caregivers than it will actually have in 2025. With this in
mind, the government will promote efforts to reduce the cost of robotic
power-assist suits, mechanical exoskeletons that can be worn to make
caregiving physically easier. Such suits can help a caregiver hold and move a
person in need of nursing care. As more than 60 percent of the nation’s
farmers are 65 or older, the government will also support the development of
unmanned tractors and other devices. Regarding infrastructure inspection, the
government will accelerate efforts to develop small unmanned helicopters that
can confirm cracks in the inaccessible parts of bridges using cameras or
sensors. The government believes that efforts over the next several years
will be critical. Last year, U.S.-based Google Inc. acquired robot
development companies in both the From
http://the-japan-news.com
Machines to
Talk via Mobile phone companies are focusing on providing wireless
communication services through their mobile networks for such machines as vending
machines and gas meters. Although the consumer market for mobile phones has
become saturated, there is significant room for growth in “inter-machine
communication” services and the area is expected to yield new business
opportunities. NTT Docomo Inc. is providing mobile connections for about
150,000 vending machines owned by Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd. The
machines are wirelessly connected to a data center, and maintenance staff are notified through e-mails to their mobile phones
in the event that products sell out or machines malfunction. NTT Docomo will
also provide mobile networks for a trial involving the shared use of
power-assist bicycles, to be conducted by According to the Fuji Chimera Research Institute, Inc., the
market for intermachine communications is expected to reach ¥276.2 billion by
fiscal 2017, or 2.3 times its level in fiscal 2012. Communication fees are
quite low at several hundred yen per month. However, “more than 50 billion
machines will be connected to the Internet in 2020, five times the current
number,” according to SoftBank President Masayoshi Son, so intermachine communications
are expected to yield stable revenue. Mobile phone companies are also working
to upgrade their communication capabilities. KDDI Corp., for example, will
apply Long Term Evolution communication, which can quickly send large volumes
of data, to intermachine transmissions from next May. However, it will be
difficult for mobile phone companies to create systems that fulfill
companies’ various communication needs on their own. SoftBank therefore
formed a development tie-up in April with General Electric Co. of the From
http://the-japan-news.com
The number of mobile-cellular broadband subscribers is expected
to reach 7 billion worldwide by the end of this year on the back of a brisk
increase in developing countries, a report showed Friday. According to the
annual "World 2014: ICT Facts and Figures" report released by the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the number of mobile-cellular
subscriptions will approach the number of people on earth, with a penetration
rate of 96 percent, by end-2014. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Science Ministry
to Cut Telecom Costs for Households From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Global Reactions
Flow in as Korea’s Internet Speed Ranks First
From
http://www.korea.net
Carriers Invest
Over 5 Tln Won Per Year for Faster Network: Report South Korean mobile carriers spent an average 5.15 trillion won
(US$5.01 billion) every year since 2011 into developing faster mobile
networks, raising concerns that excessive competition may erode profit, a
report said Monday. The investment in what is called long-term evolution
(LTE) network between 2011 and 2013 is nearly 55 percent more than the yearly
3.33 trillion won the carriers put into the previous From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
S. Korea's
High-speed From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
S. Korean IPTV
Subscriptions Top 10 Mln The number of subscribers of Internet Protocol TV (IPTV)
services in From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
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The curriculum of ICT programmes in universities will be revised
to reflect industry needs in an effort to tackle the perennial problem of
skills mismatch among graduates. With only 10% of new entrants to the
workforce directly employable while the rest require training before they can
start work, Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) is working with
universities, the National ICT Association of Malaysia (Pikom), the education
ministry as well as other industry players to breathe new life into the
current syllabus to make it more reflective of the industry's needs. "The
curriculum was revised six years ago but with technological changes, you
really need to revise it," said MDeC talent division director Muhammad
Imran Kunalan Abdullah. While he did not mention when the new curriculum is
expected to take off, Muhammad Imran said there are already some efforts put
in place ways to improve the employability of ICT students. These include
getting industry players to lecture in universities, introducing short-term
professional courses and engagements between the universities and industry
players to match employee-employer needs. "Universities should not be teaching about products.
Students should be taught about disciplines and analysis such as techniques
of programming as opposed to learning about certain products. "Unfortunately,
a lot of universities today are training ICT students on products because
these certain products are widely-used in the market, which is fine but when
they graduate, it does not give them the overall skill set of a computer
science graduate," said Pikom's research committee chairman Woon Tai
Hai. The National ICT Association of Malaysia's (Pikom) ICT Job Market
Outlook 2014 revealed that fresh ICT graduates are still struggling to
command higher salaries due to a mismatch of skills and higher employer
expectations, with salaries only recording an average amount of RM2,344 between 2011 and last year. The survey found that the
salary gap between the freshies and their more experienced counterparts had
widened from 2.83 times in 2012 to 2.92 times last year. It also noted that fresh graduates saw a slim salary rise of RM From
https://my.news.yahoo.com/
The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) of the From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Philippine
Government Officials Train Open Data Skills with Open Knowledge Foundation &
World Bank Open government does not end with setting up an open data
portal, Philippine Government officials learnt during a week-long data skills
training session organised by Open Data Philippines, Open Knowledge
Foundation (OKF) and the World Bank. After the portal is set up, the data
needs to be constantly cleaned, shared and updated, while promoting citizen
participation, to fulfill the ultimate goal of making information not just
open, but also useful, Anders Pedersen, Community Coordinator and Business
Developer, OpenSpending told the officials gathered across agencies. Moving
away from traditional formats like .pdf towards more open formats such as .csv
and .txt mean that the data can be accessed by a wider variety of programmes
and allow for manipulation of data. One of the most important parts of
opening up data is simply getting the data across to the public in an
effective way. Pedersen provided hands-on training for these open data
advocates to clean, scrape and visualise data. Datawrapper, Raw, D3.js,
Tableau, and ThingLink are some tools that help with visualising data. Sergio
Araiza from From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Tablets
vs Paper: How the A project in the Philippines has reduced the cost of collecting
healthcare information and delivering public health messages to the poorest
families by almost half over five years, a university study has found.
FutureGov caught up with Mary Rose Rontal, Health Innovations Programme
Manager at ACCESS Health International-Philippines, to uncover the story
behind the success of the project: e-Action for Universal Healthcare
Coverage. ACCESS, a non-profit think tank, has trained the government’s
community health teams to collect health information on families using
tablets, replacing paper forms which they had been using since 2011. The
health workers can now use a mobile and web app to summarise the data
collected and automatically generate reports. The City Health Office can also
directly access the reports online and share them with other government
agencies. An economic evaluation of using the app versus paper forms by the
University of the Philippines Econ Foundation found that “using the [app] is
nearly half as expensive as using the paper-based approach over a five year
period”, including less time spent on collecting, processing and reporting
data. The “So far we have trained 100 health workers [to use the app],”
said Rontal of the total 100,000 health workers deployed by the government.
With the mobile app, they can deliver standardised healthcare messages to
families using videos, which makes the message more visual and easier for
families to understand, she noted. The lower cost of implementing this
project means that it can be scaled up more easily and can allow the local
government to better allocate their funds and human resources. The project
was first introduced in From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Nanyang Technological University (NTU), one of the two largest
public universities in From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The Nanyang Technological University (NTU), one of the biggest
universities in Singapore with 33,500 students, has become the first higher
education institution in Australasia to achieve the international ISO 20000
certification, demonstrating excellence and best practice in IT service
management, CIO Tay Kheng Tiong told FutureGov. ISO 20000 is an
internationally recognised quality standard that describes an integrated set
of management processes which form a service management system for the
effective delivery of services to the organisation and its stakeholders. “It
was a two year rigorous process which required close collaboration among our
end-users and a cohesive and responsive IT team. We had to learn to do a lot
more with less, realign IT to business processes, and adopt best in breed
technology to ensure that our provision, delivery and support services are at
their optimal,” Since the certification process is stringent and tedious, it
naturally leads to some resistance from staff. When asked what motivated him
to take on the challenge, From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Asked how Singapore’s ‘Smart Nation’ strategy differed from
other cities’ use of sensors, he told FutureGov there are three factors that
make Singapore’s plan unique. First, he said, “how we’re trying to do this
across the whole of government… what we think makes us unique is the ability
to have all the parts of government working together, so there’s been many
discussion that have included transport, health and education.” Second, he
said that From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The Singapore Government has awarded a S$26.5 million (US$21
million) contract to Accenture to develop a national case management and
information system that will coordinate the delivery of social services to
individuals and families in need. Implementation of the system, called the
Social Service Net (SSNet), will start in the third quarter of 2015, the
Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and Infocomm Development
Authority of Singapore announced. The SSNet will allow service providers to
manage and share information about individual cases, and also host assessment
tools. Safeguards will be put in place to ensure that information is shared
on a needs basis and used responsibly, according to the MSF. Chan Chun Sing
(pictured), Minister for MSF, said: “Even after it is developed, it will take
time for help agencies – from voluntary welfare organisations as well as the
government - to transit to the new system. We will provide the necessary
support, and work closely with all partners to ensure a smooth transition.” From
http://www.futuregov.asia
For the first time, students taking part in the From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Technology
to Address Dengue Outbreak, Public Transport Woes, Says The government has also accepted all recommendations made
following an inquiry into the Little India riots in December 2013. The
inquiry found that police were not able to coordinate with each other during
the riot due to out-of-date technology. It recommended that the police use
better technology to pull video feeds from multiple sources and gather data
from social media. The review noted the government’s efforts to ensure that
agencies are working more closely so that citizens have “a more seamless
experience when they interact with the government”. For instance, social service
agencies will be able share information more easily after it implements an
integrated case management system and database, Social Service Net, in 2015.
The government also has a ‘No Wrong Door’ policy, it said, which“ channels misdirected feedback and service requests from
a member of the public to the appropriate agency”. The government is looking
to increase opportunities for Singaporeans to work with government agencies.
In April 2014, the government launched a new ‘eCitizen Ideas’ portal to
crowdsource ideas from citizens on public sector problems. From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
A committee, comprised of 10 agencies, yesterday agreed to build
"smart" classrooms that will be equipped with iPad-standard devices
and will cost between Bt300,000 and Bt600,000. The
project will replace the previous government's "One Tablet Per
Child" policy. After a meeting with the panel yesterday, Office of Basic
Education Commission (Obec) deputy chief Kamol Rodklai said the first step
would be to rename the project to "IT Development for Education" as
the Bt4 billion earmarked for the tablets would be spent on the 'smart
classroom' project. He explained that agencies would build smart classrooms
for schools under their supervision, adding that an Obec-proposed model would
be used as the minimum standard. Under the Obec model, schools would be
equipped with portable computers of equivalent to iPads, he said. Smart
classrooms would come in three sizes: a 20-device room (costing Bt300,000), a 40-device room requiring Bt400,000 and a
50-device room requiring Bt600,000. Based on this, funds earmarked for the
tablet project could be used to build smart classrooms in 15,000 schools. Details
would be submitted to the Social Psychology Group and the National Council
for Peace and Order for consideration this week, he said From
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/
Govt
Help Sought over Classification of The national telecom regulator is seeking government help to
solve the difficulty telecom operators face when
trying to expand their network coverage in the provinces because of the Interior
Ministry's regulations governing building construction. Many provinces have
just introduced the regulations, which define telecommunication towers with a
height of over 10 metres and a weight of more than 40 kilograms as buildings.
This means that permission from provincial authorities is needed before the
towers can be built, and this has affected the telecom operators' attempts to
roll out new or expanded networks upcountry quickly. Korkij Danchaivichit,
deputy secretary of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications
Commission, said the operators did not experience this problem in The department then asked the NBTC to raise the matter formally,
and the commission made its submission on June 26. NBTC data reveal that as
of April, Advanced Wireless Network had finished installing 10,380 From
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/
Thailand’s
Water Authority to Join Up All Data Across Three Provinces The Thai water authority plans to consolidate all location-based
data across its departments into a central system within the next five years,
the Metropolitan Water Authority (MWA) has told FutureGov. “For a long time
now, each division has been keeping their own record, which makes it
challenging to share information and plan across the organisation. The
central system will also allow us to generate a dashboard for quicker and
more informed decision making,” said Somsak Saranopakul (pictured), Director
of Engineering Standard and Geographic Information Department of MWA. The
consolidation will join up various systems, including customer information,
water loss system, and the system that enables remote control over water
infrastructure. MWA officials should also be able to access all data via
mobile devices with the new consolidated system, added Phakpoom Pirachai,
Senior Engineer, Pipeline System Information Section, Geographic
Information Division, of MWA. MWA has been investing in GIS technology for the past 10 years,
spending approximately THB147 million (US$4.6 million) to improve the
management of over 31,000 kilometer of water pipes across Bangkok and two
neighbouring provinces. The authority has come a long way since 2000, from
hand-drawn maps to digital spatial drawings. “We used to rely on paper maps
and make markings by hand. Today, we use Esri’s ArcGIS which saves us up to
10 working days for each engineering survey project,” said Pirachai. GIS has
been particularly helpful when planning for expansion of water pipelines,
said Saranopakul. “When we want to invest in a new water pumping station for
the next 5 to 7 years, we input the forecasted demand into a
GIS-based software to analyse the size of the pipes we need, the water
pressure based on the landscape, and how much it will cost.” MWA is a one of
the winners of the Esri’s Special Achievement in GIS Award. It received the
award last week at the 35th annual Esri User Conference in From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
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The number of From
http://newsfrombangladesh.net/ BANGALORE: Homegrown IT firm Innovazion which has named its new
antivirus software ‘NaMo’, the popular short name of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi will provide free protection to PC users against malware and virus
attacks. While the current version offers basic protection, the company plans
to launch advanced versions of the software as well as those for Apple’s Mac
PCs. The current software will also get regular updates. “ “By building this software, we wanted to … congratulate the
current government. We also want to pass a message to the government that the
nation has high expectations from them,” he said. The anti-virus has features
like real-time detection of infections, intelligent scanning, custom
detection and islight on hard drive. Started in 2007, Innovazion has a
presence in seven countries including From
http://www.siliconindia.com/ Linking
Farmers to Markets Through ICTs Agricultural market information services usually make their
services available via websites, though some also distribute their
information via radio, newspaper and television. Linking farmers to markets
helps farmers to escape the greed of middlemen and traders as it improves
their knowledge of market prices and increases their bargaining power. Better
roads in rural areas, for example, will encourage them to transport their produce
to distant markets themselves and bypass middlemen. Similarly, the expansion
of mobile network services into rural areas will effectively connect farmers
to local and distant markets. Agricultural market information services
(AMIS), several of which have been launched across Agricultural market information services are a set of tools for
collecting and processing agricultural and livestock market information and
delivering this information to farmers, as well as traders, food processors
and government functionaries. These services aim to increase the transparency
of the agricultural marketplace. Informed farmers can make better business
choices, for instance which crops to plant or how long to store their produce
until prices improve. Information from local and
distant markets also helps farmers to decide how to price their products and
where to sell them. Eventually, better business decisions improve their
bargaining power and increase their income. Many AMIS initiatives make more
than just market information available to farmers. Indeed, they also provide
agricultural extension advice, weather forecasts and prices for
agriculture-related inputs. Some services even help farmers to find buyers
for their produce and buy their farm inputs directly from manufacturers at
favourable prices. Learning quickly Agricultural market information services
usually make their services available via websites, though some also
distribute their information via radio, newspaper and television. But
increasingly their services are available as mobile agricultural value-added
services through mobile networks and social media such as Facebook and
Twitter. The number of farmers using agricultural market information services
is on the rise. Many of these services, such as Esoko, Manobi, LINKS, KACE
and M-Farm, have been successfully employed by farmers. Many more of these
services, however, have been less successful, often because they have either failed
to provide timely, accurate and cost-effective market information or have not
made their information easily accessible for the intended users. From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ Skilled
Indians to Benefit from New Job Portal The National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development (NIESBUD) Naukri portal is the first initiative taken for the
benefits of skilled job seekers with the help of dedicated web portal. The
National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development
(NIESBUD has launched its Naukri portal recently. The NIESBUD Naukri portal
(www.niesbudnaukri.com) is a dedicated web portal designed for the unemployed
skilled persons. This is the first initiative taken for the benefits of
skilled jobseekers who are not yet covered under
conventional placement system. It
is a common platform for Prospective Employer and Employees. The web portal
would facilitate easy registration for all the prospective employees with
their detailed background. The
prospective employer would find it easy to search their requirement on the
web portal. It is expected that
all the persons so far trained by different organisations of Ministry of
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise and who are still looking for job, would
at least register on the website. The National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development (NIESBUD) is an apex training Institute under the aegis of
Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprise and is engaged in providing
training, consultancy, and other support system for promotion of
entrepreneurship and employability.
It has so far trained more than 2,70,000
persons which includes more than 2,600 foreign participants hailing from 25 countries of the world. During the last three years, NIESBUD
has enhanced its capacity to train more than 1,00,000
persons per year and the same is expected to increase further. A need was felt to provide common
platform to our trained persons, so that they could find job at least in the
sector where they are available.According to NIESBUD, the portal would
benefit both the employees in many ways. The employee has the opportunity to
update their Profile on niesbud naukri portal without any charge which can be
edited as per their convenience. They can apply in multiple companies at one
time as this portal has pool of employers from various fields. Moreover,
through the website employees can improve their skill, if they require. The portal will also help employers as they can get skilled
persons from different sectors and fields. The portal has gives an option to
employers to indicate their preferences of skill which they require for their
enterprises. NIESBUD can help the employer through this portal for accessing
job seekers in different
geographical locations as per their need or requirement. In fact, employers
can hire trained and young persons belonging to the rural areas. Apart from
the launch of the portal, the Rojgar Mela is being organised by NIESBUD
presently which will start catering to the pool of job seekers. NIESBUD can
now keep a tab on activities of employers and employees critically. It can
also evaluate the market trend and thus devise suitable courses. From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ Mobile
Application for Expectant Mothers The application named ‘Aama ko Maya’ (mothers love) plays a key
role in mitigating infant and maternal mortality rate. BHARATPUR, JUL 21 - In
an era where mobile phones have become indispensable, programmers have
devised a mobile application to keep a track record of expectant mothers. Jhuwani
Community Library in Bichauni VDC has been practising it since the past one
and a half months, relieving women of having to travel long distances for regular
check-ups. The authorities have provided each of the female medical
volunteers in all nine wards with a mobile phone and pre-installed
application. The application named ‘Aama ko Maya’ (mothers love) helps the
medical personnel keep track of the development of expectant mothers
including vital information pertaining to pregnancy in audio, visual and
text. From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ Mobile Apps
for Farmers to Gain Access to Markets A 2013 study entitled Market in their Palms conclusively shows
that the use of mobile apps by smallholder farmers in Agriculture is responsible for 65% of From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ Online
Course to Help Fight Sexual Harassment at Workplace The objective of the course is to provide individuals with a
well-informed understanding of all the elements constituting sexual
harassment. Speaking about the need for effective implementation of the law,
Dr Ranjana Kumari, Director of CSR stated, “To have effective, healthy and
productive working environments, every institution/organization/unit, where
more than ten people work together, should be responsible for ensuring the
compliance of the Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act. What happened at
‘Tehelka’ recently was a big reminder that even reputed organizations do not
comply with the Act, and these crimes go unreported for a long time.” Sexual
harassment is one of the most under-reported crime
in most societies and most cases of sexual assaults are against women. Sexual
harassment at the workplace typically ranges from mildly distasteful sexist
comments and jokes, pornographic material, provocative electronic mail and
X-rated computer software all the way to outright assault and rape in extreme
cases. There is a growing clamour for the need to maintain a secure work
environment and the implementation of these policies is of utmost importance.
CSR’s Gender Training Institute also helps organisations create gender
sensitive workspaces in compliance with the Act. From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ This strategic tie-up will give a boost to the Ministry’s
entrenched activities like putting up banners, posters, etc., in areas
dominated by risk groups and display of other promotional material in public
spaces, claims Harsh Vardhan. Combating discrimination of HIV-AIDS victims is
also a part of the drive. Talking about government’s efforts to fight against
the incurable disease, the minister informed that the Department of AIDS
Control is already providing preventive care and support treatment services
through 1,873 targeted interventions, and its network of 1,131 Sexually
Transmitted Infection (STI) Clinics, 1,137 blood banks, over 15,000
integrated counselling and other infrastructure. He also emphasised that such
services should reach all people in the country especially those who are most
at the risk for HIV. “The goal of zero-HIV incidence cannot be achieved only
unless the disease’s spread is addressed holistically. Mainstreaming and
partnership building are key in the national AIDS
control programme’s multi-sectoral response,” Harsh Vardhan said. At present,
The minister believes that the targeted 15-49 age group population
is quite savvy in contemporary forms of connectivity and it is easy to create
AIDS awareness among this group through mobile telephony and social media. Stating
the importance of ICTs in creating awareness, the minister noted that the
Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) has a major role
to play in spreading information on prevention of the deadly disease. He
added, “Big is not necessarily beautiful, small messages for awareness
building with prevention as focus works better in the case of AIDS control,” The
Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT) is going to facilitate
effective management of strategic information through National e-governance,
Community services centres, and through push-based SMS, etc. Ravi Shankar
Prasad, Minister, MICT, said that the collaboration will work through Common
Service Centres which, apart from spreading knowledge, will also encourage
voluntary blood donation and facilitate access to Social Protection schemes. He
added that MICT plans to connect 50,000 panchayats with a broadband
optic-fibre network during the current financial year. Over the next two
years another 100,000 would be added. From
http://southasia.oneworld.net/ Web Portal
on Blood Banks Coming Soon The status of stock, information on the availability of blood of
specific groups in state-run blood banks will now be a click away as the There were cases in which a patient could not be saved because
the specific group of blood he needed was not available in certain blood
banks, though it was available in another, an official at the state Health
department said."This portal will help one to track the stock and get
the blood in time," he said. It would also provide a donor's details,
which would help officials to contact him in time of blood shortage, he said. In fact, once the portal was ready
organisers of blood camps would have to apply online for holding camps, he
said. Apart from assisting donors and patients, the portal would also help
the state government monitor the blood banks' mode of operations. "Once
the portal comes up, it would help us operate things in a more transparent
manner," Dr Bala said. "There have been reports of refusal by blood
banks and also cases of theft of blood units. But this portal would not only
help us monitor the stock but also improve the services," Bala said. The
blood banks, linked online, would be connected with the state Health Ministry
Department at its From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ eChunav.com Releases
Its eChunav app will be compatible
with phones, phablets and tablets running android operating system. "At eChunav, we
believe consumers should have more platforms to raise their voices and
control over how they want to bring a change in the society. This year, our
focus has been on growing our footprint across the country. It's been an
exciting year for our team as we've expanded the product across the country.
Our future is bright and we remain as committed and passionate as ever to
create innovative and simple to use technology for our consumers and for the
society,” added the project manager. From
http://www.digitalopportunity.org/ PM to Launch
Various Roads and Ports Projects in Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi who will be on a day-long
visit to Shri Narendra Modi will also lay the foundation for a Port-
Based Multi-product Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at the JNPT. This is also to
be developed through JNPT-SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) in 277 hectares under
the Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) mode and is to be
completed in three years. This is planned to be a Self-Sustainable Integrated
Development Project with an investment of about 4,000 Crore rupees and an
employment generating potential of about 1.5 lakh direct and indirect jobs.
With a focus on collaborating with upcoming sectors of The Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways &
Shipping, Shri Nitin Gadkari, has expedited clearance for all these these
projects during a series of review meetings undertaken by him over the last
couple of months. The Maharashtra Governor Shri K. Sankaranarayanan, the
State Chief Minister Shri Prithviraj Chavan, the Union Minister of Heavy
Industries & Public Enterprises, Shri Anant Geete, the Union Minister of
State for Coal & Power Shri Piyush Goyal, Senior officials of the
concerned Ministries, Members of Parliament & senior politicians from the
state are expected to attend the functions in Mumbai & Sholapur. From
http://pib.nic.in/ The National E-waste
Management Week declared by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA)
commences today under the theme 'E-waste free From http://www.dailynews.lk/ SLT to Share
ICT Infrastructure A strong, reliable and islandwide ICT broadband infrastructure
and global connectivity are key to the efficient functioning and development
of the telecommunication industry, businesses and the economy. According to
sources at Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the flagship national ICT solutions
provider and the national backbone network operator, .“From inception, we have been sharing our infrastructure such
as global connectivity, national backbone, towers, data centre, cloud
services, coverage and building spaces and ICT infrastructure under the
wholesale business unit for other operators and service providers and ISPs
while ensuring that the highest standards are met in terms of quality and
reliability,” the CEO said. “We are proud that leading public institutions
and private sector businesses that include large enterprises, SMEs and micro
businesses around the country are using our shared ICT resources to maximise
their potential,” de Silva said. “SLT has placed emphasis on ICT
infrastructure to ensure economic empowerment through the National Backbone
Network and connected ‘Lanka Government Network’ with the integration of all
e-Applications,” he said. “We provide any type of ICT backbone solution or broadband
services to any of the operators in the telecommunication industry and other
organisations around the country,” the CEO said. “We strongly believe the
country's national broadband plans are a key policy instrument to leverage
and realise the full potential of broadband as an enabling infrastructure to
accelerate sustainable development and optimise on the giant investments
already made,” de Silva said. “We are fully support the regulator to implement QoS based cost
structure and infrastructure sharing including frequencies. Frequency use, a
scarce resource, needs to be done with the public interest in mind. It is
also in the public interest that we have always offered services at prices which
are within reach of the average consumer,” the CEO said. The company has
taken proactive steps to invest in a futuristic global connectivity option
exceeding 24 Tera bits per second (24Tbps) bandwidth via the new cable system
SEA ME WE 5 and expanding the terrestrial backbone network (National Fibre
Optic Backbone Network) to bring gigantic capacity to users in Sri Lanka. SLT
has partnered the SEA ME WE consortium from the inception and presently
connects globally via SEA ME WE 3, SEA ME WE 4 and two other private cables
to SEA ME WE 5 can handle traffic from the cable starting point to
its end from The 100% fibre optic coverage of electorates was achieved well
within the NBN target date and fibre optic network exceeds the NBN needs of
at least one point of interconnection per electorate. One of the key
strategic objectives of the SLT Group is to drive broadband based consumer
and enterprise services by expanding the broadband footprint via Next
Generation Network and National Backbone Network and Next Generation Access
via ADSL2+, VDSL2, Optical Fibre, Carrier-grade WiFi and both fixed and
mobile From
http://www.sundayobserver.lk/
eDoctor Team
Takes Dengue Fight to the Hills The school health education program on dengue which focuses on
improving the knowledge and attitudes of schoolchildren towards the
prevention of dengue through environmental conservation is one of the main
priorities of a program conducted by the eDoctor team. The eDoctor team has
successfully conducted this program in several leading schools in As girls who inherently prefer a clean environment with
beautiful gardens and homes, the importance of recognising the commonly missed
and unrecognised threats related to dengue mosquito breeding places around
the home and gardens were highlighted and the need for actively recognising
these places and preventing mosquito breeding was explained in detail. The
main lecture of this program was delivered by Dr. Sanjeewa Malinda. Principal
of Hemamali Balika Vidyalya, According to Health Ministry Epidemiology Unit statistics,
during January to June 2014 there have been 17,839 reported cases of patients
suspected of dengue fever. Of this, 58.99 percent of patients were reported
from the Western province. The other areas with high dengue incidence are in
decreasing order, the Sabaragamuwa, North-Western, Sothern and From
http://www.dailynews.lk/ |
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On the occasion of the International Children's Day, Bakcell -
the First Mobile Operator and the Leading Mobile Internet Provider in
Azerbaijan, has organized a festive event for the children in need for
special care. Approximately 100 children fostered by the "United Aid for
Bakcell, paying special attention to the corporate social
responsibility programs, has implemented several successful projects over the
last year. 20 children with different degrees of disability have participated
in trainings aimed at developing computer skills and knowledge within the
frames of " Moreover, business simulation and special management programs
were provided for the students. Along with obtaining knowledge within the
frames of this project, the students were also offered an opportunity to
obtain work experience at Bakcell. From year to year Bakcellexpandsthe list
of CSR projects aimed at supporting the integration of the children in need
of special care to the societyand programs that are useful for student's future
careers. About Bakcell Bakcell, The First Mobile Operator and the Leading
Mobile Internet Provider of Azerbaijan, offers a variety of products for
modern mobile communications customers. Bakcell provides class leading With more than 1000 From
http://en.trend.az/
Another
Provocation Against From
http://en.trend.az/
BSA Survey
Finds Unlicensed Software Use at 85 Percent Computer users cite the risk of security threats from malware as
the top reason not to use unlicensed software. The intrusions by hackers and
loss of data are among their specific concerns. Yet a striking 85 percent of
the software installed on personal computers in The BSA Global Software Survey is conducted every other year for
BSA by IDC, which this year polled computer users in 34 markets including
nearly 22,000 consumer and business PC users and more than 2,000 IT managers.
Among the findings: • The percentage of software installed in "There are basic steps any company can take to ensure it is
fully compliant, like establishing a formal policy on licensed software use
and maintaining careful records. Companies also should consider implementing
more robust software asset management programs that follow
internationally-accepted guidelines," she added. "These SAM
programs can deliver substantial value by ensuring adequate controls are in
place to provide a full view into what is installed on a network. That helps
organizations avoid security and operational risks, and it ensures they have
the right number of licenses for their users." Other conclusions made by
BSA study: • The global rate at which PC software was installed without
proper licensing rose from 42 percent in 2011 to 43 percent in 2013, as
emerging economies, where unlicensed software use is most prevalent,
continued to account for a growing majority of all PCs in service. • The
total commercial value of installed unlicensed software was $62.7 billion in
2013. • The highest level of unlicensed software usage is observed in the
Asia-Pacific region (62 percent). This figure increased by two points
compared to 2011. The commercial value of installed unlicensed software reached
$21 billion. • Central and From
http://en.trend.az/
Delay to Be
Granted for E- Registration of Labor Contracts in The Azerbaijani employers will be granted a delay for the
registration of employemnt contracts in the electronic system of the Ministry
of Labor and Social Protection of Population of Azerbaijan
, Minister Salim Muslimov said. The Azerbaijani employers had to
introduce data over all existing employment contracts in the ministry's
electronic information system until July 1, 2014, otherwise would be fined in
the amount ranging from 7,000 to 10,000 AZN, or sentence to imprisonment up
to three years. In accordance with the changes, the electronic notice should
enter the base, not only in case of signing the employment contract, but in
the case of changes in this document, as well as its cancellation. Once the
system launches completely, notice will be recorded in a day. "It was
preliminary planned that the registration of existing employees should be
completed before the start of the system, that is, until July 1.
Unfortunately, there were delays in the approval of this registration form -
an appropriate decision was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on June 6.
Thereby, I think we will grant entrepreneurs a delay of three months to
conduct all the necessary measures for the registration of all existing
employment contracts, " Muslimov said. From
http://en.trend.az/
Large-Scale
Project on Deploying Free Wi-Fi Access to Be Launched in Azerbaijani Communications and High Technologies Ministry
developed an action plan to deploy Wi-Fi access in From
http://en.trend.az/
Bus Stops in
Free access to Internet will be provided to the bus stops in From
http://news.az/ From
http://news.az/ The From
http://news.az/
Public Voice
Traffic Usage in The volume of consumed voice traffic over the Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN) of the Aztelekom Production Association (PA) fell by
35 percent since early 2014, Aztelekom told Trend. Aztelekom PA said the reduction is due
to the growth of broadband internet connections and the popularity of
internet telephony service, which is characteristic today for many countries. "A single rate of 0.15 AZN in all
directions is being implemented today from the phone card sales in order to
maintain the profitability of international telephony. Meanwhile, the optimal
way out of the situation is to develop broadband services, where there is a
great potential for growth," Aztelekom said. Azerbaijani state provider -
AztelekomNet is expecting a 50 percent growth in the broadband connections
before late 2014. In 2013, this figure was approximately 80 percent. Currently, the state-owned provider's
share in the Azerbaijani internet services market is about 20 percent, and
this figure is planned to be increased to 40 percent in the near future. "The main goals are to improve
the quality of services, which is to get a special attention, as well as to
minimize the problems faced by the end-user," Aztelekom PA added. From
http://en.trend.az/
Over 36,000
People Visit Azerbaijani www.b2b.Az Portal Over 36,000 people have used e-commerce portal www.b2b.az since
2008, created in From
http://en.trend.az/
Smart Start Internship
Program of Bakcell Creates Opportunities for Students and Graduates Bakcell - the first mobile operator and the leading mobile
internet provider in Bakcell provides class leading From
http://en.trend.az/
The opportunity to take advantage of number portability,
allowing use of another mobile operator's network will appear in Thus, according to him, From
http://en.trend.az/
Chairman of the Uzbek State Committee of communications, information
and communication technology and vice president of the Japanese NEC
Corporation Takayuki Morita discussed the primarily measures for further
development of digital television in Uzbekistan, the press service of the
committee told Trend. "The parties agreed to intensify work for bringing
the coverage of the population with digital TV up to 50 percent from the
current 45 percent by the end of the year," the report said. The
exchange of views on the state and prospects of cooperation in the field of
telecommunications and information technologies was held during the meeting,
according to the source. The sides also discussed the expansion of
cooperation in the spheres of new telecommunications and information
technology, and qualification improvement of the field's specialists. The
leadership of the state committee noted the long-term cooperation with NEC
Corporation and its significant contribution to the digitization of the
telecommunication network and TV broadcasting in the country. Today, gradual
transition to digital television, which should be completed by the end of 2017 is being continued in From
http://en.trend.az/
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Digital Literacy
in the Developing World: A Gender Gap In the
pervasively connected world of the 21st century, creating and sharing
knowledge has never been easier. But the fact remains that many people still
lack the skills required to access this information and an inequity gap is
growing. Consider this quote: "You know you're from the '90s if you
remember being disappointed when the CD's leaflet didn't have the lyrics to
the songs. How else were you going to learn that damn line on track three?"
For those of us with smartphones in our pockets, we simply Google the lyrics
and voila! The answer materialises in less than a second. Yet this is a
privilege available only to those who have access to the internet and the
means to use it. Inequality
of access Two-thirds
of the world's population do not have access to the
internet, many of whom are women. These 4.6 billion people rely on the lyrics
in the CD case to learn that song, assuming they have a CD player at all.
This is a representative issue on the far side of the great digital divide
between the technically literate and illiterate. The benefits of digital
technology can only be realised if people are empowered with the knowledge
and skills to access and use them. In developing countries, women are 25
percent56 less likely than men to be online. This gap soars to 45percent in
regions such as sub-Saharan Internet-based
economic activity in Technology
is knowledge and power Digital literacy
promotes democracy by giving access to a vast repository of knowledge. It
also provides a platform from which to speak out and make your views heard. An
Iranian woman, for example, who posted a scarf-less photo of herself on
Facebook, now has over 230,000 followers who are
supporting her crusade of bareheaded subversion. These women want to voice
their opposition to the compulsory hijab. Facebook gives them the means. Social
networking sites greatly increase women's understanding of what is possible,
giving them a powerful tool that can be used to change their situation. For
women in developing countries, the internet is an open doorway to tangible
benefits; education and employment opportunities. According to Plan A number of
worthy initiatives are underway to develop women's digital literacy skills.
The Women's Annex Foundation was established to train women in digital
literacy so they can create a viable economic model for themselves and their
families. The She Will Connect project, an initiative by Intel, is similarly
committed to improving the digital literacy skills of women in developing
countries. Intel recognises the role that technology plays in improving the
quality of and access to education. Closing the
gender gap There is a recognised
link between a woman's level of education and the size of families. The more
educated she becomes, the fewer children she is likely to have. With
over-population being one of the principle difficulties faced by developing
countries, digital literacy has the potential to give women access to
education and the means to begin reversing the trend towards ever-expanding
populations in the developing world. The inequality of internet access around
the world is compounded by where you live and your gender. If you are a woman
in a developing part of the world, you are likely to be coming up very short
on access to the kinds of digital resources that are readily available
elsewhere. This can make a big difference to the quality of life for your
whole family. The authors do not work for, consult to, own shares in or
receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this
article. They also have no relevant affiliations.This article was originally
published on The Conversation. From http://www.nzherald.co.nz
A From http://www.itwire.com
Call for
Urgent Action to Correct IT Industry ‘Gender Imbalance’ Men working
in IT in According to
Fischer, a survey conducted four years in 2010/11 ago by Greythorn on gender
in ICT produced results of 78% male to 22% female – or a decrease in females
of 27% over the four year period. And, Fischer says the research showed the
gender gap becomes even more pronounced at management level, with females
accounting for just 12% of respondents currently employed at IT Team
Leader/Manager level or above. “IT has always been a heavily male dominated
industry. Everyone in the industry knows it’s an issue but it’s always been a
significant challenge with very few companies having success in addressing
this problem,” Fischer said. According to Fischer, ‘surprisingly’, when
respondents were asked whether they expect to remain in the IT industry for
the duration of their career, only 47% of females said yes. Female
respondents were also asked whether they believed there was a gender gap in
salary with 56% stating yes and only 19% stating no, with the remainder
unsure. Fischer says employers of IT professionals would be well advised to
look at, and address the gender imbalance within their own teams as a “matter
of urgency in light of the looming skills crisis.” “I’m not
suggesting that by solving the gender issue in the industry we will be able to
combat the skills crisis, but it is one way to open the industry up to a
talent pool that has until now only been very lightly utilised. The research
tells us there is a large segment of the population that the IT industry has
never been an option for. Finding ways to open the IT industry up to this
underutilised group can only be a positive step in addressing the industries
skills shortage.” On the issue of attracting females to IT, Fischer says the
research gives employers insight into specific benefits that appeal to female
IT professionals. “The research shows that compared to their male
counterparts, female IT professionals are more attracted to benefits around
workplace flexibility including flexible start/finish times, the ability to
work remotely and extended maternity leave options. Lending weight to the
above point is the fact that more female IT professionals are engaged in
part-time employment and contract employment compared to males who are more
heavily represented in full time and permanent employment situations.” And,
Greythorn suggests employers consider the following workplace initiatives in
order to attract and retain female IT professionals: • Flexible
working conditions • Generous
maternity leave programs •
Transparent and equal remuneration packages • Create a
family-friendly work culture • Provide
'return to work' skills upgrade programs • Offer part-time
or job-share opportunities • Profile
female role models in senior IT positions From http://www.itwire.com
Now Is the
Time to Get on Social Media, Says Australian Government CTO The public
sector should not wait to get on social media - now is the right time, John
Sheridan, Australian Government Chief Technology Officer has said. Government
should also understand that engagement on social media is two-way, he added. Speaking
at the The
Queensland Police Service has been one of the best in using social media to
actively engage with people, he said. The Australian state experienced a
series of natural disasters from 2010 to 2011, and the agency’s social media
engagement saw an “enormous increase”, “because what people found was an
active way of engaging with the police service and getting information about
the sort of things in which they were interested”. Agencies need to trust
their staff to engage with citizens responsibly through social media, From http://www.futuregov.asia
From www.cellular-news.com
NZ's Big More New
Zealanders are making the switch to the super-fast To access Telecom
retail chief executive Chris Quin says more than a hundred additional Unsurprisingly,
Vodafone's own customer insights echo similar changes to the way New
Zealanders are using the mobiles. Vodafone says its Competition
drives new mobile plans As "We
only do prepay, and we don't have contracts, we always look after our
existing customers because they're always free to leave," Parker said. This
has seen Skinny targeting talkers. Their $16 Big Value plan provides
unlimited calling between Skinny customers. The $40 Big Talker plan offers
unlimited calls/texts to Australasian landline and mobiles on all networks. 2degrees,
who've long had rollover data and shared mobile data plans
are also innovating. Their latest offering is a free SIM with 200MB of free
mobile data per month. The offer is aimed at Not be
outdone, Telecom are offering access to the Spotify music service for
customers on the $29 prepaid plan plus selected Ultra Mobile plans. Access to
their national Wi-Fi network of 1,000 wireless hotspots is also available for
all Telecom mobile customers. Data caps may be getting bigger and the cost of
calls and texts has plummeted but Kiwi telcos have yet to offer what most of
us really want. Although unlimited calling/texting is available from many
operators, unlimited data is not - yet. - Pat Pilcher The 700 MHz
spectrum and Rural The "Telecom
has just finished a successful trial of From http://www.nzherald.co.nz
Aussie Govt
Report Eyes Potential to Copy NZ's Realme Online ID Service, Mutually
Recognise IDs on Both Sides of Tasman The New
Zealand Government's RealMe identity verification service is cited as
something "If
Government was the default provider of digital identities to Australians,
there would be economies of scale and other potential benefits, such as ease
of access to Government information sources. This approach is reflected in Trans-Tasman
recognition of online IDs? The report
goes on to say Australia’s approach to developing trusted digital identities
needs to take into account a wider international context. "This will
help Australian businesses compete in a global identity services market and
benefit Australian consumers by facilitating wider acceptance of their
digital identities. The Australian and From http://www.interest.co.nz
Govt Promises $ The
Government is muscling in on Green Party turf by promising an extra $100
million over four years for urban cycleways. Its initiative has been
announced from the top today by Prime Minister John Key, who early in 2009
allocated $50 million - since topped up by a further $ "Many
people cite safety concerns and a lack of infrastructure as reasons for not
cycling so we're going to begin building cycleways to a standard that delivers
real incentives for commuters to make a change," Mr Brownlee said. "Building
more comprehensive cycling networks will require new infrastructure to
connect existing routes and expand the network into wider urban areas. This
funding package also strongly complements other aspects of the Government's
ambitious transport infrastructure programme, which is designed to ensure
people and freight can reach their destinations quickly and safely." The
minister said an urban cycleway investment panel would include government and
local body officials sitting with representatives of organisations yet to be
nominated, in time for draft terms of reference to be presented to the Cabinet
by October 31. His
officials estimate that $10 million will be allocated for this financial
year, to be followed by respective annual instalments of $ From http://www.nzherald.co.nz
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Europol, based in “It's a newer crime,” Occhipinti says. “Drug trafficking has
been around for a long time, so there's actually bureaucratic turf there … it
was kind of a change for [member states] to go to Europol for assistance.
Cybercrime's not like that. Cybercrime is so new, and some member states
really don't have the capability to deal with it on their own, that they
actually look to kind of a European response to this problem that affects
everybody.” Since most cybercrime originates in countries outside of the EU,
Occhipinti says, the emphasis is on mitigating its effects – not making
arrests. “By sharing information, you can let different companies in the
private sector kind of know what the risks are and how they can address them,
and what the trends are in terms of cyber-attacks,” Occhipinti says. According
to Occhipinti, the standardization of European criminal codes in recent years
has also helped to make Europol more effective. “Because the member states that belong to Europol are very
similar – they're all democracies, they all have more-or-less common views on
various kinds of crimes – the information flows better,” Occhipinti says. Even
though the EU is still a long way from a “federal approach to policing,”
Occhipinti says Europol has achieved a lot in a short amount of time and that
further integration and expansion is likely. “The big challenge, I think,
that they face in On the need for the European Police Office The police are allowed in hot pursuit across borders, but as
soon as they cross a border, they have to get in contact with the authorities
there and bring them in in any kind of arrest. What the European Police
Office, Europol, does is to try to coordinate investigations of cross-border
crimes. … Europol plays a key role in coordinating international
investigative teams and, you know, try to bring all of the resources together
so that, if say, a trafficking network is stretching across three member
states, this may be drugs might be entering through Spain, and then being
trafficked to, say, Amsterdam, and then distributed in Germany, that law
enforcement from all three of those member states can be involved in this.
And it eliminates the ability of criminals to kind of have a safe haven. On the integration of criminal law in the EU The other thing the EU is doing, actually, is that they are
trying at a certain level to harmonize criminal law. So they are trying to
make sure that there are common approaches to cross-border crime, things like
human trafficking, drug trafficking, even terrorism. So, they're trying to
eliminate these differences among the member states so that everyone kind of
approaches these crimes the same way, takes them as seriously, and, you know,
are willing to devote resources to them. On cybercrime You can think of cybercrime one way in terms of just
facilitating crime, similar to money laundering or any other kind of way of
facilitating crime. Cybercrime is simply using computers, using the internet,
to commit another crime, say the buying and selling of drugs or laundering of
money, etc. But cybercrime also entails cyber security, which involves
attacks on information systems, attacks on infrastructure, attacks
on a power company. So cyber criminals who are out there are either trying to
make money, or they're trying to promote a political agenda, or they're just
trying to sort of be cyber vandals. And they can be operating outside of the
European Union, they could be operating, say, in On working with the The Europeans and the Americans share the same kinds of
vulnerabilities and priorities when it comes to cybercrime. And by working
together they can try to set the common global standard for cyber security
and sort of alert the public sector and the private sector to the threats of
cybercrime by sharing information with each other. So that's also an area of
increased transatlantic cooperation. On trafficking networks Any trafficking network has, or any criminal network, source
countries where drugs may be cultivated or immigrants may originate from, has
a transit state where it passes through, and has a destination country. When
it comes to sort of crimes in general, you have to pay attention to all
three. It's similar to the On the success of Europol And cooperation was actually pretty slow in the beginning. There
wasn't a sense of urgency about any of this, even with the end of the Cold
War and the spread of cross-border crime. It actually, interestingly, really
took 9/11 for From
http://kgou.org/
German:
Bosch Insures Against Cybercrime Robert Bosch has taken out a 100 million euro insurance policy
to safeguard its operations against cybercrime, according to a report in the
German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung. The policy was issued by a consortium
led by German insurer Allianz, according to the report. It also includes
industrial insurance specialist Ace ad the Zurich Group. The Sueddeutsche
said Bosch, one of the world’s largest automotive supplier groups, is paying
around 1 million euros to cover risks of as much as 100 million euros per
attack. According to a survey by insurance broker Marsh, 54 percent of
European companies were hit by cybercrime in 2013. From
http://www.automotiveit.com/
Russian
Hackers Stole 1.2 Billion Internet Credentials A cybersecurity firm said it has uncovered about 1.2 billion
Internet logins and passwords and more than 500 million email addresses
amassed by a Russian crime ring, the largest known collection of such stolen
data, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. Hold Security of Milwaukee,
Wisconsin, which discovered the credentials, said they were stolen from some
420,000 websites, according to the report. Hold Security declined to identify
the sites that were breached, citing nondisclosure agreements and concerns
that they remained vulnerable to attack, the paper reported on its website. “Hackers
did not just target From
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Someone
Hacked the Russian Prime Minister's Twitter Account and Announced His
Resignation Someone apparently took control of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry
Medvedev's Russian-language Twitter account early on Thursday morning. @MedvedevRussia,
a verified account with more than 2.5 million followers, first raised
suspicion with a tweet sent out at 11:12 pm PDT which reads (translation via
The Interpreter): "I am resigning. I am ashamed of the actions of the
government. Forgive me." The Interpreter notes: Medvedev's account, which was made for him during his historic
visit to Twitter headquarters in From
http://www.businessinsider.com/
Belarusian
Opposition Website "Blocked" in The Belarusian human rights group Charter-97 says the Russian
telecom giant Rostelekom has blocked its website in From
http://www.i-policy.org/
The Cyber Security Challenge From
http://www.telecompaper.com/
NORTH
AMERICA: According to Industry Taken all together, it would seem that in While I do not have a complete answer for Canadian SME’s, there
just may be a tool that can be used to provide a roadmap and solid starting
point for improving their security state The Government of Canada’s ‘Cyber
Security Strategy’ has three strategic objectives: 1) securing government
systems; 2) working with the private sector and governments to protect
critical infrastructure; 3) helping Canadians to be secure on line. While the
debate continues on how the government of the day is performing on meeting
these objectives, the Public Safety Canada December 2013 publication ‘Get
Cyber Safe Guide for Small and Medium Businesses’, developed on behalf of the
Government of Canada, is aligned with objective number three. In an easy to
understand format, its a logically presented
explanation of the risks to SME’s, with suggestions of how they might be
mitigated. The authors state the guide “is designed to help Canadians who
own or manage a small or medium business understand the cyber security risks
they face, and provide them with practical advice on how to better protect
their business and employees from cyber-crime.” It attempts to cover a broad
range of security topics from basic management issues and policy, through web
security, email, data, remote access, mobile device and even employee
security. The appendices provide useful information, links, and tools
including a security self-assessment for SME’s and a glossary of security
terms that will help everyone speak the same language. Security is and will
continue to be a concern – a moving target for all of us. In the case of
SME’s at least, From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
The
Three V’s of Big Data – And the Security Risks That Come with It We’ve been hearing the phrase “big data” being tossed around
among companies, industries, and organizations for some time now – but what
does it really mean? For Jerrard Gaertner, president of the Canadian
Information Processing Society, big data presents a lot of potential for
businesses, the public sector, and all kinds of industries – but any work
with big data needs to be done with data security in mind. While he teaches
courses on this topic at So what is big data? For Gaertner, he characterizes it as having
at least three V’s: - Volume This is huge amounts of data – not just gigabytes or terabytes,
but potentially petabytes or exabytes. - Variety Big data includes a variety of data, which aren’t just housed
within Excel files or Word documents. This can include every file format out
there, Gaertner said. - and Velocity. “Most big data installations – you can’t necessarily control how
quickly the data comes in,” he said. For example, he mentioned how many
companies have marketing departments that do sentiment analysis, meaning they
analyze tweets on Twitter, posts on Facebook, or other areas of social media
to figure out how a new product is performing in the marketplace and how
people feel about it. However, given this is social media and Twitter users
alone can create as many as 5,000 tweets a second, those seeking to harness
big data can’t control how much data is coming in, nor how quickly, Gaertner
said. Given how so many businesses and industries want to tap into big data
and the insights it can bring, it’s not surprising people are eager to just
upload their data and start using open source software from frameworks like
Apache Hadoop. Still, Gaertner told the audience of security professionals this
is where security and risk management come in. He named a number of factors
that need to go into a strong, effective implementation of big data, such as
creating appropriate research facilities, using relevant data sources, ensuring
the hardware used has the capacity to process the data, using the right
software and analytics tools, training staff in proper procedures – the list
goes on. However, a large chunk of that list requires security professionals
to lend a hand, and people can’t just be left alone to play with big data
without safeguards and controls, he said. “Does the [chief security officer]
or privacy officer know you’ve dumped all the information you own into a
bucket and you’re playing with it?” Gaertner said, adding one of the biggest
risks with big data is putting all of an organization’s data in one place, or
all of its eggs in one basket. He added security professionals also need to ask about the
“provenance” of the data, or where it came from. After all, there are
business risks, ethical risks, and privacy risks to using data from just
anywhere and not adequately protecting it. And of course, one of the most
important pieces of security in any organization is to ensure employees are
well-trained and educated in understanding the risks, especially when it
comes to big data. That’s even more important than relying upon the tools and
layers of defense set up to protect an organization’s data. “You’re all
security professionals,” Gaertner said to the room. “You know – never rely on
the technology. It’s people, people, people.” From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
People,
Not IT, Come First in Data Security, Toronto Group Told Big data presents a lot of potential for organizations of all
sizes. But the head of the Gaertner characterizes big data as having at least three V’s: - Volume This is huge amounts of data – not just gigabytes or
terabytes, but potentially petabytes or exabytes. - Variety Big data includes a variety of data, which aren’t just
housed within Excel files or Word documents. This can include every file
format out there, Gaertner said. - and Velocity. “Most big data installations – you can’t necessarily control how
quickly the data comes in,” he said. For example, he mentioned how many
companies have marketing departments that do sentiment analysis, meaning they
analyze tweets on Twitter, posts on Facebook, or other areas of social media
to figure out how a new product is performing in the marketplace and how
people feel about it. However, given this is social media and Twitter users
alone can create as many as 5,000 tweets a second, those seeking to harness
big data can’t control how much data is coming in, nor how quickly, Gaertner
said. Given how so many businesses and industries want to tap into big data
and the insights it can bring, it’s not surprising people are eager to just
upload their data and start using open source software from frameworks like
Apache Hadoop. Still, Gaertner told the audience of security professionals
this is where security and risk management come in. He named a number of
factors that need to go into a strong, effective implementation of big data,
such as creating appropriate research facilities, using relevant data
sources, ensuring the hardware used has the capacity to process the data,
using the right software and analytics tools, training staff in proper
procedures – the list goes on. However, a large chunk of that list requires security
professionals to lend a hand, and people can’t just be left alone to play
with big data without safeguards and controls, he said. “Does the [chief
security officer] or privacy officer know you’ve dumped all the information
you own into a bucket and you’re playing with it?” Gaertner said, adding one
of the biggest risks with big data is putting all of an organization’s data
in one place, or all of its eggs in one basket. He added security
professionals also need to ask about the “provenance” of the data, or where
it came from. After all, there are business risks, ethical risks, and privacy
risks to using data from just anywhere and not adequately protecting it. And
of course, one of the most important pieces of security in any organization
is to ensure employees are well-trained and educated in understanding the
risks, especially when it comes to big data. That’s even more important than
relying upon the tools and layers of defense set up to protect an
organization’s data. “You’re all security professionals,” Gaertner said to
the room. “You know – never rely on the technology. It’s people, people,
people.” From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
Two Projects
to Improve IT Security Without Using Software Implement these two projects in your workplace the ensure strong
IT security standards Imagine if an invisible thief could break into your home and
start stealing your possessions. That’s one of the threats posed by
inadequate IT security. The pain and loss of poor IT security practices cost
a great deal. Let’s illustrate the scale of the IT security challenge: - The average cost to a company was $3.5 million in US dollars
(2014 Cost of Data Breach, Ponemon Institute) - Criminals stole $45 million from Rakbank and Bank of Muscat in
2013 by breaching ATM card security in 2013 (American Banker) - In 2014, Sony paid a $15 million settlement payment in the
wake of the 2011 hack of Playstation (Engadget) Clearly, IT security failure are
expensive. For many in the technology community, the default reaction is to
invest in security software and hardware. Better security technology is
absolutely vital. Technology is part of the IT security puzzle. Training
staff on IT security best practices is arguably even more important to
securing your organizations’ information assets. The following projects are
excellent ways to reinforce IT security. Best of all, they require little to
no money to implement. To experienced security professionals, these may seem
like basic ideas. However, I challenge you to ask yourself: is my
organization successfully implementing these ideas? IT Security Project 1: Organize a security briefing For your
department Knowing is half the battle. To improve IT security, employees
need to understand the fundamentals of security. Here are some starting
points for an introductory security briefing: Password Basics: Recommend
changing corporate passwords every 90 days or more often. Caution Against Unfamiliar Software: Remind your staff that
installing new software can increase IT security risk. For some staff working
on highly sensitive activities, consider preventing the installation of new
software. IT Security Project 2: Implement a system access review How many different applications, systems and IT resources does
your company have? Staff at small organizations typically
have more than half a dozen logins to manage. Follow these steps to
improve your risk management relating to system access: 1) Create A System Access List. The first step is to ask each employee to list the applications,
systems and other resources that require a login. Also ask them to list the
reason they use a given resource (e.g. Finance System. Use: Prepare quarterly
financial statements for management). 2) Identify Access Rights For Elimination. Over time, job responsibilities shift and evolve. Use this step
to ensure that your IT security keeps pace. Using the system access list
created in step one, evaluate whether there are system rights that can be
eliminated. For example, if a sales representative resigns from the
organization, it is important to eliminate their system access rights as a
proactive way to prevent information loss. 3) Schedule An Annual Review. To maintain IT security, I recommend an annual review of system
access rights and privileges. Large firms may already have this requirement
in their policies. Ask yourself about the last time you implemented a review.
If you skip this step, your IT security will gradually deteriorate. My
question to you is: What is one critical behaviour
that improves your organization’s IT security? From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
“Trust but verify” was President Reagan’s mantra during the Cold
War. Today, trust is a key element to creating effective cross-agency
networks to get things done. But what, exactly, is trust, and how do you know
what to look for? Addressing public management challenges increasingly
requires collaborative networks across a range of agencies and
nongovernmental organizations. The Obama administration has designated a
series of projects as cross agency priority goals and put networks in place
to manage them. A lot of literature and practical experience show that a key
element of success in any collaborative effort is the ability to create and
sustain trust among stakeholders. New research by a pair of European academics,
Peter Oomsels and Geert Bouckaert, provides an interesting and nuanced
assessment framework that can help “boundary spanners”—such as the
cross-agency goal leaders at the federal level—to dissect what works in
different situations and contexts. The authors say interorganizational trust
is “a very important factor for successful cooperation in networked contexts
. . . Trust facilitates, solidifies and increases the performance of
interorganizational cooperation in complex decision-making networks.” But
what does it mean to trust? What is Trust? There is a wide range of definitions of trust in academic
literature, depending on the discipline of the author (e.g., sociology,
public administration, management, economics, or psychology). These
definitions include “faith in people’s motivations and capacities” and
“willingness to assume an open, vulnerable position” and “a set of
expectations shared by everyone involved in an exchange.” Oomsels and
Bouckaert catalog 36 definitions, noting “some of the definitions . . . refer
to trust as an expectation, others conceptualize it as an attitude, and still
others formulate trust as behavior.” They then offer their own definition:
“The intentional and behavioral suspension of vulnerability by a trustor on
the basis of positive expectations of a trustee.” Probably the most pragmatic
is behavior-based trust, in which “trust is only involved when the trusting
expectation makes a difference to a decision,” the authors say. “Behavioral
trust can therefore be seen as observable risk-taking behavior in a
relational exchange process.” The Value of Trust vs. Distrust Interestingly, the authors conclude that reducing trust does not
necessarily result in distrust. They see these two phenomena as resulting
from different value bases. For them, the continuum of trust (hope, faith,
confidence, etc.) is different from the continuum of distrust (fear,
skepticism, cynicism, wariness, etc.). “Both trust and distrust can be
desirable assets in public administration as long as they provide social
value,” they say. “But neither is desirable or undesirable in and of itself.”
The authors note: “Trust is becoming ever more important in public
administration because increasingly complex public problems transgress the
boundaries of rationality of single organizations, therefore requiring
cooperation and governance.” They go on to observe the benefits of
trust-intensive environments are “increased innovation, learning,
organizational performance and effective cooperation . . . the major functionality
of trust lies in its potential for cost-effective goal-oriented
collaboration.” But the authors caution: “Interorganizational trust is not
always functional, and distrust is not always dysfunctional.” Too much trust
can lead to inefficiencies or corruption, with opportunities for abuse. This
seems to have been the case with the General Services Administration
conference spending scandal several years ago, as well as the recent Veterans
Affairs Department hospital scheduling scandal. The leaders involved trusted
their staffs too much. While some degree of distrust is appropriate, there
are costs. “Distrust is associated with atomized action due to the
intentional and behavioral avoidance of vulnerability, in which actors either
withdraw from interactions or rely on an array of strategies to constrain
contingency, risk and vulnerability,” the authors write. “Distrust-inspired
strategies are functional in a world of untrustworthy partners.” Interestingly,
in many cases of governmental collaboration, both high trust and high
distrust is the most prevalent relationship between participating agencies.
In these cases, the trustors are confident about some aspects or levels of
their relationship with a trustee, but are suspicious about other aspects.
This is especially the case when two sets of actors have both common and
competing objectives. Consider the coordination between the State and Defense
departments in Assessing Trust in a Collaboration Often, executives who find themselves in the role of boundary
spanner find they have to calculate the costs and benefits of collaborating
with other partners. The authors offer a framework for making these
subjective evaluations of trust and distrust. They say it needs to be done at
three different levels in any relationship: The macro level of socializing institutional arrangements The meso-level of concrete interaction characteristics The micro-level of specific individual characteristics Macro-level: institution-based trust. Oomsels and Bouckaert
observe that “institutional arrangements can act as both supports and
impediments to trust . . . Institution-based trust plays an important role in
large and fragmented organizations because it forms a bridge between actors
unfamiliar with one another by establishing a ‘world in common’ through
formal and informal norms of behavior.” Some observers call this organizational culture, but it can be
more than that. The authors say institutional trust can also be
process-based, characteristic-based, or institution-based. Processes, for
example, might include contracts, standards of performance, audits and
controls. Characteristics of the actors (such as being in a common profession
like financial management) mean that “roles can allow boundary spanners to
adopt trust even in the absence of personalized knowledge,” the authors say.
Also, institutions can establish trust directly or indirectly by how they
socialize boundary spanners, or create rules based on shared understandings
of appropriate behavior. Meso-level: relation- and calculus-based trust.
Macro-level institutions support trust by creating bridges between actors who
don’t know each other, but meso-level trust builds on familiarity between
actors who have regular and ongoing interactions. Here, the authors explain,
trust is generated on the basis of “relation-specific familiarity,
information, characteristics and dynamics.” Oomsels and Bouckaert say relation-based trust and distrust are
more emotional. Under the calculus-based trust approach, trustors rationally
weigh the costs and benefits of certain courses of action in interactive
settings—often with incomplete information about trustees—with the aim of
maximizing their own benefits. Such information can be gleaned from
performance reports or audits. In this case, the authors say, “an actor is
trusted when it is perceived that that actor has an interest in continuing a
certain relationship.” Micro-based: individual predispositions. There is a ample literature and training around the role and
characteristics of boundary spanners as individuals. An Assessment Framework Given these three dimensions, it is clear that agency leaders
who find themselves in the position of assessing the health of a
collaborative or cross-agency network need a framework to gauge the degree of
trust and distrust among key stakeholders. Oomsels and Bouckaert have
developed an assessment framework (an appendix to the article published in
the Public Performance and Management Review). It helps boundary spanners
identify the underlying basis of “the capacity of administrative systems for
administrational trust and distrust.” Using the assessment framework to gauge
the degree of trust or distrust in any interorganizational setting should
help these leaders see how strategies supporting trust differ from those
aimed at reducing distrust. From
http://www.govexec.com/
'History May
Be Repeating Itself' in Cyberspace Ten years after issuing a damning report on the intelligence
failures leading up to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the 9/11 Commission
has warned of parallel A senior White House official told FCW recently that addressing
issues like data breaches and information sharing in separate legislation is
more effective than Congress trying to pass a comprehensive bill. The report
called on Congress to pass legislation that encourages private firms and
federal officials to share cyber-threat information while protecting those
firms from liability for doing so. The Senate Intelligence Committee on July
8 approved a bill that would do just that. Executive-branch agencies such as
the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI would be wise to
"complement, rather than replicate" the National Security Agency's
technical capabilities in cyberspace, the report advised. The 9/11
Commission's assessment also held up alleged Chinese economic espionage as an
opportunity to boost slack public awareness or appreciation of cyber threats.
If the Obama administration and Congress harp on job losses and other
economic ills caused by intellectual property theft, the report said,
Americans "will support the measures needed to counter the cyber threat." From
http://fcw.com/
Modern
Electric Grid Fighting Cyber Vulnerabilities Utility companies are spending millions annually in cyber
security costs, and the trend will continue with investments in smart meters
and other technology meant to bring the electric grid up to date. The recent
push to modernize the electric grid has increased communication between
utilities and consumers, enhanced reliability and created more opportunities
for green energy producers. But it also has raised the risk of cyber attacks.
New technology, while largely beneficial for utility companies and their
consumers, has created millions of new access points that make the grid
vulnerable. Utility companies are spending millions annually in cyber
security costs, and the trend will continue with investments in smart meters
and other technology meant to bring the electric grid up to date. Despite the
enhanced risk, the effort to modernize the electric grid is largely a good
thing, said Annabelle Lee, senior technical executive at the nonprofit
Electric Power Research Institute, in New technology has opened the grid to a two-way flow of
communication, as smart meters have promoted better communication among
utility companies as well as between utilities and consumers. Such real-time
information about usage will help to make the grid more efficient, she said. Technology
has allowed utilities to build more reliable power systems while lowering
delivery costs, said Michael Assante, a board member for the Council on
CyberSecurity in The issue drew a lot of attention late last month when Unlike most cyber security incidents, which are motivated by
monetary interests, the manipulation of the power sector often has
geopolitical motivations, Mr. Assante said. The electric grid is an
infrastructure asset, and its compromise could give an organization power,
for lack of a better word. Since the electric grid is a national security
interest, Mr. Assante said the federal government and utility companies share
responsibilities to protect it. In February, President Barack Obama signed an
executive order to assess the grid’s risk. In 2010, the National Institute of
Standards and Technology released guidelines for smart grid cyber security,
outlining precautions companies should take as they embrace a more modern
system. Last November, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a
new series of critical infrastructure protection reliability standards,
addressing the stability of electricity transmission. The new standards will
take effect starting in 2016. They require bulk electric system operators, which handle more
than 100 kilovolts of electricity, to classify all assets as high, medium or
low risk and to create security plans for each. The current standards require
those operators to only identify critical assets. Most cyber events, even
those unrelated to the energy sector, are often accidents with no malicious
intent, Ms. Lee said. But the damages are often just as severe. A
technician’s mistake in 2011, for instance, left 7 million people without
power in the Southwest. Intentional attacks have yet to inflict that kind of
harm. In complex technological systems, a minor malfunction — or manipulation
— can create widespread problems, Mr. Assante said. A survey of 61 electric utilities
conducted by Bloomberg indicated companies are investing an average of $3
million annually on cyber security. Those investments need to be made in a coordinated way with any
investment that companies make in new technology, as each component often
carries with it certain security challenges, Mr. Assante said. And security
risk — a measure of threat and vulnerability — changes often, so utility
companies should constantly evaluate security needs, Ms. Lee said. The best
security investment, Mr. Assante said, is in personnel who can provide that
type of evaluation. He said businesses should be more willing to share
information about security breaches so other companies can avoid similar problems.
Currently, information about cyber attacks is often guarded to prevent
copycat incidents. Mr. Assante said companies should treat those attacks the
same way airlines and plane manufacturers handle crashes, where the Federal
Aviation Administration gathers and releases information in a very public
manner to avoid repeat instances. “Being able to learn how incidents are
occurring — what was effective, what failed — that’s an important part of any
security process,” he said. From
http://www.govtech.com/
After 6 Years and $ Just how troubled is the Social
Security Administration information-technology project now under
congressional scrutiny? The agency spent $300 million and six years
developing the new case-processing system and users are still unable to
submit information by hitting the "Enter" key. Republican lawmakers
say they are investigating SSA’s management of the Disability Case Processing
System. The new program was supposed to replace 54 outdated computer systems
in state offices, creating a single system to process and track claims,
benefits, rejections and appeals, according to The Associated Press, which
first reported the story. But a recent report by McKinsey & Company, a
consulting firm SSA hired to assess the project, said the project has been
between two and three years away from completion for the past five years. The
system is currently being tested and the agency can’t say when it will be
complete, AP reported. In a letter to Carolyn Colvin, the agency's
acting commissioner who has been nominated to a full six-year term by
President Barack Obama, Republicans on the House Oversight and Government
Reform Committee, requested documents and information about the program.
Republican Reps. Darrell Issa of From http://www.nextgov.com Internet
Fragmentation; The Newest Threat to the Internet The open and unified Internet we enjoy today started as a Emerging Issue In recent times however, talks on Internet fragmentation
otherwise referred to as “splinter net” have continued to pop up leaving the
whole Internet debate at crossroads. The debate is being sparred by
governments with What’s at stake? If Edward Snowden’s revelations on the state
of Similarly, the phenomenon could prove a disaster for global IT
giants and pose a threat of full blown splinter net. So what implication does
this have on the open Internet? To understand the implications of such a
move, one doesn’t need to look further than Conclusion Multi-stakeholders need to relentlessly fight to preserve the
unified and unfragmented ecosystem of the Internet. Despite the fact that
governments still retain power at national levels and legislate
laws that greatly affect the citizenry’s use of the Internet, it’s evolution
as a public space should remain so – working internationally and non nation
based. From
http://www.diplointernetgovernance.org/
Agencies
Fail Email Cyber Tests Federal agencies are not adopting industry best practices for
securing their email systems. Even with the move to the cloud, the Online
Trust Alliance, a non-profit organization that focuses on enhancing trust and
user empowerment of the Web, found only the House of Representatives and the
Senate received passing grades when it comes to email cybersecurity. OTA looked
at the adoption of three critical email authentication standards across the
top 50 federal websites, the top 100 FDIC insured banks, the top 500 Internet
retailers, the top 50 social media sites and the top 50 news or media sites. "By
implementing email authentication, organizations can help protect their
brands and consumers from receiving spoofed and forged email," OTA said
in the report. "There has been growth in the deployment of email
authentication in all industry sectors, yet major and systemic issues remain.
The failure to apply authentication standards comprehensively
risks placing consumers and employees in harm's way. This is often the result
of companies authenticating only selected sub-domains and failing to
authenticate their top level domain which is the domain most often abused.
The inconsistent use of authentication is like reinforcing and locking the
front door to your house, while leaving your side door or garage doors wide
open." Among the Fed 50, OTA found only 4 percent adopted email
authentication best practices, such as Domain Keys Identified Mail and not
publishing their Domain- based Message Authentication, Reporting and
Conformance records. OTA recommended adopting email authentication across all
channels and domains. It said implementing inbound email authentication to
protect employees and corporate data from spear phishing is important too. From
http://www.federalnewsradio.com/
Opinion -
Protecting Kids in the Cloud A new measure puts Last week, the matter landed before the Joint Commission on
Science and Technology, drawing reps from Google, schools and trade and
advocacy groups. A digital privacy law expert from Fordham University's
Center on Law and Information Policy, testifying through Skype, described the
limitations of federal legislation covering a rapidly growing market for free
digital tools that make sharing data more efficient, but leave students' data
vulnerable for advertising and other purposes. A recent study conducted by
the center found 95 percent of districts use cloud services for
"functions including data mining related to student performance, support
for classroom activities, student guidance, data hosting, as well as special
services such as cafeteria payments and transportation planning."
Three-quarters of schools, the report notes, didn't notify parents that they
used cloud services. That lack of communication, combined with loopholes in federal
law and ambiguous, outdated or nonexistent state statutes, is triggering a
public backlash, in both the marketplace and in legislatures. This spring,
inBloom, a massive, online student data repository backed by Microsoft
founder Bill Gates, shut down amid criticism that it collected too much
sensitive information. Around the same time, Google stopped collecting data
from students using the company's Apps for Education, a cloud-based
collection of applications, including email and document sharing. Ben Schrom,
a Google product manager, told the commission. "We have no short-term or
long-term monetization goals with this educational product," Schrom
said. Instead, the goal is to create "lifetime Google users,"
people who grow up using Google's products and, after graduating, sign up for
the commercial services, which use consumers' data to tailor more effective
advertising, he said. But the company opposes state legislation, arguing that 50
different standards would burden it and other businesses. After two hours of
discussion, senators and delegates on the commission were no closer to an
answer. Ambiguous language, undefined terms and the prospect of setting off a
cascade of unintended consequences led the chairman, Del. Thomas Rust, to
call for another meeting. He wanted to hear from the secretary of education,
the state school board's association, other school districts, maybe even the
Attorney General's Office. Even if the commission members feel confident
enough to make a recommendation, the underlying complications suggest it will
be years before the legislature approves meaningful restrictions that balance
lawmakers' desire to promote the marketplace and their responsibility to
protect the public. And if they do, that law almost certainly will be measured
in pages rather than words. From
http://www.govtech.com/
What IT
Takes to Achieve Effective Cyber Defense The federal government is not designed to be nimble, but it can
adapt quickly under extreme crises. The nature of the cybersecurity
landscape, however, requires agencies to adapt to changing threats continuously,
not just during an extreme crisis. And given the rapid adoption and
advancement of mobile technologies, that cycle can be on the order of weeks. Yet
historically, cybersecurity budgets follow the standard federal budget
process and are planned years in advance. The critical challenge is that
adversaries can adapt much faster than defenders can adapt their defenses.
And, as I observed during my tenure as a civil servant, other nontechnical
challenges compound the problems cyber defenders face. Culturally, compliance
in the federal government is the standard benchmark for job performance. The
challenge is that threats have evolved to the point where good hygiene and
implementing current mandates are not enough to stop advanced adversaries. The first step to changing this paradigm is to continue to
stress the importance of compliance while realizing that a cyber breach is
unavoidable. The key is to focus on what federal agencies can do to rapidly
identify a breach, contain it and limit the damage an adversary can do. A
synergistic approach of implementing good hygiene and investing in
capabilities that promote effects-based defense capabilities is critical to
successfully defending government networks. There are efforts underway to
help address many of those challenges, but agencies should also be allowed to
more easily invest in game-changing cybersecurity capabilities that not only
advance their technical defensive capabilities but also address nontechnical
challenges and provide more operational effectiveness. In many organizations,
operationally effective cyber defense revolves around the ability to shrink
the time to complete the loop of Attack Prevention > Detection >
Diagnosis > Containment > Response. In agencies that don't have
requirements that support effective cyber defense operations across the
entire IT landscape, completing that loop takes weeks or even months. For example, one nontechnical challenge that I have observed
happens when separate companies have contracts for network administration and
endpoint security. I have seen situations in which someone on the endpoint
security team identified something suspicious and requested details from the
networking team to help diagnose the event. The response from the networking
contractor was that it could not provide support because it was not allowed
to take direction from another contractor. That type of nontechnical
challenge and delay can dramatically increase the cost and impacts associated
with cyber breaches. According to the latest Mandiant M-Trends report, in
2013 the median time from breach to detection was 229 days. For cyber
defenders to be more effective, they need capabilities that enable them to be
more proactive in defending against threats. Agencies must get out of the
business of being reactive and solely relying on mandated signature-based
capabilities simply because compliance is the benchmark. However, because advanced capabilities are not mandated, it
requires an incredible amount of effort and time to acquire them -- typically
in small installments of end-of-year funds. Rapidly adopting cutting-edge
technologies could give cyber defenders an advantage over adversaries and
help overcome some of the nontechnical challenges agencies face. That would
save money in the long run and have a dramatic impact on the foothold
adversaries can gain in the years it would take to address the problem with
current government policies and compliance mandates. From
http://fcw.com/
Cybercrime Losses Top $400 Billion Worldwide, Study Claims Computer-related crimes may cause as
much as US$400 billion in losses annually, according to a new study that
acknowledges the difficulty in estimating damages from such acts, most of
which go unreported. The study is the second to come from Intel's McAfee
security unit in partnership with the Center for Strategic and International
Studies (CSIS), a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. It drew on publicly
available data collected by government organizations and universities
worldwide, including institutions in In 2009, a McAfee study estimated
global cybercrime costs at $1 trillion, a figure that was criticized and one
that the company later said was flawed. In partnership with CSIS, McAfee released
a study in May 2013 that said global cybercrime likely didn't exceed $600
billion, which is the estimated cost of the global drug trade. The latest
report acknowledges that most cybercrime incidents are unreported, few
companies disclose attacks and that collecting consistent data is difficult since
countries haven't agreed on a standard definition of what constitutes
cybercrime. "A few nations have made serious efforts to calculate their
losses from cybercrime, but most have not," it said. The study's authors
found aggregate data for 51 countries in all regions of the world that
account for some 80 percent of the world's income. Using that data to
estimate a global cost but adjusted by region, the study "assumes that
the cost of cybercrime is a constant share of national income, adjusted for
level of development," according to the report. The study looked at direct and
indirect costs of cyberattacks, such as the loss of intellectual property,
business information, the cost of securing networks,
reputational damage and the costs of recovering. The growth of the Internet
and its use for business means "the cost of cybercrime will continue to
increase as more business functions move online," the report said. From http://news.idg.no/
Information-centric
Security: Protecting Data from the Inside Out Symantec’s recent admission that antivirus software is “dead”
should sound the alarm to all companies and government agencies that the
traditional approach of hardening the network and data centre is growing
insufficient. Particularly as organisations increasingly move their data to
cloud-based services and enable employees to access that information remotely
using their personal computers, laptops, smartphones and tablets. Despite the
growing number of high-profile data breaches and the anxiety they cause among
organisations, too much information security spending still focuses on the
prevention of attacks, while not enough has gone to improving (or simply
creating) information monitoring and response capabilities. The priority must
shift from protecting information from the outside in, to securing it from
the inside out – an approach called information-centric security. Think about
how radically the business environment has evolved with the advent of cloud
computing and the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trend. It wasn’t long ago that
the majority of employees worked at the office and accessed information on
servers and computers locked down by IT and behind firewalls, anti-spam and
other traditional security solutions that hardened the network perimeter. Hacker to thief Years ago, the primary motivation for cyber hackers was bragging
rights. They would break through an organisation’s security defenses and
openly boast about it to their fellow hackers. Today, cyber thieves typically share the same motivation of the
businesses they’re attacking: to make money. Their tactics are more targeted
and more difficult to detect for even the largest companies with
sophisticated security systems and trained personnel in place. According to a
February 2014 report from threat intelligence consultancy firm Risk Based Security (RBS), data breaches
in 2013 exposed over 822 million records, nearly doubling 2011, the previous
highest year on record. As workers became more mobile and able to work
remotely, first with laptops and then on their smartphones and tablets, IT
departments were forced to contend with more devices accessing information
stores from outside the network. Information was still stored primarily on company servers and
was accessed by logging into a virtual private network (VPN), typically a
slow and frustrating experience. However, employees could also load data onto
their personal devices and USB thumb drives, increasing the risk of theft or
loss. The advent of cloud computing services enabled remote workers to bypass
the network and VPN entirely. Information now increasingly lives on the
public servers of cloud services providers. A company can realise significant
cost savings on infrastructure and IT systems management, and make
collaboration among employees in remote offices and traveling all over the
globe easier. However, those benefits can carry a steep price. Network
security measures can no longer prevent today’s advanced,
targeted attacks. IT does not control the majority of user devices (BYOD) or
the cloud services employers use every day, which significantly increases the
risk of a data breach. A new security model is needed. Instead of securing data from the outside in, organisations must
adopt an information-centric approach. This requires monitoring where files
are kept, how they are used and where they are being sent to in order to
prevent a breach. There is still value to hardening the network and using
endpoint security software to try to keep the bad guys out, but those steps
are now part of a larger strategy that must address the fact so much
information is outside the company’s servers and being accessed by so many
different devices. You must know exactly where sensitive data lives at rest,
employing technologies like document fingerprinting, pattern matching,
keyword dictionary comparisons and other techniques that can track the
genealogy and chain of custody of digital files. Businesses should also be aware of how their sensitive data is
being used in motion, and that requires pervasive monitoring to identify
meaningful deviations from normal behavior that signal malicious intent. This
can include examining file location, the time of day, what devices are being
used, IP addresses and URL reputation. This combination of content-aware
monitoring plus context-aware monitoring equals information-centric security:
knowing digital assets are protected against unauthorised use, disclosure,
modification, recording or destruction. Traditional antivirus software may
not be entirely dead, but the practice of solely relying on it to protect
data stores is. It simply cannot keep the bad guys out, and when those
attackers do break through the network security system, they can sit quietly
for months or even years stealing data before they’re discovered and the
damage is done. The fact organisations are moving more information to cloud or
SaaS-based services, and permitting employees to access that information with
their own personal devices, makes an attacker’s job
easier and increases the risk of accidental loss or deletion by a
well-meaning employee. Instead of fighting to keep the attackers out and
prohibiting the use of cloud computing applications, or forcing employees to
use IT-issued laptops and smartphones, CIOs should consider adopting an
information-centric approach that enables real-time monitoring of data at
rest or in motion, to better protect against a breach. From
http://www.information-age.com/
Big Data Against Cybercrime – The “Big” Powers and Limitations The constant battle to secure data
such as intellectual property or financial information can be won using big
data analysis. With the development of technology, there are newer areas with
security risks. For example, it is important to analyze the security of
private data on the cloud, and the ability to distinguish valuable
information from useless data. With this analysis, it would be easier to
raise an alarm in real time if something exceptional happens, indicating a
security breach. There are patterns in the large volumes of data that cannot
be extracted by humans. Big data analysis can extract the required data,
abstract it, and find good patterns and anomalies. Although big data analysis
can be costly, it can save a lot of money as cyber crime costs billions of
dollars to businesses and governments each year. Interpol estimates say that the cost
of cyber crimes in the global economy is running to several billions of
dollars each year. The 2012 Cyber Crime Report by Norton calculated the
global costs of cybercrime, which came out to almost $110 billion. When these
costs are considered, big data analysis seems like a viable option. Studies
suggest that companies that capture and use big data for decision making
purposes have a higher ROI than their competitors. The McKinsey Global
Institute says that big data has the potential to generate large productivity
growth for public and healthcare sectors. It can also increase the margins
for retailers, thus creating better employment opportunities in the data
analysis industry. Big Data to Manage Threats Big data can identify cyber
criminals. Malware generally attacks using the element of surprise. With big
data analytics, a connection can be established between the generation of
malware and the change in traffic. With this connection, similar patterns can
be noted and a malware attack can be stopped before it occurs. For supply
chain and logistics, big data can profile the suppliers by scanning the contracts,
agreements, invoices, connectivity logs, shipping notes, and expense and
payment records. By keeping a track of this data, high risk suppliers can be
easily identified, thus reducing the risk of a loss. In terms of internal
threats, companies can use big data to identify some patterns of staff
behavior. This data can include web activity, email content, and access logs.
By identifying patterns, any deceitful behavior can be recognized and curbed.
The major advantage of big data would be to predict and prevent IT mishaps.
However, it can also help in reviewing an incident once it has occurred. It
can assess the impact, root causes, and possible indicators that could warn
the organization of future events. Microsoft’s To address the problem of cyber
crime, Microsoft has created a Roadblocks Ahead Big data analysis is not yet
mastered, and it needs more talent to completely realize the potential that
it holds. Although big data is crucial for fighting cyber crime, it also
poses many security risks. There is a lot of data that is generated by
workstations, servers, PCs, laptops, and smartphones. When such a huge amount
of data is not handled efficiently, there can be huge risks as cyber crooks
can attempt to steal a part of this data. Companies that rely on big data
analytics need to understand the security concerns, as privacy becomes even
more important for the servers that are processing big data. How Big Data Can Affect Businesses The need to find insights into
corporate data isn’t something new. However, what’s new is the rate at which
this data is expanding. With the ever increasing data, there are new threats
and risks that come from various sources. When it comes to big data security,
many things need to be considered, like the source of data, how much data is
collected, how it is being used, and who has the access to all this data.
There should be clear guidelines and standards defining all the stakeholders
and the methods and processes for storage and use of big data. Legal issues Since technology changes rapidly and
the legal process is slow, new technical solutions are often unregulated
because of the old legislation. This lag can affect the security and privacy
of big data. Big data companies need to make sure that their processes are
always compliant with the regulations and laws, while making sure that they
follow the latest technologies. If the raw data is sensitive in nature, it
might not be legal to use it. Companies have to make sure they are not using
private raw data for their processes. From http://vpncreative.net/ Cybercrime Is
Growth Industry Estimated to Be As Much As $575 Billion A recent report estimates that the ”cost of cybercrime includes
the effect of hundreds of millions of people having their personal
information stolen—incidents in the last year include more than 40 million
people in the US, 54 million in Turkey, 20 million in Korea, 16 million in
Germany, and more than 20 million in China.” The Center for Strategic and
International Studies and McAfee issued their June 2014 report entitled “Net
Losses: Estimating the Global Cost of Cybercrime” with these comments about
the impact on the world: The cost of cybercrime will continue to increase as
more business functions move online and as more companies and consumers
around the world connect to the Internet. Losses from the theft of
intellectual property will also increase as acquiring countries improve their
ability to make use of it to manufacture competing goods. Cybercrime is a tax
on innovation and slows the pace of global innovation by reducing the rate of
return to innovators and investors. Governments need to begin serious, systematic effort to collect
and publish data on cybercrime to help countries and companies make better
choices about risk and policy. The report also has a chapter on acceptable losses
which may come as a shock to many, but should not given these observations: One
way to think about the costs of cybercrime is that societies bear the cost of
crime and loss as part of doing business and a tradeoff for convenience and
efficiency. Companies and individuals have decided that the net gain of using
automobiles and giant merchant ships outweigh the potential cost. The problem
with these analogies is that many companies do not know the extent of their
losses from cybercrime, leading them to make the wrong decisions about what
is an acceptable loss. From
http://www.lexology.com/
Six Indicted
in Stubhub Cybercrime Case Six people have been indicted in connection to the cybercrime
ring which allegedly defrauded StubHub out of $1 million. The charges, which
were announced by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance on Wednesday, include
money laundering, grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and
identity theft. The cybercrime ring used a network of accomplices spanning
the StubHub, an eBay subsidiary, discovered that more than 1,000
accounts were compromised by an ‘Account-Take-Over’ fraud in March 2013.
Preexisting card information associated with the accounts was used to
purchase tickets without the cardholders’ permission. When StubHub reported
the fraud and tightened security, criminals bypassed the new security
measures using new credit card information stolen from additional victims,
according to Vance’s office. The Manhattan D.A’s office, the City of From
http://www.foxnews.com/ Digital
Defense Publishes Legal Industry Information Security Benchmarking Report Digital Defense, Inc., (DDI), a leading provider of managed
information security risk assessments, announced the publication of the 2014
Study of the Legal Industry’s Information Security Assessment Practices.
Published for the consecutive second year, the report will also be available
at the International Legal Technology Association’s (ILTA) 37th Annual
Educational Conference on Aug. 17–21. The study was developed in collaboration
with ILTA’s LegalSEC Steering Committee with the intention of providing legal
industry professionals with unbiased, relevant information regarding security
assessment practices of legal organizations in “We believe this report offers a valuable perspective that will
assist legal organizations in making positive and informed security decisions
in the future that serve to improve their overall corporate security
posture,” said Peggy Wechsler, program director for ILTA. Larry Hurtado,
Digital Defense president & CEO, commented, “Recent headlines underscore
the importance of identifying the potential risks associated with security
breaches. Law firms around the globe are anxious to determine the overall
effectiveness of their information security programs and to understand if
their practices are aligned with industry peers. We are pleased to contribute
our expertise to provide firms with relevant and substantial information that
is often expensive and difficult to obtain.” Download the report, 2014 Study
of the Legal Industry’s Information Security Assessment Practices,
or for those attending the upcoming ILTA Education Conference, copies will be
available at booth #532 and DDI executives will be on-hand to answer
questions about the study. From
http://finance.yahoo.com/
Online
Safety: Is the Internet Really a Dangerous, Lawless Jungle for Children? “The internet,” a recent headline advised, “is a lawless jungle
too dangerous for children to use, former government adviser warns”. What
dangers was the adviser referring to, and exactly what remedies he or she had
in mind? The quote, it turns out, was from the former Department of Education
adviser Anthony Smythe. He is now the managing director of Prof Sonia Livingstone from the London School of Economics told
me: “Our recent research suggests that bullying overall is fairly stable but
that the proportion of bullying that involves internet or mobile devices is
increasing. Nonetheless, only a small minority of children report receiving
nasty or upsetting messages online, so the internet is far from a lawless
jungle. “On the contrary, it is subject both to national law and to social
conventions which are, our research also shows,
strongly shaping of most children and young people’s online behaviour. Those
that ignore the rules and conventions are, often, children who suffer some
form of disadvantage – in other words, often the ‘bullies’ are, in other
areas of their lives, also ‘victims’, making tough law enforcement solutions
quite inappropriate for children”. Dr Justin Patchin, co-director of the “In the At FOSI we believe in the importance of education and empowering
young people to become good digital citizens. This means teaching and
modelling responsible online use and encouraging kids to be an upstander, not
a bystander, in the face of mean actions by others. In the very worst cases
online bullying can be dealt with by the courts, but for everything else, let’s
help kids to become resilient, by helping themselves and then helping others.
As adults, we need to work together to create enlightened public policy and
evidence-based educational efforts. That will address the root problems of
bullying in all its online and offline forms, working closely with social
media sites and app developers to create a culture of responsibility online. From
http://www.theguardian.com/
Physical
Security Information Management (PSIM) Market in the APAC Region 2014-2018 PSIM is a software platform that integrates multiple security
systems. PSIM software collects data from multiple security systems, which it
collates and analyzes. The software can be used to integrate security and non-security
systems, and can be customized as per user requirements. PSIM is also termed
a situation management tool as it enables end-users to make quick decisions
and take follow-up action with respect to a certain situation or event. The
analysts forecast the PSIM market in the APAC region will grow at a CAGR of
42.15 percent over the period 2013-2018. This report covers the present
scenario and the growth prospects of the PSIM market in the APAC region for
the period 2014-2018. To calculate the market size, the report takes into
account revenue generated through sales of the following products: Software
(PSIM software) and Services (consultation, integration, software upgrades,
software patches, and others) The report also considers the revenue received by the PSIM
market in the APAC region from the following end-user segments: Critical
Infrastructure (ports and airports, utilities (water, electricity, steam, and
others)), Energy, Oil, and Gas Industry, military, and mining); Public
Services (police and law enforcement bodies, homeland security,
Transportation industry, Healthcare industry, road and rail networks, and
Education sector); Commercial (BFSI industry, Retail industry, Manufacturing
and Distribution industry, and corporate enterprises and bodies) The report,
the PSIM Market in the APAC Region 2014-2018, has been prepared based on an
in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers
the PSIM market in the APAC region landscape and its growth prospects in the
coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors
operating in this market. From
http://finance.yahoo.com/
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The Chinese government is to start cyber security vetting of
major IT products and services for use by national security and public
interests, the State Internet Information Office announced on Thursday.The
vetting is aimed at preventing suppliers from taking advantage of their
products to illegally control, disrupt or shut down their clients' systems,
or to gather, store, process or use their clients' information, according to
a statement from the office.Companies that fail the vetting will be stopped
from supplying their products and services in China, the statement said.Ensuring
that IT technologies and cyberspace are "safe and under control" is
vital to China's national security, economic and social development as well
as people's legitimate rights and interests, said Jiang Jun, the office's
spokesman."For a long time, governments and enterprises of a few
countries have gathered sensitive information on a large scale, taking the
advantage of their monopoly in the market and technological edge," he
said. "They not only seriously undermine interests of their clients but
also threaten cyber security of other countries." China's government departments, public institutions,
enterprises, universities and backbone networks of its telecom firms have
suffered extensive invasion and wiretapping, according to Jiang.Documents
leaked by former Central Intelligence Agency contractor Edward Snowden last
June rang alarm bells over the cyber security of many countries, the spokesman
said, adding that the affair reminded people how crucial cyber security is to
national security."It shows that without cyber security, there's no
national security," he said.Having the world's biggest number of
Internet users, China is duty bound to tighten cyber security measures and
make sure security vetting of major IT products is effective, Jiang said.China
is not the first country to adopt such security vetting. In 2012, the U.S.
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence conducted security
investigation on Chinese IT firms.The From http://www.news.cn/
Chinese General Labels
U.S. No.1 Cyber Thief A Chinese general on Tuesday called the From http://www.news.cn/
Alibaba Attacks Fake
Chinese Goods Ahead of IPO Because Chinese manufacturers have a poor overseas reputation
for creating shoddy goods and the Chinese government has been criticized for
not doing enough to halt fake products, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is
now trying to cull counterfeit goods from its own websites.Alibaba announced
on its English blog that the group's international B2B website Alibaba.com
and B For the second strike, merchant's storefront and product
listings will be removed from search results for seven days. For the third
strike, merchant's storefront will be closed and company will be banned from
the site.In addition, Alibaba said that when collecting feedback about the
three-strikes rule from users, some users hope they can launch a one-strike
rule, a policy that calls for any merchant who is caught selling fakes to be
tossed off the site immediately. However, the group explained that they do
not believe a one-strike rule is reasonable within a massive e-commerce
environment. They provide an open marketplace for merchants and consumers and
their mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. A one-strike rule
may indiscriminately kill off merchants who may be careless or ignorant when
it comes to these standards.Alibaba said the
three-strikes system demonstrates their commitment in battling counterfeits.
They will continue to reach out for feedback and to improve their
intellectual property protection system. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
Report Underlines Cyber security is the most important issue that China has to
address in developing its new media, according to a report released Wednesday
by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.After the whistleblowing of former
U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, the think tank
believes that cyber security is relevant to a country's political and
cultural safety, more than just information security.The United States is the
world's sole power to adopt an offensive strategy in the cyber world, while
China and Russia can only resort to a defensive strategy, meaning the defense
of their cyber space will become a strategic priority, according to the
report.The think tank advised Chinese authorities to raise their capacities
in self-defense and formulate an effective defensive strategy. From http://www.news.cn/
Online Terror Info Traced
to Overseas Websites Chinese authorities have received 230 effective reports about
online terrorist propaganda, with 70 percent of the material they have
located being hosted by websites operating overseas.Since the State Internet
Information Office (SIIO) launched a campaign to rid the Internet of audio
and video materials that promote terrorism and violence on June 20, the
authorities have received 1,538 tip-offs, 230 of which were confirmed
effective, the office said in a statement on Monday.Suspects used the
information to propagate religious extremism and Jihad, display bloody sites
of terrorist attacks, and sell guns.Some websites disseminated
"guidelines" for violent terrorist attacks in Russian, Arabic and
Uygur. Chinese terrorists were organized through the websites to get training
overseas and returned to From http://www.news.cn/
A court in southwest China's Yunnan Province handed down jail
sentences on Wednesday to two people found guilty of fabricating and
spreading online rumors for economic gain.The court of Wuhua District in the
provincial capital city of Kunming sentenced Dong Rubin to six years and six
months in prison for illegal business operations, according to the court
verdict.Dong's conspirator, Hou Peng, received a three-year jail term with a
three-year reprieve over the same charge, according to the verdict.Dong and Hou
were fined 350,000 yuan (about 56,000 U.S. dollars) and 50,000 yuan
respectively, it said.The court found that the defendants fabricated online
posts at the request of clients from March 2011 to May 2013. Dong organized
and participated in four crimes involving 345,000 yuan and Hou took part in
three cases involving 255,000 yuan.Dong, who uses the online name
"Bianmin," was also convicted of "creating disturbances"
as he posted fake information and comments that distorted facts concerning
the Mekong River attack, in which 13 sailors were murdered in October 2011 by
a Myanmar drug ring, in order to gain popularity. The widely-circulated contents tarnished the image of the
government and seriously disturbed the social order, said the verdict.The
court ruled that the defendants' allegations over the police's unlawful
operations in handling the case lack factual and legal basis.Dong said he
would lodge an appeal.Dong used to be a middle school teacher. He left the
school after he was punished by police for smuggling and gambling. He had
been employed by a newspaper and later a website.He came to fame in 2007 by
posting sensational articles on popular websites and was listed by a
newspaper as one of the ten most famous netizens in Yunnan in 2008.His arrest
followed the punishment of several online rumor mongers, including Qin
Zhihui, who was found to have created and spread false information about a
2011 bullet train accident and China's most famous Good Samaritan, Lei Feng. From http://www.news.cn/
China will redouble its efforts to rid cyberspace of rumors and
slanderous content and dish out heavier punishments for Internet
rumormongers, a government statement said on Tuesday.The joint statement
issued by the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Industry and
Information Technology and the State Internet Information Office said the
move aims to "protect Chinese Internet users' rights in their life, work
and studies," while urging netizens to help in "cleansing cyberspace."It
said a nationwide campaign to crack down on Internet rumors is already
underway. A number of websites have been closed, it said, adding that close
to 40 Internet rumormongers had been investigated and punished.The statement
did not specify what kind of heavier punishments rumormongers could face.In
September, the country began to implement a 10-clause judicial
interpretation. People who post defamatory comments online would face up to
three years in prison if their statements are widely reposted.In April, Qin
Zhihui, known as "Qinhuohuo" in cyberspace, was sentenced by a
Beijing court to two years of imprisonment for defamation and another 12
months for affray, for defaming Chinese celebrities and the government.Prosecutors
had said Qin's posts on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter-like service, included
one claiming that Beijing had granted 30 million euros in compensation to a
foreigner who died in a train crash in east China's Zhejiang Province in
2011.The rumor was reposted 11,000 times and commented on 3,300 times, with
Qin's fabrication inciting anger over apparent disparities in how foreigners
and Chinese people were compensated after the accident. From http://www.news.cn/
Chinese Man Detained
over WeChat Rumors Chinese police have detained a man suspected of spreading rumors
on WeChat, following authorities' new regulation on instant messaging
services.The man managed a WeChat public account that had published
unconfirmed reports of public assaults and baby trafficking, police in
northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region said on Tuesday.The man,
surnamed Wang, is an employee of an Internet company in the city of Guyuan.He
was the sole manager of the account the police accuse of spreading rumors,
investigation has found.Wang will be held in police detention for five days.The
arrest was made after Chinese authorities last week issued a new regulation
targeting the country's 5.8 million public accounts on apps like WeChat.Only
media organizations and news websites may now use public accounts to release
and retweet political reports.Under the order from the State Internet
Information Office, new registrants are required to provide their real names,
while users who have previously registered accounts will have limited access
to the service until they verify their identity.More than 800 million people
use instant messengers in China, making more than 20 billion posts every day.The
new rule is part of wider attempts to police cyberspace. Similar regulations
were passed in 2012 for microblogging service Sina Weibo, which now has more
than 500 million registered users. From http://www.news.cn/
How should so-called big data—a blanket term for the huge
quantities of digital data accumulated by businesses and other entities—be
used? Rules must urgently be worked out regarding the utilization of such
data while also paying due attention to the protection of people’s privacy. A
government study panel has drafted an outline for the revision of the
Personal Information Protection Law to enable active utilization of big data.
When personal information—including names, birth dates and addresses—is
provided to a third party, the providers are required under the law to obtain
the approval of the individuals to which the data pertains. Anonymous big
data, such as online purchasing histories and smartphone location tracking,
does not constitute personal information. However, due to progress in
technology, it has become possible to identify individuals if two or more
pieces of data are combined. Some people may be concerned about whether information
pertaining to their behavior and preferences is circulated without their
knowledge. Last year, East Japan Railway Co. faced criticism for selling
passenger records from its Suica electronic cards without obtaining the
permission of users. It is reasonable for the government to have started work
on laying down rules regarding the provision of big data. As for data
processed to prevent individuals from being identified, the draft outline
allows it to be provided to a third party without obtaining the approval of
the individuals to which the data pertains. Details such as whether address
information is provided on a municipal or prefectural level would be worked
out under rules established by each industry providing the data, before the
data is used by firms. A third-party organization would be established to inspect and
supervise businesses to monitor whether they are honoring such commitments as
scrubbing the data of identifying information. If individuals are identified from various data and personal
information is abused, on-site investigations would be conducted and the
names of the companies involved made public. Big data can be applied widely,
including solving traffic congestion based on location information obtained
via the Global Positioning System. Likewise, retailers could create more
efficient systems for selling products by utilizing sales data. The Internal
Affairs and Communications Ministry estimates an annual economic impact of
more than ¥7 trillion from such applications. The government aims to enact the revision bill for the Personal
Information Protection Law at an ordinary Diet session next year. The system
must be fine-tuned to ensure that data can be used safely. It is also
important to set up a mechanism for adjusting the rules decided independently
by each industry. Since the law was enforced in 2005, such negative
repercussions have arisen as sources of information avoiding news media
organizations out of fear of the law and administrative offices using the law
as an excuse for intentionally concealing information. It is problematic that
the outline for the first revision of the law does not reflect the people’s
right to know. If people further avoid talking to the media as a result of
the supervision of a third-party organ, it will restrict news coverage and
reporting activities even more. In working out a revision bill, it must be
clarified that the provision of personal information by administrative
offices and private firms to media organizations is not subject to the restrictions. From
http://the-japan-news.com
From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Nearly three out of 10 South Korean teenagers have been bullied
in cyberspace, but few have sought help, a study showed Thursday. According
to the study by the National Youth Policy Institute, 27.7 percent of middle
and high school students surveyed said they had been "cyber bullied."
Types of bullying ranged from leaking of private information, which was most
common at 12.1 percent, to bullying while playing online games, which
followed with 10.2 percent. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
Gov't to
Toughen Punishment for Data Leaks The government plans to toughen punishment for data breaches as
part of efforts to better protect people's sensitive information, officials
said Thursday. The plan will require companies and other institutions that
lose control of customers' private information to provide compensation of up
to three times the value of any financial losses suffered, according to the
Prime Minister's Office. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
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The Royal Malaysian Police is exchanging data with local
authorities for the first time to identify and better police crime-prone areas
across the country, Nawawi Bin Junoh (pictured), Deputy Superintendent of
Police, Inspector General Police’s Secretariat (Research & Development)
told FutureGov. “The Ministry of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local
Government is sharing land use data with us,” the
Deputy Superintendent said. With this, the police can find “where are the
crime-prone areas, what are they doing down there and what do we have on the
land there, like old or abandoned buildings”. The police’s work has already
allowed it to understand the landuse of areas crime prone areas, leading to a
reallocation of resources and a 45% reduction in index crime, such as murder,
assault and property theft. These initiatives are part of the police’s Safe
City Programme, which Junoh has led for the last four years. The police’s
Safe City Monitoring System (SCMS) shows the status of crime in The SCMS then processes this data and uses geolocation software
to pinpoint the crime status on a map, Junoh explained. “It restructures the
raw data so that it can be easily understood and analysed by police
personnel,” he added. Junoh is now in the process of expanding SCMS to other
departments within the police, such as narcotics and traffic. Once it is
integrated with their systems, the SCMS can analyse more data and help the
police be more efficient in their job. “Once everything is in place, the SCMS
will cut down time taken [by police] and can show you exactly where police
[resources] need to be enhanced to improve crime prevention,” he said. To
ensure all these systems deliver on their promise,
and the underlying IT infrastructure runs reliably, his team needs to work
with the IT department to make sure that the technology is taken care of.
“Currently we have a very slow network and so cannot fulfil the needs of the
SCMS. We have to work hand-in-hand with the IT department to make sure that
this project is reliable to the organisation,” he said. Junoh ensures that
employees from the IT department are embedded in the project team, along with
staff from other departments involved in the project. The organisation must
also train employees to take over and run IT projects once the technology has
been handed over by contractors. “Human capital” is an important part of ensuring
reliability of IT infrastructure, he said. “Vendors have a short period with
us. After the contract expires, they have to transfer the technology to us.
So we must have a group of people who are able to continue handling the
project.” From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The Singapore Government has warned that accounts used by
residents to authenticate e-government transactions, including income tax
records and pension savings accounts, may have been accessed without the
users’ permission. 1560 user accounts are known to be at risk so far. A
number of users of the service known as SingPass received password reset notification
letters without having requested for a password reset, the service operator
CrimsonLogic told From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
From
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
The number of cheating cases involving e-commerce in The police also highlighted cyber extortion, serious hurt and
rape as key crime concerns. There were 132 cases of cyber extortion, compared
with 38 cases in the first half of last year. The number of rape cases rose
from 61 to 91, while the number of serious hurt cases rose from 247 to 260. The
police said that unlicensed moneylending and harassment cases dropped by 31.6
percent year on year to 3,235 cases in the first half of this year. "The
tough laws ... coupled with the concerted effort by the police and strong community
support, have enabled us to continue to make good progress in tackling the
loansharking problem in From
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
SINGAPORE: There was an increase in the number of Internet users
in Singapore clicking on malicious Web links, or URLs, between April and June
this year, and this suggests that users in Singapore are “being targeted more
heavily than before”, according to IT security firm Trend Micro. In its
recently released TrendLabs Q2 2014 Security Roundup, the company said in DIP IN ONLINE BANKING MALWARE Trend Micro also stated that there was a 3 per cent decrease in
online banking malware detections over the previous quarter. Mr Siah said,
however, that the dip was “actually not a lot”. “Globally, there was a drop
in online banking malware detections this quarter, and one possible cause of
this was the Gameover Zeus (GOZ) disruption in early June. The data in From
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/
The Ha Noi Police on Sunday smashed an illegal online betting
ring which allegedly took about VND6.68 billion (US$315,290) in bets on World
Cup football matches. The Dong Da District police raided a house on Phao Dai
Lang Street on July 6 and arrested Ta Ngoc Hung, 36, the leader of the gang,
and three other men while they were taking bets via the Internet. The police
seized two laptop computers, two desktop computers, six mobiles and VND30
million or US$ From
http://vietnamnews.vn/
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International Crimes Tribunal-1 was extremely annoyed Monday as
the prosecution appeared without a report on compliance over the arrest
warrant issued against war crimes-suspect former Jatiya Party MP of Pirojpur
engineer Abdul Jabbar. “What happened about the warrant order? I don’t see
any such report with the application you submitted,” said ICT chairman
Justice M Enayetur Rahim, pointing finger at prosecutor Zahid Imam. In reply,
the designated prosecutor simply kept mum. The three–member tribunal,
however, asked for explanations from the Pirojpur Police Super and O/Cs of
Mathbaria and Tejgaon Police Stations about the execution of its warrant
order, re-fixing June 12 for report on compliance. Earlier, responding to a
prosecution application, the tribunal on May 12, taking cognisance of the
offences of the 1971 war crimes against former Jatiya Party MP of Pirojpur
engineer Abdul Jabbar, issued warrant for his arrest. According to the prosecution, war crimes–suspect Jabbar has been
on the run since 2009. The prosecution pressed five counts of war crimes
charges against Jabbar, believed living in the From
http://unbconnect.com/ |
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Azerbaijan-OSCE
Joint Working Group on Cyber Security to Be Established From
http://news.az/ The e-security center under the Azerbaijani Ministry of
Communications and High Technologies will intensify its activity in
connection with the frequent cyber attacks amid the aggravation of the
situation on the frontline, the center said on Aug. 4. The media resources,
websites of public and private organizations are subjected to the
cyber-attacks. The issue of sustainable protection from external intrusions
is relevant. The e-security center alerts about the readiness to render all
possible assistance to the owners of resources subjected to hacker attacks. For
assistance, contact via "hotline" 1654 or e-mail reports@cert.az. Armenian
armed forces launched a diversion on the night of July 31-August 1, when
reconnaissance and sabotage groups tried to cross the contact line of the
Azerbaijani and Armenian troops through the territories of Aghdam and Terter
regions. From
http://en.trend.az/
Azerbaijani
Defense Ministry Urges Media Outlets to Be Careful Spreading Information Information about the deployment of military units, their
strength, movement of the military equipment, information about the command
is a military secret and dissemination of such information is prohibited,
spokesperson of From
http://en.trend.az/
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Many of “With Deloitte
Private Connect we have positively embraced the disruption to the accounting
and tax profession on account of cloud technologies and created an offering
that transforms the way business owners experience accounting services.” Hill
says Connect combines shared ledger accounting, automated bookkeeping and
benchmarking, an online portal and dashboard as well as many other digital
technologies, “to redefine the way our private clients work with us, in real
time, on any device. Every business owner dreams of spending less time in the
business and more time on the business. Less time on day-to-day transactions,
paying staff and suppliers and scrambling to balance the books. More time on
the bigger picture and the things that helped them
succeed in the first place. Until now, that's been easier said than done.
Deloitte Private Connect is changing all that.” Two apps are
core to the Connect solution: • Transact
automates bookkeeping. Invoices are digitally scanned and authorised for
online payment while business owners digitally sign tax returns, approve BAS
statements and year end accounts, raise queries and store documents securely
online • Analyser
enables business owners to access live financial reports and business analytics,
including profitability, cash flow, growth and trend analysis. Key
performance indicators can be customised, live ‘what-if’ analysis performed
and alerts set up to keep on top of the metrics that matter. From http://www.itwire.com
Government
Releases Piracy Discussion Paper Nearly a
week after it was leaked, the Government has formally released its discussion
paper on ‘Online Copyright Infringement’. The document the Government has
released is unchanged from the draft leaked by news site Crikey last week,
which was widely circulated. It was also widely criticised for siding with
copyright holders and barely discussing the key issue of the availability and
cost of content. Many, iTWire included, have argued that one of the key
drivers of piracy is the refusal of content owners to make copyrighted
material more accessible, through restrictive practices like geoblocking and bundling
good content with bad. Industry body Communications Alliance (CA) has waited
until the formal release to comment on the paper’s proposals. It says it
“welcomes the release,” a formality it quickly dispenses with when getting
down to the details, “urging caution” in many areas. CA’s members
include many of the ISPs who would be greatly affected by the Government’s
proposals that they be responsible for policing their users’ behaviour and
preventing them from pirating copyrighted material. CA’s CEO John Stanton
said that the organisation’s member ISPs “do not condone online copyright
infringement and encourage the lawful use of the Internet.” But he said that
any scheme designed to address online copyright infringement should be
“sustainable” and should stimulate innovation by growing the digital content
market, so Australians can continue to access and enjoy new a content,
devices and technologies. “The ISP members of Communications Alliance remain
willing to work toward a solution that balances the interests of all
stakeholders, including consumers,” he said. “But we do not share the view in
the discussion paper that the High Court’s decision in Roadshow Films Pty Ltd
v iiNet Ltd (April 2012) undermines Australia’s international obligations,
nor that there is any obligation in Australia’s free trade agreements that
means the Copyright Act must be amended to extend authorisation liability. “If the
Government does ultimately decide to amend the Copyright Act, this should
only take place after an agreement on an industry scheme is reached, as such
a scheme may go a long way to addressing their concerns.” CA’s
response to the paper says that the industry has identified the following key
matters that should be addressed in any scheme: # a holistic end-to-end approach, supported by Government,
rights holders, ISPs and consumers. # stronger
efforts by rights holders and Government to ensure that consumers can access
lawful, affordable content when they want it, accompanied by public education
on how and where to access such content. # a ‘level playing field’ involving all ISPs and rights
holders. # recognition that technology is moving very quickly and any
solution may be quickly redundant as online content markets continue to
evolve. # independent (judicial or regulatory) oversight. # consultation with, and protections for, our customers and
consumer groups including in areas such as privacy and access to an appeal
mechanism. # legal protections for ISPs. # resolution
of funding for any scheme, consistent with enforcement of other intellectual
property rights, and consistent with how ISPs assist other parties
(particularly law enforcement agencies) to address other digital content
issues, # innovation in, and growth of, the digital content market. From http://www.itwire.com
Australian
IT Managers 'Unaware of Privacy Laws' A new study
shows that extent to which Australian IT decision makers have not acted on
recent changes to Australian privacy laws. Many organisations in The findings
are based on research of 150 organisations in Key findings
from the white paper include: Uncertainty
remains about principles regarding disposal of data Awareness of
changes to the Australian Privacy Law is relatively high,
however awareness of the individual principles is much lower – according to
the survey 20% of Australian Organisations remain unaware or uncertain of the
implications relating to changes to the Australian Privacy Principles. Sally
Parker, research director for IDC Australia said “The research uncovered
broad awareness of the principles within IT around protection of personal
information before it is disclosed overseas, disclosure of breaches to all
relevant parties and civil penalties in the case of a serious privacy breach.
But notably absent is awareness of principles regarding the proper disposal
of personal data once it is no longer required for the purpose for which
consent was provided.” Organisations
are putting themselves at risk regarding data collection IDC noted a
20% increase in the perceived risk associated with data since the
introduction of the revised Australian Privacy Principles. Despite this,
individual retailers are still putting themselves at risk – only 50% of
retailers surveyed have a formal governance process managing ‘give to get’
data. Uncertainty of the changes to Australian Privacy Principles is linked
to dependence on third party services. The research shows that 72% of
Australian organisations look to third parties for guidance on risk, security
and compliance – yet 20% of those surveyed lack confidence in their knowledge
of how third parties deal with the disposal of data. Of those organisations
entrusting a third party with their personal data, few mandate requirements
around the physical location of data, total number of copies, deletion
process, or impose restrictions regarding access to the data. Data is the
new currency for Australian organisations The market
for big data is set to reach $16.1 billion in 2014, growing six times faster
than the overall IT market. Government agencies alone installed an additional
93,000 terabytes of storage during 2008-2012. The advent of new technologies
is dictating how Australian organisations handle their data. Australian
Organisations are able to source more valuable consumer information than ever
before, due to new social, cloud and mobile technologies. These mediums have
fostered a borderless IT environment that dictates a fresh approach to data
management and risk policies – 93.7% of organisations surveyed shared that
Public Cloud had changed how they approach risk and security. Privacy can
now be used as a competitive differentiator Organisations
that are perceived to be putting their customers first when it comes to
privacy can gain leverage over their competitors. The Electronic Frontier
Foundation and Online Trust Alliance annually recognise the top companies for
consumer privacy and data protection. As a result of the survey, IDC predicts
that within the next three years, smaller more agile organisations will
capitalise on the opportunity to leverage insights gained from data analysis
without the baggage of the larger established competitors. From http://www.itwire.com
The
government should instead provide well-communicated, balanced advice and
constructive support to its agencies, it added. “Balanced guidance on the
opportunities and risks associated with cloud computing should be made
available online. Similarly, DIA’s [Department of Internal Affairs’]
knowledge of trustworthy cloud providers and the ‘lessons learned’ from
previous and current cloud computing projects should be made more visible and
accessible.” The central government cloud policy has gone through significant
changes in the last five years, but guidance for agencies has not changed. As
a result, “policy was interpreted by many to prohibit the storage of data
offshore, thus precluding the use of offshore infrastructure,” the report
said. This “prohibition” has been criticised because “the government was
paying too much for cloud services”, and it is “sending a poor signal to
private firms about how suitable cloud computing is for the ICT needs of
private firms,” the report added. From http://www.futuregov.asia
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AFRICA:
ICT Penetration in Democratic The penetration of Information and Communication Technology
(ICT) in war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has risen significantly,
to 23%. This was revealed by the minister of posts, telecoms and ICTs,
Kin-Kiey Mulumba. Mulumba further added that the DRC was now connected to the
world through the WACS submarine cable landing point in Muanda, adding that
the From
http://pctechmag.com/
World
Bank to Give The World Bank says it will provide KES 17.3 billion to fund ICT
projects in 47 counties as part of the From
http://www.telecompaper.com/
ICT
Contribution to The contribution of the Information Communication Technology
(ICT) sector to the Kenyan economy increased to 12.1 per cent in 2013 from
8.9 per cent in 2006, with growth attributed to factors such as international
development agencies financing. “ICT has assumed an increasingly strategic
role in the Kenyan economy in recent years. Between 2000 and 2012, the
country’s wider transport and communications sector, of which ICT is a part,
grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.7 per cent, outperforming
all other sectors of the national economy,” read a statement from the
International Data Corporation (IDC). According to IDC, the World Bank Group
takes the lead in funding of ICT activities in the country, with global
assistance from the World Bank Group between 2003 and 2010 totalling well
over US$4.1 billion. “ A recent World Bank report on the Kenyan economy noted the rapid
uptake and transformative impact of the surging ICT sector in the country,
identifying the country as being on the verge of a sustained period of rapid
growth. While From
http://www.humanipo.com/ AS Nigeria prepares to showcase its Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) war chest at the October 2014 GITEX
technology exhibition in Dubai, UAE, the National Information Technology
Development Agency (NITDA) is optimistic that the country's participation at
the forum could enable the ICT sector increase its GDP contribution from the
current nine per cent to over 20 per cent after the forum. NITDA, while
engaging journalists at the weekend in Enugu, said that over 4000 different
investors will be coming to showcase their potential with huge focus on
Africa, where Nigeria is expected to lead the continent's push for more
investment attractions, stressing that doing something in the country is as
good as doing so in about six or seven other African countries at a go. According to the Director of Corporate Strategies and Research
at NITDA, Dr. Vincent Olajunji and the GITEX duo of Commercial Director,
Exhibitions and Events Management, Dubai World Trade Centre and Business
Development Manager, Visitors Management, Bilal Al-Rais and Eyad Khamis
respectively, the technology show will expose Nigeria to other global ICT
opportunities. Olatunji, while canvassing for greater participation from
Nigerians, noted that so many great things have started happening in Nigeria
that are technologically driven, stressing that the country is blessed with
young innovators, "by so doing, we can just be downloading, it is high
time we start uploading so that the world will feel our presence. Our over
reliance on oil has caused so many things in the country. ICT is a huge
alternative source of revenue, which has to do with knowledge that cannot be
taken away from us. " Besides, he said such opportunity would enable According to Al-Rais, so many things need to be done to elevate From
http://allafrica.com/
EUROPE:
Regulator's latest market report says average household now owns
four Internet-enabled devices. The number of From
http://www.totaltele.com/
IT hiring for the rest of the year will likely be as steady as
it was at the beginning of 2014, a new survey of Canadian CIOs suggests. According
to Robert Half Technology, 14 per cent of CIOs here who responded to a survey
expect to expand their teams in the last half of the year. That represents a
two-point increase from the previous survey done by the firm, the company
said in a release this morning. On the other hand another 67 per cent of
those surveyed expect to hire only for open IT roles, compared to 74 per cent
in the first six months of the year — a seven-point decrease. But note that
17 per cent of technology executives plan to put their hiring on hold through
the rest of the year (up from 9 per cent at the beginning of the year). Only
one per cent of respondents expect to reduce their IT staffing levels in the
second half of the year. Half of Canadian technology executives said that network
administration tops the list of skills sets in greatest demand, followed by
wireless network management and desktop support. “The second half of 2014
will continue to be a busy time for hiring within many IT departments, with a
focus on adding skilled technology professionals for either newly created or
existing open positions,” said Deborah Bottineau, senior regional manager of
Robert Half Technology and The Creative Group, in a statement. “Though
confidence is strong regarding the need for technology staff, finding the
required specialized talent is expected to be the most challenging when
filling positions in the areas of networking, security and applications
development.” The hiring projections for the first half and second half of
2014 are based on interviews with more than 270 CIOs in major Canadian
markets who were asked to provide a six-month hiring outlook. Asked about the ease of recruiting technology talent, 27 per
cent of Canadian CIOs said it is somewhat or very challenging to find skilled
IT professionals. This is a 15-point drop compared to the first half of the
year. Technology executives surveyed report that it is most difficult to find
skilled talent in the functional areas of networking (10 per cent),security (nine per cent) and applications development
(six per cent). The survey also suggests that CIOs continue to be optimistic
about their companies’ growth and plans for IT investments. Eighty-two per
cent reported being somewhat or very confident about their companies’ growth
prospects for the last six months of 2014. This compares to 88 per cent for
the first half of the year. Sixty-three per cent of CIOs said they are
confident that their firms will invest in IT projects in the next six months.
This compares to 64 per cent in the first half of 2014. Most of those upcoming
investments will be in hardware upgrades (18 per cent) and software upgrades
(16 per cent). From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
Look
Ahead for the Next Generation of Wi-Fi Just when network managers thought they were ready to bring in
the next generation of Wi-Fi access points to their networks comes word that the IEEE has another leap in technology in
mind. That’s right: With One thing From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
Sexism
and IT - Another Chapter The low number of women in information technology careers has
been the subject of commentary for decades. There are various reasons why, some in
the industry say: Women just don’t go into tech, or those that do aren’t aggressive
enough. Blatant sexism is rarely acknowledged. Another contribution came
today on CBC Radio’s You can listen to the interview with host Matt Galloway here. Kirkham
tweeted the conversation live, and, she said, was
overwhelmed with responses, including from some who wrote they’d seen or
heard the same. “I was shocked,” she told Galloway, “because I couldn’t
believe they were so comfortable in their sexism that they were willing to
have this conversation in public … It just underlined for me that while we’ve
got female CEOs — Virginia (Rometty of IBM) Sheryl
(Sandberg, COO of Facebook and co-author of Lean In) and Marissa (Mayer of
Yahoo), this ethos is so
pervasive.” I couldn’t get hold of Kirkham in time for deadline to find out
where this conversation took place and how she knew the people worked for a
tech company — perhaps it was in the company cafeteria, or the people at the
other table were wearing name tags. It doesn’t matter. Every organization has
to be prepared to deal with women who want maternity leave, and train staff
that it’s a part of employment. More important, it’s vital organizations have
policies to encourage women to both have families and have careers because
they are just as important a resource to the enterprise as men — in fact,
that’s why they were hired: Because their talent was recognized. Is this your
organization’s attitude? Let me know in the comments section below. From
http://www.itworldcanada.com/
Canadian
CIOs Focus on Core Technologies for Digital Success Along with their counterparts around the world, Canadian CIOs
are transitioning to a new era of enterprise IT. In this era of digitization
CIOs must build digital leadership and bimodal capability, while renovating
the core of IT and capability for the digital future. Gartner Executive
Program’s annual survey of more than 2,300 IT leaders worldwide revealed that
while the top technology areas of focus for Canadian survey respondents
largely match those of CIOs globally, there are variations in priorities. The
top five technology focus topics for Canadian organizations essentially map
the global topics – comprising BI/analytics, ERP, mobile, infrastructure and
data centre and cloud. However, reviewing the balance of the list of
technology priorities a more interesting set of variations become apparent
between Canadian and global responses. Although security holds a similar mid-level ranking in both sets
of data, Canadian responses show a higher priority on legacy modernization
and industry-specific applications. Given the stronger influence of public
sector in the environment, and the legislated privacy protection at both
federal and provincial levels, the emphasis on security is understandable. As
a result, this security-focused environment elevates the interest and
resources dedicated to examining cloud offerings to look for those limited
opportunities or advantages. The influence of federal government on the IT
environment is also being felt, resulting from a recommendation of the
auditor general three years ago to focus on legacy modernization. The
positioning of digitization/digital marketing near the end of the Canadian
list of priorities, combined with the higher ranking of legacy modernization
and industry-specific applications, indicates the focus on maintaining stability
in the IT environment. This emphasis would also help to explain the appearance of
business process management/improvement in the Canadian top 12 list as
organizations evaluate their business delivery processes in pursuit of legacy
modernization. When considered along with the increased emphasis on growth
and innovation, it appears Canadian organizations view a stable and
sustainable environment as key criteria for growth and moving into a digital
environment. The survey also shows that As Canadian organizations adjust policies and risk practices to
accommodate the USA Patriot Act, it will become easier for them to move into
the public cloud environment. The Canadian government developing a
cloud-first policy in the near future would facilitate this direction. The
Canadian survey responses on sourcing closely match the general global
responses. The majority of organizations report a mixed model of internal and
external sourcing, with a strong proportion indicating mainly insourced and a
smaller number of organizations mainly outsourced. Similarly, Canadian
strategies for sourcing are in keeping with global direction, with close to
60 per cent of respondents indicating they will be increasing sourcing activities.
The tight IT labor market in The bottom line is that a strong Canadian economy has provided
Canadian organizations with a competitive advantage globally, placing From
http://www.itbusiness.ca/
Cloud services, virtualization and personal computing devices
are among the trends in government information technology that complicate
networks and could be contributing to frequent disruptions, according to a
new report. Agencies with more complex networks are three times more likely
to experience disruptions than those with simplified networks, according to a
survey of federal network managers by MeriTalk. Respondents -- 94 percent of whom say network downtime in the last year has hindered
their agency’s ability to carry out its mission -- estimate they could save
18 percent of their IT budgets by reducing network complexity by half. At
that rate, governmentwide IT savings would be $14.8 billion a year, MeriTalk
said. More than half (54 percent) of federal IT managers said their network
complexity increased in the past year, and 68 percent believe their networks
will become more complex during the next three years, the survey found. Factors that contribute to greater network complexity include an
increasing number of network users, the move to cloud computing and server
virtualization and increased use of mobile devices, including those provided
by employees under bring your own device, or BYOD, policies. Respondents said
moving to open, nonproprietary standards is the best
way to simplify networks, MeriTalk said. Simplified networks are more
reliable, faster, safer, easier to fix and provide
more IT agility to support agency missions, respondents said, according to
MeriTalk. “The network is the road on which all government information
travels,” MeriTalk founder Stephen O’Keeffe said. “Taking the road less
traveled by – one with reduced complexity, interoperability, and
diversification – will make all the difference, and is critical to agency
performance and efficiency.” “The Federal Simplicity Report: Navigating
Network Complexity” was underwritten by Brocade, a company that provides
network services to government and others. Researchers surveyed 200 federal
network managers in May 2014, with a margin of error of +/-6.86 percent at 95
percent confidence. From
http://www.nextgov.com/
After six years of development at a cost of nearly $300 million,
the Social Security Administration has decided to press "reset" on
its project to improve a claim processing system after a recent report found
it to be not up to the task. A report by McKinsey and Co., commissioned by
the SSA in early 2014 on the status of the Disability Case Processing System,
found that the program "delivered limited functionality, and faced
schedule delays as well as increasing stakeholder concerns." The project
was conceived to replace 54 separate components used in the SSA's disability
determination system. The Disability Case Processing System would replace
those disparate elements with a common case-processing system that uses
automated tools to reduce processing time for initial disability claims,
decrease processing-related task time and increase system availability. But it remains a work in progress, McKinsey concluded. "While
current release plan and beta testing model are conceptually sound, execution
has fallen short, resulting in deployment of immature software to production
that does not deliver incremental value to [disability determination
systems]," the report said. The McKinsey report said the SSA's response
to the problems with the new system "has been to continue going broad
without maintaining high quality and full functionality, which has
exacerbated change management challenges." The report also found more
than 380 outstanding problems with the latest beta, and the system was unable
to process all the new claims or accurately track them throughout the system.
Throughout the past six years, the project has been stuck in the beta phase.
According to McKinsey, "for past 5 years, Release 1.0 is consistently
projected to be 24-32 months away." Lockheed Martin, prime contractor on the project, said it has
reviewed the report and is "committed to delivering on this program and
for our customer." Greg Gershman, co-founder of Ad Hoc LLC., a
technology consulting company focused on helping improve government's
approach to IT projects, said that starting over might not be a bad idea. "With
an IT system like this, it would be smart to bring in technology experts,
people who have experience with transactional, data-driven applications, to
assess what they currently have, can it be salvaged or does it need to be
started over from scratch," Gershman said. Echoing McKinsey, Gershman
said that without a strong leadership element, IT projects of this magnitude
are almost doomed to fail from the start. "If there's not strong
leadership, problems arise with coordinating work between contractors, and
there's no one person looking at the system as a single entity -- everyone is
making sure their piece is done, and fulfilling their responsibility up to a
certain point," he said. In response to the report, SSA appointed Terri Gruber, an
assistant deputy commissioner, as program executive with full authority. SSA
also is establishing an integrated program team and will refresh
requirements, strengthen vendor management, update its cost benefit analysis
and adopt a more agile approach to program development, a spokesperson said
in an email to FCW. Gershman, who also worked on the post-Healthcare.gov tech
surge, said there are some commonalities between the two failed projects. And
he took particular aim at the use of large firms that don't do web
development as their first priority. "You have companies like Lockheed
Martin -- they're not web development companies, they don't do work in the
private sector, they're not building start-ups," Gershman said.
"There's very little in the market that forces them to adopt new
technologies." "Government needs to change how it approaches
projects like this, not using system integrators or defense contractors who
have repeatedly come up with failures," he said And, as was the case with HealthCare.gov, Congress is getting
involved. Lawmakers wrote a letter to Carolyn Colvin, acting commissioner at
SSA, requesting all documents and communications related to DCPS since March
1, 2014. According to that letter, written by Reps. Darrell Issa, R-Calif.,
Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and James Lankford, R-Okla., "the report found that
the DCPS project is adrift, the scope of the project is ambiguous, the
project has been poorly executed, and the project's development lacks
leadership." The letter also said that whistleblowers informed the House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which Issa chairs, of the
existence of the report and told the committee that senior officials at SSA
failed to follow standard protocols and procedures in disseminating the
report throughout the agency, with the intention of keeping the findings
secret until after the Senate confirmed Colvin as commissioner. The SSA said
it anticipated implementing the revamped DCPS in all of the disability
determination systems and federal case processing sites in fiscal 2015. "We
are committed to implementing the assessment recommendations and are
confident we will deliver this vital initiative successfully," SSA told
FCW. From
http://fcw.com/
How
Modern Technology Is Changing Public-Sector GIS The days of waiting weeks or months for new map data are being
left behind and GIS data's becoming more accessible. The ubiquity of online
data means that more and more public-sector workers are expecting to be able
to access it on mobile devices. GIS data is no exception, as evidenced by the
proliferation of online geoportals and tools with location data. The
technology's changing how government employees work in the field. "I
work in the stormwater industry, and we've seen a lot of changes going from
working in the office to going in the field," said Elizabeth Young, the
stormwater GIS manager of In addition, the days of waiting weeks or months for new map
data are being left behind in many cases and data's becoming more accessible.
“In the last two years, it used to be good enough that you could deliver an
updated map at least every quarter,” said J. Garland Pardue, sales director
of TomTom. “Now, what we see the user community doing is asking, ‘Can you do
that on a monthly, weekly or even on a daily basis?’” Pardue has seen
public-sector GIS users asking vendors for more frequent map updates,
sometimes in near real time. And now data’s available on more endpoints than
before, according to Ken Burris, CEO of Witt O'Brien's consulting. "It's
evolved to the point where the public sector uses a lot more of the metadata
that's available over the Internet,” he said. “Previously you used to have to
buy stuff and put it on your server, and it was out of date fairly quickly,
but today, in the cloud, there's so much data that's accessible.” Agencies
and their employees are used to consuming more data online, which is creating
more demands and rising expectations from GIS data providers. "The
demands of the emergency response personnel, in their user applications, are
constantly evolving in a very fast way," Pardue said. From
http://www.govtech.com/
Information and communication technology (ICT) has to be the
tool that powers the data revolution that will be used for the sustainable
development of regional economies. This was the view articulated by Prime
Minister of He added that the use of ICT in statistics had to be considered
in the context of the region’s single ICT space that is to be established to
enhance the environment for investment and production. ICT, he said, had the
“great potential” to transform national and regional statistics systems,
confront data challenges, cut costs, and reduce the time spend on collecting
and producing solid data. “I would like to encourage us to continue thinking
of creative and innovative ways to revolutionize our statistical processes
through the use of ICT in our national and regional strategic plans,” the
Prime Minister said. Young bright students, he added, must see an exciting
career path in statistics and information and be attracted to pursue careers
in this area. Dr Philomen Harrison, project director, regional statistics,
also honed in on the importance of the data revolution at the forum. “Data are all around us, notably big data is now with us, data
that are generally collected by huge corporations or by credit card companies,
through online shopping and in the use of social networks and which are all
likely to impact official statistics,” she pointed out. She called attention
to the need to give voice to the data revolution in the CARICOM context, and
pointed out that within the CARICOM Secretariat, there was an Office,
Regional Statistics, that was completely dedicated to compiling and
disseminating data for and from the From
http://www.nationnews.com/
Opportunities
for ICT Providers in Intelligent Cities Evolution Smart city projects launched across the globe are driving the
creation of new sources and types of data as well as enabling technologies
and ways of consuming data. These factors are boosting the prospects of ICT
providers that offer big data analytics software, open data platforms, cloud
computing, and broadband connectivity services. Recent analysis from Frost
& Sullivan, The Role of ICT in Building Smart Cities - Infrastructure,
focuses on the ICT investment outlook in the smart energy, transportation,
and water segments. Smart energy and transportation are currently top
research priorities, and thus will prove to be the main growth areas for ICT
providers. "Smart transportation is receiving the most attention in
cities across the globe and hence opening up the maximum opportunities for ICT
providers," noted Frost & Sullivan Information & Communication
Technologies Research Analyst Ewa Tajer. "ICT providers should
particularly tap the large European cities, where numerous tenders for
intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are being issued and novel functionalities
are expected to be introduced to reduce traffic congestion, noise and
pollution." The smart energy segment - presently in an early development
stage as energy companies look to build a business case for smart grids - is
also heightening the demand for ICT. In fact, the smart energy market value
is likely to exceed the smart transportation market value by 15 to 20 percent
in 2020. Unlike the smart transportation and energy segments, there are
limited opportunities for ICT providers in the smart water segment due to a
lack of proper standards, poor regulatory support, and inadequate project
financing extended by authorities in most countries. Hopefully, this will
change over time as new funding schemes prompt water companies to invest in
smart water technologies that significantly will reduce operational costs. Another
set-back for ICT providers is the fragmented implementation of smart city
projects as a result of poor cross-sector coordination and cooperation
between different stakeholders. Other restraints are unwillingness of some
stakeholders to test new technologies, the limited involvement of local
authorities and the lack of a holistic vision when deploying smart
technologies. "ICT providers, acting as trusted advisors, should work
with city stakeholders to help create a robust smart city vision and
implementation plan that will ensure a key role for them in regions looking
to build a more sustainable future," concluded Tajer. The Role of ICT in
Building Smart Cities - Infrastructure is part of the Vertical Markets in ICT
(http://www.ict.frost.com) Growth Partnership Service program. Frost &
Sullivan's related studies include: Adoption of Smart City to Drive
Intelligent Transport System (ITS) Innovation, Polish Intelligent Cities -
Main Directions of Development, An Overview of European Smart City
Developments, and Cloud in European Vertical Markets. All studies included in
subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends
evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants. From
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/
Dimension
Data Releases First Annual Sustainability Report Dimension Data, the USD 6 billion ICT solutions and services
provider today announced the publication of its 2013 Sustainability Report.
The Report - a first for the Group - discusses how businesses will be
impacted by future change such as population growth and climate change, and
how ICT can make a positive contribution in creating a sustainable future. In
2008, when Dimension Data launched its global environmental sustainability
programme to integrate improvements to its own environmental performance with
its business strategy, the company recognised that, while they’re not a
manufacturer of goods, their operations have a part to play in addressing the
causes of climate change (the emission of GHGs). Brett Dawson, Dimension
Data’s Group CEO says "The cornerstone of Dimension Data’s environmental
sustainability strategy is to reduce travel, energy, and waste for our
clients, our own business, and our employees by providing ICT solutions that
lower costs, minimise environmental damage, and benefit society. We take this
responsibility very seriously. "The past ten years have seen unparalleled changes in how
the world communicates, conducts business, and how we go about our daily
lives. Technology has been the driving force behind much of this change, and
I’m convinced that the near future will bring about new developments that we
can’t even dream of today. However, as we innovate, we also need to be
responsible," explains Through our cloud computing services, we helped a major toy
manufacturer reduce its costs by 30%, while simultaneously reducing energy
usage and electronic waste. Studies show that large From
https://nz.finance.yahoo.com/
Frost &
Sullivan Recognizes Asia's Top ICT Companies at 2014 The shining stars in Asia's ICT industry received due
recognition at the 11th annual Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific ICT Awards
held at the These factors, together with sound business strategies and a
robust business model have made them worthy industry leaders in Asia Pacific
as they shape the ICT landscape of this region," said Manoj Menon,
Senior Partner and Managing Director at Frost & Sullivan To view the complete list of judges on the 2014 ICT Awards
judging panel, please visit http://ict-awards.com/judges.shtml For more
details on the 2014 Asia Pacific ICT Awards log-on to http://www.ict-awards.com/
or follow #apictawards on Twitter. You can also connect with Frost &
Sullivan on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, SlideShare, and
LinkedIn, for the latest news and updates. Media partners for the Frost &
Sullivan Asia Pacific ICT Awards include CIO Asia, Top 10 of Asia, Telecoms Watch and Asia Pacific Broadcasting magazine.
About Frost & Sullivan Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, works in collaboration with clients to leverage
visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth
opportunities that will make or break today's market participants. For more
than 50 years, we have been developing growth strategies for the global 1000,
emerging businesses, the public sector and the investment community. From
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/
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Inspur Group and United Electronics signed a strategic
cooperation framework agreement in Jinan that will pool their big data skills
for expansion of technology services in public security, energy, smart city,
bio-medical, and the Internet of Things.According to the agreement signed by
the two parties, Inspur and United Electronics will team to expand the market
of smart city, big data, and application systems of key industries.
Meanwhile, they plan to implement in-depth cooperation in hardware
infrastructure, application software development, service, and marketing to
promote comprehensive solutions from infrastructure platforms, industrial
applications and cloud computing services.Inspur will focus on hardware
products like minicomputers and universal servers, big data and
high-efficiency solutions, and industrial cloud technical services. United
Electronics will use its direct customer contact experience and application
understanding to introduce comprehensive solutions to end-users.The two
companies will mainly target the information system localization demands of
major industrial users in China, covering industries like public security,
energy, smart city, bio-medical, big data, and the Internet of Things.At the
beginning of 2014, United Electronics joined hands with Inspur to become an
important member of the latter's sales channel system. The new strategic
cooperation marks an enhanced partnership of the two parties in various
sectors, including product, technology, and industry. From http://www.chinatechnews.com/
3D Print Tech Involved
in A hospital in Beijing has finished the world's first axis
surgery on a boy using a 3D-printed titanium alloy replacement.12-year-old
Ming Hao was diagnosed with a bone tumor called Ewing sarcoma on his cervical
vertebra, mainly on the axis.The tumour-eroded part of the axis had to be
replaced, a procedure that is much more risky without 3-D printing
technology.The printed replacement was inserted during a 5-hour operation.Ming
Hao apparently is already able to stand, with some support, just days after
the surgery. From http://www.news.cn/
With the government’s new research-support program, we should
nurture the seeds of science and technology that will, hopefully, lead to the
development of society and the growth of the economy. The government has
launched the Impulsing Paradigm Change through Disruptive Technologies
(ImPACT) Program, which will support research that may involve considerable
risk of failure but is expected to be very fruitful if successful. The program
includes research and development programs on eco-friendly IT devices that
can be used for a long time without a charge, a mechanical brain linked to a
quantum computer network and advanced robotics for nursing care. Twelve
researchers are to participate in the ImPACT Program, including those in
their 30s and women. They belong to universities or private businesses and
have been chosen out of about 180 applicants. They are expected to assume
leadership in their respective research programs, recruiting talented staff and
producing tangible results. Over the next five years, the government will
extend a total of ¥55 billion in support to the 12 researchers. Until now, this sort of large-scale government support was
mainly given to research projects considered highly likely to bring about
tangible results or to prominent researchers. It is significant that the
government will support high-risk research as one of the central pillars of
its science policy. This can be said to reflect the government’s high hopes
for improving society through scientific and technological innovation. We
hope such research will bear fruit and contribute to society as much as possible.
In the global rankings of competitiveness in innovation, The government is being realistic by differentiating research
expected to achieve results within several years and that expected to take a
longer time and to entail risks of ending in failure, and to support both
kinds of research. It is important that the government implements these
different types of research in a balanced way so they can both promote its
science and technology policy. The prototype of the Internet, which is used
globally today, was born out of a project to support scientific research by
the U.S. Defense Department. It took more than 20 years for the Internet to
become popular after such research began. Long-term support is needed for any
ambitious goal. The Council for Science, Technology and Innovation will be
the headquarters of science and technology policy that will lead to
innovation, while the headquarters for Healthcare and Medical Strategy
Promotion will be responsible for medical science policy. Cooperation and
coordination within the government is vital so bureaucratic sectionalism will
not hinder research development. From
http://the-japan-news.com
South Korea and the European Union will work together to develop
technologies for next-generation mobile information and communication
network, while also jointly seeking to set global standards with the new
technology, the Seoul government said Monday. Such an agreement was reflected
in a joint declaration signed and announced at a From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
South Korea's exports of information-communication technology
(ICT) products climbed to a new high in the first six months of the year on
growing shipments to China and southeast Asian countries, the government said
Wednesday. In the six months ended June 30, outbound shipments of ICT
products came to US$83.83 billion, up 3.2 percent from the same period last
year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
ICT
Ministry to Offer Communications Support at Pyeongchang Olympics South Korea's ICT ministry said Monday it has formed a team to
offer support at the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in the country by
utilizing its information and communications technology (ICT).The task force
will draw up detailed plans to apply state-of-the-art technology at the
sports event, including by offering video calls powered by the
fifth-generation network and studios with Ultra HD (UHD) displays, said the
Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning. From
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr
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Ten Philippine city mayors have been given national awards for
their use of ICT in public administration and government transparency.
Cagayan de Oro City (population, 163,676) was ranked first of the 10,
followed by San Fernando City, Pampanga, Makati City, Valenzuela,
Mandaluyong, Cebu City, Balanga City, Bataan, Angeles City, Batangas City and
Taguig. The 2014 E-Readiness Leadership Awards “recognise city mayors who are
pioneering the adoption and strategic use of ICT to enhance their delivery of
government services , improve revenue/tax collection efforts and promote
transparency in government operations”, a central government statement said.
E-readiness indicates the “level of preparedness of the [local government
unit] to implement ICT projects and to participate in major ICT project
initiatives such as e-government, smarter cities and other projects that aim
to exploit the opportunities and potentials offered by the effective and
strategic use of ICT”, the government explained. The major indicators used to
assess the local governments’ e-readiness are ICT capability, technology
environment and web presence maturity. Other indicators include the presence of
an ICT development plan, internet connectivity and presence of an ICT or
Management Information Systems unit in the local government. The assessment
process saw 143 cities participate in a joint survey by the Philippines
Government and United States Agency for International Development. In an
interview with FutureGov in April, Oscar Moreno (pictured), award-winning
Mayor of Cagayan de Oro City, said: “If we want to achieve more for our
people, technology is the key.” The city plans to invest in technology to
improve information sharing and enable easier planning, he added. From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Singapore, South Korea and Japan have the second, third and
fourth best online service delivery in the world, after France, according to
the 2014 United Nations E-Government Survey. These countries were ranked
highly because of “their integration of e-services, expanded roll-out of
mobile applications and provision of opportunities for e-participation,” the
report explained. The survey analysed the online services that all 193 UN member
countries provide in the fields of education, health, finance, labour, social
welfare and e-environment - a new category for the survey this year. There
was also a focus on e-procurement, and the availability of multiple services
through one website. Researchers examined the availability of basic features
including the ability to find government websites on search engines, regular
website updates, access in more than one language, a site index and a
help/FAQ feature. The survey also assessed the availability of advanced
features including an online privacy statement, security settings and a tag
cloud or hot topics section on the website From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
Singapore
Government’s First Chief Data Scientist Prabir Sen on His New Role and Goals From traffic updates to tax returns, cities and countries have
more data than ever before - but how can they manage it? FutureGov has
exclusively interviewed Prabir Sen, Using analytics to improve quality of decisions & lives The government believes that data analytics has huge
opportunities to impact government services and improve citizens’ lives in a
wide range of areas, such as healthcare, transportation, education, retail
and waste management. A large volume of data is being generated from sensors
and mobile devices today. This includes communication between
person-to-person, person-to-machine and machine-to-machine, added Sen. He and
his team are tasked to evaluate and apply advanced analytics techniques and
models that can help organisations get a “360-degree view on people,
technology and policies to improve the quality of decisions and improve
citizens’ lives and journey of experience at various touch points.” Cross agency data analytics The greatest opportunity for using analytics within government
is what Sen calls “cross data analysis”, where one agency can use data of
another agency to solve their problem. “For example, the Ministry of Manpower
can analyse healthcare data from Ministry of Health to determine skill gaps
and future talent development requirements, or, transportation use
environment to determine impact of weather in commuters’ behaviour” he said.
“Such cross data analyses also require greater attention to and better
governance of data protection, privacy and anonymity,” he added. Some
agencies are currently using this strategy and are achieving great results,
he said, and the Developing analytics talent One of Sen’s key performance indicators is to strengthen data
talent locally. According to a recent IDA release, “McKinsey forecasts that
there will be a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 data sciences and analytics
professionals by Chief Data Officer vs Chief Data Scientist Sen also clarified how his role is different from a Chief Data
Officer. “A Chief Data Officer typically has responsibility to govern and
protect data, and find ways to use data across the agencies. My role, on the
other hand, is to find ways to build transformative products using data
sciences, analytics and insights; drive rapid development and adoption of
analytical techniques, and develop the local data and tech talent.” The
skills and experience that make a good Chief Data Scientist, Sen added, is
not limited to quantitative and computation proficiency. The candidate must
be good at understanding human behaviour, how people go about solving their
problems and making decisions, and able to think laterally to engage in
cross-cutting strategic dialogues. Most importantly, he must be able to
learn, unlearn and relearn. Learning will be vital as From
http://www.futuregov.asia/
The telecom committee of the National Broadcasting and
Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) yesterday changed one criterion for the
planned auction of 1,800-megahertz licences: The auction now might go ahead
even if there are only one or two qualified bidders. The original plan was
that the auction would be cancelled if there were only two bidders. The
committee concluded yesterday that if there were only one or two qualified
bidders, it would wait for another month, during which it would call for
additional applicants. If after one month there is still no additional
qualified bidder, the committee will go ahead with the auction, without
raising the starting price of the licences from the current Bt11.6 billion. The
panel will submit this auction plan for the NBTC board's consideration next
week. The committee will call the bid for two telecom licences on the
1,800MHz spectrum in August. The other criteria remain unchanged, including
the three-year schedule for paying for the licences. There will be an
up-front instalment of 50 per cent in the first year and 25 per cent in each
of the following two years. The bidding will start at Bt11.6 billion and go
up by 5 per cent in each round. From
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/
E-government is expected to help improve the services for people
and enterprises and improve transparency and ensure equality in performance
of State and Government. From
http://vietnamnews.vn/
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He said Jim Bagnola, President
of the Leadership Group International, worked with the entrepreneurs on
building relationships and startup teams. Jim Chung, Executive Director of
Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer at From http://unbconnect.com/ Govt Picks 160 Youngsters in 1st Batch to
Develop as IT Leaders The government has finally selected the first batch of 160
youngsters, aiming to build them as future IT leaders, official sources said.
The Fast Track Furture Leader (FTFL) programme under the Leveraging ICT for
Growth, Employment and Governance (LICT) project of Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) Division selected them from among 3,313
graduate youngsters who appeared in the competitive online examination held
from May 6 to 12 last. IT industries and organisations will provide service
to these selected youths in four tracks — IT Services (ITS), IT Enabled
Service Track (ITES), IT Support Service Track (ITSS) and Management, said
LICT acting project director Saker Abul Kalam Azad. He said the youngsters
will be given one-month residential training on soft skills and two months
foundational training as per requirement of IT industries and organisations.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Secretary Md Nazrul Islam Khan
at an orientation function on Saturday briefed the selected 160 youngsters
and their parents about the training and prospect of the IT sector. Nazrul
Islam Khan said the demand for skilled human resources in the ICT sector is
growing fast with the implementation of various programmes and initiatives in
line with the Digital Bangladesh vision. “We’re creating about one lakh
freelancers, 2,000 entrepreneurs and 2,000 mobile application developers who
will make their contribution to the ICT sector,” he said. According to the
sources, the government is implementing the LICT project involving Tk 572
crore to flourish the IT sector. The World Bank is providing 70 million US
dollars credit to implement the five-year project that began in 2013. From
http://unbconnect.com/ BD Awarded ‘World From
http://newsfrombangladesh.net/ According to former Malaysian Premier Mahathir Mohamad, the
Right to Information Act will help increase the esteem of the people of From
http://southasia.oneworld.net/ Open Group The Open Group is a vendor and technology-neutral industry
consortium, currently with over four hundred member organizations. Formed in
1996, The Open Group is most famous for its certification in the UNIX
trademark, and its publication of the Single UNIX Specification technical
standard, which extends the POSIX standards.With the market responding to
anything that has to do with architecture these certification are in demand
and employers are willing to pay a premium for them. In fact all three of
these IT certifications made it into Foote Partner's highest paying IT
certifications. Additionally, the Open Group’s TOGAF standard, which is an
industry standard enterprise architecture framework, has increased by 25
percent in the last 6 months. From
http://jobs.siliconindia.com/ From
http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/ |
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Azerbaijani Ministry of Communications and Information
Technologies has put forward a proposal about mass production of equipment
for diagnostics and control monitoring system Robust Noise Monitoring (RNM)
in industrial parks, the Ministry's report said on June 3. Azerbaijani Minister
of Communications and Information Technologies Ali Abbasov made the
initiative during the meeting with the leadership of Institute of Information
Technology of Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences (ANAS). Abbasov said
that the deployment of "robust noise" production stations is
possible in preparation of reasonable projects by Ministry of Communications
and Information Technologies, Azerbaijani State Oil Company (SOCAR) and ANAS.
From
http://en.trend.az/
Rapid development Internet and information
technologies in From
http://news.az/ Eastern Partnership Countries’ Experts to Be
United Within One Network A network of experts has been created to forecast and improve
the professional skills of countries included in the EU Eastern Partnership
(EaP) program. This was decided
at an international seminar titled 'The forecasting and improvement of
professional skills' held in Turin (Italy) under the joint organization of
the European Commission, EU Eastern Partnership and the European Training
Foundation (ETF), Azerbaijani Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of
Population told Trend on July 3. The
network of experts is being created to more intensively exchange the
international experience between countries. From From
http://en.trend.az/
Azerenergy JSC of Azerbaijan has generated over 11.2 billion
kilowatt hours of electricity in January-June, 2014, compared to nearly 10.9
billion kilowatt hours in the first half of 2013, a message from Azerenergy
said on July 7. Azerenergy JSC is engaged in production and distribution of
electricity in From
http://en.trend.az/
USACC Organizes Briefing on Azerbaijan’s
Technology Industry The United States-Azerbaijan Chamber of Commerce (USACC) held a
breakfast briefing “Azerbaijan`s Technology Industry-Building a Knowledge
Society” at the Microsoft Innovation & Policy Center. The event,
sponsored and hosted by Microsoft, started with the opening remarks of
Dorothy Dwoskin, Senior Director for Global Trade Policy and Strategy at
Microsoft, who welcomed the participants and passed the stage to Susan
Sadigova, Executive Director of USACC, AzerTag reports. Greeting the
participants, Sadigova briefed the audience about the recent developments and
vast potential in Azerbaijan`s ICT field by focusing on “Azerbaijan 2020 –
Vision of the Future” development concept, government incentives, investment
opportunities, funding, satellite industry, High-Tech Park, TASIM, and other
projects. Then she introduced and engaged the distinguished panel of speakers
on a live video feed from He then introduced Seymur Aghayev, CEO of High-Tech Park
Azerbaijan who talked about the steps to be taken to ensure the transition
into a knowledge-based economy. According to Mr. Aghayev, High-Tech Park is
one of the three pillars of so-called “Golden Triangle” which will be built
in Pirallahi island on She stated that development of bio- and nano-technology are of
highest priorities for the ministry and the government of the country as a
whole. The next panelist, Ruslan Aliyev, Deputy Head of Sales and Marketing, Azercosmos,
stressed the importance of launching the first Azerbaijani satellite,
Azerspace-1 that covers Eastern Europe, Caucasus, Central Asia and From
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The National
Archives of Australia (NAA) has just launched an online questionnaire,
Check-up Digital, to help agencies assess annually how well they are managing
their digital information and records. “Helping agencies rate their digital
information into the future, Check-up Digital prioritises how they can make
improvements and tracks their progress over time,” a statement said. The tool
will also help IT leaders gain support for digitisation from their
executives, the NAA claims: “Understanding your agency’s maturity in the
digital space will help you gain cross-agency support for digital information
management – especially from your agency’s senior executives and business
areas.” The Government’s Digital Transition Policy mandates all agencies to
move to digital recordkeeping, and has already shown results. “By the end of
2014, 72% of agencies will have digital information and records management in
place, and this is expected to increase to 95% by 2015,” said David Fricker,
Director General of NAA. Digitisation allows the agencies to manage their
records and information more efficiently, Fricker added: The “benefits [of
digital record management] include reductions in business risk and paper
storage costs improved business efficiency, and the
ability to develop and implement good policy”. Check-up Digital opens for
submissions from 1 July. Agencies have to make submissions by 30 September
each year. From http://www.futuregov.asia
Young ICT Explorers Competition Gets Big Boost Aussie kids
are set to learn more about ICT careers and what they can offer, thanks to
more co-operation between government program Digital Careers and
multinational enterprise firm SAP which today announced further support of
the annual Young ICT Explorers competition. A new $1.4 million in cash and
in-kind contribution over four years, announced today, means Digital Careers
and SAP will extend the YICTE competition into new states and age groups. The
YICTE is a program started to address the ICT skills mismatch in Greg Miller,
vice president and general manager of SAP Global Partner Operations for
Australia and New Zealand, said, “In the four years this competition has run,
we have seen increasingly innovative project submissions from students. It’s
vital to encourage this innovation from an early age so that, in the future,
the industry is not faced with the skills mismatches like we’re seeing today.
“Businesses are struggling to find the right people for the job as there is a
lack of applicants with the right science, technology, engineering and maths
(STEM) skills. Yet at the same time, there has been recent discourse
addressing the critical level of youth unemployment in our country. Digital
Careers has been doing great work to help resolve this issue and we’re
grateful for their integral support of YICTE,” Miller added. Digital Careers
will help drive outreach activities for the competition, including communications
to students, parents and teachers to raise awareness of the opportunity, as
well as provide instrumental operational and logistical support. “The YICTE
competition is a standout example of the cooperative efforts between the
industry and educators to nurture student interest in the field of ICT, while
creating a touch point between students and industry professionals at an
early stage in the students’ learning,” said Karsten Schulz, National Program
Director, Digital Careers at NICTA. “We’re throwing
our full support behind expanding the opportunity to schools across From http://www.itwire.com
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