The University of Edinburgh has partnered with Cisco to launch a new software centre of excellence, focused on quantum and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology.
Over the next five years, the centre will fund projects to deliver leading-edge software solutions, with an emphasis on quantum computing, AI, and cyber security.
Earlier this week, the government unveiled an investment plan of more than £360 million in cutting-edge technologies (such as quantum computing) under plans to make Britain a science “superpower” by the end of the decade. This partnership will contribute to the UK’s objective to lead the way in quantum technology.
The UK’s oldest academic AI research centre, the School of Informatics at the University of Edinburgh celebrates its 60th year of AI and computer science research.
The launch of the Quantum & AI Centre of Excellence at the University of Edinburgh follows several years of close collaboration.
Since 2017, the University and Cisco have worked together on a number of projects in areas such as speech technologies, legal implications of AI, network traffic analysis, and quantum programming languages.
The Centre is led by Dr Chris Heunen, Reader in Quantum Informatics at the School of Informatics, supported by Michael Rovatsos, Professor of Artificial Intelligence.
Dr Chris Heunen: “I am delighted to lead the new Quantum Computing & AI focussed Centre of Excellence with Cisco and I look forward to bringing together our expertise to push forward developments in these transformational technologies. Our aim is to combine our collective strengths to help shape the development of software technologies to benefit our economy and society as a whole.”
The announcement of the new centre is the latest development in computer science and AI since the University established its first research hubs in the disciplines 60 years ago.
A year-long programme of events will mark achievements over the past six decades and look to the future of computer science and AI at Edinburgh.
Chintan Patel, CTO, Cisco UK & Ireland: “This year the internet marked its 40th anniversary, and over five billion people around the world are now online. But continued research and innovation is vital to put the internet on a more secure and sustainable footing.
“Our partnership with the University of Edinburgh will help progress leading research in the AI and quantum computing technologies that will become the cornerstone of the internet of tomorrow.”
The centre is a continuation of the collaboration between Cisco and Edinburgh- the pair formed a partnership in 2019 to accelerate innovation by supporting 20 start-ups through the University’s AI Accelerator Programme.
Ramana Kompella, Head of Cisco Research: “Cisco Research is excited to expand our strategic university partnerships in the UK with the inclusion of the University of Edinburgh.
“Our goal is to collaborate with and fund research teams that are solving important technological challenges that will allow us to provide innovative and transformative solutions for our customers.”
In 2021, Cisco and Edinburgh joined forces again as part of a £12.5 million project – called Blackwood Neighbourhoods for Independent Living – to help older people live at home for longer and with greater independent, which was funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Professor Jane Hillston, Head of the School of Informatics: “This new centre represents the next step in our journey with Cisco. Over the last five years we have developed an extremely successful partnership, with potential benefits across a wide range of applications.
“Software now touches most areas of daily life and it is essential that we maintain our research efforts to ensure that the software developed and deployed is of the highest standards. We are grateful to Cisco for joining us in this endeavour.”
Aiming to champion, celebrate, and invest in women in technology within Scotland, SWIT, which was founded in 2008, is a not-for-profit organisation driving gender equality in the tech ecosystem.
Silka Patel, Founder of Scottish Women in Tech, said: “Given that just 26% of the UK tech workforce are women, there’s a clear opportunity to close the growing technology skills gap by encouraging more of us into the sector. We started the awards in 2017 to celebrate those who are putting the work in to do this – and it’s fantastic to be back.”
Their 2023 Awards will have ten categories to celebrate and honour women in the tech ecosystem who are making a difference for gender equity in Scotland and the globe.
“In the years since our last ceremony,” Patel continued, “the conversation around equality has changed. It’s not just about the number of men vs women; it’s about the broader inclusion of people of all genders and sexualities – in addition to a wide range of other attributes. As part of that, we have revisited our awards categories, for example changing ‘Gender Aware Recruiter of the Year’ to ‘Inclusive Recruiter of the Year’.”
Nominations will open in April, and will close on August 18th.
You can find out more about the categories below.
Young Tech Champion of the Year
This award is reserved for a young person aged between 12 and 24 years old who acts as an advocate for technology and gender equality. Their activities would be inspiring other young people to pursue technology as a career or study option.
Technology Rising Star
A young woman between the ages of 16 and 30 in the early stages of their technology career would be eligible for this award if they demonstrate exceptional skills and talent in their work.
Technology Champion in Education
An individual of any gender could earn this award for influencing the education agenda to inspire girls and those of marginalised genders to study technology subjects.
SME Employer of the Year
A small or medium enterprise organisation which has demonstrated commitment to advancing the careers of women in technology could win this award. This organisation would demonstrate how it implements practices to support women in their workforce as well as external initiatives to address gender imbalance.
Large Employer of the Year
This award would go to a large organisation which has demonstrated consistent commitment to advancing the careers of women in technology by sponsoring initiatives to address gender imbalance in their workplace and the wider workforce. The winner would be supporting women within their own company as well as supporting women externally to enter tech.
Inclusive Recruiter of the Year
A recruitment company or employer who demonstrates awareness of diversity and inclusive issues and is leading change in tackling inclusion for women in the technology recruitment pipeline could win this award. Progressive and inclusive practices would set the winner apart, by looking beyond ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, educational attainment, and background to recruit based on skills and talent.
The winning initiative would be focused on promoting gender diversity in tech. This may include a skills initiative encouraging women and girls to build digital skills to support a move to a career in technology, or an initiative to support and retain women already within a tech career.
Gender Diversity Ally of the Year
A man or non-binary person who has shown exceptional allyship in gender equality and inclusion is eligible for this award. This person would be a true gender champion, specifically to women through support, perhaps via sponsorship, mentoring, exposure, or championing inclusive practices within their organisation.
Inspirational Woman of the Year
Being an inspiration to others could win a woman this role, as long as they are working in technology. A trailblazer, leading the charge on technology and gender diversity could come home with this one.
Leader of the Year
To win this, a woman technology leader would have to demonstrate outstanding ability to lead or act as a visionary for technology. Winners would have a proven track record of leading change for the tech labour market.
Edinburgh-based Aveni, the AI fintech business, has been selected by Schroders Personal Wealth (SPW) to transform its compliance function.
Through the deployment of the Aveni Detect platform, SPW will use the latest advances in Natural Language Processing (NLP) to monitor client interactions and produce data-led evidence of compliance.
Ray Milne, Chief Risk Officer at Schroders Personal Wealth said, “At SPW our clients are at the heart of everything we do. Our partnership with Aveni shows our commitment to using technology to ensure the quality of our advice. It will enable us to identify vulnerable and other high risk clients, helping us support them in the best possible way.”
SPW has selected this AI and NLP-based technology platform to sit at the heart of its operating model, reflecting its strategic approach to transform how it delivers, monitors and assesses its advice offering and surrounding control environment.
The adoption of the latest advances in generative AI, NLP, and large language models will allow SPW to address all areas of the value chain, providing risk management and oversight which will help drive material efficiencies and lower its cost to serve.
Joseph Twigg, CEO, Aveni explained, “This partnership is great news for both Aveni and SPW and demonstrates a true shift in the way advice is being offered and assessed. Recent advances in generative AI such as Aveni Detect are set to fundamentally transform the investment industry.
“Placing AI technologies at the heart of business operating models is no longer a nice to have; it will determine who wins and who loses over coming years. SPW is demonstrating its commitment to remaining at the forefront of the market.”
The FCA has recently called for companies to invest more in technology to help guarantee that future regulatory requirements are met.
SWP’s investment is following this advice, demonstrating its commitment to meeting a data-first approach so it can approach the forefront of the advisory community with its use of the technology.
“The Aveni team has been recognised by SPW for its unique combination of deep technical capability – through our globally-recognised NLP experts – and the specialist domain expertise across wealth management and financial investment. This collaborative expertise allows us to fully understand the challenges facing the sector and to create the best solutions to ensure customer assurance, compliance and cost-saving,” Twigg added.
Aveni Detect has been established as a ‘Machine Line of Defence,’ to analyse all customer interactions and mitigates against a range of risks from conduct and complaints to customer vulnerability. It will meet the data-first requirements being introduced with the new Consumer Duty regulation which comes into effect in July 2023.
Edinburgh-based Topolytics, a data and analytics platform that makes the world’s waste visible, verifiable and valuable, has announced Fleur Ruckley as its Head of Implementation.
Ruckley has wide experience helping large organisations to understand waste and materials flows and adopt circular economy models.
As Head of Implementation, Ruckley will support customers to maximise the value delivered through their subscription to WasteMap.
Ruckley joins from engineering professional services consulting firm, WSP, where she was Associate Director focused on circular economy, plastic waste, and legacy chemicals.
Prior to this, Ruckley was Project Director for Scotland’s 2020 Climate Group.
This was an independent, business-led initiative which stimulated collaboration between industry, government, and society to help Scotland reduce carbon emissions while growing a sustainable economy.
She was also Waste and Environment Manager for the University of Edinburgh, where she led the waste strategy, including diverting 85% of material from landfill.
“We are delighted to welcome Fleur to our growing team. Fleur has highly relevant circular economy and customer engagement experience that will help users of WasteMap to maximise the value of the data and insights that it generates. Fleur has great skills and an excellent reputation so I’m delighted I can now call her a colleague,” said Michael Groves, CEO of Topolytics.
The appointment comes in the wake of Topolytics announcing a £1.5 million funding round. This is being used to expand the reach of WasteMap® and further grow the business with new and renewed licenses through 2023.
WasteMap® is rapidly growing in popularity for waste producers and the recycling sector to process and analyse complex waste ‘supply chain’ data across multiple sites, regions, and countries.
The resulting insights are automating and improving the creation of ESG metrics and reports, validating compliance and corporate KPIs, driving operational efficiencies, and enabling materials recovery and closed loops.
This International Women’s Day, it sure seems like women in tech are having their moment.
Since 2017, the amount of women in the tech industry in Scotland has increased by 6%.
The UN is celebrating International Women’s Day with a new gender equality initiative by way of DigitALL: Innovation and Technology.
In the UK, women now make up 40% of boards in the top 305 companies.
Initiatives supporting women entering the tech workforce have popped up across the nation, with Scotland Women in Tech launching a Women Do Cyber programme, Women Enterprise Scotland producing reports on progress, and DressCode making coding more accessible to young women and girls in school.
“I’ve been delighted to see the wider tech ecosystem work together to encourage more women into tech roles,” said Sarah McLaughlin, VP of Marketing at Krucial and Chair of Scotland’s Gender Diversity Workstream.
“The work of Scotland Women in Technology, who along with Glasgow Caledonian University run the Women Do Cyber programme, and initiatives from Codebase including Digital Skills 4 Girls, which is a monthly workshop for girls interested in learning or developing new skills – are positive changes which will lead to great results in the future,” she added.
Women Enterprise Scotland has also added to the improvements in the industry, as WES ambassador and CEO of Appointedd, Leah Hutcheon explained: “I really admire the work of the organisation, and I think it’s really important work. I saw an opportunity to become part of that infrastructure that supports women in the early stages of starting a business. It was wanting to be able to give something back and to be able to say thank you for the support I’ve had that made me be an ambassador.”
Scotland has also provided opportunities that were simply not available elsewhere. Rashmi Mantri was able to get an education in software development in Scotland after immigrating from India, where educational opportunities were sparse in her area, especially for women. Her hard work enabled her to launch her own company, British Youth International College, to teach school children maths, english, and even coding.
“I can say that the environment has certainly changed…” Mantri reflected.
“It’s easy to think it’s gotten better…” Hutcheon stipulated.
“Things are far better now than they were even a decade ago…” McLaughlin said.
See? Things are going great! Happy International Women’s Day!
“But Not to that Extent”
“I can say that the environment has certainly changed, but not to that extent,” Mantri said.
The report is a stark, unflinching review of the Scottish entrepreneurial ecosystem.
In many ways, the report is simply a reaffirmation of the mundanely obvious: women face barriers to entering business. As they are often primary caregivers, traditional networking systems are often not open to women, and education in Scotland is often not geared toward entrepreneurship, which more greatly affects women.
The most important part of the Stewart Report was its devastating honesty: it quite blankly referred to society as sexist (which for many of us, is a known reality).
“Our society has a degree of sexism embedded within it, and these prejudices are transferred from generation to generation,” the report said in its executive summary, detailing the sexism underlying the lack of women in entrepreneurship.
Entering education and the workforce in the UK as a woman was a major barrier.
Mantri detailed her many visits to different universities, taking any classes she could until she was finally accepted to study. She was one of three female students in her class.
“After completion, getting the job is very difficult for a woman,” she said. “IT is a more male-dominated field.”
“Not only in the technical field,” she went on to say. “Everywhere I felt that.”
Even though her parents were more supportive, “being a girl was the biggest thing I faced,” she said.
In Scotland, only 23% of the tech workforce is made up of women, according to ScotlandIS.
According to the Stewart Report, only 1 in 5 businesses are women-led, and women-led start-ups only receive 2% of funding from VCs.
In Mantri’s own coding courses, about 95% of the students are boys.
“…It isn’t an equal playing field”
“It’s easy to think it’s gotten better, and I think it came through Ana Stewart’s report, but sometimes some people in really influential positions, people who are doing a lot of great work in the ecosystem have come to believe it is an equal playing field,” Leah Hutcheon said.
“But you look at those stats, and really, it isn’t an equal playing field, and I think the report has really opened my eyes to how unequal it is unfortunately.”
The Stewart Report came as a bit of a surprise to Hutcheon, who founded Appointedd – an appointment software company – about ten years ago after leaving the magazine industry.
“I do feel really comfortable in [the tech] ecosystem,” she said, “But it reminds me: I feel comfortable because I’ve been in this ecosystem for 10 years now.”
A 5% increase is not something to celebrate when women are still only 23% of the tech workforce. The bar cannot remain so low as to applaud any tiny step toward progress.
The Stewart report may be important because it does make people reflect – are your initiatives doing enough? Is diversity actually turning into inclusion? and, of course, engendering reflection on one’s own experiences as well.
“You get so used to the fighting,” Hutcheon said regarding entrepreneurship, “so you don’t know if it’s harder because you’re a woman or whether it’s just down to your business.”
Initiatives are there, companies seem to be saying all the right things, yet women are still left behind as tech excels.
“Things are far better now than they were even a decade ago,” Sarah McLaughlin said.
She added:“But as a mum to four beautiful daughters, I’m determined to continue making a difference to help ensure that they enter a much fairer, more inclusive workplace, and know they can achieve anything they set out to do in life.”
If all of these initiatives exist, on the local, national, and international level, are women really still struggling to enter the tech workforce?
“We know that nearly one in four women are quitting tech roles in Scotland due to difficulty achieving promotion or being taken seriously by investors,” McLaughlin said.
Clearly, there seems to be a disconnect between these massive gender initiatives and the work environment.
“Awareness is not enough – gender-based exclusion has many causes,” McLaughlin said.
She added: “Commitment, action and accountability is needed, from education, organisational bodies and industry to get to the root causes and put support in place.
“Time-bound targets need to be activated; promotion of grant schemes; award programmes and role models need to be profiled; and awareness campaigns that get to the root causes in addressing biases and stereotypes need to strike a chord.”
When those seeking tech careers say across the board, flexible working is of primary importance, many different obstacles often quoted for women would theoretically be removed.
Barriers such as being primary carers, inter-office networking being more male oriented, and even just being in a room full of men would be much less problematic with remote and hybrid working models, which are becoming the norm across the tech tech landscape.
“We need to ensure that diversity and inclusion in the workplace is not a tick box, nor just a corporate badge on a website,” McLaughlin said.
Further, these continuing issues are stopping progress overall. If we cannot finally address the glaring gender gap in tech, then it’s more difficult to address intersectionality, barriers for other marginalised groups, and tackling unconscious bias.
“There is a huge opportunity to draw a line in the sand, remove stigma, and write the next chapter of ‘today’s inclusive workplace’,” McLaughlin said. “Together we can collectively help ignite change for current and future generations.”
FDM Group, which has offices in Glasgow as well as London, has announced a global collaboration with Microsoft.
The technology and professional services firm has been selected as Microsoft’s Global Workforce Development Partner.
As part of the programme, the FTSE 250 professional services firm is formally recognised as a premier solutions provider that can connect its customers with consultants that have been trained on official Microsoft content.
Providing FDM Group with high-quality materials, certified instructors, and ‘hands-on’ labs, the programme is designed to link its consultants with the skills they require to become specialists in Microsoft technology.
In addition, FDM Group also supports the Microsoft Learn Careers Connected initiative, a career connector programme which helps place trained individuals in tech-enabled jobs within the Microsoft ecosystem.
Geoff Hirsch, Microsoft Learning Partner Channel Lead, commented: “Traditional hiring methods can overlook promising talent. Staffing shortages increase costs, reduce productivity, and can increase competition between employers.
“FDM Group have played a crucial role in supporting job seekers with the skills required to understand, deploy and manage Microsoft solutions. FDM will continue to help connect businesses to Microsoft officially trained personnel to support their business goals.”
As part of the alliance with FDM Group, there is also a specific focus on women and underrepresented minorities in technology which resonates with FDM, which reported a median gender pay gap of -4.3% in 2022. On average, the 2021 UK median gender pay gap was -9.7%.
Furthermore, 36% of their workforce were the first in their family to attend university, while 86% were state school educated.
Andy Brown, Chief Commercial Officer for FDM Group commented: “Microsoft is recognised as being in the vanguard of innovation, enabling people and businesses to thrive. By linking data, processes and teams with intelligent business applications, Microsoft has helped drive operational excellence and more engaging customer experiences.
“FDM’s strategic relationship with Microsoft enables us to connect its customers and partners with our skilled graduates, ex-forces professionals, returners to work, and career changers. This provides an invaluable opportunity for our colleagues to kick-start or re-start their careers as Microsoft-certified professionals”
Arm, the Cambridge-based microchip manufacturer owned by Japansese Company SoftBank, has declined PM Rishi Sunak’s push to list on the UK stock exchange, in a major blow to London’s tech ambitions.
Instead, the company has opted for a US listing, despite Sunak’s plans to make the UK a friendly environment for chip manufacturers.
Arm decided that the US-only listing was the “best path forward” for the company despite talks with Sunak, though Chief executive Rene Haas did state they would consider a UK listing “in due course.”
The UK company was acquired by SoftBank in 2016 – it previously had a dual listing on both Nasdaq and the London stock exchange.
Opting to forgo a London stock option had caused concerns for UK businesses and regulators who are struggling to attract tech companies, as many turn to the US marketplace for less regulations and higher profiles.
Sunak was the third PM to put pressure on the semiconductor company to list in the City of London, after Boris Johnson and Liz Truss attempted the same.
Arm says it had been in talks with the Financial Conduct Authority and British government for several months before making the decision.
Despite the turn to the US, Arm is maintaining its UK headquarters and operations and is opening a new location in Bristol.
A government spokesperson said: “The UK is taking forward ambitious reforms to the rules governing its capital markets, building on our continued success as Europe’s leading hub for investment, and the second largest globally.
“We continue to attract some of the most innovative and largest companies in the world – and note Arm’s commitment to expanding its presence in the UK, providing a boost to growth, jobs and investment.”
There has been pressure on the UK’s semiconductor strategy amid a global shortage due to exacerbated demand during the pandemic. The UK could fall behind, though Arm is maintaining their UK headquarters.
Not listing in London is a blow to Sunak’s plans to make the UK a science superpower, as well as Chancellor Hunt’s ambitions to make the UK the next ‘Silicon Valley.’
As reported by the Financial Times, the FTC’s regulations surrounding listing played a major part in Arm’s final decision.
Currently, publicly listed companies in the UK market must gain investor approval for any transactions – in the US, they only need to report transactions without waiting for an agreement.
The lack of flexibility likely prevented Arm from seeking a dual listing this year.
Women Do Cyber has announced 40 new scholarships to mobilise and bring more women into cyber security career development opportunities from May 2023.
The scholarship opportunity will also offer women in cyber mentoring support from established women cyber practitioners and technology leaders through the Cisco and Scotland Women in Technology (SWiT) networks.
To date, the programme has successfully created more than 20 women graduates, kickstarting their cyber journey and preparing them to take on cyber jobs, apprenticeships, and further learning.
With this initiative Glasgow Caledonian University, in partnership with Cisco and SWiT, supported by funding from the Scottish Funding Council and the National Transition Training Fund, offers an accessible fastrack pathway to Graduate Apprenticeships in Cyber.
“The cyber skills gap continues to grow in Scotland and globally, and contributing to that skills gap is the lack of diversity in the cyber workforce,” Ketty Lawrence, SWiT Vice Chair said. “Supporting more women to move into cyber careers will both increase the size of our workforce and the variety of skillsets. That variety of skills is crucial for increasing innovation, productivity and ultimately ensuring Scotland is a safe, secure, and resilient nation.”
Lawrence continued: “Women face persistent barriers in accessing male dominated career sectors and we have to work together to help overcome these. We’ve supported some amazing women to start their cyber journey and hearing how empowered they have become makes all the hard work worthwhile.”
Flexible and accredited, the online study opportunities are designed to build knowledge of the fundamentals of cyber security, quality candidates in maths, and develop their principles of cyber security operations. Learners can then attain the Cisco Cyber Ops Associate professional certification.
Successful candidates will be able to evidence their cyber skills to their employer, showing they understand security concepts and monitoring, host-based analysis, network intrusion analysis, and security policies and procedures.
The scholarships will cover the tuition fees for three modules and the Cisco accredited Cyber Ops Associate qualification. Each module carries academic credits and on completion, these will count towards the entry criteria for GCU’s Graduate Apprenticeship BSc (Hons) Cyber Security should they wish to continue into further studies as part of a paid position.
Elizabeth Barr, Head of the Cisco Networking Academy for the UK & Ireland said: “This is a real opportunity for candidates to layer sought after cyber skills onto their existing and valuable transferable skillset. By doing so it provides tangible access to rewarding and high value careers in cyber security, spanning from Information Security Engineers to Cybersecurity Sales Specialists. With women representing just 24% of the cyber workforce, it is critical that we continue to equip and inspire more women to consider cybersecurity as a profession.”
With over 13,000 new jobs opening in tech/cyber every year in Scotland, cyber skills are in high demand across Scotland’s industries and many jobs go unfilled every year. To address the gender gap within that skills shortage, it is vital that women are connected to educational pathways to develop the knowledge and skills required to access great employment opportunities with their current or future employers.
Claire Young from GCU’s Institute of University to Business Education said: “We welcome all women who would like the opportunity to develop cyber security knowledge and skills, which we know are in such high demand. We’re very keen to encourage those with no prior experience, including women returning after a career break and those whose role may be at risk, in addition to women looking for a career change.”
This Cisco networking academy course is delivered by GCU by an all-female academic staff team. Participants on the programme will be supported by SWiT with opportunities to connect with women in cyber careers, mentors, employers and wider industry.
The co-created approach is designed to give candidates the combination of educational development and practical experience they will need to match employer expectations and job opportunities.
Two online information sessions for potential participants and employers interested will be held on the 16th and 27th of March.
More information about the programme can be found here.
Tens of thousands of patients across the country could benefit from quicker, earlier diagnoses — and more effective treatments for a range of conditions — as the government invests nearly £16 million into pioneering artificial intelligence (AI) health technology research.
Nine companies have been awarded funding through the third round of the AI in Health and Care Awards, which is accelerating the testing and deployment of the most promising AI technologies.
Set up in 2019, the awards were designed to develop AI technology focused on helping patients manage long-term conditions and improve the speed and accuracy of diagnosis, ultimately tackling the Covid backlogs and cut waiting lists.
They are delivered between the NHS AI Lab, the Accelerated Access Collaborative and the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
The winners include AI systems which can help detect cancer, diagnose rare diseases, identify people at highest risk of premature birth and support the treatment of neurological conditions like dementia.
Funding will be used to support the testing, evaluation, and adoption of their technologies by the NHS.
In total, £123 million has been invested in 86 AI technologies so far across three rounds of awards supporting over 300,00 patients and improving their care and treatment for health conditions such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, mental health and neurological disorders.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay, said: “Artificial Intelligence has the potential to speed up diagnoses and treatments and free up time for our doctors and nurses so they can focus on caring for patients. Around 300,000 people have already benefitted from companies supported by our AI awards, with tens of thousands more set to benefit.
“These schemes includes technology that could recognise the signs of cancer more quickly and accurately, predict which women are more likely to give birth prematurely or analyse electronic health records to detect the signs of an undiagnosed rare disease.”
The Winners
Start-up Ibex has been awarded more than £1.5 million and has developed an AI-driven algorithm to run checks for breast cancer. The technology analyses images of tissue extracts, helping pathologists detect cancer so they can complete diagnoses more quickly.
Its high accuracy rate could reduce the need for patients to repeat the biopsy process and free up more time for consultants.
Researchers will analyse its findings on 10,000 patients and evaluate improvements in the quality of diagnosis, cost-effectiveness, and quicker turnaround times for patients.
Professor Emad Rakha, Honorary Consultant Pathologist at the University of Nottingham and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS trust, said: “Over the last several years in the UK, cancer cases increased while the number of pathologists decreased, resulting in record-high workloads for pathology departments.
“Timely and accurate diagnosis can significantly impact breast cancer survival rates, making Ibex’s solution a vital and welcome addition into NHS trusts.”
Another winner, medical device company Medtronic, has been rolling out devices and therapies to treat more than 30 chronic diseases, including Parkinson’s and diabetes, some of which are being trialled in the NHS.
It has been awarded £2.5 million to further develop an AI-based medical device called GI Genius, which has been trained to process colonoscopy images and detect signs of colon cancer, enabling earlier, more accurate diagnoses.
Digital health start-up Mendelian has been awarded £1.4 million to support an AI system which identifies patients with undiagnosed rare diseases, as well as recommending the best management options, by analysing electronic health records.
In the past decade, undiagnosed rare diseases have cost the NHS in excess of £3.4 billion and data shows that patients with rare diseases attend hospitals more than twice as often as other patients, costing the NHS four times as much on average.
Dr Jackie Cook, Consultant in Clinical Genetics & Co-Clinical Director at North East and Yorkshire NHS Genomic Medicine Service Alliance, said: “Patients with rare diseases can face a long diagnostic journey, often taking many years with multiple investigations and appointments before a diagnosis is made.
“By using this technology to interrogate patient records, my hope is that patients with rare diseases will be identified much faster, avoid unnecessary investigations and achieve a diagnosis in a much shorter timeframe.”
The winners also include a consortium led by the University of Bristol which has already developed an online medical tool which is identifying pregnant people who are most at risk of giving birth prematurely or of developing complications that could lead to stillbirth.
Tommy’s App has been created to process information gathered at pregnancy check-ups which then generated a risk score for each patient.
Last year, data was published in obstetrics and gynaecology journal BJOG, showing the tool can help reduce health inequalities in Black, Asian and other pregnant people in ethnic minority groups.
Dr Bu Hayee, Consultant Gastroenterologist and Principle Investigator of Medtronic’s study, said: “There has never been a greater need for innovation in the NHS and this research may be able to shine a light on the possible benefits this technology can provide.”
Cutting NHS waiting times is one of the government’s top five priorities, backed by record funding including up to £14.1 billion for health and social care over the next two years.
Advances in innovation and technology – including in robotics and artificial intelligence – will give patients greater control and help tackle some of the biggest healthcare challenges – from cancer to genetic diseases. These kinds of innovations can free up staff time while speeding up treatments and diagnoses.
Brian Hills, the CEO of The Data Lab, has been included in the DataIQ 100 – a list of the most influential people in data and analytics.
The annual list, published following an awards ceremony on 2 March, includes a list of those making significant strides in data innovation.
Hills commented: “To be included among such stellar talent not only nationally, but internationally for the second year running is an honour, not just for myself but for The Data Lab. It reinforces our position as a leading innovation centre on a national stage and is a testament to the work that the entire team does in our vision to create the world’s most impactful data community.”
Since taking up the CEO position in early 2022, Hills has been leading the evolution of The Data Lab with a focus on inclusion and scale.
For example, The Data Lab digital community has members from 55 countries across the world with access to tools, peer learning, mentoring and events.
In addition, investment in collaborations between industry and academia in Scotland has led to an estimated £196 million expected increase in revenue and created or safeguarded over 1,300 jobs.
“Data science and innovation has moved beyond number crunching to tackling real-world issues. The work we do is of global impact and many of the projects we support not only go on to inspire the next generation of data specialists but can contribute to solving societal challenges too,” Hills added.
Featuring alongside data leaders and CEOs from the likes of ITV, Unilerver and PwC, Brian is among the top five data influencers to be recognised in the list for the second year in a row.
Since 2018, the DataIQ 100 has recognised influential individuals developing innovative solutions for their organisations or their partners. It also features data practitioners working with well-known brands, end-user organisations and key influencers that have a bearing on the data industry.
Hills concluded: “Every day we see how data can empower people and organisations. The value it can bring to enhance services and increase knowledge knows no bounds. We are passionate about our work and hope we can be a part of inspiring the next generation of data leaders who will one day also be featured on this prestigious list.”
New plans for stepping up the government’s fight against fraud have been unveiled.
The Counter Fraud Profession Strategy outlines how the new Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) will increase the skills, standards, and capability of staff within government and beyond, working on protecting public services from fraud.
As well as investing in counter fraud investigation skills, the cornerstone of the profession, the new strategy increases the focus on skills in fraud prevention and identification.
The government is also upskilling those that lead public sector counter fraud work and ensuring the 7,000 counter fraud professionals working across the public sector continue to develop their knowledge and skills. 250 fraud risk experts will be trained by the end of 2023 as part of the initiative.
“The challenge we face from fraud is stark,” said Cabinet Office Minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe.
She added: “That is why I am proud to announce the launch of the updated Government Counter Fraud Profession Strategy, which will continue to enhance the capability and expertise of those fighting hard to protect taxpayers’ money.”
Apprenticeships are also a key focus of the new strategy, with the PSFA launching a new Apprenticeship in Counter Fraud in 2024. This will run alongside the existing Fraud Investigation Apprenticeship.
The new strategy has been developed and will be delivered in collaboration with government, law enforcement and industry counter fraud and learning experts. It aims to create a diverse and skilled pipeline of counter fraud talent to prevent fraud against the public sector.
The Public Sector Fraud Authority is partnering with experts including from Cifas, University of Coventry and the Australia Commonwealth Fraud Prevention Centre to deliver the strategy.
It is estimated the cost of fraud and error against the public sector is at least £33 billion per year, making it one of the most pervasive crimes in the UK.
Further, fraud skyrocketed in Scotland in 2022, rising 194% compared to 2011, with the number of high value fraud cases rising dramatically.
Soaring fraud cases prompted a rebranding of the Scottish Business Resilience Center to become the Cyber and Fraud Centre- Scotland.
Mark Cheeseman, Interim CEO of the PSFA and Head of the Government Counter Fraud Profession said: “Fraudsters are a committed, capable and evolving adversary and the public sector is just as affected by this hidden crime as other sectors.
“The launch of the new Government Counter Fraud Profession (GCFP) strategy sets out how the government is investing in building and modernising its fraud fighting capability.”
Launched in 2018, the GCFP aimed to develop a common structure for counter fraud capability across government and for those leading the fight against the crime.
At its inception the Profession had 3,000 members across 17 organisation, including HM Revenue and Customs, the Department for Work and Pensions, and Serious Fraud Office.
Since then it has grown exponentially and it now has around 7,000 members across 48 organisations including policing and local government.
According to new research by Shufti Pro, one in four businesses in the UK were affected by biometric fraud and document forgery in 2022.
The rate of global identify fraud and online financial transactions continues to climb, with research indicating a 30% year-over-year increase in document fraud ID theft, authorised push payment scams, fake documentation, and deepfakes.
Shufti Pro’s report reveals new types of fraud and industrial trends, explaining methods of document and digital ID manipulation, and providing recommendations for how businesses can protect themselves from fraud in 2023.
The research shows document and biometrics fraud as the top categories of scammers leverage the power of AI to tamper with bills, ID cards, and use deepfake technologies to bypass KYC measures.
With the closures of over 600 banks in the UK, the adoption rate of digital channels has immensely accelerated, whilst directly impacting bank fraud and ID theft.
Digital businesses are not only compromising millions of pounds when they fall victim to fraud, but also suffer irreparable reputational damage and experience a significant drop in customer trust.
“As technology continues to advance, scammers are becoming increasingly creative in their tactics to overthrow security measures and protocols,” said Victor Fredung, CEO of Shufti Pro.
He added: “Although businesses are pushing their customers to use techniques, such as MFA and KYC, scammers are counteracting these safety mechanisms by duplicating and stealing IDs, and using fake liveness tech.”
“Businesses cannot compromise when it comes to their security needs – ensuring the safety and security of their customers must be at the forefront. Using techniques such as 2FA with liveness checks, implementing account deduplication, and consistently monitoring customer accounts for suspicious activity are indisputable steps businesses must take to fight document fraud and theft.”
As the battle against financial crime continues, businesses are urged to consistently review their approach towards document fraud, and implement successful AML and KYC processes to combat fraudsters.
As regulatory reporting becomes increasingly complex, we summarise the key points discussed in our recent webinar: Regulatory Reporting 2023: Regulatory updates, key trends and data challenges.
AutoRek’s CASS Consultant Murray Campbell and CBS’s Consulting Director Grant McKenzie talked about the major trends for 2023, industry insights, the challenges facing firms and how to overcome them.
They also gave some top tips on how to achieve compliance in 2023 and beyond.
Five key regulatory trends
The five main trends firms should be aware of in 2023 are:
Post-Brexit divergence
The UK’s Financial Services and Markets (FSM) bill, currently in its second reading, was introduced in the House of Commons in July 2022. Its goal is to boost international competitiveness and attract the investment and talent needed for growth.
The bill is a positive step for UK firms, but regulatory and reporting obligations might become more complex for firms operating across various jurisdictions.
Extending the regulatory perimeter
New types of firms are being regulated, including crypto and BNPL organisations. These firms will need to identify and interpret the relevant regulatory changes and reporting obligations. This will require specialist expertise and investment – particularly in the back-office.
Ethics and inclusion
The financial services industry is driving the ESG agenda. Consumer Duty will embed a culture and set of ethical practices within firms to make finance fairer.
Financial inclusion is a key feature of the FSM bill, which proposes new obligations for the provision of cash.
Proportionality
The FCA is aware that not all firms have the same resources to handle the rising number of obligations. This is a positive step.
Regulations are becoming more data-driven
The FCA’s data-driven approach will push firms towards greater automation and reduce reliance on manual processes.
What’s the FCA’s data strategy?
Financial services, data and regulations are becoming increasingly inseparable.
The regulator’s 2022 update puts data at the heart of its work. The FCA used to look at how it gathered data from regulated firms, but its goal is now to invest in tech and data analytics to enhance its own capabilities.
The FCA indicates this focus will continue as it strives to become a digital regulator. Recent communications also concentrate on big tech’s growing involvement in financial services, as well as research into AI and machine learning.
To build or to buy?
While building back-office processes in-house might seem straightforward, IT departments have competing demands. So, any change requests or actions will have to be prioritised.
Engaging with a third party means firms receive immediate focus and have the use of a best-in-class solution. Third-party automation also frees up internal IT teams so they can focus on enhancing the front end.
There’s also a perception that self-built systems are more cost-effective, but this depends on the success of the build. IT teams might run into unforeseen challenges, which often leads firms to seek third-party support anyway.
Challenges
The main challenges facing firms are: legacy systems; a need for clarity on golden source; manual, spreadsheet-based processes; and a lack of transparency and clarity in systems.
Firms with legacy systems rely on multiple systems for gathering data, which hinders data collection. It leads to inconsistencies, outdated data and a lack of complete data sets for reporting. Capturing different information from different sources will also result in increased employee workloads and impact governance.
Relying on spreadsheets complicates things further as firms need to transform or clean data. And there are many inherent challenges involved with spreadsheets, including the lack of an audit trail, volume limits, ease of manipulation and file corruption. On the other hand, automation will help capture and manage the data required for reporting.
Often, when data is ingested, it’s unclear what the source data was or what transformation has been performed. Granular data is essential for reporting, so firms using manual processes will need to reverse-engineer the data, which only adds to the complexity.
Preparation is key. Horizon scan and estimate the impact of regulations, which will be different for every firm. Use trade bodies (e.g. UK Finance) to discuss challenges and engage with regulators early
Smaller companies: Don’t bury your head in the sand. Speak to your legal advisors about their opinion on which regulations will impact your firm. Engage with professional services support if you don’t have the internal capabilities. And do this as early as possible
Consider a data strategy. If the FCA is ramping up its data strategy, your firms should consider doing the same
Keep up with regulatory changes. Stay on top of FCA correspondence and check the FCA Regulatory Initiatives Grid for a two-year look ahead. Check europa.eu for updates on EU regulations and take advantage of free webinars and reports from professional advisors or trade bodies
WH Smith, the UK retailor, has been the target of a cyber-attack in which hackers have breached company data.
Current and former employee information has been accessed as part of the cyber ‘incident’.
However, the company stressed that its trading activities have not been affected by the hack, and its website, customer accounts, and customer databases have not been impacted.
The company has already investigated the incident and reported it to the relevant authorities.
WH Smith said: “Upon becoming aware of the incident, we immediately launched an investigation, engaged specialist support services and implemented our incident response plans, which included notifying the relevant authorities.
“WH Smith takes the issue of cyber security extremely seriously and investigations into the incident are ongoing.
“We are notifying all affected colleagues and have put measures in place to support them.”
So far, the company has not shared any details on what type of employee data was hacked or how the data was accessed.
Javvad Malik, lead security awareness advocate at KnowBe4 commented: “While details of the hack are limited at present, it does show how criminals are increasingly attacking UK organisations across a variety of industries. Solidifying the fact that no vertical or size or organisation is safe from attacks.
“The most common ways criminals will breach organisations by way of social engineering attacks such as phishing, or by exploiting poor passwords, or through exploiting unpatched software. So it’s important that organisations work on addressing the common root causes of attacks, and ensure they have a layered and defensible security strategy in place.”
Last year saw a wave of cyber-attacks facing UK retailers and organisations, and this year a major cyber attack affecting Royal Mail services for months rattled the country’s postal service.
JD Sports also suffered a major cyber-attack this year which affected the data of millions of customers.
Guy Golan, CEO and co-founder of cyber security firm Performanta, said: “Major brands such as WH Smith should assume they will be breached by cyber-attacks and have an appropriate plan in place to respond with. Previously, the common consensus was that if you invest in cybersecurity, you’re safe. But now it’s question of when an attack will occur, rather than if, and how ready household name brands are for that scenario.”
Erfan Shadabi, cybersecurity expert at comforte AG said: “Retailers are a prime target for cybercriminals due to the volume of sensitive information that they store and handle, making them vulnerable to various types of cyberattacks, including phishing, malware, and ransomware. Retailers and ecommerce organizations must absolutely assume that their environment is currently under attack and protect this sensitive data accordingly.
“Businesses in these sectors need to apply data-centric protection to any sensitive data within their ecosystem (PII, financial, and transactional) as soon as it enters the environment and keep it protected even as employees work with that data.”
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A new method using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to assess the quality of organ donations could revolutionise the transplant system, potentially saving lives and tens of millions of pounds.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is contributing over £1 million in funding to develop the new technology which is known as Organ Quality Assessment (OrQA). It works in much the same way as AI-based facial recognition to evaluate the quality of an organ.
Estimations show the technology could result in up to 200 more patients receiving kidney transplants, and 100 more receiving liver transplants a year in the UK.
Colin Wilson, transplant surgeon at Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and co-lead of the project, said: “Transplantation is the best treatment for patients with organ failure, but unfortunately some organs can’t be used due to concerns they won’t function properly once transplanted.
“The software we have developed ‘scores’ the quality of the organ and aims to support surgeons to assess if the organ is healthy enough to be transplanted.
“Our ultimate hope is that OrQA will result in more patients receiving life-saving transplants and enable them to lead healthier, longer lives.”
There are currently nearly 7,000 patients awaiting organ transplant in the UK. An organ can only survive out of the body for a limited time.
In most cases, only one journey from the donor hospital to the recipient hospital is possible. This means it is essential that the right decision is made quickly.
Professor Hassan Ugail, Director of the Centre for Visual Computing at the University of Bradford, whose team is working on image analysis as part of the research,said: “Currently, when an organ becomes available, it is assessed by a surgical team by sight, which means, occasionally, organs will be deemed not suitable for transplant.
“We are developing a deep machine learning algorithm which will be trained using thousands of images of human organs to assess images of donor organs more effectively than what the human eye can see.
“This will ultimately mean a surgeon could take a photo of the donated organ, upload it to OrQA and get an immediate answer as to how best to use the donated organ.”
The project is receiving support by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), Quality in Organ Donation biobank and an NIHR Blood and Transplant Research Unit to deliver research for the NHS.
It also involved academics from the Universities of Oxford and New South Wales.
Professor Derek Manas, Medical Director of NHSBT Organ Donation and Transplantation said: “This is an exciting development in technological infrastructure that, once validated, will enable surgeons and transplant clinicians to make more informed decisions about organ usage and help to close the gap between those patients waiting for and those receiving lifesaving organs. We at NHSBT are extremely committed to making this exciting venture a success.”
‘Proof of concept’ work has been carried out in liver, kidney and pancreas transplantation as well as at an advanced stage of pre-clinical testing in liver and kidney.
Chief Executive of the NIHR Professor, Lucy Chappell said: “Funded by our Invention for Innovation Programme, this deep machine learning algorithm aims to increase the number of liver and kidney donor organs suitable for transplantation.
“This is another example of how AI can enhance our healthcare system and make it more efficient. Once clinically validated and tested, cutting edge technology such as this holds the real promise of saving and improving lives.”
Health Minister Neil O’Brien said: “Technology has the ability to revolutionise the way we care for people and this cutting edge technology will improve organ transplant services. Developed here in the UK, this pioneering new method could save hundreds of lives and ensure the best use of donated organs.
“I encourage everyone to register their organ donation decision. Share it with your family so your loved ones can follow your wishes and hopefully save others.”
It is hoped the OrQA software will be ready for a licensing study within the NHS within two years. There is also the possibility of marketing the tool worldwide.
“Organised criminal groups often view the distribution of illegal streaming services as a low-risk, high-reward crime which can be used to fund other serious forms of criminal activity. At the same time, it can expose end users to the risks of data theft, fraud and malware,” Detective Chief Inspector Gary Robinson from PIPCU at City of London Police said.
“We hope that this period of action sends a clear message; PIPCU will continue to work with partners across law enforcement and the industry to take action against those who provide illegal streaming services and protect consumers against the risks associated with using them.”
A further 200 ‘cease and desist’ notices were delivered to individuals suspected of running illegal streaming services around the country, instructing them to immediately cease all streaming activity.
Detective Inspector Andy Maclean, from Police Scotland’s Cyber Investigation Department, said: “Anyone tempted to purchase one of these IPTV services should be aware that their money is going towards a fraudulent scheme, and they might well find themselves having a visit from police or other authorities.
“Money from such activities are often used to fund other crime, so people need to be aware of that. This is, without doubt, a form of organised crime.”
One person was charged in relation to intellectual propery theft, and three people have since been released under investigation.
Matt Hibbert, Director of Anti-Piracy at Sky, said: “This coordinated effort by police and partners which saw action spanning the UK has made a significant impact against individuals involved in serious organised crime.
“More and more effective action is being taken against the criminals behind big piracy operations and we thank PIPCU and all the police forces involved. We will continue to support these efforts to shut down these pirate networks and help protect consumers.”
A consultation on the decision has began for the therapies which address depression and anxiety disorders, including PTSD and body dysmorphia.
Each of the digital technologies includes the support and involvement of NHS Talking Therapies clinician an use CBT technologies.
They therapies are the sixth and seventh early value assessments to have been undertaken using a new NICE rapid assessment process that seeks to identify promising medical technology for rapid deployment into the NHS.
Combined, the therapies have the potential to help more than 40,000 people.
One in six people report experiencing a common mental health problem such as anxiety and depression any given week in England, and according to NHS Digital the demand for talking therapies is high, with some people currently waiting up to six weeks to access help.
Mark Chapman, interim director of medical technology and digital evaluation, at NICE, said: “Developed using tried and tested CBT methods, each one has demonstrated it has the potential to provide effective treatment to the many thousands of people who live with these conditions.”
These digitally=enabled therapies, some of which are already in use, are conditionally recommended for use following a formal assessment with an NHS Talking Therapies therapist, as they may not be the right choice for everyone.
“We want these new treatment options to be available for people to use as quickly as possible and we also want to make sure they are clinically effective and represent good value for the NHS. The additional evidence collected during this period will help us do that,” Chapman added.
Digital therapies offer an alternative way for people to access help in a way that may be more suited to their personal needs by offering flexibility around both time and location of treatment.
The medical technology advisory committee heard from clinical and patient experts as part of their consideration of the evidence for the eight technologies. The evidence included the positive impact of CBT on these conditions and how these technologies can improve access.
Elizabeth Mullenger, lay specialist member on the NICE committees, said: “Digital technology could transform the experience of people living with mental illnesses. It can be incredibly isolating to be on a long waiting list for in-person treatment. You might know that help is coming, you just don’t know when.
“These technologies will allow us to be in charge of our treatment, gaining a sense of autonomy as we navigate our own journey towards positive mental health.”
For depression, the committee conditionally recommended the use of three online CBT programmes Beating the Blues, Deprexis, and Space from Depression (Silvercloud) as treatment options.
For anxiety, Beating the Blues and Space from Anxiety (SilverCloud) was approved.
For social anxiety disorder, iCT-SAD was conditionally recommended.
Perspectives was selected as a conditionally recommended technology for those with body dysmorphic disorder.
Those suffering with PTSD may be able to access iCT-PTSD and Spring.
All of the digital offerings are conditionally recommended in conjunction with a specialist therapist.
Digitally enabled therapies in NHS Talking Therapies services must be delivered with practitioner or therapist support including regular monitoring and management of patient safety and progress.
The committee believes the use of these technologies could lead to more people with mental health conditions being seen in NHS Talking Therapies services as digitally enabled therapies may need less practitioner or therapist time for delivery than other psychological interventions.
Professor Stephen Pilling, specialist committee member and head of the clinical, educational and health psychology department at University College London, said: “I am pleased to welcome the committee’s recommendation on the digital therapies for adults with an anxiety disorder or depression. These interventions can make a major contribution to increasing access to and choice of evidence-based psychological interventions as set out in NICE guidelines.
Campaigner with the 5 Rights Foundation, David McCann, lodged the official complaint with the ICO, the first challenge to the code after it was established in 2020.
McCann has said the site is gathering data from children regarding the videos they watch, the location, and device they are watching from.
According to the ICO’s Children’s Code, privacy settings should automatically be set high for underaged users, non-essential location tracking should be switched off, and privacy settings should be easier to control for children and parents/carers.
YouTube has maintained that it treats all children’s content on its site as if children were viewing it, even if it is on an adults account.
However, YouTube has made it clear its website is not intended for those under 13 years of age, and offers a children’s app called YouTube Kids as an alternative.
McCann retorted that children watch YouTube on family devices rather than using a kid only app, and the data will be gathered by default as it is not registered as a child’s account.
In a statement reported by BBC, McCann said: “My preferred reform that YouTube should make is that actually when you enter YouTube, they don’t collect any unnecessary and process any unnecessary information,” he said.
“The best way to ensure that they are only collecting the data of adults who are properly consenting would be to have a process where adults can sign in to the tracking, recommendation systems, profiling, targeted ads.”
Since the ICO’s Children’s Code has come into effect, it has yet to be formally challenged in court. Tech companies were given a year to comply, but their compliance has so far gone untested.
A recent report showed that nearly one in four games geared toward children available on the Google Play app did not follow the Children’s Code to some degree.
The current complaint brought up by McCann will be a landmark test of the Children’s Code. The ICO will be in power to fine violators and force them up to code.
YouTube was previously in violation of children’s safety policies in 2017 in the US, and paid a hefty fine as they changed their business practices.
A new study by VPN Overview has revealed which bank customers are most likely to fall victim to fraud.
The study analysed Google search data to discover the search volume for multiple terms including ‘fraud number’ and ‘fraud helpline,’ combining these to determine which banks have the highest number of customers experiencing scams.
Santander places top of the list with a total search volume of 11,690. Despite being a well-established bank that operates internationally in countries such as France, Italy, Canada and the US, many customers have found themselves victim to scams, with ‘Santander fraud line’ taking the highest number of searches of each term analysed.
Second in the ranking is NatWest. It may be one of the Big Four banks in the UK, but customers appear to be dealing with troubling situations with ‘NatWest fraud team number’ holding the second highest number searches of 2,900 compared to the other terms in the study.
It was announced in October that 43 branches were closing at the start of this year, as well as 23 more set to close between April and June, suggesting that customers may be finding it more difficult to resolve fraud related issues in person and are therefore searching online for help.
Third on the list is Barclays, one of the largest banks in the UK, which gathered a total of 9,450 for fraud related searches. Of all the terms analysed, ‘Barclays fraud’ and ‘Barclays fraud number’ came joint third with a search volume of 2,400 for each term.
Yet another one of the Big Four banks to top the list is HSBC in fourth place. While it placed 38th globally in the Forbes ranking of the largest companies based on sales, profits, assets, and market value, the fraud search volume for HSBC takes a total of 5,540.
In fifth place is Halifax – the only bank on the list that isn’t part of the Big Four – with a total search volume for fraud related terms of 4,620. Like NatWest, Halifax also announced 18 branch closures which are going ahead between April and June due to more people using online banking, despite the fact that online scams are one of the common banking fraud methods.
The Co-Operative bank had the lowest risk of customers falling victim to fraud, according to the study’s metrics.
A spokesperson from VPN Overview commented on the findings: “Currently, there are an abundance of phishing scams circling looking to steal bank details and other personal information. These will aim to trick you via texts, emails, and even phone calls. While the study reflects that customers of these particular banks are more likely to be a victim of fraud, it’s crucial for everyone to be wary of these dangerous scams – regardless of whether their bank is listed in the top five.
“To avoid falling victim to phishing scams, it’s essential to never click on unfamiliar links in emails or texts or to provide personal information on a phone call that you receive. If ever uncertain, you can always call your bank to find out if any text, call, or email you receive is genuine.”
Dr. Rashmi Mantri, head of BYITC is inviting schools and individuals across the UK to take part in the competition – with an aim of both educating young people about online threats and promoting the importance of cyber-awareness among students, parents and schools.
Dr. Mantri, said: “This is the first time a competition of this kind is being undertaken on such a large scale with school pupils, as opposed to corporate participants. We are trying to assess whether pupils are using safe practices when browsing online, and if they aware of potential dangers on the Internet.”
“The objective is to make them more confident, while also creating awareness at school level about the importance of learning cyber security. It is our duty as an educator to protect our children and young people from online threats, as they are most vulnerable and can easily fall into a trap.”
Comprising a masterclass and follow-up survey, the challenge is aimed at pupils from P6 and S4 with basic or indeed no knowledge of the main principles of cyber security. Students will be delivered a 45-60 minute lesson covering key issues such as cyber bullying, identity theft, online banking, and online gaming before testing their skills in a multiple-choice assessment.
The top three performing pupils at each school will earn a Cyber Champ Student certificate at the top 10 overall schools will be awarded a Cyber Champ School certificate and trophy.
Since its foundation in 2015, BYITC has launched courses covering a range of diverse subjects including mathematics, English language, programming, and coding, as well as a national Capture the Flag Cyber Security challenge. The BYITC is also the founder of the world’s first online Abacus Maths learning application – a digitalised form of an ancient tool that helps children master arithmetic.
Dr Mantri points to the Covid-19 pandemic as one of the key factors driving the school’s motivation to now introduce an Internet safety programme specifically for children and young people.
She said: “During the pandemic, most of our work, education and schooling went online. But the transition to online education has also exposed children to the perils of cyber threats.”
Indeed, while the number of crimes such as theft and robbery decreased during lockdown, cybercrime became even more prevalent. According to the Office of National Statistics, there was an estimated 89% increase in computer misuse offences in the year ending March 2022 compared with 2020.
Dr Mantri added: “Technology is here to stay, and we need to partner with that understanding to be able to cope up with this increasingly digitalised world.
“It is important to teach children about simple online scams, like phishing, ransomware and other malware, and train students to safeguard themselves from online threats.”
By assessing the cyber awareness of young people, the BYITC’s interschool cyber security challenge will provide data to schools about areas for improvement and development in this field.
Dr Mantri hopes the interschool cyber security competition will ultimately encourage and facilitate conversations about what more can be done to protect young people from cyber threats.
She said: “We are the biggest provider of Abacus classes in the UK, and our English classes are doing really well across the world. Now it’s time for cyber security.
“I think children’s education is our forte – whatever we do, we do it with total passion.”
The interschool cyber awareness competition is currently operated on an invitation-only basis. Based on criteria like results, rankings and quality of teaching, the BYITC will select and invite some of the top schools in the country to take part. Schools that are not invited but wish to take part in the initiative can write to contact@byitc.org for consideration.
The individual students who wish to participate can either refer their school to participate in the competition or they can participate individually also.
There is no participation fee for the selected schools or students.
Twitterhas announced a fresh round of layoffs, this time affecting around 200 employees – estimated to be about 10% of the social media company’s remaining workforce.
The news broke late on Sunday, with Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeting: “Hope you have a good Sunday. First day of the rest of your life.”
Reportedly, the layoffs include those who remained loyal to Musk throughout his tumultuous reign at Twitter, and also included some of those who ran smaller companies which Twitter had acquired earlier.
Martijn de Kuijper, founder of Revue which was acquired by Twitter in 2021, was apparently let go and locked out of his email, according to a tweet he put out over the weekend.
Furthermore, Chief Executive of Twitter Payments, Esther Crawford, was also laid off.
On Saturday, trickles of information began to permeate, and The Information reported some Twitter employees had been locked out of their system.
The recent round of layoffs come after Musk assured his remaining workforce he had no plans for further cuts in November. The controversial social media mogul had already reduced his workforce from 7,500 to only 2,000.
Tech layoffs have overall taken a short pause in the past couple of weeks following a massive shedding of workers throughout the industry.
Social media definitely took the hit, as Meta joined Twitter is major staff cuts.
Google, Amazon, and Microsoft were other major players who announced mass layoffs after a hiring bubble during the pandemic finally burst with lowering demand and a tightening economy.
CodeClan research has revealed that 89% of its students could not afford a place at the digital skills academy without industry partner support.
By partnering with CodeClan and ‘paying it forward,’ organisations commit to paying around one-third of course feeds, helping CodeClan place over 2,000 students into tech roles with over 300 companies.
Loral Quinn, CodeClan’s CEO, said: “We have an ongoing commitment to getting diverse talent into the ecosystem faster, while helping companies to become more successful, and the research shows how important our industry partnerships are.
“Against a backdrop of economic headwinds, and a cost of living crisis, existing and planned collaborations and our new Emerging Talent Fund can help to address a challenging environment.”
CodeClan’s Emerging Talent Fund was launched in response to a shortage of women, LGBTQ, and people from underrepresented ethnic groups in tech.
Loral Quinn added: “We strive to create an inclusive, welcoming community at CodeClan, and to get more students from underrepresented groups into tech.
“Our Emerging Talent Fund is designed to support students who could not otherwise afford our immersive bootcamps, but who have shown great aptitude to learn and succeed on our courses.”
Following on from the Baillie Gifford-supported CodeClan Youth Academy in Edinburgh, CodeClan has partnered with Tay Cities Deal to bring a fully funded software coding bootcamp to Perth.
Open to young people between the ages of 16 and 24 from across Angus, Dundee, Fife, and Perth and Kinross, applications for the 4-week course at Perth Creative Exchange close this week.
Loral Quinn said: “Tech jobs remain in high demand, and if you learn how to code, you can work across any sector. The youth academy bootcamp gives participants a strong foundation in the type of coding skills that we know employers looking for.”
Specialising in 16-week software development and 14-week data courses, CodeClan has produced 2,000 graduates from 120 immersive cohorts in software development and data from its Edinburgh and Glasgow campuses, plus remote, since launching in 2015.
CodeClan has also been increasing its provision of bespoke courses for organisations across the corporate and public sectors, while offering additional courses including in low-code and no-code, one of the fastest-growing areas in software development, upskilling and reskilling more than 2,000 individuals.
To bolster their programmes and help more people access classes, CodeClan, a not-for-profit, works with over 300 industry partners, including hiring partners like Skyscanner, FanDuel, Baillie Gifford, DC Thomson, BlackRock, Tesco Bank, and Sainsbury’s Bank.
Last month, the digital skills academy announced a tie-up with recruitment specialist firm Eden Scott, aimed at tackling the tech skills gap in the Scottish economy by providing an additional route for CodeClan graduates seeking employment following graduation.
Edinburgh-based payment orchestration provider BR-DGE has announced a partnership with payments firm Total Processing to driver better payment experiences for merchants and customers.
Through a single point of integration, BR-DGE’s merchants can access payment providers, fraud capabilities and alternative payment methods.
Now, merchants will be able to complement these tools with Total Processing’s solutions, offering them access to its network of global acquirers, full-featured dashboard and risk-based fraud tools.
This offers merchants the ability to grow internationally and respond to evolving customer needs.
Tom Voaden, Head of Partnerships at BR-DGE, said: “We’re excited to be working with Total Processing to offer merchants the very latest technology to deliver the best payment experiences. Total Processing’s expertise in connectivity and security aligns closely with our position as an independent payment orchestration platform as a partner for growth for merchants.
“Due to the flexibility that the BR-DGE platform provides, we expect merchants to be able to swiftly adopt Total Processing’s solutions and implement them to help improve customer experiences, ultimately leading to increased loyalty and growth.”
Total Processing’s platform provides merchants with a wide range of capabilities, such as transaction management, recurring payments and alternative payment method integrations. Its recurring payment solutions help merchants retain customers and boost revenue through smart features, such as pay by links, account updater and flexible scheduling.
By tapping into Total Processing’s gateway, merchants will now be able to provide a more flexible, secure and streamlined payments process for consumers, enabling them to compete more effectively in the global marketplace.
Matthew Bloxham, Partnership Manager at Total Processing, said: At Total Processing, our culture is built around being the most customer-focused payments company. Creating strong partnerships so that we can truly offer our merchants the best solution for their business is fundamental to achieving this.
“We’re really excited about working alongside BR-DGE who share the same values, and together, will strive towards helping our merchants reach their goals through a seamless and revenue-boosting payment solution.”
The Scottish government has published a new five year plan for a health and social care data strategy in a move to improve the care and wellbeing of people in Scotland and more effectively design and deliver vital services.
With a vision to empower both those receiving and delivering social and health care services, the strategy aims to make data readily accessible for safer, more secure means for planning, research, and innovation.
“We are also committed through the Strategy, to working out how to address inequalities in the system and some of the complex challenges we know exist in providing good enough, near real-time data as well as validated, robust data for the purposes of service planning and evaluation, and research and statistics,” Carol Sinclair, Chair of the Data Board for Health and Social Care said.
Seven priority action areas will be addressed in the new strategy over the next five years, with an over-arching effort to ensure an ethical approach to data is undertaken throughout.
Data Access
Work is underway to develop a Digital Front Door to provide individuals with digital access to their health and social care information, making it easrier for them to access and amend information about themselves.
Scotland is still seeking a way to develop a secure service for individuals to prove who they are to securely access data.
For professionals in health and social care, the Scottish government is working on developing a nationally consistent, integrated, and accessible electronic social care and health record.
Part of the solutions for driving the discoverability, accessibility, interoperability and reusability of data for professionals will derive from using the new Community Health Index (CHI) system to allow better data matching and sharing.
Talent and Culture
Attracting, developing, supporting and retaining a data confident and competent workforce is the second of the strategy’s seven priorities.
Reskilling initiatives, such as The Building Digital Skills and Leadership Programme, are focused on equipping staff with the appropriate level of data literacy to ensure a the safe and secure application, handling and analysis of health and social care data.
Other, more specified programmes are in the works, ranging from leadership masterclasses and webinars, to exploration into AI applications, and education programmes with postgraduate qualifications.
Protecting and Sharing Data
The nature of health and social care makes data sharing and protection extremely critical – these sectors often harbour our most sensitive personal data, which does need to be shared effectively across different institutions so people can access care.
Cyber resilience has been highlighted in the strategy, as well as ethical data use by providing transparency on data use and data sharing.
Building trust through engagement of the public, creating the condition for a mature approach to ensuring value from information, and introducing a more balanced, federated model of decision making across Scotland are some of the main actions listed under this priority.
Technology and Infrastructure
Having the right tools is vital to ensuring a robust data strategy can be put in place. Priorities for health and social care involve structured data held within databases, unstructured data and information held in paper records, near real-time data from sensors and the Internet of Things.
Adopting innovative technologies like AI, improving data quality by monitoring the change programme being run by The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and becoming an environmentally sustainable service are part of the priorities involving technology and infrastructure.
Adopting and using comment standards is a priority to increase interoperability, in an effort to make it easier to re-use and link data.
Currently, there is a lack of consistency in data recording across the health and social care sector, according to the publication.
Following the National Digital Strategy’s call to adopt information standards across the public sector, the Scottish government aims to get the health and social care sector in line with FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable).
To ensure this, organisations will work together to ensure information standards are fit for purpose, as well as setting clear information standards when specifying new system requirements.
Creating Insights from Data
Using data to adopt a whole-system approach to create insightful policies for service improvement is another priority of the government.
Analysing the data gathered to improve the health and social care services will be supported by proper data sharing, investing in an analytical workforce, and ensuring key insights are readily available and comprehensible to readers.
Supporting Research and Innovation
Facilitating safe access to health and social care data for industry, innovators, and researchers to allow researchers and innovators to work with industry to develop better services is a key priority of the strategy.
Scotland’s ‘Safe Havens,’ with appropriate approval processes providing assurance that data is used in line with ethical principles will protect innovators and the industry, allowing new development while sharing data responsible.
“The vital work to be taken forward following the review of information governance will further provide a strong, future-proofed platform for change that will give assurance to the public, and enable those managing and controlling data to work more effectively,” Sinclair said.
“One of the things us technologists are really, really bad at is hoarding,” began Kylie Fowler, Principal Consultant at ITAM Intelligence as she opened her presentation on tech waste at Dynamic Earth.
And tech hoarding comes in multiple forms, hardware, software, and cloud services all contribute to wasted tech, resulting in wasted money, eventually culminating in tech debt.
Tech debt is the collective future cost of choosing an easy, short-term solution that will lead to long term limitations and eventually, the need to purchase another solution.
This can build up across all three different categories of tech waste, and can prevent key innovations as companies attempt to replace sub-par hardware and incompatible software systems.
In her presentation, Fowler detailed the main issues regarding tech waste and the strategies companies can adopt to mitigate tech debt.
Hardware
Electronic waste is typically associated with hardware – old laptops, desktops, obsolete printers and phones that pile up.
“That physicality is something else,” Fowler commented regarding hardware waste.
But we can’t just continue to throw out this hardware with no further plans – “we need to think about it holistically, throughout its lifetime,” Fowler insisted.
Considering the use-life span, long term compatibility, and carbon footprint of hardware is essential in mitigating future waste and its associated costs.
“Hardware is where there is a big chunk of carbon waste as well, so we need to think about our energy efficiency and our embedded carbon within our hardware equipment and what the ratio of those two things can help us manage our It equipment most effectively as well,” Fowler explained.
While the majority of the carbon footprint of servers and networks derives from the electricity they use, laptops and desktops mainly contribute embedded carbon, which is released during the manufacturing and recycling process.
“So if we can find a way of getting our laptops and desktops to be reused at the end of life, we’re reducing our carbon footprint,” Fowler emphasised.
Doing your due diligence on how and where to dispose of hardware is also essential – a company was fined about $60 million USD for disposing of hardware that had not been wiped of confidential data.
Further, making sure employees are aware of their own obligations when disposing of hardware peripherals is vital to prevent extra waste, more carbon emissions, and the disposal of hardware with private data.
Software
While software lacks the physical burden of hardware, compatibility issues and the need for continuing maintenance makes it a key driver of tech waste.
“It’s in software where we really build our tech debt, which makes it really hard for us to innovate and move forward,” Fowler said.
The financial waste of software is also large as upgrades and updates are essential – but if these are not done responsibly, they can lead to an unnecessarily large price tag.
Still, software is where we see exponential innovation, allowing more efficiency, cutting down on repetitive tasks, allowing technologists to work more effectively and innovate themselves.
“The temptation is really to control our software, to think very carefully, ‘do we want to have this software in our organisation’ but actually these days, particularly with SaaS software, SaaS is a really big driver of innovation,” Fowler expanded.
“Bear in mind the need to balance control over software with the need of your business to be able to access new and innovative ways of doing things.”
Its in the sourcing of software, however, the waste has the most potential to start and build.
“Sourcing software and negotiating with software vendors is a really skilled activity,” Fowler said.
Having an internal team to source and negotiate for appropriate software to maximise compatibility and use-life, while balancing the need for innovation, all within a decent price tag is key.
Cloud
Cloud is an unavoidable expense – the way to mitigate Cloud waste is by managing it effectively.
“The challenge in managing Cloud and avoiding financial waste with Cloud is just the sheer volume of data that you receive,” Fowler said.
While Cloud servers can provide multiple data points by the second on what is being used, and this can make it more difficult to understand what services are useful and which are a waste.
Cloud’s flexibility is actually key to managing it – while Cloud contract negotiations are vital to minimising financial waste, day to day decisions can make a huge difference on Cloud instances.
Ensuring that contracts flex up and down with Cloud instances is essential in mitigating cloud waste, and this is best done via moment by moment decision making internally.
Instantaneous control can open up different servers for short bursts of time with an expected high volume of use, while allowing these servers to be abandoned at no cost when traffic dips.
But leaving these decisions to a team of technologists, Fowler said, would be a waste as well.
Having a separate FinOps team to understand contracts and analyse data usage moment by moment to maximise efficiency would secure this instantaneous control while allowing technology teams to do their real jobs, Fowler suggested instead.
Throughout Fowler’s presentation, it was clear that there was no magic key to minimising tech waste – it took hard work, problem solving, and prioritisation.
More importantly, it took having the right people in control at the right stages along the process.
In house teams dedicated to hardware, software, and Cloud procurement and maintenance is key to minimising waste in each department.
Fowler touched on the hierarchy of data, information, knowledge and wisdom.
“We get huge amounts of data from all of our assets, from Cloud particularly, and we need to convert that information and then we need to apply our knowledge to that so that we can make wise decisions,” she said.
And applying this to the procurement process of tech is what reduces waste and tech debt.
In Cloud, this would mean matching as closely as possible, what is being used and what is being consumed.
For software, this would be matching software to provide the most innovation while making sure it lasts the longest, complies with licensing agreements, and is compatible with legacy and future software.
In the case of hardware, this is especially important in considering different kinds of carbon emissions as well as conflicting data on what technology is the most innovative and what will last the longest.
Fowler suggested a return to the target operating model: “It’s that blend of process, people, tools and partners.”
A robust process with people at each end – with housekeepers who can maintain day to day challenges in maintaining tech to minimise waste, to tools and partners turn data into useful information, to action takers and decision makers who can apply this knowledge and make wise decisions considering technology – is key to minimising tech waste.
Beware the pop up ad! Adult content, streaming and video hosting sites have the most security and privacy threats, such as malware, intrusive ads, and trackers, according to research by NordVPN.
NordVPN’s Threat Protection feature was found to have blocked 344 million trackers, 341M intrusive ads, and 506k malware infections in the month of December 2022 alone.
“The online world is challenging people in every single move they make. Want to read an article? Dozens of ads and pop-ups are ready to immediately cover your screen. Another privacy threat – malware – is lurking for you on websites and in files you are about to download,” said Adrianus Warmenhoven, a cybersecurity advisor at NordVPN.
“Websites you browse are also full of third-party trackers that analyze your browsing history to find out what you do online. It depends on you to stop it.”
Adult Content Sites – Biggest Harbour of Malware
Malware is malicious software that seeks to damage or compromise a device or data, with a scope that varies from relatively harmless to extremely dangerous. Malicious software can track people’s data, steal sensitive information, or even delete it without your consent.
NordVPN research shows that adult content sites (21%) were the biggest harbour of malware, followed by cloud storage providers (14%) and entertainment sites (11%).
Among the most comment types of malware are viruses, spyware, worms, trojans, adware, scareware, ransomware, and fireless malware.
Streaming Sites – Most Intrusive Ads
Intrusive advertising refers to pushing invasive and irrelevant ads in front of consumers. They pop up unexpectedly, block the host page, open new pages and windows or play videos and audio at inopportune times.
As for intrusive ads, the majority of them were found on streaming (23%), adult content (16%), and online shopping (9%) sites. Threat Protection detected and blocked millions of them: 552M, 389M, and 226M respectively.
“Today, ad blockers are essential for both security because they block ads that can infect people’s devices and privacy because annoying ads rely on collecting data from web activity and violating people’s privacy. Also, if a website is loading slower than usual, you can blame intrusive ads. Free apps filled with unwanted ads could also drain your device’s battery faster,” explained Adrianus Warmenhoven.
Video Hosting Sites – Most Trackers
While many trackers are a tool for advertising and tailoring user experience, they may also become handy for online spies.
Internet service providers (ISPs), marketing agencies, social media companies, and governments can access your online actions and breach your privacy.
NordVPN’s Threat Protection showed that video hosting sites (22%), cloud storage providers (16.31%), web email (16.25%), and information technology sites (12%) have the most trackers. Video hosting sites alone had 239 billion trackers blocked by Threat Protection in December 2022.
It’s worth adding that earlier NordVPN research showed that the average number of trackers per website is highest in Hong Kong (45.4 trackers), Singapore (33.5), the United States (23.1), and Australia (18.6).
“You can become less trackable online by declining third party cookies, because the website can sell your browsing data to third parties; using a VPN, which will hide your real IP address and location; installing a tracker blocker, which will stop your browsers from collecting information about you; and using privacy browsers, which can obfuscate your browser fingerprint, or ditching Google, which tracks a lot of data about you,” explained Adrianus Warmenhoven.
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Neurodiverse people bring in-demand perspectives to technology, but are not being supported and empowered across employment, according to a new report by Sparta Global.
Sparta Global’s 2023 EqualTech report has been curated from a survey of 500 senior and C-suite individuals working in organisations across almost every industry sector.
The digital skills gap in the UK continues to present significant challenges for UK employers and the wider economy.
Sparta Global’s research indicates that when companies attract and retain neuro-inclusive digital teams, they are more likely to gain and sustain a competitive advantage across areas such as; computational thinking, observation, adaptability and intuition.
Positively, 87% of digital leaders surveyed in the research believe that neurodiversity will be a top priority for their companies in 2023 and 54% stated that Covid-19 accelerated conversations around commitment to neurodiversity.
In contradiction, Sparta Global’s research also shows awareness has not equalled change. The report notes that just 21% of respondents work for businesses that tailor their recruitment practices to neurodivergent candidates.
In turn, this means 79% of organisations have taken no steps to accommodate those with neurodiverse characteristics.
Further, rigid entry requirements were also identified as a barrier – neurodiverse people often lacked sufficient support to reach their full potential in traditional educational environments. Strict requirements like 2:1 degree qualifications before even getting an interview can often mean neurodiverse people are left without an opportunity to express their talents.
“Constantly having to reach out for adjustments even when you have already disclosed your learning differences, being misunderstood and unable to be your whole self, and fearing that you won’t be able to reach your full potential because you don’t have the right resources and support in place, can leave you feeling like you don’t belong,” Marcia Brissett-Bailey said, an Independent Dyslexia and Neurodiversity champion and advocate.
Stigma associated with neurodiversity was also a recruitment barrier – conscious and unconscious bias permeates the hiring process, and stereotyping neurodiverse people into one group stops them from excelling individually.
“I had no idea that we would receive such overwhelming and honest feedback,” says David Rai, Sparta Global CEO.
“With the UK government reporting that we could face a shortage of 900,000 skilled IT workers by next year, an empowered neurodiverse community presents perspectives and skills that could be transformative. Despite this, I was shocked to see how few businesses have practically adapted their hiring strategies to support neurodiverse applicants.”
83% of neurodivergent workers surveyed reported feeling worried, nervous, and fearful about having conversations with their employer regarding their neurodiversity.
Crucially, 59% of respondents feel that there isn’t enough support available in their organisations, and fear that disclosing their neurodiversity may have negative repercussions on their future within their companies.
Neurodivergent employees are a demographic in evolution. Of those surveyed who identified as neurodivergent, only 26% were diagnosed during childhood, while 31% were diagnosed as adults.
A further 15% told us that they are currently undergoing a diagnosis, while 28% are planning to seek an assessment in the future.
David adds; “I hope employers, educators, and those outside of our established network, can glean as much insight, knowledge, and practical advice from this report as I have”.
In addition to delivering key insights across neurodiversity and technology, the Equal Tech Report also features contributions from Admiral, Schroders, Gallagher, ADHD Girls and more. You can see the full EqualTech report here.
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Digital Learning Day, celebrated each year on the last Thursday in February, shines a spotlight on the advancement of technology and how it has enhanced teaching. However, research shows that there are still one in five Brits who lack the digital basics, severely limiting their online access.
A report by Lloyds Bank revealed that there are still over 10 million people in the UK who lack basic digital skills, which will become a greater barrier for job seekers with the consensus that 90% of all jobs will be expected to require digital skills over the next two decades.
The Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) is playing a central role in tackling this challenge, seeking to end digital poverty by 2030 through landmark whitepapers such as their Evidence Review, which outlines the current state of digital poverty in the UK, as well as initiatives such as Tech4Teachers and Tech4Schools which provide funding and electronic devices to teachers to enable them to deliver a high standard of education.
Elizabeth Anderson, Chief Operating Officer of the Digital Poverty Alliance, said: “It is important to celebrate the advancements in both technology and teaching, but it is also important to highlight the significant shortcomings that still exist in this area. Digital exclusion consists of digital skills, access to digital devices, and access to broadband connectivity, all of which go hand in hand in teaching people how to use tech.”
“Technology is a huge part of the education sector – we saw during the pandemic that it made remote learning possible for some, but we also saw a significant number of students unable to keep up due to a lack of skills, device access or broadband.”
DPA research has highlighted that 26% of young people do not have access to a laptop or similar device, an issue which saw one in five children unable to learn effectively at home during the pandemic.
Anderson continued: “At any age, digital skills are becoming increasingly essential, and benefit teachers and students right the way through to tasks such as paying rent and bills. If people are without the basic skills to get by then they begin getting phased out of the centre of society, placed at a disadvantage in their daily lives.
“This issue is exacerbated by the growing gap that develops once people go offline, with their skills failing to develop at the same rate as evolving technology. Schools, businesses and Government alike all need to make a conscious effort to promote and support accessibility to fundamental areas including skills, devices and connectivity.”
To make matters worse, 53% of those who are already offline can’t afford an average monthly broadband bill, worsened by the cost-of-living crisis.
Glasgow Chamber of Commerce is hosting a ‘Skill the Gap‘ event next month to educate businesses across the city and beyond on practical solutions to tackle recruitment challenges.
The latest Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) employment trends survey revealed three-quarters of UK businesses are struck by labour shortages, while an Open University study found 70% of Scottish companies are struggling to recruit workers with the right skills gap.
Combined with the nature of skills changing, including a focus on greener jobs and digital skillsets, the event is in response to member needs and hopes to equip businesses to combat these challenges and boost economic resilience and competitiveness.
Alison McRae, Senior Director of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, said: “A thriving and highly skilled workforce is critical to the success of Glasgow’s regional economic strategy but the growing skills gap is jeopardising that – and our members are looking for advice.”
Taking place from 9.15am-1pm on Friday 17 March at City of Glasgow College Riverside Campus, the Skill the Gap event will address the significant skills gaps and labour shortages across industry which are hindering the success of Glasgow’s regional economic strategy.
Featuring presentations from senior business advisors, the event is aimed at SMEs and smaller organisations which often operate without an in-house human resources provision.
Topics will include youth employment strategies, demystifying the funding landscape for upskilling and work placement recruitment approaches to training a diverse and motivated workforce, and advice on writing job descriptions.
“There is a lot of support and funding available to tackle the challenges businesses are facing but feedback from our members found it can often be difficult to navigate. By hosting this event, and bringing together various partners and stakeholders, we hope attendees will take away practical solutions for recruitment, and to address the needs for future skills,” McRae added.
Skill the Gap is being delivered by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce in partnership with Scotland IS, Developing Young Workforce, City of Glasgow College and The Verdancy Group. Advance booking is essential and tickets can be purchased online for £10.
More information and spot booking can be found here.
Founders of University of Edinburgh-supported start-ups, including many that are seeking growth investment, will be given the opportunity to showcase their companies to an audience of investors, business support groups, and fellow entrepreneurs at two key events taking place next month.
Ten early-stage companies from the University’s Venture Builder Incubator (VBI) 3.0 cohort will be invited to pitch at a Showcase on 3 March. This will include four companies looking at innovative forms of cancer research and treatment that are taking part in the VBI through its partnership with Cancer Research Horizons.
Meanwhile, 12 AI-driven companies will also present their businesses at the AI Accelerator Showcase being held on 22 March.
The companies are all currently participating in the University’s six month AI Accelerator programme, benefitting from access to training and mentoring to enhance and develop their commercial skills and business propositions.
The VBI programme supports PhD students and post doctorates from the University of Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt University, and other parts of the UK, helping them build their skills and transform their research into a relevant and viable business proposition.
It features 23 early-stage companies which are focused on addressing key societal challenges including the climate emergency, enterprise optimisation, cancer remedies, and other health and well-being issues.
Each venture is provided with £2K and supported through a series of workshops, networking events, mentoring, peer to peer learnings and access to The University of Edinburgh’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and its data expertise.
Barclays Eagle Labs is once again supporting the cohort this year, which includes Carbon Glance, a data integration platform that makes it easier for companies and investors to measure exposure to carbon pricing; Morph.ai, a digital pathology company transforming breast cancer diagnostics, and GambitBio, developers of a lateral flow test that detects early-stage cancer.
Laura Bernal, Venture Builder Incubator Programme Manager, said: “The VBI Showcase will provide founders behind early-stage ventures with an ideal platform to present and further develop their innovation into a viable business. It also offers participants a great opportunity to build their commercial contacts and make valuable connections.”
Focusing mainly on ‘AI for good’, participants in the accelerator programme -which is supported by Huawei – are generally part of start-ups seeking to address specific health and climate issues.
They will receive a grant of £9k and get access to commercial expertise and collaboration opportunities benefitting from the University of Edinburgh’s position in AI research.
Those taking part in the current AI Accelerator tackle a wide range of societal issues, from food insecurity to clinical support.
Danu Robotics has developed a robotic waste sorting product to help better tackle waste management.
MindTrace, a US-based company created a clinical decision support tool that reduces uncertainty associated with neurosurgery to help patients navigate their health journey.
Easy Rice focused on digitalising staple food industries and promoting sustainability for all stakeholders along the food supply chain.
Further, Inicio AI, which has built an affordability tool to help individuals in debt to better manage their finances, as the cost-of-living crisis only increases financial insecurity.
Katy Guthrie, Programme Leader of AI Accelerator said: “The AI Accelerator Showcase will support our 12 AI-driven cohort companies providing them with an opportunity to promote their business to an audience of potential investors and grant funders as well as fellow entrepreneurs. The event is designed to support growth for these innovative, emerging companies and help them maximise their global potential.”
The VBI and AI Accelerator are delivered by the University of Edinburgh’s Innovation Hub for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, the Bayes Centre, and supported by Edinburgh Innovations, the University of Edinburgh’s commercialisation service.
It is delivered on behalf of the Data-Driven Innovation Hubs, in contribution to the Data-Driven Entrepreneurship programme.
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Nearly 25% of children’s apps available on Google Play are in violation of the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) age-appropriate design code, according to Comparitech.
Comparitech investigated 409 apps labeled under ‘children’ on the Google Play application store against the 15 standards in the ICO’s children’s code. This included app developers targeting children under 18 as well as those that may appeal to children through imagery or terminology used by the app.
The vast majority of apps found to be in breach of at least one standard collected personal data without a clear and comprehensive section on children’s data protection within their privacy policy.
The survey also found that 5.5% of the apps reviewed claimed to not be geared toward children despite being featured in the child-specific section on Google Play and even sometimes featuring the word “kids” in the app name. Of those 5.5%, all but one had an age rating suitable for all ages, with the only exception being suitable for those seven years old and up.
Over 11% of the app’s privacy policies studied either collected personal data without a child-specific policy or were vague, open to interpretation, or unclear. A further 4% have data collection practices without the right parental permission or protocols in place.
As well, companies seemed to be confused by terminology defined by the ICO – they claimed that IP addresses they collected was “non-personal” data, despite the ICO deeming it as personal data.
In Breach
Of the 24% found to be ICO non-compliant, they were split into six different categories of infringement:
48% had no child policy but did collect some form of personal data without a child-specific policy or a policy that is open to interpretation.
23% claimed to not be aimed at children, though they had age ratings for children
18% failed to implement the correct protocols for collecting children’s data
5% put the onus on parents to ensure their children’s data policy
3% do not collect data themsevles but allow third parties to and do not have a child policy for this
and 19 apps deemed the IP address they collected as non-personal data in contrast to ICO definitions
Alarmingly, the survey also found that 100% of the apps found to be in breach of ICO regulations were “expert approved” for children.
Google’s “Teach Approved” program puts apps through a second layer of review to assess their appeal to children, if they are age appropriate, and their design quality.
Even the apps which claimed to not be targeting children had this seal of approval.
Complying with ICO
To remain within the ICO code, app developers should have:
A map of the personal data they are collecting from UK children
Age verification
Geolocation services switched off as degault
No nudge techniques that may encourage children to hand over more personal data
A high privacy level as default
Who’s At Fault?
Google does have their own list of regulations – apps designed for children or multiple age groups must protect every age group and comply with varying regulations.
The ICO’s guidelines are only a year old, so there is so far no precedent with how to deal with apps found in breach – whether it is the responsibility of the app developers, the app store (Google, in this case), or users.
The ICO did suggest it was going to look into how different online services are conforming to the new children’s code.
App developers are likely to be on the hook for breaches in the code – but Google’s approval of the apps may make it liable to the ICO, especially with the “expert approval” it has provided to certain apps with unclear child data policies.
The ICO’s enforcement powers mean it can issue fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of an organisation’s annual worldwide turnover – whichever is higher – for non-compliance.
With the Online Safety Bill still being debated and consistently changed, it will be interesting to see if the ICO’s child data protection policy reaches into the pockets of big tech for overall violations, or if they only target app developers rather than app marketplaces.
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Technology industry leaders have been invited to Parliament in London for a debate on the UK’s digital skills crisis.
Entitled Closing the Tech Skills Gap, the summit is organised by the Parliament Street think tank and chaired by former business minister Dean Russell MP, and will see key figures from Britain’s tech industry gather on the 28th of March to discuss strategies to fill the country’s gaping skills gap.
Key speakers at the event will include tech entrepreneur Alfie Dawson, founder of global SaaS marketing agency Bordeaux & Burgundy, Elizabeth Anderson, Chief Operating Officer of The Digital Poverty Alliance, James Campanini, CEO of AWS reseller VeUP, Sachin Agrawal, Head of Zoho UK and Kate Hawthorn, Director Consultant Talent, FDM Group.
Government data has shown that around 82% of all jobs in the UK list digital skills as a key requirement.
Despite higher salary ranges, employers struggle to fill one-third of vacancies last year due to a lack of digital competency, highlighting a significant discrepancy between skill supply and demand in the UK.
A lack of digital skills is hampering digital transformation and digital adoption for many companies, and a gap in privacy skills is putting organisations at greater risk of cyber crimes and data breaches.
Though more students than ever are choosing computing science degrees, the skills gap was the greatest ever in the UK in 2022.
Tech companies often have to compete globally to attract and retain talent – high salaries are found to not be enough to keep UK tech workers, as flexible working became a new top priority.
Commenting on the digital skills challenges facing the country, Alfie Dawson, founder of SaaS marketing agency Bordeaux & Burgundy, said, “Tech skills are a key driver in business growth, and it’s absolutely vital that we are upskilling and reskilling workers from all walks of life to meet this growing demand. From the classroom to the boardroom, sharing and developing key skills in areas such as SaaS, coding and cyber should be a top priority for businesses looking to accelerate growth and stay ahead of the competition.”
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Edinburgh-based Topolytics has received a £1.5 million funding boost, enabling the company to launch its WasteMap solution and extend the business commercially.
Several investors, as well as a grant from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) contributed to the funding, after the business targeted private investors who could bring experience in scaling data analytics and SaaS businesses globally.
“Topolytics has a growing global reputation for the insights available through our WasteMap® platform. It helps waste producers and recyclers to drive resource and cost efficiencies, to trace the movement of waste and measure their impact, whilst validating performance and improving the quality and reliability of ESG and carbon reporting,” said Michael Groves, CEO of Topolytics.
The company’s WasteMap platform generates insights for waste producers, enabling greater materials recovery and enhance ESG reporting to reduce carbon emissions.
“Topolytics is delighted to secure investment from high-net-worth investors who bring significant depth of experience in globally scaling data analytics and software businesses. It’s a privilege to get the backing of such high calibre individuals from both sides of the Atlantic to support our international growth,” said Jane Stewart, Director of Topolytics.
The company is set to aid waste producers and the waste sector to process and analyse complex waste ‘supply chain’ data across multiple sites, regions, and countries.
With the new funding, the company plans to accelerate development of the platform and support its UK and international expansion plans.
It is a privilege to be working with some leading players in their sectors, UK and international businesses alike, that see great commercial and environmental benefit from taking a fresh look at waste,” Groves added.
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Meta and WhatsApp are due for a change in their UK data protection regulators in April.
Due to Brexit, the service providers and controllers for UK users of Meta and WhatsApp will change from the current ones based in Ireland to the global outfits based in the US.
Meta has ensured users that the way their data is handled will not change, and will stay in line with UK data protection regulations.
Previously, Meta and WhatsApp were monitored in the UK under GDPR guidelines, the EU-wide data protection regulations, which were overseen by the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) as the company’s headquarters were based in Ireland.
Now, any breaches of UK data law will be effect Meta’s global entities which are based in the US.
Meta claims the changes will be minimal and the privacy policies will simply swap references to EU regulations for UK regulations.
The UK Data Privacy Act is still yet to be finalised, but does have different stipulations for the use of behavioral and personalised advertising business models used by Meta. The current legislation is similar to GDPR.
Recently, Meta was found in breach of the EU’s GDPR for requiring users to consent to personalised advertising and data sharing in order to use the service. They are currently appealing the decision.
The company also stressed that there will be no change to data sharing between WhatsApp and Meta.
Currently, the wider EU-wide regulator stepped in on several GDPR cases dealing with Meta’s platforms, calling on the Irish Data Protection Regulator to embark on a formal investigation on Meta’s inter-app data sharing policies.
Controversially, the Irish DPC sidestepped the request, claiming it was an overreach by the EU regulator.
Data protection champions have long called upon regulators to clamp down on Meta’s use of personal data for advertising.
The new UK regulations will go into effect on 25 April this year, but the plans were in the work since 2020 as Brexit began to take its toll on EU-UK relations.
Users will receive notifications and the new privacy policies will be shared this week.
“Like other companies, we’ve made changes in response to the UK leaving the European Union. UK users remain protected by UK privacy and data protection laws. We’re not making any changes to the way our products work and the updates to our terms and privacy policies don’t change the way we treat UK users’ data,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement.
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Ofcom has announced that full fibre broadband is set to reach half of UK homes as soon as March 2023.
Just five years ago, only 6% of UK homes could get full fibre broadband, but with government initiatives like project gigabit and programmes aiming to close the digital divide, full fibre broadband has expanded across the UK.
Competition and investment from network builders has seen full fibre reach 42% of UK homes by September 2022.
Based on current data, Ofcom has projected that the 50% threshold will be passed this March, and more than 80% of homes will receive full fibre broadband within the next two years.
The regulator has not made any claims as to the regions which will most benefit from the full fibre expansion. Among concerns about the full fibre expansion is the rural divide, where more rural and remote regions of the UK struggle to gain any connectivity while cities and urban areas get better, faster broadband.
Fair Competition Vs Further Expansion
Ofcom has credited competition for driving the expansion of full fibre, which they claim was driven by their competition-friendly policies allowing alternative network firms to join the ranks of Openreach and Virgin Media on a “level-playing field.”
These challenger firms are doubling their collective footprint each year and together they expect to reach 11.5m homes by the end of this year. Investment in independent broadband builders is strong and expected to reach £17bn by 2025.
Despite Ofcom’s pro-competition stance, it has dealt with recent controversy over its projected position on a price change introduced by network giant Openreach. The price plan will significantly decrease full fibre options for Openreach users at a level smaller alternative networks will struggle to match. Previously, Openreach’s higher prices allowed these challenger networks onto the scene.
In their initial statement, Ofcom said they were unlikely to find the price plan uncompetitive, drawing backlash from competition defenders.
Ofcom’s position puts full fibre expansion priorities ahead of competition concerns. Based on their projections, however, it appears expansion is greatly benefiting from the current market environment.
Still, the company is yet to decide on the specific case and has called for further investigations into whether the price plan is anti-competitive in nature.
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14 tech founders are set to hop the pond to New York City for a programme meant to showcase Scotland’s flourishing tech ecosystem to the US East Coast.
After the success of excursions to Silicon Valley last April and Helsinki in November, Foras, the Scottish Government, and enterprise agency Scottish Development International (SDI) have partnered up to take the group of leading individuals from Scotland’s ecosystem on a funded programme to NYC this April.
Foras Co-Founder Dec McLaughlin added: “We want to put our best foot forward for the Scottish ecosystem, and to make connections for some of our most highly-rated startups and founders, connections that will help take their companies to the next level.”
The New York ecosystem is ranked at number 2 globally, and has the second-highest absolute number of early-stage investments in the world, after Silicon Valley, with a local startup community valued at $147 Billion.
Serial Founder and startup community-builder Rob Gelb, who joins the programme delivery team, said: “New York is one of the most diverse and important tech ecosystems in the world, and experiencing that ecosystem first-hand is important for startups and scale-ups, especially those with an international growth mindset. There are incredible things going on in Scotland, as documented in our recent Founder Surveys, and showcasing the innovation here to global markets and investors is key for these businesses’ successful development.
Successful participants can expect to experience New York’s vibrant culture, as well as a week of facilitated introductions, hands-on workshops, quality time with established US tech success stories such as Zendesk and Scottish diaspora businesses, visits to world-class accelerators such as Techstars and unique networking opportunities with entrepreneurial representatives from America’s East Coast. The week will culminate with a unique pitching opportunity at an exclusive investor mixer event in partnership with Edrington before the Tartan Day parade.
Mark Logan, the Scottish Government’s Chief Entrepreneur, said: “The internet puts every customer in the world within reach of our companies, but brings every competitor too. To succeed, our startups must be as good as the world’s best start-ups.
“Our Founders, therefore, need to be outward-looking, learning from world-class techniques and frameworks, and from those who have already built global tech companies. This programme is a great example of how we can help Scotland’s startups to do that, whilst also fostering a greater sense of community and connection amongst our entrepreneurial talent.”
The programme will run between 10-17th of April and was designed by Foras Co-Founders Dec McLaughlin, Nick Murray and Carolina Melendez, well-known for their work in local tech startups and their monthly Central Belt events with Startup Grind Scotland.
Applications are currently open for the trip here.
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Only 45% of software projects deliver or exceed their expected return on investment (ROI), according to a new survey of CIOs from digital adoption platform Userlane and consultancy PwC.
With the average spend on new software projects exceeding £2,200,000, large businesses are losing upwards of £6,000,000 annually.
Although almost two thirds of CIOs (65%) are concerned that the state of the economy will affect their digital transformation plans, 62% still intend to deepen their investment in technology over the next 12 months.
Cost increases are anticipated across cloud-based software (61%), on-premises software (54%) and software training for employees (54%).
Furthermore, the survey of 250 CIOs and IT leaders at large UK-based companies reveals that software ROI is most frequently measured in terms of productivity improvements (76%), new business generated (73%), streamlined processes (70%), a reduced need for hiring (70%), and higher customer satisfaction (69%).
CIOs will face significant pressure to deliver RIO for software projects under the challenging economic circumstances, including supply-chain issues and talent shortages.
Respondents consider their most significant areas of responsibility to be digital transformation (43%), followed by digital adoption (37%).
Other key focus areas include business productivity (35%), employee experience (33%), and learning and skills development (29%).
While digital adoption was noted as significantly important, every CIO surveyed that their business is facing one or more challenges in their digital adoption pursuits.
Obstacles include a higher number of IT support tickets (33%), employees struggling to quickly adopt and use new software (33%), too much time and money spent on software training (28%), an acceleration of software requirements due to hybrid working (28%), and a lack of investment in tools and processes to improve digital adoption (27%).
Hartmut Hahn, chief executive, Userlane, commented: “Despite digital transformation being a priority for years, the directly measurable impact on employee productivity has been mostly a black box. Even worse, people complain about friction as they have to deal with rapid change amid a constant flow of new technologies and processes.”
Userlane’s new report highlights that CIOs lack a clear consensus on how best to measure digital adoption. Many CIOs track employee happiness (73%), the number of IT support tickets raised (73%), task completion rate (72%), number of application logins (70%) and process quality improvements (70%).
Yet there is no single, unified measurement framework for digital adoption, despite 37% of CIOs admitting that their company is facing a significant digital skills gaps.
“Understanding what works and what doesn’t is essential for a successful digital transformation. If CIOs can’t measure how employees are using new software to drive positive business outcomes, they will struggle to make the case for future technology investments,” Hahn continued.
“That’s why, in our report, we reveal a new method for quantifying software usage and adoption: a single, robust framework called HEART which aggregates data over several dimensions to identify areas for improvement and optimise IT spend efficiency. We’re excited about its potential to support CIOs in the year ahead.”
Wolfgang Hufnagel, Senior Consultant, Change Management (People & Organisation), PwC, added: “CIOs today face the complicated task of fully understanding and optimising the return on investment on their company’s software purchases. A crucial piece of this puzzle is developing the capability to track and measure digital adoption among employees, identify areas for improvement, and tailor training and support programs to better meet their needs.
“Having a user-centric, cross application analytics tool completely transforms the way CIOs are able to make decisions today. It empowers executives to track progress in adoption over time and make more informed, data-driven decisions, faster. This will ultimately lead to IT driving critical business growth and a culture of innovation through smarter technology investments.”
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The Scottish Government is set to consider proposals to support more women entering into entrepreneurship following the publication of a wide-ranging independent review.
The review – led by Ana Stewart, an entrepreneur and investor, and co-authored with Mark Logan, chief entrepreneur to the Scottish Government – makes 31 recommendations.
“This review has, through a combination of extensive stakeholder engagement and robust data analysis, revealed that women face many significant barriers to entrepreneurship,” Stewart said.
Based on their research, the review exposed five major proximate causes of under-participation of women in entrepreneurship:
Relative to men, women are often more logistically constrained, making participation in entrepreneurship difficult. Primary care roles are traditionally assigned to women to exploit their free labour and to rationalise longer hours for working men with families. This constraint of expected free labour is a major barrier to enter the demanding entrepreneurial career-path.
Women frequently have a sense of “not belonging” in entrepreneurship, which affects their confidence and self-belief. The report notes a general lack of women in entrepreneurship is to mainly blame for this problem, without any mention of why women and other marginalised genders would feel unwelcome in male-dominated spaces.
Formally-defined pathways into entrepreneurship are unclear, while informal pathways and networks underserve women. Informal networks which generally enable entrepreneurship are heavily oriented towards men because traditionally, men were the only ones allowed access precisely to keep women dependent on men for monetary stability.
General education and the normalisation of entrepreneurship as a valid career path is largely not present in the education system. While this reason affects all demographics, its impact will be greater for marginalised groups such as women and minorities.
Women receive far less investment than men at all stages of the entrepreneurial journey from the investment community. According to the report, women-led firms receive less than 2p for ever £1 of total external investment. In Scotland, only 12% of companies that received external investment in 2022 were female-led. University spinouts far no better 0 only 12% that secured funding include female founders, with only 4% having all female founders, contrasting the 75% with all male founders.
“Only one in five businesses in Scotland are female-led, while start-ups founded by women received only 2% of overall investment capital in the last five years,” Stewart said.
“By taking a root cause and effect approach, our recommendations focus on dramatically increasing female participation rates to drive a vibrant and fairer entrepreneurial economy.”
To solve these major issues and remove the traditional barriers keeping women from entering entrepreneurship, the report provided 31 recommendations which can be summed up in different categories:
providing start up training and support in a range of pop-up locations to help more women and other primary care givers access to services
integrating entrepreneurial education into schools and further education
clarifying existing access pathways into entrepreneurship
improving access to start-up and growth finance
tracking and measuring progress towards full representation in entrepreneurship
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon commented on the report: “The review’s findings are challenging but underline the need to tackle the root-causes, as well as the immediate barriers, of this inequality.
“Fully realising the entrepreneurial potential of women in Scotland will not only promote greater equality in our society, it will also deliver significant benefits for the economy.
“The Scottish Government will respond quickly to the review as a whole, and its recommendations.”
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IoT companies raised a record amount of funding in 2022, pulling in £13.22m on average, up 30% from the previous year, new research by Avnet Abacus reveals.
“Despite venture capital generally cooling off due to current economic conditions, the research reveals investor confidence is higher than ever for the long term prospects of companies developing products in the IoT,” Dr Sara Ghaemi, Avnet Abacus’s Technical Director, said.
The engineering firm analysed crunchbase data for companies listed under the IoT to provide insight on the level of investment activity.
Average funding rounds for IoT startups were the highest in over a decade, and the highest ever in Europe, the data reveals.
European IoT companies drew in £13.88m as their highest funding round ever, with American startups also seeing their highest deal in 19 years at £13.47m.
Industrial IoT also experienced a record year in 2022, where the average funding round reached £13.38m, more than double the average investment of £6.07m in 2021, and the highest since 2006.
In both 2018 and 2021, 5 companies in the Industrial IoT were acquired, while 2022 took that to new heights with seven startups in the sector purchased last year.
Acquisitions of companies in IoT worldwide were at their second highest ever in 2022 with 116 companies snapped up, marginally down from the peak of 117 companies in 2021.
Europe fared even better than previous years with 41 acquisitions making 2022 the continent’s highest year ever for IoT exits.
While the total amount raised by IoT startups globally dropped from £4.66 billion in 2021 to £3.57bn in 2022, the money invested in early stage startups was on the rise.
The investment into early stage IoT startups (those seeking funds in venture rounds A and B) reached the highest amount on record last year at £2.04bn, up 12% from £1.82bn the previous year.
Meanwhile, the total investment for late stage IoT ventures was £0.9bn, down 54% from £1.96bn in 2021, and 36% lower than 2020’s figure of £1.4bn. Angel and seed investors in the IoT were also proceeding more cautiously last year, providing funds of £217m in 2022 compared to £336m in 2021.
“For years it seemed the IoT only existed in the words of market analysts, consultants and commentators, but we’ve now moved well beyond the hype with significant numbers of companies delivering real business value and venture capitalists putting their money behind them,” Dr. Ghaemi commented.
Despite a huge decrease in the total amount of VC funds going into IoT companies last year, all of the reduction came from late stage ventures, with the average investment rising for early stage startups.
Dr. Ghaemi continued: “While the current economy is creating challenges for many startups, investors remain confident in the IoT and are placing larger sums than ever before in early-stage startups who are developing the connected products of the future.”
Tim Bassford, IoT specialist at Avnet Abacus commented: “There is strong evidence pointing towards a future where we will have more and more connected devices, communicating wirelessly, and providing timely and relevant insights from these new sources of data. This provides great potential for companies to operate more efficiently and provide new value to customers, and as a result, the IoT will continue to grow.”
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Edinburgh-based business and technology firm Stellar Omada has recorded revenue of £16.3 million in 2022, up from £9.1m in the previous year.
Colin Frame, Founder and Managing Director of Stellar Omada, said: “As proud as I am of what we have achieved so far, I am even more excited by what is to come for the business as we continue to deliver at scale for our clients.”
“The results are a tribute to the expertise and hard work of all our people, and there is a growing demand for the services we provide. We continue to focus on getting more young people into technology roles to help fill the digital skills gap, especially in Scotland, and as our business expands we are able to offer even more opportunities.”
The company – which specialises in programme delivery and service management – launched an advisory board in 2022 with experienced financial services executives Mark Smith and Russel Saunders as its first appointees.
Since 2015, Smith has been a special advisor to end clients which have included HSBC, first direct, Santander, Lloyds Banking Group and several large Building Societies. He has also held several Non-Executive Director and Trustee positions including start-up and AIM-listed businesses.
Russell Saunders brings over 40 years’ experience working with global banks, regulators, and technology firms, including the support of firms who specialise in technology and banking Services, and global payment and compliance solutions.
Royston Hoggarth, Stellar Omada’s Chair, said: “Having Mark and Russell in place will be invaluable as Stellar moves into its next phase of growth, as both bring a wealth of experience and a vast network which the company can leverage over the months and years ahead.”
Other appointments to the leadership team include Laura Paterson joining as HR director. Paterson spent over a decade with Shell specialising in HR, organisational changes and learning programmes, is a former Board Trustee at Scotland Women in Technology, and was in a senior role at the Net Zero Technology Centre in Aberdeen before joining Stellar.
Stellar Omada continues to work closely with clients from the banking, pensions, and investment management sectors including Hampden & Co, IPSL, Atos, and NatWest.
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Privacy policies from some major streaming sites may require a university reading-level to fully understand, according to new research by VPNOverview.
Listing out all the ways in which an organisation gathers, stores and uses its customer’s personal information and data, privacy policies are what keeps consumers informed about their data protection rights.
However, signing on to the terms and conditions without fully reading them is a common cliche amongst consumers simply trying to use a service – lengthly statements with legal jargon create an added barrier to transparency.
Cybersecurity expert Christ Bluvshtein from VPNOverview has therefpre compared the most complicated and difficult to read privacy policies from top streaming services in order to clarify what data these companies are really after.
Chris Bluvshtein from VPNOverview said: “A privacy policy is one of the most important statements on a company’s website. Skipping over one could put your personally identifiable information at risk of being exposed and resold. This makes you more vulnerable to annoying, unwanted spam calls and having your identity stolen.”
Readability
Disney+ – 2.8
Disney+ was found to be the hardest policy to read with the lowest readibility score out of 100, requiring a university graduate reading level. Coming in at just 2.8, the legal jargon kept consumers in the dark despite only taking about 20 minutes to read.
More concerningly, the policy allows Disney to share data with third parties, and any data shared with these third parties are subject to that party’s privacy practices.
Essentially, Disney+ users are consenting to policies of companies they don’t even know, without knowing it, all for the sake of streaming Ratatouille and The Simpsons.
Netflix – 23.7
Netflix’s policy also required a university graduate reading level, and had one of the longest word counts at 4,977 words, taking about 38 minutes to read.
Data collected by the streaming services include devices used, location, and browsers. Netflix is unclear about why it collects this data, but it could be advantageous as it cracks down on shared accounts.
Spotify – 25.0
With a read time of about 45 minutes, Spotify’s policy also required a university graduate reading level.
Intriguingly, the music streaming service’s policy says it can log and store voice data and build up personal profiles for users. The policy claims to use voice data to “evaluate and develop new features, technologies and improvements to the Spotify service” and “to comply with a legal obligation we are subject to.”
Sky – 29.7
Despite being 1,710, its low readability put Sky’s privacy policy as the fourth most difficult to read, and it also requires a university graduate reading level.
Sky states that it will keep data including payment card and financial history for up to seven years, even after you cancel your subscription. Other types of data such as recorded calls to customer services are deleted after twelve months.
YouTube – 30.6
While still ranking a the fifth most difficult to read, YouTube’s privacy policy would only require a university student’s reading capacity to get through the 872 words.
Sharing policies with Google, YouTube collects and stores search terms, videos watched, and location data to personalise ads to its viewers.
ITV – 35.6
ITV’s privacy policy is only 300 words longer than that of Disney+ however it is much easier to read, only requiring a university student reading level.
The policy states that the user can object to the company processing their personal information and that they will “consider if your rights outweigh our interests and if they do, then we will either restrict our use of your information or delete it.”
The BBC’s streaming service was only 555 words long, requiring only a university student reading level.
The policy is due to be updated, however, but the BBC will require new consent from users if they change the way they use their data.
Apple TV+ -43.4
While Apple TV’s privacy policy includes a ‘do not track’ option for users, it does stipulate that information regarding purchases and downloads for ” at least a 10-year retention period – in China the period is extended to 30 years.
Channel 4 – 56.2
While Channel 4’s privacy policy is the easiest to read, requiring the reading level of a school student, it is also the longest, taking over an hour to read through.
Channel 4 does collect data and provides them to third parties, but ensures these are ‘thoroughly checked.”
Data collected includes housing status, if uses are married or havve children, and household consumption habits.
“The majority of the policies we examined would be considered unreadable for many UK users, given that the majority required at least a university undergraduate reading level, ” Bulvshtein concluded. “This is particularly problematic when you consider that 1 in 7 adults in England alone, have a reading age expected of a 7-9 year old.”
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Despite its popularity, the hybrid working model could be in jeopardy as the cost of living crisis makes working from home less practical for employees.
New research from Sky Connect and Censuswide found that UK freelance workers still want to work from home, but may have to change their work routine in order to handle the cost of living crisis.
Spending less time at home makes economic sense as energy costs continue to rise – 87% of responding remote and freelance workers are worried about how working from home has affected their energy bills.
Furthermore, 78% said the freezing temperatures in January made working from home physically uncomfortable.
“The cost-of-living crisis is a huge concern for consumers and small businesses alike. But for those spending the most time at home, increasing energy bills are understandably putting a strain on personal finances,” said the director of sales and operations at Sky Connect, Stacey Hill.
Of the 1,007 workers Censuswide surveyed, some were freelance and full remote and had no access to offices.
To combat rising costs at home, nearly half (48%) of workers sought out public spaces, such as libraries, cafes, or pubs at least once.
Reasons for working outside the home included saving money on heating costs (57%) and energy bills overall (70%), avoiding commuter costs like gas or public transportation bills (27%), and not having to pay for coworking spaced (27%)
While turning to local businesses may have decreased costs, 72% of workers also noted that unreliable internet connectivity had impacted their ability to find a suitable working space.
If they could find a location with more reliable connectivity, 70% said they were work from these spaces more regularly, about once a week.
“Whilst it’s great to see these workers supporting their local small businesses during an increasingly challenging time for hospitality,” Hill said, “it’ll be important that SMEs create a working environment that keeps these regular customers coming back. This means offering a reliable and secure guest Wi-Fi service that improves customers’ overall experience.”
The investment may be worthwhile for local cafes to attract customers, but this tactic may just pass on the cost of living crisis to local establishments which are also struggling to cope with rising energy bills.
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Fraud in Scotland skyrocketed by 194% during 2022, according research by KPMG.
Specifically, the number of alleged fraud cases over £100,000 being heard in Scottish courts rose significantly last year, with their total value amassing to £1.12bn.
This is an increase of 151% from 2021, which only saw fraud cases reach £447.m in 2021.
KPMG’s bi-annual Fraud Barometer found a total of 24 cases totalling £1.7m reached Scottish courts in 2022, tripling amount the 16 cases worth £5.9 on 2021, with a year to year increase of 194%.
One of the cases involved a 24-year-old Ayrshire man scamming £7 million from a top US bitcoin broker.
Commercial businesses were the victim of five cases of fraud in Scotland with a combined value of £1.3m. Four of these cases were instances of embezzelment.
By both volume and value, however, the general public were the victim of the most cases with 11 cases in 2022 compared to three in 2021. The total value of fraud against the general public also increased to £10.3m, up from £1m in 2021.
Annette Barker, Head of KPMG Forensic in the UK said: “The dramatic increase of fraud cases coming to light in Scotland is worrying, particularly with many cases involving rogue employees abusing their positions of trust to steal money from their employers, clients and other partners.”
Sandra Aitkenhead, Senior Manager, Forensic at KPMG in Scotland, added: “Businesses must do all they can to maintain adequate controls to prevent serious fraud from being committed. Without the right safeguards in place, businesses across Scotland will unfortunately continue to be victims of crime and incur the reputational and financial damage which comes with it.”
Figures from KPMG UK’s Fraud Barometer found that despite the increase in total value of reported fraud cases heard in 2022, the volume of cases fell by 27%. A total of 219 alleged fraud cases reached the courts in 2022, compared to 298 in 2021.
While volume of alleged fraud £100,000 or above decreased and total value increased, the value was largely driven by five cases with a value of £50m or above which were heard in UK courts in 2022. These cases amounted to a total value of £648m, more than half the total value of all the fraud cases heard. This is a stark contrast to 2021 which saw no reported cases over the value of £50m.
Fraud cases against financial institutions halved in 2022, with only 16 cases being heard compared to 32 in 2021. Despite this, the value of fraud committed against financial institutions in 2022 increased dramatically by 2204% to £609.2m.
Reflecting on the data, Roy Waligora, added:“The Fraud Barometer only looks at reported cases heard with a value of £100k or above in UK courts, so the likelihood is that the general public have been the victims of many more frauds. As the cost-of-living hits households, we are likely to see a combination of two things happen.
“Firstly, we are likely to see opportunist fraudsters target the public through specific scams relating to the cost of living, such as a recent energy rebate scam. Secondly, there is likely to be an increase in frauds committed by more amateur criminals as people face financial difficulties. The public must stay vigilant, with the help of businesses, government and the police.”
Investment fraud also saw a large increase in value despite only six more cases being heard in 2022 than in 2021. In 2022 19 cases were heard in UK courts amounting to a total value of £181.8m, compared to 13 cases in 2021 which had a combined value of £12.5m, a 1358% increase in value
Further data revealed in the Barometer reveal that cases of advanced fee fraud, such as romance scams and services paid for but not delivered, increased from nine cases to 19 cases from 2021 to 2022.
In addition, professional criminals were the main perpetators of fraud in 2022, responsible for 92 cases of fraud worth a total of $725.2m, an increase in value of 130% since last year.
Interestingly, management was the second largest group of perpetrators by volume, accounting for just over a quarter of cases in 2022.
Roy Waligora said: “While these cases may seem alarming, it is positive that these cases are making it to UK courts as these alleged crimes are exposed. However, businesses and institutions themselves need to be doing more to stop money laundering activities which are achieving such high values.
“As for investment fraud, investors and potential investors need to be wary of any investment opportunities. They should ensure they are doing their due diligence first by seeking advice and checking the FCA register.”
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Forth Point, the Scottish data business, has been acquired by Blend360, a global provider of data, analytics, and talent solutions for Fortune 500 companies.
Specialising in data engineering, AI and ML solutions, Forth Point’s acquisition is a bid to further strengthen Blend360’s global data capability, a key step in its journey to being at the forefront of data innovation and delivery for clients.
The acquisition comes at a pivotal time for both organisations, as the Forth Point team continues to grow quickly to meet increasing demand and Blend360 looks to expand into new and existing markets in Europe.
Ozgur Dogan, President of Data Science & CX Solutions, commented on the acquisition stating, “Forth Point brings world-class talent and innovative use cases in the areas of supply chain, manufacturing and operations which helps us extend beyond our traditional footprint using Data Science and Data Engineering to optimize business performance.”
Founder and COO of Forth Point, Will Boyle, added, “The vision for Forth Point was to build a business that delivered world-class data solutions and use cases, working in partnership with our clients to have a positive impact on the world.
“The people that make up our team are some of the most passionate and talented individuals I have ever worked with and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved over the last few years. I am looking forward to the next chapter in the Forth Point story as part of the Blend team. I am excited to get started and seize the opportunity to build a truly special team in EMEA.”
Established in 2021, Forth Point has scaled quickly, delivering end-to-end data solutions across a number of industries, including energy, logistics, manufacturing, financial services and more.
The Edinburgh-based company offers services including strategy and consulting, data engineering, data science and business intelligence.
Blend360’s acquisition of Forth Point is part of its expansion across the US, Europe, and India, as it aims to become a leading global player in data and consultancy services.
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Computing degrees are growing in popularity faster than any other course, according to research by BCS.
The Chartered Institute for IT found that a record number of students are applying for computing science degrees in 2023.
January deadline data from UCAS, the university admissions service, shows that the number of young people applying in the UK to study computing has rise by 9.6%.
This is welcomed news for the tech sector, as the skills gap has been limiting digital transformation across industries and hampering cyber security efforts as cybercrimes are on the rise.
The total 92,980 application from UK 18 year olds to start computing degrees in the autumn will help bolster the UK’s tech workforce, as calls for re-training and re-skilling remain loud due to an aging workforce.
Further, 18% more women applied to computing science degrees this year, a higher percentage of growth than seen in other degree subjects. While male students still outnumber female students bu 3.8 to 1, the gender gap is narrowing, as in 2022 it was 4.2 to 1.
Julia Adamson, MD for Education and Public Benefit at BCS said: “Young people – and an increasing proportion of young women – see that a computing degree is a passport to change the world. AI and machine learning are transforming how kids complete homework and how job applicants write the covering letters.
“It’s no wonder so many people see their futures in technology. The more diverse range of people we have working in computing the fairer and more inclusive the results will be for all of us.”
UCAS Chief Executive Clare Marchant said after the publication of the 2023 application figures for full time undergraduate study at UK universities: “We are seeing increased interest in subjects which students perceive to have good career prospects, such as computing and law.”
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The Data and Marketing Association (DMA UK) has announced a new appointment to the DMA Board, Kate Hamilton, Vice President Market, Proximity, and former Board Chair of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).
Hamilton has been an advocate for learning and marketing best practice for over 30 years. An active marketing leader and practitioner, she is a previous DMA Awards Grand Prix winner, and is a Fellow of the DMA’s Institute of Data and Marketing (IDM, awarded in 2003.
Since then, Hamilton has served on the Board of the CIM for six years and was Chair between 2019-2021.
Hamilton said: “Throughout my career, I have championed lifelong learning and easier access to education for our amazing profession. To achieve our industry’s full potential, we must cultivate marketers who not only innovate and inspire, but equally, who advocate for best practice and sound ethics.
“This type of professional and personal development is central to the DMA’s mission to enrich people to help support industry growth – so I am delighted to embark on this journey with the Board and DMA community to achieve these goals.”
In her new role, Hamilton will support the DMA on its ongoing campaigns to diversify skillsets across the industry – helping marketers to develop a combination of data, digital, and creative skills to address rising skills shortages and deliver more successful business outcomes.
As part of the ongoing micro-upskilling campaign, the DMA is calling on senior management teams across the UK to introduce continuous learning cultures within their organisation.
In addition, the DMA continues to partner with the Department for Education (DfE) to offer the UK public Digital Marketing Strategy Skills Bootcamps, funded by the government.
Commenting on the appointment, Stephen Maher, Chair of the DMA Board and CEO of MBA said: “Kate is already widely recognised as a learning ambassador to the creative industries. Her vast experience as a marketing leader, as well as an unrelenting passion for learning and professional development, will make her appointment invaluable to our community’s drive to create continuous learning cultures across every organisation.
“I look forward to receiving her wisdom on how the DMA and our array of skills development initiatives can produce intelligent marketers throughout the industry, from the classroom to the boardroom.”
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The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (Usdaw) is seeking a new deal for workers on the introduction of new technology and automation in their workplaces and better access to training.
Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, with many members also in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry, and other trades.
Tracy Gilbert – Usdaw Regional Secretary for Scotland says: “We are deeply concerned by the vast developments in workplace technology and automation in Scotland in recent years.
“Prior to the pandemic, automation was expected to cost Scotland 230,000 jobs over the next decade. Recent figures highlight the acceleration in automation with an estimated nine in ten employees needing to retrain by 2030.”
Many industries the union represents have been hard by automation, and say the government is not doing enough to retrain workers.
“The Scottish Government’s Flexible Workforce Development Fund offers an opportunity to deliver the skills necessary to adapt to these changes. However, we are clear that in its current form the Fund is failing to help employers access a much higher portion of their Apprenticeship Levy contributions,” Gilbert continued.
Usdaw is therefore calling on the Scottish Labour Party to commit to several demands to protect their members from job cuts amid a recession.
This includes a significant and long-term investment in skills funding, including coordination of skill and adult education budgets across Scotland.
Further, the union is seeking the support of a legal right to paid time off for retraining to encourage greater digital skills among its members.
The Scots Labour Party is also being called on to legislate a requirement for employers to consult on new technology, including the use of Equality Impact Assessments which employers must act upon.
Other stipulations include removing the current single site restrictions and increasing the cap places on individual firms, reviewing the Retail Modern Apprenticeship to ensure a more agile system for adults, and promote action to tackle under-representation.
Gilbert concluded: “We are clear that we need a new deal for workers based on comprehensive skills training, strengthening trade union rights and high quality, secure employment. At the moment it is too easy and too cheap for employers to make workers redundant as a result of the introduction of automation systems; this needs to change. We are looking for the support of conference delegates for this proposition.”
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Layoffs have been a seemingly endless, inescapable constant within the tech news cycle over the last six months – from Microsoft to Zoom, it seems like no one is safe.
Since the end of 2022, major tech companies have been shedding staff left and right to make up for shortfalls in demand and an economy approaching recession.
But why is this happening all of a sudden? And is there any silver lining to big tech’s mass shedding of talent?
In a country facing a national tech skills shortage, with about one in ten jobs being in the tech sector and industries across the board crying out for tech talent, how can thousands of experienced and skilled tech workers be losing their jobs at some of the most successful companies the world has ever seen?
Google and Microsoft are both participating in the AI race, as each company competes with their new chatbots.
Both companies directly addressed their pivot to prioritise AI innovation – staff in other sectors took the hit after each team hired a surplus during the pandemic.
Meta’s announcement was not so specific, but the company’s staff expected cuts as earnings dropped. The company was affected by changing privacy policies which impacted their ad selling capabilities – new GDPR rulings are set to majorly impact the use of personalised ads on Facebook and Instagram, and Zuckerberg said that those in the Family of Apps and Reality departments would be hit the hardest.
Layoffs at Yahoo! were largely the result of restructuring in its advertising departments so it would not be in direct competition with market dominators like Meta and Google.
Dell’s lay-offs were directly linked to a decrease in hardware purchases – most of their revenue came from personal computer sales, and with many returning to the office, these plummeted.
Similarly, Zoom announced it was cutting 15% of it’s workforce, likely driven by the return to the office and the advancement of other video conferencing services that are aligned with other services, like Microsoft Teams.
Spotify and PayPal’s announcements were much less specific, as neither company announced why they were firing or what departments would be most affected.
Twitter had a much more publicly contentious round of layoffs. About 50% of its global staff were fired, with some even locked out of their offices. Elon Musk’s infamous purchase of the company has exhausted the tech news cycle, and the firings came due to a massive loss in revenue as advertisers backed out of the platform.
IBM’s layoffs were a different story – two spin offs from the company meant IBM was effectively releasing workers through the layoffs. The company was actually performing quite well and intends to continue hiring during the progress.
For many companies, the tidal turn is simply a reflection of changing times after the pandemic – demand for tech was high across the board during the pandemic, and many giants took the opportunity to vacuum up talent. Now, the shift in the economy has left tech companies scrambling to make up for lost demand, and often they’ve turned to letting go their most valuable asset: people.
“The tech sector has pivoted from ‘the great resignation’ to ‘the great redundancy’ in the space of only a few months,” Martin Taylor, Co-Founder and Deputy CEO at Content Guru said. “Bullish post-Covid hiring collided with a tough macroeconomic outlook, just as the well of cheap investment cash dried up under the heat of interest rate hikes.”
Many tech workers were attracted to big companies due to a perception of stability as well as more benefits and larger salaries.
“However, given the size and scale of the layoffs, people are now doubting the stability of the largest players and are looking to up-and-coming smaller firms rather than the Big Tech monoliths,” Laurent Descout, CEO of Neo commented.
Silver Linings
It’s no secret that the UK tech sector is enduring a massive skills and talent shortage. Digital transformation projects are hampered by limited tech skills, retraining and up-skilling initiatives are all the rage, and there seem to simply not be enough tech workers to meet demand.
“Hiring and retaining talent in 2021-22 was definitely tough, it seemed that every candidate had four or five offers on the table from companies with big chequebooks,” explained Yoko Spirig, CEO of Ledgy.
But things are looking up for smaller companies.
“It’s never good to see rounds of layoffs but we see a huge opportunity for the ecosystem as a result of the biggest tech companies cutting back,” Spirig said.
“Big tech has got old,” Tom Price-Daniel, Head of Revenue at Teamed said. “The hype cycle ends, and they will seek to reinvent themselves. These headlines mask the explosion in startups globally, driven by decreased costs of failure and increased access to capital. The reality is that the demand for innovation and access to international talent is increasing despite global uncertainties.”
Small companies and start-ups can benefit greatly from the boom and bust of big tech.
“This trend certainly isn’t reflective of the market as a whole which remains incredibly buoyant and we are still seeing a steady demand for tech talent given the widely reported skills shortages, but this has shifted from the larger brands, to the smaller, fast-growth firms,” Craig Freedberg, Regional Director, Technology at Robert Half said.
“Throughout last year, SME employers struggled to recruit because the best talent were being snapped up by the big players. This balance has now swung back to the smaller businesses where we expect the lion’s share of the hiring demand to stay for the coming months.”
The UK cannot squander the opportunity these massive layoffs provide. Smaller companies struggled to attract talent when competing with tech giants, but now the tables have turned.
“With big tech hoovering up less of the talent, startup and scaleup companies can find the quality skilled employees they need to help a small business grow,” Martin Ford, CEO of POPX said.
“Taking advantage of this available talent is a sure-fire way to help further the UK as a tech giant, hopefully turning larger cities into digital hubs that continue to attract businesses and talent from across the globe to promote economic growth,” Michelle Stark, Sales and Marketing Director at Fasthosts said.
But small businesses have to prove themselves in the fight for tech talent.
“There will be people all over the UK affected by these layoffs, and tech companies big or small should be taking advantage of this fact,” Stark continued. “It’s a vital time to reassure those affected that the skills they have accrued are irreplaceable — offering roles with competitive pay, and assured job security, to prevent the tech industry from losing an immense amount of talent.”
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Business owners, technology leaders, developers, and those involved in new enterprise and start-ups are being encouraged to attend a free Amazon Web Services (AWS) user meet-up taking place in Dundee on Wednesday 22 February.
AWS provide various cloud computing services and APIs to companies, including networking, IOT services, storage, and middleware.
Held at DC Thomson, the evening of networking and knowledge sharing, is based around the AWS ethos of fostering friendly and open peer-to-peer communities and follows on from their inaugural event held last year.
Attendees will hear from two guest speakers, James Bungard, Solutions Architect at AWS and Barry Parkin, Cloud Engineer at Brightsolid.
Each will present and answer questions on the topical themes of Security and Compliance and the multi-purpose IAC tool, Terragrunt.
Commenting on the event, attendee and group member Darren Purvis said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for those of us involved in the field to come together, share best practice, discover new innovations, and feel inspired.
“The first event demonstrated a real demand for such a group where individuals can tap into all the benefits, tools, and technologies of AWS. The continued evolution of the meetup group will no doubt enhance career growth and skills for all attendees.”
The event is open to beginners and experts in AWS, and those interested can register for the free event here.
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UK IT consultancy businesses are becoming increasingly confident about their financial prospects, according to a new survey by Integro Accounting.
The positive outlook is in stark contrast to the deepening gloom in many other sectors of the economy, such as retail, housebuilding, and hospitality.
Integro Accounting sampled thousands of businesses across the UK, and found the tech sector to have the most confidence across the board compared to other industries.
On the questions “How much confidence do you have that your business will survive the next three months?”, 89% of IT consultancy businesses that they are highly confident, with only 1% having low confidence. This is a steady improvement over the last three years, with only 79% and 76% reporting high confidence when asked the same question in 2021 and 2020 respectively.
Further, over half (57%) of the UK IT consultancy businesses surveyed feel business performance will increase during 2023, with only 2% believing that performance will decrease – a marked contrast to other sectors in the economy, with only veterinarians coming close to the same level of optimism.
Talent shortages in the IT sector are also easing, with over two thirds (67%) of IT business leaders reporting that they are not experiencing a shortage of workers, up from 62% at the end of 2021.
Christian Hickmott, Managing Director of Integro Accounting, comments: “While many IT consultancy businesses struggled during the pandemic, they have generally shown greater resilience and emerged in a much stronger position than most other sectors of the economy.”
“Despite the economic upheavals of the last few years the UK’s tech sector is rebounding strongly at a time when many other sectors of the economy are contracting. Covid-19 policy accelerated market shifts that have outlasted the pandemic, which has been to the benefit of much of the UK’s tech sector but to the detriment of other sectors of the economy.”
He added: “Businesses are continuing to invest in digital transformation projects to drive productivity gains as a way of lessening the impact of inflation. This should provide a boost in demand for tech skills.”
Despite the generally positive news for the IT sector, however, there is growing evidence that inflation is eating into the profit margins of the IT businesses with the majority reporting that they are having to absorb costs, rather than pass them on to clients.
43% of IT businesses are reporting that they have absorbed the cost of price rises, while only 17% have successfully passed on price rises to customers.
Christian Hickmott says: “While inflationary pressures are clearly having an impact on the overheads of IT businesses, most other sectors of the economy are faring worse in terms of having to absorb those costs. Strong demand for software and IT services puts tech businesses in a relatively stronger position when negotiating price increases with customers.”
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US-based software company, Invisors, has chosen Glasgow for its new European headquarters.
Invisors, a Workday Services Partner, provides initial development, optimisation, and ongoing support services in the UK, Ireland, Canada and the US for Workday’s full suite of products.
The suite of services include human capital management, financial management, adaptive planning, prism analytics, and extend.
After working with a number of local partner organisations, including Invest Glasgow, Scottish Development International (SDI) and Skills Development Scotland (SDS), the company has opened its new office on Queen Street in Scotland’s largest city.
Mark Hallan, Director of Global Investment at SDI, said: “Invisors is an innovative company enjoying rapid growth and it’s great news that the firm has chosen Glasgow to continue its global expansion.
“As part of our ‘Team Scotland’ approach to attracting inward investment, we’ve been pleased to work with our partners across the public sector to support Invisors with their decision to locate in Glasgow. The company’s presence in Scotland has steadily grown since the opening of the Glasgow office, demonstrating the talented workforce that exists in the local area.”
Since its opening, Invisors has already hired approximately 20 employees across the UK, about half of whom are based in the Glasgow office.
As part of its development and expansion in Europe, the company is targeting incremental growth in employee numbers.
Matt Smith, EMEA Operations Lead at Invisors, said: “I’m based in the Glasgow area, so was pleased that our due diligence indicated that Glasgow would be a strong location for our plans. We have seen a lot of value so far in the local talent we have attracted and the support we have received from local partners.”
Recently, Invisor received partnership status from Workday to deliver Workday deployments in the UK and Ireland, after displaying their commitment to helping European companies migrate their HR and financial systems to Workday and provide ongoing support and optimisation once live.
“This is a fantastic recognition from Workday on the team we have built here in less than a year and outlines our commitment to Workday globally,” says Matt Lawrence, EMEA Commercial Lead at Invisors. “We are excited to work closely with Workday helping customers here in the United Kingdom and Ireland adopt the best-in-class applications for finance, HR, and more.”
Anne Murray, Inward Investment Manager at Invest Glasgow, said: “Invest Glasgow is excited to welcome Invisors to Glasgow and to be able to support the establishment of their first European office. In choosing Glasgow, Invisors recognise the quality and availability of a world class talent pool and we are also delighted that they have earmarked Glasgow for the UK headquarters for their graduate scheme.
“As well as their focus on recruiting from the Glasgow graduate population, we are pleased to learn that their growth strategy will see the creation of new jobs for analysts year on year from the wider employment pool. The company’s award-winning ethos of delivering training, coaching and mentoring programmes to their team of recruits signals a very positive addition to the Glasgow business base.”
Marion Beattie, Head of Skills Growth and Inward Investment at SDS, said: “People and skills are amongst the key elements businesses consider when deciding where to invest, and SDS is proud to work as part of Team Scotland in helping employers such as Invisors to locate here.
“Scotland offers a highly responsive skills and education system which is geared to meet the needs of employers, making us an attractive destination for inward investors.”
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and West Yorkshire police force have raided several potential illegally operated crypto ATMS.
Following investigations into the supposed crypto rings, the FCA in a joint operation with West Yorkshire Police’s Digital Intelligence and Investigation Unit have inspected several sites aorund Leeds that were suspected to be operating illegal crypto ATMS.
Crypto ATMS are machines which allow customers to buy or convert funds into cryptoassets.
Crypto-asset exchange providers in the UK must be registered with the FCA and comply with UK Money Laundering Regulations – however, currently there are no crypto ATM operators with FCA registration, meaning any operating in the UK are doing so illegally.
In anticipation of illegal operations, the FCA gave written warning to all operators and hosts of the legal consequences of failing to register with the FCA.
While this is a UK first, it may become more common as the FCA continues to work with local police forces to crack down on and disable illegal crypto ATMS.
Mark Steward, Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the FCA said: “Crypto businesses operating in the UK need to be registered with the FCA for anti-money laundering purposes.
“However, crypto products themselves are currently unregulated and high-risk, and you should be prepared to lose all your money if you invest in them.”
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Morgan Stanley has announced a doubling of the size of its Inclusive Ventures Lab (MSIVL), an accelerator programme that invests in start-ups lead by women and ethnically diverse founders.
During 2023, the Lab aims to identify ten early-stage businesses selected from applicants across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, who will be invited to participate in a bespoke five-month programme designed to accelerate the business growth of each start-up. This is a doubling of the five small companies selected in last year’s cohort.
This year, Scotland, with its growing start-up sector and established base of diverse entrepreneurs running emerging companies, is being targeted as a source of applications to the accelerator programme.
Vida Rudkin, Head of Morgan Stanley Glasgow, said: “Having been here for over 20 years, Morgan Stanley knows that right across Scotland there are determined and inspirational people with great business ideas. We believe the MSIVL is a proven, unrivalled opportunity to overcome the barriers faced by many of our most promising entrepreneurs, to participate as part of a truly international cohort of like-minded people and ultimately transform the growth prospects for their businesses.”
Applications for this year’s Lab will be opened for six weeks from 14 February, when a process to determine the final cohort of ten start-ups will kick off.
Businesses looking to take part in the initiative should demonstrate strong growth prospects in the development of innovative technology solutions which promote a more inclusive, sustainable future.
The Lab started in 2017 as a direct response to critical research showing that multicultural and female business founders faced systemic disadvantages, particularly in access to capital.
Over the last ten years, less than 3% of venture capital funds invested in the UK went to teams of all-female founders and less than 2% to teams of all multicultural founders.
The Lab aims to address these disparities, not only through the bank’s equity investments in these early-stage high growth companies but also supporting their growth and development needs through the intensive five-month programme involving Morgan Stanley mentors and advisers alongside external industry experts.
The programme culminates in a Demo Day, where all participants get the opportunity to present to a network of investors brought together from across Morgan Stanley’s global networks. These investors can help provide further capital and cultivate strategic partnerships, to transform the development trajectory of the businesses.
In the past five years, 69 companies from the US and EMEA have participated in the programme, going on to raise over $150 million in additional funding.
Sanghamitra Karra, Managing Director and head of MSIVL in EMEA added: “The experience of this programme to date has been inspirational in demonstrating the strong pipeline of women and minority entrepreneurs and the critical importance of dedicated growth capital and access to strategic advice and mentorship. Following the success of the 2022 programme, we are very excited to double our efforts in the region and invest in up to ten high growth companies founded by entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds.”
Further information on the Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Lab is available at www.morganstanley.com/msivl and applications open from 14th February.
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£6.5 million is being dedicated to the UK Space Sector across 18 different schemes, aiming to ‘level up’ the industry.
High impact, locally-led schemes and space cluster development managers will receive the support across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
The projects aim to harness space-enabled technologies to address local priorities, such as using Earth Observation data to improve local public services and help innovative engineering companies access the UK’s growing space markets.
Secretary of State for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Michelle Donelan, said: “These projects will tap into the wealth of talent found in places like Cornwall and the east Midlands, as well as across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while using space and satellite technology to support local communities.
“This funding will help link local clusters to valuable networks of innovators and investors, showcasing the strengths of the UK space sector to international investors and levelling up the economy.”
Supported by the Satellite Applications Catapult, the UK Space Agency‘s delivery partner, the projects are focused on piloting local activity that could be scaled up and rolled out nationally.
The funding also follows £600,000 given to ten space clusters across the UK in February 2022, with some of those same groups receiving further funding this round.
Part of this funding will support local areas to appoint Space Cluster Managers: individuals who will work with local government, businesses, and academia to coordinate space activity and encourage collaboration and inward investment.
Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency, said: “Establishing a network of space clusters and high impact projects will accelerate the development of the thriving space ecosystem the UK needs to realise the full economic potential of space across the UK.
“We’ve been working with the regions to understand their strengths and the needs of their local space economies so that we can back these clusters of excellence to collaborate, grow and thrive.”
The UK Space Agency funding also includes £1.5 million for an expert consortium of business support providers, led by Entrepreneurial Spark, to work with entrepreneurs from all over the UK and help them get involved in the space sector.
A previous collaboration between the UK Space Agency and Entrepreneurial Spark, aimed at space start-ups, generated almost £9 million in investment and created 80 new jobs for those who took part in the business support programme.
Stuart Martin, Chief Executive Officer at the Satellite Applications Catapult said: “We have a long-standing commitment to driving the growth of the UK space sector at a regional level and are delighted to continue our support for the delivery of this investment, with our focus on building a coherent space community.
“This additional funding will help cement relationships across the UK’s space community while forging new collaborations with those not yet utilising and benefiting from space data and technology. We look forward to ensuring that the sector as a whole takes advantage of the opportunities presented through these locally led initiatives and supporting a connected and thriving ecosystem.”
Space Scotland will receive £373,000 from the fund to strengthen the Scottish space ecosystem by enabling initiatives to reduce its environmental impact, addressing workforce skills challgenges, and leveraging new market opportunities with neighbouring and novel sectors.
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The University of Glasgow is set to acquire a cutting-edge scientific instrument – the electron diffractometer – after securing £1.8m in funding.
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of the UK Research and Innovation, has provided the funding in support of the University’s acquisition of an electron diffractometer.
Determination of crystal structures – the precise identification and arrangements of atoms within molecules and materials – can help scientists understand the inner workings of materials and how they can be used, spurring advancements in a wide range of scientific disciplines.
Currently, crystal structures are determined by X-ray diffraction, but by using beams of electrons to study materials instead, it is possible to anlayse much smaller crystals than previously possible – materials down to 50 nanometers in size.
Electron diffraction greatly expands the scope of materials for which scientists can determine crystal structures, and is expected to particularly impact research in the pharmaceutical and green energy industries.
Crucially, it can also deliver analytical results faster than alternative methods, offering structure determination of nanomaterials in less than an hour as opposed to weeks or months.
Until recently, it was only possible to perform electron diffraction through custom-built or modified microscopes, limiting their access for general-purpose use.
Standalone electron diffractometers have only just become commercially available, and the University of Glasgow will be home to the third commercial one in the UK; only about a dozen are expected to be installed globally in 2023.
Ross Forgan, Professor of Supramolecular and Materials Chemistry, led the process to bring the equipment to the University, with support from experienced crystallographer Dr Claire Wilson, manager of the College of Science and Engineering Analytical Suite.
Professor Forgan said: “I’m grateful for EPSRC’s support to help bring this new electron diffractometer to Glasgow, which will put us in a unique position for an independent UK research university.
“Up until very recently, electron diffraction was out of reach for almost everyone. Having early access to these new dedicated machines, which offer advances of a couple of orders of magnitude over their x-ray equivalents, will be transformative.
“It will help to underpin breakthrough research across a wide range of fields, from chemical synthesis to new cancer therapies to the development of new catalysts for energy production which can support the global drive towards net-zero.”
The diffractometer will become a vital part of the University’s growing College Analytical Suite, which provides researchers at the University, colleagues at other institutes and commercial clients with access to a wide range of highly sophisticated equipment..
Professor Forgan added: “Adding an electron diffractometer to the Analytical Suite will help strengthen the University’s position as a one-stop shop for material imaging, analysis and structural characterisation. I’m looking forward to being able to use it to support my own research, as well as seeing how it will push forward new research across a diverse set of disciplines.”
The instrument is expected to be installed on campus in early 2024 after a short tendering process.
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Edinburgh-based Clevermed, the health tech company, has been acquired by System C, one of the UK’s providers of hospital-wide software for the NHS.
The acquisition has aims to unlock growth and investment for its flagship product, the parent and baby health system, BadgerNet.
Currently, nearly every baby in a neonatal unit in the UK have their details in Badgernet – by the end of 2023, it’s estimated that 45% of UK pregnancies will be recorded on the product.
Along with clinical access, every day the system supports over 40,000 women and families across the UK who log in for a view of their notes or their baby’s neonatal journey online through the Badger Notes mobile app.
Clevermed created a single joined up pregnancy and newborn record operating between Trusts and Health Boards, first across Scotland and then rolled out in England, allowing clinicians, pregnant people, and families to have a full view of their record, wherever they are.
Jane Stephenson, Clevermed CEO said: “Clevermed was founded because there is a great need for IT systems to be part of the wider NHS journey in improving care for newborns, women and families. Many people who work at Clevermed have had a baby in the neonatal unit or have gone through a tough pregnancy and are personally invested in our mission.
“There is a real passion for what we do at Clevermed. Driven by constant improvement, the people working here want to make sure the product gets better every day.”
Speaking of the acquisition Nick Wilson, CEO of System C said: “The acquisition is a natural fit culturally and technologically. Our values align and our products will work well together enabling us to offer better healthcare outcomes through digital services.”
Clevermed provides electronic maternity and neonatal records for patients to all key stakeholders including clinicians and parents.
It works with Health Boards and Trusts in the UK and has worked closely with the New Zealand government and clinical community for over ten years.
The senior team at Clevermed will remain in place after the acquisition committed to delivering on a five-year plan.
“We are excited about the future with System C, and the potential it will unlock for Clevermed, the BadgerNet System and for our team,” said Peter Badger, Clevermed’s Founder.
“We have a close relationship with our staff, the Health Boards and Trusts, and look forward to exploring the many benefits that this partnership will bring to them.
WThis is an eagerly awaited next chapter for us, which is all about providing a fantastic platform for continued and exciting innovations in Women and Children’s Health going forward.”
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Following the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a new initiative has been launched to help people return to science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) careers.
The scheme, led by the Minister for Women and Equalities Kemi Bandenoch and backed by £150,000 of government funding, will be run by Women Returners and STEM Returners, and will target those who have taken lengthly career breaks to care for others, in a bid to give them skills they’ll need to succeed in the workplace.
Minister for Women and Equalities, and Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch MP, said:
“In the last decade we have seen more girls studying STEM subjects at school and university, but we know that too many women later drop out of those careers because they need to care for children or elderly relatives.
“We are investing in returners so we can plug the STEM gap, increase workplace equality, and boost our economy. That’s good business sense.”
The number of women in STEM has been steadily dwindling. Between 2009 and 2020, there was a near 30% increase in girls starting STEM A-levels in England, and between 2011 and 2020, the number of women accepted to full-time STEM undergraduate courses increased by 50.1% in the UK.
In 2020, however, women only made up 29.4% of the STEM workforce in the UK. While the tech skills gap is wide, the gender gap within it is deeply problematic for the industry.
According to the UK Commission’s Employer Skills Survey 2013, 43% of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) vacancies are hard to fill.
At the same time, there were approximately 75,000 people who were economically inactive due to caring responsibilities, had not worked for at least 12 months, had a STEM occupation immediately before their career break, and would like to return to work in the future. The majority of these potential returners are women.
Minister for Women, Maria Caulfield MP, said: “We know there are women across the country who have left their jobs to care for elderly relatives or children, and want to return to work.
“This pilot will help organisations to recruit those who are too often overlooked because of a gap on their CV.”
Women Returners, experts in return to work consulting, coaching and networking, will support parents and carers back into the workplace through personalised employability support, sector-specific refresh training, and work opportunities.
The STEM ReCharge pilot will provide support and training to technology and engineering returners in the Midlands and the North of England. It will also provide support and training for STEM employers on supportive returner hiring and inclusive recruitment practices.
There is a pressing need in these regions to provide this job-readiness support tailored to parents and carers returning to STEM, together with training for STEM employers to create more supported routes back to work for career returners,” Julianne Miles, CEO of Women Returners said.
“We’re confident that this comprehensive programme of support will help to accelerate the removal of the career break penalty in the UK.”
However, a poll by People Management in 2021 found that women were more likely to face bias when they attempted to return to STEM jobs after a career break. Further, they also received more negative bias due to childcare responsibilities than men.
Re-training women may only be half the problem, but re-skilling initiatives are becoming widespread across the UK to address the overwhelming tech skills shortage.
Natalie Desty, Director of STEM Returners, said: “We are delighted to be supporting the Government Equality Hub in increasing the opportunity for Returners in STEM and lowering the barriers they face when they try to resume their careers.
“This programme will allow us to continue our mission to help create a diverse, inclusive and equitable STEM sector. We are especially delighted to be collaborating on this project with Women Returners, as working together we can achieve more.”
This is just one of the already 25 funded returner programmes the government has launched across the private and public sectors.
£1.5 million has been granted to support projects in the private sector as well as targeting key professions in the public sector, such as social workers and health professionals.
Return to work schemes are a part of Chancellor Hunt’s intentions to transform the British economy. He called on those who retired to re-enter the workforce to help boost the struggling UK economy.
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£150,000 of funding awarded by the Scottish Enterprise will go towards two university projects focusing on green energy and renewables.
The High Growth Spin Out funding is directed at products and companies formed from university work and aims to support new research and technology to strengthen Scotland’s innovative economy.
Jane Martin managing director of innovation and investment at Scottish Enterprise said: “Our high growth spin out programme is proven to help leading academics to turn innovative ideas into business ventures by providing investment and advice to start-up, commercialise and scale.
The University of Edinburgh will receive £75,000 to support their heat exchange technology project for marine environments called Seawarm.
A further £75,000 will be awarded to the University of Aberdeen’s project LDC which is developing current circuit breaker systems for renewable energy projects.
Aberdeen-based digital company Eserve has announced the completion of an investment deal with Vespa Capital LLP.
Eserve’s engineering know-how and technology is seeking to change the way companies maintain their complex industrial assests, using the 3D digital twin software AS-TEG.
The deal will enable Eserve to continue to drive their international growth, augment their team and expand their capabiltities in AS-TEG.
Dan Millard, founder and CEO of Eserv said: “After performing a strategic review we set out to find an investment partner that would help strengthen our balance sheet to super charge our international growth plan, as well as further invest into our staff and technology development.”
Khidhr Shafiq, Director at Vespa Capital said: “Dan and the team at Eserv have developed an impressive and innovative solution that has a proven track record of providing a quick positive return on investment when implemented; this is driving the rapid adoption of digital twin technology.”
Pufferfish, which uses its spherical displays to create immersive solutions for clients including Google, NASA, BBC, Fortum, Amazon Prime and Aramco, has exceeded its £600,000 target in the latest funding round.
The company will use the funding to expedite its growth plans in the market for interactive, multi-sensory and immersive spherical display experiences.
The bulk of the funding was secured from existing investors, including Scottish Enterprise and Par Equity, with additional funding coming from a small group of new private investors.
The Edinburgh-based tech firm will use the fresh injection of capital to maximise commercial opportunities from the ongoing revolution in the digital display market, particularly in supporting its Go To Market activities, product innovation and exciting new product launches.
Elaine Van Der Berg said: “We have the latest funding now secured and the beginnings of a new leadership team at the helm. With advances in technology fuelling the demand for multi-sensory, immersive, audio-visual experiences across a range of sectors, from art and entertainment to science and education, Pufferfish is primed and ready to continue to bolster its position as the market-leading end-to-end provider of spherical interactive displays and services.”
PneumoWave, the digital health company, has closed on a £7.5 million Series A financing deal, hoping to enable clinical validation and regulatory submission of its biosensor technology platform.
The round comprises £5.2 million equity from new investors Scottish National Investment Bank, as welll as £2.3 million from existing investors Scottish Enterprise, IIG, Equity Gap, Alba Equity, and London and Scottish Investment Partners.
The HealthTech company specialises in remote wireless diagnosing and monitoring of potentially fatal respiratory changes in high-risk patient groups.
Dr. Bruce Henderson, co-founder and CEO of PneumoWave said: “Working with leading international centres, we will now be able to accelerate our clinical validation leading to a planned regulatory submission in early 2024.”
The AI technology of PneumoWave’s wearable biosensors can alert carers and emergency medical services when a wearer’s health is at risk and in need of urgent assistance.
“We believe our platform will provide an invaluable tool for increasing the effectiveness of opioid use disorder treatment programmes as well as respiratory disorders in general,” Henderson added.
Edinburgh-based VC Par Equity has invested £38 million in early-stage technology businesses across the North of the UK in 2022, backing 27 companies in total, ten of which were new additions to the portfolio.
Continuing to build out its capabilities to lead and support Seed and Series A funding rounds, Par Equity focuses on business-to-business IP-rich technology solutions with industry transforming potential, typically in climate and health tech fields as well as industry 4.0.
Four of the new investments were based in Scotland, with the rest of them spread across the North of the UK. A further company, StretchSense, which has its headquarters in New Zealand, raised £4.2m to build out its European operations from Scotland.
Notable investments in Scotland include in Integrated Graphene, a 3D graphene foam output based in Stirling, and Novosound, the ultrasound sensor specialist based in Glasgow.
Andrew Noble, Partner at Par Equity, said: “These companies are reflective of the types of things we get excited about. They have developed game-changing and hard-to-replicate technologies with global applicability.
“As an economic zone, the North of the UK is the equivalent of the 8th largest country in Europe and the 20th largest in the world. We see enormous opportunity here. Our world-class academic institutions and technology hubs are awash with innovation and there’s a fantastic pipeline of talent emerging across the North of the UK.”
Foresight Group has announced the launch of a new fund dedicated to investment in Scotland.
The first close, at more than £60m, was supported by cornerstone commitments from Strathclyde Pension Fund and British Business Investments, a wholly-owned commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank.
This is Foresight’s eleventh regional fund, replicating the successful strategy already deployed in other regions of the UK. It is also Foresight’s second fund dedicated to Scotland, having launched the £32m Foresight Scottish Growth Fund with the support of the Scottish Government in 2019.
The Fund will support the local Scottish economy and deliver a positive social impact across Scotland, creating high-quality, local jobs. Since 2016, Foresight’s regional funds have created thousands of jobs in regions throughout the UK.
Matt Smith, Partner at Foresight Group, commented: “We are very pleased to be launching this Fund in partnership with British Business Investments and Strathclyde Pension Fund. We look forward to delivering a positive impact and working with exciting growth SMEs throughout Scotland to create value and jobs.”
Gigged.AI is set to scale its HR tech as companies address hiring freezes and staff retention.
The company has also secured its latest investment, a £1.6m seed round led by Par Equity alongside existing investor Techstart Ventures, Edinburgh-based strategic design firm Nile HQ, and a number of leading entrepreneurs.
Glasgow-headquartered startup Gigged.AI deploys AI-matching algorithms to help businesses source and onboard on-demand tech talent, while enabling SMEs and larger corporates to retain existing staff. Clients signed up to the platform include the BBC, ATOS, Webhelp, Skyscanner, FanDuel, and the University of Edinburgh.
The company plans to grow its team over the next twelve months, remotely in addition to its Glasgow and London hubs, and has a number of partnerships and contract wins in the pipeline this year.
Gigged.AI’s CEO Wilson identifies hiring in a time of recession as a major theme in 2023: “We used to talk about the ‘war for talent’, when demand outstripped supply, and now we’re in a phase where there are lay-offs and hiring freezes, particularly across the global technology sector, so this is something we are working really closely with clients on at the moment.”
Launched in January 2022 by metasurface physicists Charles Altuzarra and Yash Shah, the company has created a first-of-its-kind long-distance camera that can distinguish between different materials from a still image, with potential benefits to a range of sectors.
To prove the capabilities of the remote imaging technology, the pair are in talks with the UK Space Agency to join one of this year’s rocket launches from British soil.
Dr Charles Altuzarra, co-Founder and CEO of Metahelios, said: “It has always been a dream to be involved in a space mission and the development of this imaging technology could soon see that become a reality.”
Charles and Yash recently each received a £25,000 loan through the programme, with the support of Transmit Startups. The combined £50,000 finance will enable them to invest in manufacturing and testing prototypes, as well as growing the team.
Edinburgh-based AstroAgency has secured a further three projects with the UK Space Agency, following along from their current partnership.
AstroAgency was founded in 2019 as a full service marketing agency dedicated to space, offering PR and media relations, content creation, digital and offline promotions and branding services.
Currently, the company is working along side the UK Space Agency to promote the benefits of the Clearing the LEO Environment with Active Removal (CLEAR) mission, led by ClearSpace, to remove defunct satellites from orbit.
They have also won new private sector contracts with leading global space consultancy Euroconsult, following a competitive tender process involving several different marketing agencies, and onboarded space data firm Earthwave for a short-term project to promote its latest products to the US market.
The positive news comes after a tumultuous year for AstroAgengy, which faced turmoil due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A number of the firm’s staff based in the country were caught up in the conflict, including Chief Operations Officer Daria Filichkina, who fled the country with her young son in April last year.
Antonio Duduianu, AstroAgency’s Senior Project Manager and a recent recipient of the Sir Arthur Clarke Award from the British Interplanetary Society, stated: “This is a tremendous achievement following what was an emotionally challenging year for us and it sets us up well for our fourth year of operations and international expansion targets.
Edinburgh-based AI provider, Blackford Analysis, has been acquired by Bayer, a global life science company, in a bid to bring its medical AI imaging technology to a wider audience.
Spun out from the University of Edinburgh in 2010, Blackford has a presence in the UK and the US focused on providing healthcare providers with tailored tools and services to unlock the value of medical imaging AI, driving efficiencies and improving patient outcomes.
Blackford founder and CEO, Ben Panter, said: “Blackford exists to improve the lives of patients and populations by unlocking the adoption and benefits of medical imaging AI and we explored a number of funding options to expand the company to deliver this mission.”
Following the acquisition, Blackford will continue to operate as an independent organisation on an arm’s-length basis to preserve its entrepreneurial culture. It will remain headquartered in Scotland, and no changes in management or staff are expected.
“Adding Blackford and its AI technology to our radiology portfolio secures Bayer an excellent position in the fastest growing segment within the overall global radiology industry,” Stefan Oelrich, Member of the Board of Management, Bayer AG, and President of Bayer’s Pharmaceutical Division, said.
It has been confirmed that Tech Nation will no longer be the recipient of the £12.09 million Digital Growth Grant after a six-year tenureship.
Barclays Eagle Labs has been awarded the grant intended to boost small and scaling tech businesses throughout the UK following an open competition and subsequent assessment by an independent panel.
Minister for Tech and the Digital Economy, Paul Scully, said: “We want to unlock the potential of the next generation of start-ups and scale-ups and boost tech businesses in all corners of the country.
“Barclays Eagle Labs are digital industry experts and will help tens of thousands of tech firms and founders to achieve their dreams and create jobs and economic growth.
Amanda Allan, Director of Barclays Eagle Labs, said: “Eagle Labs’ vision is to make the UK tech sector an engine for growth and for the UK to be the best place in the world to start and grow a tech business.”
In a response put out to media, Tech Nation stated that ‘in anticipation of the Government’s decision to award the Digital Growth Grant to another party, we have been working around the clock to secure our future and continue delivering for UK scaleups.’
Scottish startup Waire Health is set to scale its sensor technology that is designed to improve remote ward monitoring and reduce hospital readmissions, following an investment from St Andrews-based Eos Advisory, a £2 million round secured alongside Scottish Enterprise.
The funding will see the company grow its management team, production, and product development capabilities, while enabling Waire Health to accelerate expansion in global markets including North America.
Waire Health’s remote patient monitoring device, C-Detect, operates in hospitals and homes autonomously, reducing costs and improving outcomes through continuous real-time monitoring and advanced artificial intelligence. The company sells platform agnostic sensors primarily to healthcare technology platform providers, who in turn sell into hospitals and other healthcare organisations.
Kathrina Skinner, COO, Waire Health, said: “One of the things we’re proud of is our Scottish heritage, and the fact that we develop and manufacture the product here, something that we were effectively forced to do during the pandemic. And the name of the company, ‘Waire’, actually comes from the Scottish Gaelic language where ‘aire’ means care, concern, and responsibility.”
The UK Space Agency has announced £50 million of funding for innovative projects that will supercharge the UK’s satellite communications industry.
The funding, part of the European Space Agency (ESA) Advanced Research in Telecommunications Services (ARTES) programme, is available for a range of projects, such as developing new satellite constellations, ground, and end-to-end systems.
“Developing UK space capabilities and maximising commercial opportunities are key to the National Space Strategy, as part of our plans to become a leading power in space and build on a sector already worth £16.5 billion to the UK economy,” Science Minister George Freeman said.
UK Space Agency CEO Dr Paul Bate said: “This is an exciting time to be involved in the satellite communications industry as the world increases its dependence on these services to manage business, travel, security, infrastructure, connectivity, and more.
“This funding will help UK companies that have the right expertise and ambition to become global players in this market and lead on ground-breaking technologies that will enhance the wider UK space sector, create jobs and generate further investment.”
Scottish EDGE has received a new boost after a number of substantial EDGE Pledges were recently honoured, totalling over £125,000.
Over the past nine years, Scottish EDGE has invested over £20 million into businesses with high-growth potential.
To ensure its long-term sustainability, the organisation invites previous winners to sign up to the EDGE Pledge to contribute a minimum of 1% of exit proceeds back into the fund.
The EDGE initiative encourages established entrepreneurs to invest in the success of fellow upcoming talent.
Scottish EDGE has a total of 168 pledges currently active from former winners dating back to the first round of the competition, including Appointed, Novosound, Enterobiotix and Ooni Pizza Ovens.
Evelyn McDonald, CEO of Scottish EDGE added: “One of the bedrock principles of the Scottish EDGE fund is to encourage recipients to give back to the fund, so that the entrepreneurs of the future can continue to benefit.
“We are thrilled that several generous pledges have recently been honoured, which will enable more businesses to continue the positive cycle of creativity and innovation that we have been proudly championing for almost a decade.”
Future roads could be built using asphalt made from grass cuttings and ‘carbon capturing’ cement, supported by £30 million government funding awarded to seven net zero projects.
The projects, spread across the UK, (specifically, England) from Lanarkshire to Devon, have been awarded funding through the Live Labs 2: Decarbonising Local Roads competition.
The programme supports projects led by local highways authorities focused on tackling the long-term decarbonisation of highway infrastructure, such as streetlights, and transforming local authorities’ approach to decarbonising roads.
Roads Minister Richard Holden said: “The UK is a world leader in technology and innovation and we must use that strength to drive decarbonisation and the next generation of high tech jobs that go alongside it.
“We are supporting this vital agenda to help level-up through £30 million funding for ground-breaking projects and boosting regional connections to support growth.
“The government is determined to create good, well paid jobs – via innovation and investment across the UK – as we accelerate the road to net zero.”
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As a technical firm, Akari specializes in tailored solutions using the Microsoft technology stack and apps that sit on top of Microsoft Teams and the Power Platform, to solve specific business challenges.
Stuart Fenton, Managing Partner for Woolf Partners, announced that significant investment would be made to expand the business’s capability, capacity and scale.
“This is a strategic investment to build upon the tremendous potential of Akari’s innovative technical talent and ideas that have already made such a positive impact,” he said.
Woolf Partners was advised by martinwolf, specialists in mid-market mergers and acquisitions focusing on Microsoft, Oracle and ServiceNow Channel Partners, as well as MSPs, MSSPs, and IT Services businesses.
Akari’s capabilities in consulting, implementation and manages services extend across the fastest growth areas for Microsoft’s Power Platform, which comprises Power Automate, Power BI, Power Apps and Power Virtual Agents, as well as Microsoft Modern Workplace and Microsoft Teams.
Andrea Bright, formerly COO of QUANTIQ will become the new CEO of Akaria; company founder Margaret Totten will remain on the company’s board and focus on marketing.
Other new appointments include Derek Walton as Chief Financial Officer, with Woolf Partners Mike Lazenby and Peter Martin becoming non-executive board members.
Totten commented “Stuart and his team bring capital and a wealth of experience to help drive and grow Akari to greater heights – we continue to be committed to Microsoft technologies and expect to expand within Power Platform, Teams, Modern Workplace, Data & Analytics and Security.”
Future plans for the company include opening a new office in London near Microsoft in order to enable a closer working relationship.
Akari’s base, however, will remain in Glasgow, with hybrid working still in place.
Andrea Bright commented: “I am thrilled to be working with the team at Akari to scale the team, add more capabilities and bring these technologies to many more clients in the UK and beyond.”
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GitHub, the open source software platform, announced in an email to employs they will lay off about 10% of their staff, amounting to about 300 workers.
The company also announced they would be closing all of their physical offices in a move to go entirely remote.
Parent company Microsoft also announced 10,000 layoffs in January – it is currently unclear if the GitHub cuts add on to or are a part of these planned redundancies.
The email sent to staff noted budgeting issues as the main reason for the job cuts, as well as the shift to remote working.
Company offices were often being underused and operation costs were deemed a waste in the current working atmosphere which favours remote or hybrid environments.
GitHub has contributed to the AI race with their programme Copilot, and the platform is home to 100 million developers.
Other austerity measures the company is taking include extending laptop refreshments from three to four years, and moving to Microsoft Teams for video conferencing to save communications costs.
Just this week, Yahoo announced job cuts, following the major trend among top tech companies.
The trend appears to have no intentions of slowing down. Economic upheaval, an increase of hires from the pandemic, less demand, and a shift in priorities have all been reasons major tech companies have announced the layoffs.
GitHub’s announcement may be in part due to their parent company’s, Microsoft, increased investment into OpenAI. While GitHub’s Copilot AI programme may have attracted users, Microsoft’s priorities appear to align with OpenAI’s progress in chatbot technology.
GitHub also confirmed that the hiring freezes announced in early 2023 would still be in effect. The company did not specify which departments would be most affected by the cuts.
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Yahoo has announced lay offs of more than 20% of its workforce, with plans to restructure their advertising department.
The company has about 8,600 current employees, and lay offs should go into effect by the end of the week.
About 12% of staff – around 1000 employees – will be cut by the end of this week, with a further 8% cut in the coming six months.
The layoffs have little to do with concerns over revenue – Yahoo is earning around $8 billion a year.
Rather, the cuts are part of a major restructuring of their advertising department.
Yahoo recently took a 25% stake in Taboola, an advertising network, as their new advertising partner.
According to CEO Jim Lanzone, the move will increase the competition for ad placements by eight-fold.
The restructuring will see Yahoo investing in their demand-side platform (DSP), which means shutting down native advertising platforms like their supply-side platform (SSP), Gemini.
Renamed as Yahoo Advertising, the DSP will focus on deals with larger companies to increase ad revenue.
Though they are firing about 50% of their advertising staff, Lanzone said the company plans to hire more people to grow their DSP.
The shift could be so Yahoo’s advertising models does not directly compete with giants like Google and Facebook, by aiming to work with premium accounts.
Over-hiring during the pandemic, falling demand, and a shift in priorities were often cited reasons for the major layoffs seen across big tech.
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Seven Russian cyber criminals have been sanctioned by the UK and the US governments in the first wave of new coordinated action against international cyber crime.
The individuals sanctioned have been associated with the development or deployment of a range of ransomware strains which have targeted the UK and US.
Assests have been frozen and travel bans imposed for the seven Russian nationals affected.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said: “By sanctioning these cyber criminals, we are sending a clear signal to them and others involved in ransomware that they will be held to account.
“These cynical cyber attacks cause real damage to people’s lives and livelihoods. We will always put our national security first by protecting the UK and our allies from serious organised crime – whatever its form and wherever it originates.”
Ransomware criminals have traditioanlly struck at organisations and businesses where they feel they can either make the most money or do the most damage – recent attacks have been UK schools, local authorities and firms.
Internationally, ransomware attacks have targeted the Irish Health service executive, the Costa Rican government and American healthcare providers.
Ransomware groups known as Conti, Wizard Spider, UNC1878, Gold Blackburn, Trickman and Trickbot have been responsible for the development and deployment of: Trickbot, Anchor, BazarLoader, BazarBackdoor as well as the ransomware strains Conti and Diavol. They are also involved in the deployment of Ryuk ransomware.
Collectively, Conti and Ryuk have affected 149 UK individuals and businesses, and were responsible for extricating at least about £27 million. Conti racked up £10m from 104 victims, while Ryuk had 45 victims paying about £17m in total.
Conti was behind attacks targeting hospitals, schools, businesses and local authorities, including the Scottish Environment Protection Agency – the group extorted about £149m in ransomware in 2021 alone according to Chainalysis.
One of the first cyber crime groups to back Russia’s war in Ukraine, Conti voiced their support within 24 hours of the invasion.
Although the ransomware group responsible for Conti disbanded in 2022, reporting suggests that members of the group continue to be involved in some of the most notorious new ransomware strains that dominate and threaten UK security.
Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said: “We’re targeting cyber criminals who have been involved in some of the most prolific and damaging forms of ransomware. Ransomware criminals have hit hospitals and schools, hurt many and disrupted lives, at great expense to the taxpayer.
“Cyber crime knows no boundaries and threatens our national security. These sanctions identify and expose those responsible.”
These sanctions follow a complex, large-scale and ongoing investigation led by the NCA, which will continue to pursue all investigative lines of enquiry to disrupt the ransomware threat to the UK in collaboration with partners.
“The sanctions are the first of their kind for the UK and signal the continuing campaign targeting those responsible for some of the most sophisticated and damaging ransomware that has impacted the UK and our allies,” National Crime Agency Director-General Graeme Biggar said.
“They show that these criminals and those that support them are not immune to UK action, and this is just one tool we will use to crack down on this threat and protect the public.”
In the National Cyber Security Centre‘s (NCSC) assessment, they found it was almost certain that the Conti group were primarily financially motivated and chose targets based on their perceived monetary value.
They also found that the key group members are very likely to be maintaining links to the Russian Intelligence Services, from whom they have likely received tasks. Furthermore, the targeting of certain organisations, like the International Olympic Committee, by the group almost certainly aligns with Russian state objectives.
Additionally, it is highly likely that the group evolved from previous cyber organised crime groups and have extensive links to other cyber criminals, notably EvilCorp and those responsible for Ryuk ransomware.
“Ransomware is the most acute cyber threat facing the UK, and attacks by criminal groups show just how devastating its impact can be,” NCSC Chief Executive Officer Lindy Cameron said.
“The NCSC is working with partners to bear down on ransomware attacks and those responsible, helping to prevent incidents and improve our collective resilience.
“It is vital organisations take immediate steps to limit their risk by following the NCSC’s advice on how to put robust defences in place to protect their networks.”
The individuals sanctioned are :
Vitaliy Kovalev
Valery Sedletski
Valentin Karyagin
Maksim Mikhailov
Dmitry Pleshevskiy
Mikhail Iskritskiy
Ivan Vakhromeyev
Making funds available to these individuals is prohibited – this includes paying ransomware in any form, including crypto assets.
Organisations are advised to put in place robust cyber security and incident management systems to prevent and manage serious cyber incidents.
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ScotBio has produced promising trial results from experiments with spirulina extracts to produce therapeutic treatments for Covid-19, the common cold, and a host of other viruses.
The Scottish biotech company is working closely with the University of Edinburgh, Robert Gordon University, and the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) to determine how waste molecules from spirulina can be extracted and used for their natural antiviral properties.
Spirulina, the blue-green algae widely consumed as a superfood, is already used in a variety of commercial products including dietary supplements and as a food colourant.
ScotBio’s intensive ‘vertical farming of algae’ approach to producing spirulina helps to recover valuable by-products, including plant-based proteins, whilst minimising waste.
By separating spirulina molecules into different chemical groups, the project has determined the most effective extracts with antiviral activity against coronaviruses, including various SARs-CoV-2 variants (the cause of Covid-19), common cold viruses, and influenza viruses.
This supports earlier studies which observed anti-HIV and anti-HSV (Herpes Simplex Virus) activity in similar compounds. These initial results show that spirulina molecules are broad-acting, have little toxicity towards mammalian cells, and could potentially form the basis of effective treatments against emerging human and animal viral diseases.
Although antiviral agents are typically used for pharmaceuticals, they can also be added to products such as cosmetics – known as ‘cosmeceuticals’ – to fight against viral transmission.
ScotBio said that on the back of the project’s findings it is now looking at incorporating the molecule into various consumer products.
Dr Joe Palmer, product development manager, ScotBio, said: “Working with the project consortium has enabled us to fractionate spirulina into distinct chemical groups and then screen the extracts in a safe environment. Through that, we have identified compounds that could be particularly effective against a broad range of viruses from what was previously seen as waste. We can now work on recovering and purifying these molecules as high value ingredients.
“The next step for us is to better understand the market opportunities for these molecules and to fully resolve the relationship between molecule chemistry and their antiviral mechanisms. Our aim is for this project to be a catalyst that will unlock a large and untapped market, helping in the fight against common viruses and future pandemics.”
Liz Fletcher, director of business engagement and operations, IBioIC, commented: “ScotBio is a great example of an ambitious biotechnology company with a unique product. Previous studies on common viruses have shown that spirulina extracts can have many positive effects on the immune response to infection, and it is exciting to support ScotBio in taking this research even further. Our aim is to help companies grow by providing them with the support they need to apply their technologies to new areas.”
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CivTech7 Demo Day showcased a range of solutions to challenges facing the public service, but also posed several questions for the future of this societal institutions’s place in transforming Scotland.
“Innovation just can’t be a luxury for us,” Philippa Vigano of NatureScot said at CivTech7’s fireside chat.
The key word of the day it seemed, innovation was touched on by those running organising and supporting CivTech7, which showcased 13 different solutions to challenges posed by the government in the summer of 2022.
Companies partnered with civil organisations to deliver solutions to complex social problems using technology, with a tight deadline of about four months to present to a wider audience.
Projects ranged from the timely issue of energy efficiency and cost of living, to wider societal issues like accessibility in technology, to the rather specific subject of beaver burrows.
The cost of living crisis, the environmental crisis, and the economic crisis did not so much lurk in the shadows, but were permeating ghosts tormenting the feat of near desperate innovation.
NetZero ambitions mean that nearly every home in Scotland will soon be obliged to undergo expensive retrofitting amid an energy crisis, with pernicious social ills only increasing people’s vulnerabilities, leaving charities and free advice institutions like The Citizens Advice Beareau pushed well beyond capacity, and while technology continues to progress, those with disabilities are often left behind by the very technology which promises to include them.
Victims of crimes like sexual assault and domestic abuse are left unsupported and re-traumatised by an intimidating justice system, town centres are left behind to disintegrate by a government’s apathy to prepare shop owners for the pernicious proliferation of online retail, and environmental priorities are often lost to the whims of ‘economic’ progress.
“Scotland faces challenges like we’ve never faced before,” Mark Elliot, the programme director of CivTech said in his closing speech. The sobering speech spoke to the reality of the challenges faced, the importance of the solutions, and the vitality of innovation in the midst of crisis.
“It’s absolutely clear that we cannot just do the same things we’ve always done, even if they’re digitised,” Elliot said. “That approach won’t satisfy the ambitions of the Scottish government, and that won’t deliver on the expectations of the Scottish people.”
Elliot urged that innovation and spirit are vital to revive the public sector.
“As far as the spirit of enterprise, the entrepreneurial mindset goes, that is not the preserve of the private sector, even though there are many people in the private sector, for their own reasons, who would have you believe that.”
The entrepreneurial spirit he touched on in his speech was felt throughout the day. Technology was used in new ways, open source data was harnessed effectively, and AI saw beneficial impacts across different challenges.
Multi-beam sonar and robust data analysis was used to detect beaver burrows and identify any risk they posed to the land by RiverEye, a partnership between JBA Consulting and STORM Geomatics, to sustainably and efficiently manage beaver populations, and mitigate associated risks.
Opensource maps and land data were used by Sweco to map out effective cycle routes in rural areas to increase active transport, and Diagonal, to assess the use of land in urban settings to revitalise town centres.
AI transformed the open source data used to understand the needs of businesses across Scotland by DeepMiner, allowing for better informed decision making to allocate business support during times of crisis.
Readily available data made all the difference to the partnered solutions of ZUos and Novaville Shared Works, the first of which determined the best energy use options for homes, which Novaville can then use to generate affordable plans and community centred approaches to retrofitting houses for NetZero ambitions..
Virtual reality (VR), which is typically used to intensify the effect of video games, was used by Sentireal to introduce witnesses and victims to courtrooms prior to case hearings to remove the surprise and ease the associated stress.
An app with similar functionality to Uber was developed to connect BSL users and the deaf community to interpreters in their area, developed by Deaf Action.
Citizens Advice is “creaking under the strain of supporting more people” Polly Tolley, Director of Impact at Citizens Advice Scotland said, so Wyser developed an AI tool to remove the busy work of Citizens Advice advisors by using language models to generate appropriate resources, allowing advisors to help those seeking support more efficiently, increasing capacity without increasing headcount.
Similarly, Connecting You Now’s AI app helps those with disabilities access services, who would otherwise be left behind by the technical revolution – only about 56% of those with sensory loss can participate in the digital world.
Clearly innovation was taken to heart.
“I think the private sector can teach us a lesson. Private sector companies that do not innovate go to the wall, all of them. They fail. And the brutal fact is if we do not embrace the spirit of enterprise, if we do not innovate, we will fail people,” Elliot said.
CivTech made much of this innovation possible, and perhaps it is because of the existence of the public sector that such progress could be made.
Without worries of monetisation and commercialisation, the people the public sector are worried about failing can actually be helped.
Deaf Action has no plans to charge users or interpreters to use their app, SignPort, and Sentireal’s VR technology could no doubt make more money sticking to game design rather than helping victims in their court proceedings.
Mark Elliot summarised the projects of the day: “We have developed a compelling bedrock of evidence, that demonstrates absolutely clearly that the public sector can innovate, can create better products and services, can move at speed, and can drive the benefits out as widely as possible, not just at the challenge sponsors, but at the citizens, other organisations, and of course, the economy. We can, together, change the game.”
In a moment of candour, Elliot continued on, speaking openly about the current crisis affecting the UK, and what was truly at stake.
“I bet some of you in the room, are thinking, ‘Well this is great, but we’re in a crisis, there’s a recession going on, there are cuts going on, I’ve got this that and the other thing and I just don’t have the time to innovate, I don’t have the time to drum up an entrepreneurial mindset,’” he supposed.
“Well, apart from the fact I think I’ve made the case for it, I’d say you don’t have the time not to do it.”
He continued: “Here’s another fact: crisis and recessions are the biggest drivers of innovations we have, that’s absolutely a fact. Nearly every one of the biggest and most successful tech companies in the world were formed at the time of crisis or recession.”
Elliot detailed the early stages of a company born in recession, quoting Steve Jobs: “People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”
“Let’s go a little crazy and let’s see if we can’t make the world a better place,” he finished.
In the wake of the pandemic, a rapid descent into a recession, and with the continued squeezing of public funding, the solutions presented at CivTech, however, seem rather, sane?
The range of technology and projects tackled, from using sonar to detect beaver burrows, from analysing data and using community focused platforms to address energy efficiency, to using AI language models and machine learning to help those most vulnerable, CivTech saw perhaps the most sane and well-thought out collection of technological solutions to societal problems long overdue for effective answers.
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Nile, an Edinburgh-based strategic design company, have announced the acquisition of Dig Inclusion and its flagship accessibility prodcut, Hugr.
Early in the field of accessibility, Dig Inclusion is dedicated to making digital media inclusive for everyone.
In acquiring the company, Nile hopes this will help drive the change necessary to make the online world more accessible for everyone, and have a long term impact on future generations.
Sarah Ronald, Founder of Nile, said: “We are excited to welcome Dig to the Nile ecosystem. Their dedication to making technology accessible for all aligns perfectly with our mission to leave behind a better world.”
More than one in five potential UK consumers have a disability and 73% of potential disabled customers experience barriers, on more than a quarter of the websites they visit.
As society shifts towards a digital-first approach, designing inclusive and accessible digital products and services is crucial to ensuring everyone has equal access to the benefits of technology and are not excluded by demographic factors.
Accessibility is a high growth area fuelled by tightening legislation, society’s changing attitudes to disability and rapid technological change.
Dig Inclusions’s Hugr tool enables companies to track the accessibility of their product as they build, allowing inclusion and accessibility to be at the heart of the product rather than an after thought or add on.
Nile, which has customers including NatWest, the University of Edinburgh, and Agilent, hope to benefit from this technology as they are focused on transforming legacy systems and designing digital products and services around people.
Dig’s proven track record in the public, private, and third sectors, with successful projects for the NHS and the Department of Transport, combined with Nile’s service model transformation and platform configuration will enable help large organisations improve adoption and drive impactful change on a more inclusive basis.
Nile’s approach to digital transformation is centred around human behavior and psychology, helping organisations enhance customer experience, improve adoption of new systems and increase inclusivity and accessibility.
By bringing the technical experience and thinking of Dig in-house Nile designers will work alongside accessibility specialists putting inclusivity at the heart of everything they do.
The market for people with disability & their families in UK has an estimated value of £274 billion annually, making this acquisition a timely and strategic move for Nile.
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By 2024, it will be possible to access speeds of 100 Mbps on the moon, meaning that over half of all UK properties will be worse off than the moon when it comes to broadband performance.
New analysis from alternative broadband specialists National Broadband has highlighted how advancements in technology are still leaving a large swaths of the UK behind.
For rural broadband, this rings especially true, with those in major cities far less likely to lag behind lunar broadband.
Only 9% of London are unable to access typical broadband speeds of up to 100Mbps, compared to 70% in Wales, the worst performing part of the UK.
Scotland overall is the 5th worst performing region in the UK, with 56% unable to access speeds we’ll soon see on the moon.
Rural villages in Scotland with some of the worst current broadband speeds include Bowmore, Portree, and Achaphubuil.
Over 500,00 UK properties currently have broadband speeds ten times worse than the moon is due to get in 2024.
The fact that rural areas are seven times more likely to be struck with speeds under 10Mbps highlights clear failures within the Government’s levelling up agenda.
And it’s not just outer space – remote areas including the Arctic Circle and Everest Base Camp have better average broadband speeds, with Everest receiving speeds of about 50Mbps.
Further, the UK residents would have better broadband on a promenade with a polar bear, as the Arctic Circle receives speeds of 100Mbps, putting places like Hamilton, Scotland to shame.
David Hennell, Director at National Broadband commented: “The disparity between digital ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ in the UK is sadly growing. While the moon is set to gain dizzying broadband speeds of 100Mbps, those in rural areas such as Corsley, Wiltshire and Portree, Scotland to name just two are left struggling with near-unusable broadband speeds of less than 10Mbps.
“And we know that’s just the tip of the iceberg, as there are over 500,000 properties dotted across the UK experiencing the exact same issues. This makes it very clear that just not enough is being done to close the digital divide in this country. At National Broadband we believe that every connection matters and we’re proud to offer alternative broadband solutions and fast and reliable internet connectivity to those who are being left behind.”
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The company is focused on developing molecules that inhibit novel “third wave” DNA damage response (DDR) targets, a new set of proteins that have recently been discovered and are thought to play important roles in the response to DNA damage.
With this new funding, Nodus, which was found in 2022, will be able to accelerate the development of its PARG programme in collaboration with the Lead Discovery Centre (LDC), continue the development of novel DDR targets and further expand their profile.
“Nodus is focused on developing the next wave of cancer therapeutics in the DDR space, bringing new and effective treatment options to patients,” Ian Waddell, CEO of Nodus Oncology said.
“This funding will allow us to continue to accelerate our development programmes, including our PARG program, and allow us to expand our innovative portfolio. I would like to thank our investors and founders for their ongoing support, and I am looking forward to working together to make a real difference in the fight against cancer.”
Bert Klebl, Managing Director at KHAN0I, and Michael Krebs will be joining Nodus’ Board of Directors as investor representative and observer, respectively.
“This collaboration illustrates the value-creation opportunity presented by combining Cumulus’ business model, the drug discovery capabilities of the LDC in Dortmund, and the resources of the KHAN-I fund,” said Bert Klebl, “We are looking forward to working with Nodus to accompany it in its growth journey.”
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Smart Green Shipping will now see further growth in their development of unique retrofit sails and technology for sustainable commercial ships.
The company’s FastRig wingsail technology is enabled by a fuel saving prediction tool, supported by the European Space Agency business incubation centre.
Their solutions aim to enable the reduction of emissions from certain ship types by at least 20% as forecast via tests supported by the Innovate UK programme on a large commercial cargo ship.
Chief Executive of Smart Green Shipping Diane Gilpin said: “Wind-assist is the only technology that can support global shipping’s GHG reduction in line with International Panel on Climate Change advice – emissions must start reducing rapidly if we are to avoid temperature increases of more than 1.5 degrees.
“The shipping industry knows this and with the introduction of various new emission reduction regulations this year and next there is a strong interest for FastRigs. Having MOL on-board is a real benefit for us, they bring deep market and operational knowledge.
“That they are partnering with Scottish Enterprise in investing together underlines Scotland’s commitment to this new global market for renewable energy that Scotland is already so good at. There’s a huge amount of in and cross sector learning going on in this collaboration .”
Smart Green Shipping has progressed its project from its base in Dumfries working alongside Caley ocean Systems and Malin in Glasgow and will retrofit its technology onto ships for commercial demonstration next year following a testing phase at Hunterson PARC.
Last year, Smart Green Shipping received a £1.8m grant from Scottish Enterprise towards a research and development project with a total value of £5 million, match funded by the private sector.
The latest investment further supports the company’s growth and director of entrepreneurship and investment at Scottish Enterprise Kerry Sharp said: “Our investment alongside MOLDB will encourage innovation and growth in an exciting Scottish-based company with international potential that is creating jobs and sustainable shipping solutions, vital for a greener economy.
“Scottish Enterprise continues to invest in projects with positive impact on the planet and people which is exemplified by Smart Green Shipping and I look forward to seeing its demonstrator FastRig tested at Hunterston PARC as we work with the company on its growth.”
The involvement of MOLDB, a shipping company headquartered in Japan, shows the climate ambitions in Scotland are a global priority.
President and Representative Director of MOL Drybulk, Kazuhiko Kikuchi said: “MOL is committed to decarbonisation within our industry and Scotland is at the forefront of many environmentally friendly solutions, whilst our investment in Smart Green Shipping furthers our commitment to the UK.”
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In the latest round of major tech layoffs, Dell has revealed they will cut 6,650 jobs due to slowing personal computer sales.
In an internal memo revealed by Bloomberg, Co-Chief operating officer Jeff Clarke broke the news to employees that their other cost-cutting measures were not nearly effective enough as demand for computers struggled in the difficult marketplace.
Personal computer products make up the majority of Dell’s sales, and as the market continues to struggle overall, demand has simply decreased, making Dell the most recent tech company to cut costs by announcing major layoffs.
HP also announced layoffs in November 2022 for similar issues in lower consumer demand for hardware products.
In the memo, Clarke said, “We’ve nagivated economic downturns before and we’ve emerged stronger. We’ll be ready when the market rebounds.”
However, about 5% of their workforce will be cut before the market rebounds as a result of this announcement, reducing Dell’s staff to its lowest number since 2017.
Currently, it is unclear what departments will be most affected by the cuts or where Dell’s strategies lie to get them through this downturn in demand.
Tech layoffs have quickly become the norm: Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, Twitter, NetApp, PayPal, Spotify, and IBM have all announced major layoffs, leaving tech workers in jeopardy and uncertian in their positions.
In the UK, this major shift is startling as the nation struggles to fill in the tech skills gap, and with tech vacancies dismantling plans for digital transformation.
Further, many UK tech workers lost their ability to live in the country due to losing their work visas, leaving the UK in even more jeopardy of missing out on vital tech talents.
Tech companies typically sighted over-hiring during the pandemic and a shifting market as reasons they’ve elected to layoff employees. Others have evolved their priorities to focus on emerging technologies like AI.
The latest layoffs at Dell seem to be mainly in response to a tough marketplace for hardware sales.
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Aberdeen-based tech solutions company, STC INSISO, has announced a £2 million investment from BGF to support a growth strategy focussing on the company’s expanding suite of software products.
STC INSISO’s problem-solving products are used across industries including oil and gas, construction, marine, and utilities.
Its COMET software platform, which will accelerate its roll out thanks to BGF’s investment, generates input data to identify systemic risk, providing users with a foundation to make sound decisions ensuring future incident prevention.
The investment has already resulted in the creation of three new product development positions, and further recruitment will continue this year. The company’s annual revenue is also predicted to grow over the next two to four years, and was clocked in at £4m in 2022.
Mark Rushton, CEO at STC INSISO, said: “BGF’s investment proposition was particularly attractive to us for two reasons; firstly because of their strong track record of supporting innovative Scottish businesses, and secondly because of their people who gave us immediate confidence and were culturally aligned to our team from day one of the journey.”
BGF is one of the most active investors of equity capital in growing companies in the UK and Ireland. Its Scotland and Northern Ireland team reported strong momentum in 2022, investing £42m in a range of growth economy businesses.
Keith Barlcay, an investor who lead the BGF deal said: “STC INSISO has an impressive software product portfolio which has proven invaluable to professionals in a wide range of industry sectors. The team’s bold ambitions have been evident in each of our interactions, and I look to working in partnership with them to see these materialise.”
Arrash Nekonam, Chief TechnologyOfficer at STC INSISO, said: “Our overall objective is not only to grow vertically, but to maintain our track record of consistently delivering for our clients across a range of industry sectors as demand for our software solutions continues to increase. We are delighted that BGF will embark on this journey with us.”
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Digital Xtra Fund has opened applications for its eighth cohort of tech initiatives since being launched in 2016.
Applications for the 2023/2024 grant awards will be open until 6 April for potential funding bodies.
The charity supports extracurricular activities at the school stage which help drive digital skills, and has so far secured nearly £1 million to deliver coding and tech clubs and initiatives nationwide.
Industry backers include Chroma Ventures, Baillie Gifford, J.P. Morgan, Cirrus Logic, Accenture, ScotlandIS, Skyscanner, and Incremental Group which was acquired by Telefonica Tech last year, with the Scottish Government matching industry support.
Kraig Brown, Digital Xtra Fund’s Partnership and Development Manager said: “We have some amazing support from the corporate and public sectors, in particular the Scottish Government, who realise what a pressing issue this is for young people, employers, and the economy overall.
Based on the success of previous grant awards, they have once again committed to working with us and our partners by match funding industry support for tech activities in 2023/24. With the ongoing cost of living crisis, there has never been a more crucial time to work together and this funding underlines this.”
Digital Xtra Fund is currently in negotiations with several companies to increase the level of funding awarded before successful applications are finalised in May, but the economic downturn has put a strain on all charities.
Brown added: “We are looking for more partners, primarily from the corporate sector, so we’d love to speak to as many people as we can in the coming months. The match funding from the Scottish Government means all support will make a big difference.”
Rebecca Court, Incremental Group’s Head of Marketing and a former Digital Xtra Fund panellist, who help the Fund select which applications are successful, said: “Digital Xtra Fund undertakes such important work across Scotland.
“The team’s commitment to addressing the alarming digital skills gap while also focusing on increasing diversity and inclusivity in the tech sector, a sector that continues to be underrepresented by women, is key to everyone’s future success. It is vital the corporate sector and government recognise that when we support grassroots initiatives, especially for young people, it is win-win for communities, industry, and Scotland as a whole.”
The UK has been struggling with many different gaps in the tech workforce.
While tech workers can be expected to earn wages higher than the national average, the skills gap has left many job openings vacant as the sector struggles to find talent.
A shortage of computer science teachers has impacted the ability of those leaving school to enter tech degrees and apprenticeships as they lack the skills and confidence to enter the sector.
Further, in the UK, around 26% of the tech workforce were women in 2022, where as they make up around 45% of the overall labour force.
Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training, said: “Following last year’s investment from the Scottish Government, we will be continuing to support the Digital Xtra Fund with another £100,000 this year to enable young people to learn digital technology and coding skills through extracurricular activities.
“The work of Digital Xtra Fund and partners provides young people a path into exciting careers in tech and entrepreneurship, and we are delighted to be supporting the work of this organisation.”
Digital Xtra Fund is supporting 35 initiatives during the 2022/2023 academic year, covering 24 local authorities, on target to engage over 7,400 young people. Around 50% of these will be girls and young women.
Kraig Brown continued: “Yes, our aim is to inspire young people to learn digital skills and yes, we hope they choose to pursue a career in tech, but that’s not the main reason we do this. We do this because we need to support young people and even more so when times get tough, particularly the most vulnerable or disadvantaged. While there are many ways to do this, Digital Xtra Fund believes providing essential skills for their future in safe and fun environments is key.”
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Two Edinburgh-based companies – Firefinch Software and i4 Product Design (i4PD) – have announced a new partnership to bring together their software and hardware products and experience.
Firefinch Software was founded in 2017 by senior researches and developers from a biotech manufacturer and specialises in software development for the biotech, agri-tech, engineering, and manufacturing sectors.
After seeing a demand in services increase, Firefinch’s staff numbers have grown to 15 members, and the company is able to bring in specialists and associated skills from other sectors including a number who re-trained with software as a second career.
Matt Connelly, Director at Firefinch Software said: “We have worked with i4PD on previous projects and have found them to be the perfect fit for us, their skills and knowledge create a perfect synergy for growth and we look forward to working with them more closely as a result of this partnership”.
i4PD, established in 2003, are a design and development partner for companies looking to augment their internal capacity or capabilities with Industrial Design, Mechanical Engineering, Electronics and Embedded Software support.
The company grew to become the largest multidisciplinary product design consultancy in Scotland.
“The similarities between the companies was immediately apparent when we started talking about our projects, people and processes,” Business Development Director at i4PD Tristan Elliot said.
“Firefinch complement our hardware and embedded software teams perfectly as we are often asked to provide a turnkey solution to our clients. This closer affiliation will mean the companies can continue to work on increasingly challenging projects and grow together.”
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Ofcom has ruled to not intervene in new deals introduced by Openreach despite anti-competition claims.
The offer would introduce new wholesale pricing arrangement for the company’s full-fibre services.
Smaller companies called on Ofcom to prevent Openreach from providing such discounted services as they claimed it was anti-competition.
In the race to provide full-fibre broadband across the UK, many small companies have joined the race, empowered by relatively fair market competition that allows them to compete larger service providers like Openreach.
Openreach is one of the largest broadband providers in the country, but pricing and government regulation have allowed many alternative networks to enter the marketplace.
To stay competitive against newcomers, Openreach announced new packages with lower prices to boost consumer uptake.
Now, Openreach has introduced a second round of price cuts and deals that smaller networks have claimed are anti-competition in nature.
While the new set of broadband deals, Equinix 2, are not as dramatic as Equinox 1, the progression is cause for concern for alternate network providers looking to expand in the market place.
Cityfibre, a network provider, went so far as to file a competition complaint against Openreach late last year with the Competition Markets Authority.
While Ofcom’s initial ruling is to not intervene with Openreach’s planned wholesale offerings, the regulator does plan on looking into the anti-competition claims further.
In Ofcom’s provisinal satement, they said: “In our provisional view, the proposed offer is consistent with our primary strategic goal of promoting investment in high-speed networks to deliver fast, affordable broadband to people and business across the UK.”
The statement also said that the regulator does not find the offer to be “anti-competitive.”
The ruling seems to favour the national priority of providing full-fibre broadband across the nation, and Openreach’s deals would certainly make this more affordable to many Britons who have yet to make the switch.
The company’s current national network would also make these low-cost deals possible, whereas smaller expanding companies would struggle to compete in their early stages of funding and with less infrastructure at their disposal.
In a classic conundrum of lower consumer costs and monopolistic gains, Ofcom’s provisional ruling favours broadband expansion over market expansion.
Customers will likely welcome the most affordable option available to them during this continued cost-of-living crisis, and digital transformation aspirations rely on broadband expansion.
While alternative networks have helped to progress in these areas, they may struggle to stay afloat if their pricing is less attractive than Openreach’s nationally recognised and wide-reaching infrastructure.
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A new medical technology (medtech) strategy from the UK Government aims to give patients access to safe, effective, and innovative equipment and medical devices.
The blueprint for boosting NHS medtech will focus on accelerating access to innovative technologies, such as the latest generation of home dialysis machines that enable patients to manage their own health at home and in their day-to-day lives.
It also sets out steps which need to be taken to ensure patients can access safe, effective and innovative technology through the NHS, which can help diagnose, treat, and deliver care more quickly, freeing up clinician time.
£10 billion a year is spent on medtech by the NHS, including syringes, wheelchairs, cardiac pacemakers and medical imaging equipment like x-ray machines.
Building on learnings from the Covid-19 pandemic and the rapid development of medical technologies like lateral flow tests and ventilators, the strategy aims to ensure the right product is available at the right price and in the right place.
As a result, patients should continue to have access to high-quality care, alongside improved patient safety and health outcomes.
Patient care and safety has been a major concern of thousands of striking healthcare workers who cite their working conditions – long hours with staff shortages – putting patients in danger.
Using medtech effectively, the government said, will be critical in reducing waiting lists for treatments caused by the pandemic as well as other strains on the NHS, as it has the potential to speed up diagnosis and deliver new and improved ways to treat and support patients.
Further, the strategy aims to deliver value for money, using the latest data on the effectiveness of new technology to ensure prices are reasonable for the health system.
Another focus is buliding resilient supply chains and ensuring the UK is prepared for future pandemics, just as demand for technology like syringes and ventilators rapidly increase during the pandemic.
“Medical technology has an enormous role to play in benefitting patients now and in the future,” Dr. Timothy Ferris, national director for transformation at NHS England said.
“The importance of medtech was made clear during the Covid-19 pandemic and as the NHS moves through its recovery, it will play a key role in addressing the challenges we face.”
One of the key aims of the strategy is boosting the supply of the best equipment to deliver greater resilience to health care challenges, such as pandemics, and enhance NHS performance through modernised technology which will enable faster diagnosis treatment and ultimately discharge to free up hospital beds.
The government has already dedicated £250m to the NHS to speed up hospital discharges. Research has shown that around one in four of discharge delays are due to patients waiting for a social care package, and delayed discharges were up by a third from pre-pandemic levels.
Delayed discharges taking up hospital beds has been one of the main pressures mounting on the NHS.
Another key aim is to encourage ambitious innovative research to secure the UK’s position as a global science superpower and attract vital investment fro the UK economy and create jobs across the country.
In 2021, there were already around 60 different research programmes supporting innovative technologies, representing over £1 billion of funding.
Dr Sam Roberts of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence said: “It is essential that clinicians and patients can access the most impactful and cost-effective medical technologies, while MedTech companies need to be confident that they are developing products which meet the needs of patients and the NHS.”
Training to increase clinicians’ understanding and awareness of medtech is also a priority to lead to more informed purchasing on new products and deliver better value for taxpayer money and better services for patients.
Building on the Life Sciences Vision is another aim, to improve collaboration between the NHS, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency as an innovation partner to ensure patients can access the right products safely.
Peter Ellingworth of the Association of British HealthTech Industries said, “It is important that this strategy supports the ambition of the Life Sciences Vision to create an outstanding business environment for HealthTech companies. We look forward to working closely with the Directorate in the implementation the strategy.”
The implementation plan to deliver this strategy will be published later this year and include a review of the £1bn spent on appliances in primary care, new comparison tools to enable better decision making when purchasing, and collaboration with industry to ensure availability of key products to keep patients safe.
Minister of State for Health Will Quince said: “The UK’s innovative spirit delivered revolutionary technology during the pandemic – from Covid tests and ventilators – and we want to harness this in promoting cutting-edge medical advancements to improve patient care.
“The NHS spends around £10 billion a year on medical technology and I’m looking forward to working with industry to use this as we focus on reducing hospital stays, enhancing diagnosis, preventing illness and freeing up staff time.
“This new medtech strategy will help build a sustainable NHS with patients at the centre so people can continue to access the right care at the right time.”
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Phlo, the UK digital pharmacy company headquartered in Glasgow, have closed a £10m Series A round led by family office Thairm Bio.
The funds will be used to expand the reach of Phlo Digital Pharmacy, the first UK digital pharmacy to offer patients same-day medication delivery, and to scale Phlo Connect, the digital infrastructure platform for healthcare providers.
Digital transformation in the pharmacy sector has been accelerating, powered by providers seeking solutions that will equip them to cope with supply chain fluctuations, spiraling operating costs, record workforce shortages, and the predicted closure of up to 30000 high street pharmacy branches by 2024.
Phlo’s flagship product is part of the efforts to address these issues: their Digital Pharmacy offers a same-day NHS and private prescription delivery service to patients in Birmingham and London, and will launch in Manchester in 2023.
Since the platform’s launch in 2020, over 110,000 orders have been dispatched.
Phlo’s Series A round – a combination of equity investment and the conversion of existing loan notes – follows the £2m raised by Plho in 2020 in the third largest recorded healthtech crowdfunding campaign in Europe.
Thairm Bio let the round, alongside support from Scottish Enterprise and a number of other angel investors.
“Phlo’s drive and determination to improve patient access and healthcare outcomes at this pivotal moment for the pharmacy sector is impressive,” Mark Bamforth, Founder of Thairm Bio said.
“Phlo’s dedication to building innovative digital solutions that put patients and clinicians at the heart of what they do is key to driving positive change in the sector, empowering patients and healthcare providers. On behalf of Thairm Bio, I am proud to support Phlo and personally excited to see what the team achieves in the next stage of their journey.”
Kerry Sharp, Director of Entrepreneurship and Investment at Scottish Enterprise added: “Phlo is a fantastic example of a growing innovative company that is helping patients and healthcare providers through its technology. With Scottish Enterprise investment, the company can scale up operations and expand its services into new markets.”
The new investment will support the scaling of Phlo’s operations and its partnerships with healthcare providers, ultimately enabling more clinicians and patients to access the benefits of digitised pharmacy services.
“I would like to thank our existing and new investors for supporting Phlo’s mission as we enter into our next stage of growth. The investment raised will help support our expansion across the UK and allow us to continue developing our Phlo Digital Pharmacy and Phlo Connect offering to improve healthcare outcomes.
“This round of investment is particularly crucial in helping us scale our offering and realising our vision of establishing Phlo as the market leader in the delivery of next-generation digital pharmacy services right across the UK.
“We have a very busy roadmap ahead and some incredibly exciting opportunities to take advantage of in 2023 and beyond”.
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£3.1 billion was stolen from cryptocurrency businesses in 2022, the biggest year yet for crypto hacking, according to research by Chainalysis.
October was the single biggest month for cyrptocurrency hacking ever, with £630.2 million stolen across 32 different attacks.
The year also saw a peak in March with £594.9m stolen as hacking events undulated throughout the year.
Top Trends
North Korea Drives DeFi Hacks
North Korea-linked hackers such as the Lazarus Group have been the most prolific cyrptocurrency hackers over the past few years, and in 2022 they outdid themselves, stealing an estimated £1.38bn worth of cryptocurrency.
With North Korea’s total exports amounting to £115m in 2020, hacking has made up a considerable portion of the country’s economy.
$1.1bn of this was stolen in hacks of Decentralised Finance (DeFi) protocols.
DeFi protocols were the pimary crypto target in 2021, with the trend only intensifying in 2022, with North Korea as one of the driving forces of this trend.
DeFi protocols accounted for 82.1% of all cryptocurrency stolen by hackers, totalling £2.5 billion. 64% of this came from cross-chain bridge protocols.
These allow users port their cryptocurrency from one blockchain to another, typically by locking the user’s assets into a smart contract on the original chain, and then minting equivalent assets on the second chain.
Bridges are essentially honey pots for hackers, as the smart contracts become huge centralised repositories of funds backing the assets that have been bridged to the new chain.
If a single vulnerability is spotted in the code, it poses a major security risk.
The North Korea-linked hackers typically send much of what they steal from DeFi protocols to other DeFi protocols or use mixers to delete any traces.
This is because DeFi hacks often acquire illiquid tokens that then need to be swapped for more liquid assets via other DeFi protocols.
Mixing it Up
In order to liquidate large sums, North Korea-linked hackers also tend to send their assets to mixers, cornerstones of the money laundering process in cyrpto.
Tornado Cash was North Korea-linked hackers go-to mixer for much of 2021 and 2022.
For a time, Tornado Cash was the biggest mixer operating, and their technical attributes made funds fairly difficult to trace compared to other mixers.
However, Tornoado Cash was sanctioned in August 2022, so hackers had to look elsewhere for mixing services.
While still operational, mixers tend to be less effective with fewer users, to Tornado Cash suffered as hackers diversified their mixers.
Hackers turned instead to Sinbad, a relatiely new mixer whcih showed up on BitcoinTalk forum in October 2022. North Korea-linked hackers started using the services in December 2022, Chainalysis reports.
During December 2022 and January 2023, North Korea-linked hackers have already sent a total of 1,429.6 Bitcoin to the mixer, work approximiately £19.66.
Fighting Back
Chainalysis did see some hope despite the increase in hacking, as the ability of national security agencies to fight back as grown.
The first ever seizure of funds stolen by North Korea-linked hackers occurred in 2022, with agents recovering £24.4m worth of stolen cryptocurrency in the Axie Infinity Ronin Bridge hack.
This, combined with the efforts of OFAC and other agencies to cut off hackers’ money laundering services from the rest of the crypto ecosystem, means that we might see a downturn in these attacks in the coming years.
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Robert Gordon’s College, an independent school in Aberdeen, has teamed up with Robert Gordon University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to develop a digital education programme designed to tackle the tech skills gap.
Intensified by a shortage of Higher computing teachers in Scotland’s secondary schools, the skills gap has widened among young people who are unable to study computing science.
The programme, RGC online, will offer SQA accredited Higher Computing Science in addition to Higher Applications of Mathematics aimed to provide vital and foundational tech skills to students.
RGC Online also offers additional tech-focused modules, designed to equip young people with the skills required for future roles in the sector.
Certificates of completion will be awarded for each module, which include: Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Cybersecurity, Game Design, and Entrepreneurship. A new Quantum Computing module is also currently in development and will be launched this year.
RGC Online has been established in response to the Logan Review to assist young people across Scotland who typically lack access to study Higher Computing Science in their local school.
Robin Macpherson [pictured], Head of Robert Gordon College, said: “RGC Online was created to offer students across Scotland opportunities to learn National Qualification courses that they might not otherwise be able to study.
“This is to create pathways into a career in the ever-expanding world of technology. Our own diploma programme courses sit alongside the Higher course and add value by teaching students about everything from Artificial Intelligence to Quantum Computing to Game Design. It’s a brilliant chance to think about what you want to do in life, and how to get there.”
Primarily a digital programme with live lessons taught twice weekly, these online classes provide students with regular one-to-one support and personalised feedback from their teachers.
Live teaching is held on the same days each week and scheduled for early evenings to ensure it does not clash with students’ studies at their usual school.
The RGC Online student experience has been designed so students can interact with their teacher just as they would in a traditional classroom, with online resources updated through the week and students completing their work via Google Classroom.
Scholarships are available and open to anyone applying for a place to study Higher Computing Science or Higher Applications of Mathematics to ensure that the service is accessible to all.
Jess Power, Head of RGC Online, shared: “We are looking forward to welcoming our first cohort of students studying Higher Applications of Mathematics alongside the current class of Higher Computing Science students as we continue to develop new SQA qualifications to meet the needs of 21st Century learners in Scotland.
“The RGC Online Diploma programme has been developed from our vast and experienced alumni who are supporting the College in adding new modules to this catalogue each year and through a number of strategic partners the college can provide student introductions to various tech industries looking for an enthusiastic talent pool to draw from.”
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The average cost of a hacked streaming service on the dark web currently costs around £9, according to Atlas VPN.
Rising in popularity and variety, streaming services have become a prime target of cybercriminals.
Typically, profiles include names, dates of births, billing addresses, and often payment information. Their use on multiple devices increases security risks, making them all the more appealing to hackers.
That, with the rising cost, the diversification of different sites, and with Netflix’s recent crack down on shared accounts, streaming services are becoming a hot item on the dark web.
Music streaming services account for both the high and low end of the spectrum, with AppleMusic accounts costing £12, but a SoundCloud accountgoing for as little as £5.
Spotify, on the other hand, would cost you roughly the same as a Netflix account, offered for £10 each.
Hulu and Twitch accounts run for about £9 each, followed by HBO Max at £8 and Amazon Prime Video for £7.
Disney+ is the most expensive video streaming service, costing £12 per account on the Dark Web.
Fraudsters typically gain access to these accounts by using login credintials obtained from data breaches.
People tend to use the same email and password combinations for multiple account, which makes it much easier for hackers to gain access to thousands of other accounts from one data breach.
Phishing scams are also a popular tool for hackers to gain account information.
Steps to take if your account has been hacked include
Changing your password: Changing your password to something unique will make it less likely to get hacked. If you use the same password for other accounts, those should be changes as well
Log out all users: Log out every users from all devices, so after you change your password, the hacker cannot access the account.
Contact support: If you cannot access your account or your log in details have been changes you should contact support to see if they can gain access to your account. If they cannot get any further, then you should request the account be deleted.
Block your payment cards: If your payment cards are connected to your account, you should block them immediately to prevent fraudsters from taking your money.
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CodeClan and Eden Scott have inked a partnership in a bid to deliver tech talent to Scotland.
The tie-up between Scotland’s national digital skills academy CodeClan, and recruitment specialist firm Eden Scott aims to tackle the tech skills gap in the Scottish economy by providing an additional route for CodeClan graduates seeking employment following graduation
The tech skills gap in Scotland is dire, with around 1 in 10 job vacancies in 2022 in the tech sector, and the UK skills gap facing an all-time high.
With CodeClan planning to scale its operations to meet growing demand from the private and public sectors, the digital skills academy believes a partnership with a recruiter like Eden Scott will strengthen its offering, and the collaboration with enable CodeClan graduates and alumni to access support and expert advice from the team at Eden Scott.
Loral Quinn, CEO of CodeClan said: “The partnership with Eden Scott will widen the reach of employment opportunities for our students, while we can lean on the firm’s understanding and relationship-driven approach across industry.”
Specialising in 16-week software development and 14-week data courses, CodeClan has produces 2,000 graduates from 120 immersive cohorts in software development and data from its Edinburgh and Glasgow campuses, plus remotely, since launching in 2015.
CodeClan has also been expanding: increasing its provision on courses for organisations across the corporate and public sectors while offering additional courses including in low-code and no-code, one of the fastest-growing areas in software development.
Founded in Edinburgh in 2003, Eden Scott has over 40 recruitment professionals operating from three different offices supporting organisations in more than 15 industry sectors.
The firm provides permanent, contract, and temporary recruitment services, while also creating digital recruitment campaigns for clients, and Eden Scott’s TalentSpark division provides recruitment services specifically for start-ups and early stage companies.
Michelle Lownie, Eden Scott’s CEO said: “Eden Scott is proud to work with CodeClan to help organisations find the best tech talent they need to grow.
“We know how important the right people are to a business, and with so many of Scotland’s start-ups now scaling, the demand is only growing. We also work with many public sector organisations, like the NHS, who also need access to tech talent to keep delivering vital services.”
“Overall, supporting well-trained CodeClan graduates is a perfect fit for us, and we look forward to a long-term partnership that will help Scotland’s economy stay competitive globally.”
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Edinburgh passengers are to board what’s being touted as the world’s first fully sized self-driving bus service this spring.
The project was awarded a share of £81 million in joint UK government and industry support for self-driving transport technology.
As one of seven successful projects from around the UK, the self-driving bus service helps to form one of the most advanced set of commercial. self-driving passenger and freight operations anywhere in the world.
Funding provided by the government will be matched by industry, and the Edinburgh project will total to £10.4 million.
The project will enable Stagecoach to launch what is beleived to be the world’s most complex full-sized automated bus services, running along a 14 mile rout, and build on a pilot project that is nearing completion.
The CAVFourth autonomous bus service route is from Edinburgh Park station across the Fourth Road Bridge and then onto Dunfermline city centre.
The journey was first taken in April 2022.
Currently, the project is being tested and refined from the current ‘Captained’ service with a staff member on board, to eventually sustain future deployments with smaller vehicles which could operate with no staff on board.
Business Secretary Grant Shapps said: “In just a few years’ time, the business of self-driving vehicles could add tens of billions to our economy and create tens of thousands of jobs across the UK. This is a massive opportunity to drive forward our priority to grow the economy, which we are determined to seize.
“The support we are providing today will help our transport and technology pioneers steal a march on the global competition, by turning their bright ideas into market-ready products sooner than anyone else.”
Self-driving vehicles could revolutionise public transport and passenger travel, especially for those who don’t drive, better connect rural communities and reduce road collisions caused by human error.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “Self-driving vehicles including buses will positively transform people’s everyday lives – making it easier to get around, access vital services and improve regional connectivity.”
Forecasts predict that by 2035, 40% of new UK car sales will have self-driving capabilities, with a total market value for connected and automated mobility worth £41.7 billion to the UK. This could create nearly 40,000 skilled jobs in connected and automated vehicle (CAV) technology.
Innovate UK Executive Director for Net Zero, Mike Biddle, said: “The Connected and Automated Mobility (CAM) sector is of crucial importance to the UK, with the potential to deliver safer, cleaner and more efficient transport systems across a wide range of settings.”
The government is also committed to introducing legislation that will enable the safe and timely rollout of self driving vehicles on UK roads.
Under a proposed ‘safety ambition’ for self-driving vehicles to be equivalent in safety to a competent and careful human driver, vehicles will need to meet certain standards to be allowed to ‘self-drive’ on the roads throughout the lifetime of the vehicle.
Organisations overseeing self-driving vehicles could face sanctions if standards are not maintained.
With current legislation, individual self-driving cars are set to be legalised by 2025, the timeline for public transportation appears to be accelerating.
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The UK Cyber Security Council and ISACA have announced a partnership for the Audit and Assurance programme to bridge the gap between cybersecurity and audit professionals.
With over 170,000 memembers worldwide, the ISACA is a global professional association helping individuals and organisations in the pursuit of digital trust.
Combining ISACA’s global knowledge and good practices with the local expertise of the UK market of the UK Cybersecurity council, the partnership is geared to create UK-tailed result that is aligned with global frameworks.
The Audit and Assurance shceme follows the launch of the Council’s inaugural pilots in Cyber Security Governance and Risk Management and Secure System Architecture and Design last year, with Security Testing also launching earlier this year.
Along with the pilots, the partnership is part of the Council’s overall goal to introduce a universally recognised professional standard across the cyber industry which will allow practiconers to be certified at either Associate, Principle, or Chartered level across 16 specialisms.
““We are very proud to be partnering with ISACA on our new Audit and Assurance programme,” UK Cyber Security Council CEO Professor Simon Hepburn said, “which is another step
towards our goal of helping cyber professionals gain the recognition they deserve and enabling businesses to make informed choices around cyber recruitment.”
The team will also collaborate on a new podcast series to explore the council’s venture to standardise the cyber profession.
Chris Dimitriadis, Chief Global Strategy Officer at ISACA, added: “ISACA is pleased to work with the UK Cyber Security Council to develop a next-generation Cyber Security Audit Standard for the UK. ISACA provides global good practices in the digital trust domains of cybersecurity, audit, privacy, risk, and governance of digital technology.
“As part of the Cyber Strategy 2022’s emphasis on building a world-classUK cyber ecosystem, ISACA continues to support measures to meet the UK’s technical skills and capability gaps as well as ensuring a diverse cyber profession is enacted across the nation.”
Now, cyberprofessionals will be provided with a certified recognition in achieving Associate, Principal or Charted status from the partnership, with their status recorded on a secure register of practitioners.
This will help to standardise the UK’s cybersecurity sector, as it has been hit by vulnerabilities and an overwhelming skills shortage.
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PayPal is reducing their workforce by about 2,000, as one of the latest tech giants to announce mass layoffs.
The cuts will total to around 7% of the global workforce at the online payment portal.
Unlike some of the other downsizing announcements coming out this year, PayPal kept it relatively vague:
“While we have made substantial progress in right-sizing our cost structure and focused our resources on our core strategic priorities, we have more work to do.”
PayPal has said that the layoffs will come in the following weeks and some organisations will be more impacted than others, though it gave no hints as to which departments these would be.
This announcement comes shortly after PayPal suffered a massive data breach which exposed thousands of customers’ personal data in a credential stuffing attack.
Many of these companies highlighted the increase in hiring they did over the pandemic that they could no longer sustain due to a decrease in consumer sales. Others detailed a shift in priorities, with Google and Microsoft placing an emphasis on AI technologies.
PayPal has not made such a detailed statement, so only time will tell what their strategy will be.
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Plans to protect consumers and potentially grow the economy by regulating cyrptoasset activities have been announced by the government.
Cryptoassets – otherwise known as crypto – are a relatively new, diverse, and constantly evolving class of assets that have a range of potential benefits, as well as posing risks to consumers.
As is common in emerging technology markets, the crypto sector continues to experience high levels of volatility and a number of recent failures have exposed the structural vulnerability of some business models in the sector.
The government assures consumers that their robust approach to regulation mitigates the most significant risks, while harnessing the advantages of crypto technologies.
Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Griffith said: “We remain steadfast in our commitment to grow the economy and enable technological change and innovation – and this includes cryptoasset technology.
“But we must also protect consumers who are embracing this new technology – ensuring robust, transparent, and fair standards.”
Along with this announcement, the government released their plans seeking out how to regulate a broad suite of cryprotasset activities, consistent with its approach to traditional finance.
These proposals will place responsibility on crypto trading venues for defining the detailed content requirements for admission and disclosure documents – ensuring cyrpto exchanges have fair and robust standards.
Rules around financial intermediaries and custodians will also be strengthened, as they have the ability to facilitate transactions and store customer assets.
These steps hope to deliver a world-first regime strengthening rules around the lending of cyrptoassets while enhancing consumer protection and operational resilience of firms.
As part of this approach, the consultation will seek views on improving market integrity and consumer protection by setting out a proposed crypto market abuse regime.
To address current industry concerns about the small number of Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approved cryptoasset firms who can issue their own promotions, HM Treasury is also introducing a time limited exemption, which will allow these businesses to issue their own promotions while the broader cryptoasset regulatory regime is being introduced.
The consultation will close on 30 April 2023, after which the government will consider feedback and work out its consultation response.
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NetApp has announced it is laying off approximately eight percent of it’s workforce, joining the ranks of other major tech companies lay off thousands of employees.
The company cited a decrease in customer spending as reasons for the layoffs, which would equal about 960 employees.
CEO George Kurian said in a letter to staff that NetApp is “not immune” to the challenges facing the entire IT industry, and a new strategy was needed for the company to survive the downturn in revenue.
“We have a strategy built on a foundation of trusted customer relationships, industry-leading innovation, and unmatched partnerships with all the leading public cloud companies,” Kurian said.
“Even as we work through this difficult time, it is imperative we continue to deliver on our commitments to our customers, shareholders and our employees.”
The layoffs are a part of “positioning ourselves for long term success,” Kurian said.
NetApp did not say any specifics about their future strategy or any realignment of their focus – they reitirated their current commitments to projects in storage, data and cloud operations.
The company’s second quarter fiscal year of 2023 saw a year to year rise of about 6%, but apparently NetApp is not taking this as means to keep their workforce at the same level.
Unlike other companies that also announced layoffs, NetApp did not share new priorities.
When Google, Microsoft, and Meta announced layoffs this year, they noted the extensive hiring during the pandemic but also shifted focus to new ventures in AI.
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Smart Data Foundry, based in Edinburgh, has unveiled its inaugural board as it accelerates its mission to unlock the power of financial data to drive innovation and solve big societal issues.
As a data innovation organisation serving the public, private, and third sector, Smart Data Foundry’s purpose is to inspire financial innovation and improve people’s lives by unlocking the power of financial data.
Joining Chair Dame Julia Unwin and Chief Executive Officer Frank Gauld, the board is drawn from government, industry and academia bringing their experience across data and financial services.
Joining the board are:
Zachery Anderson, Chief Data Officer, NatWest Group
Professor Kim Graham, Provost, University of Edinburgh
Stephen Ingeldrew OBE, FinTech Scotland
Fiona Duncan, Independent Advisor, the Promise
Professor Chris Speed, Director, Edinburgh Futures Institute
Formerly the Global Open Finance Centre of Excellence, the Smart Data Foundry was founded in September 2020 with initial funding of £23m from the UK government through the UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) flagship Strength in Places Fund.
Fund. Based in Edinburgh, the not-for-profit has delivered a number of data projects in collaboration with financial institutions including research into the impact of Covid-19 and the cost-of-living crisis on the over-50s.
Dame Julia Unwin commented: “Our mission to unlock the power of data has struck a chord with leading figures in academia and Financial Services so much so they have been motivated to join us and bring about change.
“We have demonstrated that we can work collaboratively to create clarity through data which can inform policies and decision-making.”
Zachery Anderson, Chief Data Officer NatWest Group, commented on the new appointment after NatWest was the first bank to partner with the Foundry: “Data helps us make better decisions and power research into areas that complement the wider NatWest purpose to champion potential, helping people, families and businesses to thrive.”
Stephen Ingledew OBE, Chair, FinTech Scotland added: “Scotland has one of the fastest growing Fintech clusters in the UK, if not the world.
“Essential to financial innovation is the ability to access and share data, and the groundbreaking work that Smart Data Foundry is leading to create synthetic data unlocks the huge opportunities to inspire financial innovation that will benefit so many consumers and businesses.”
Balancing out the commercial experience of Anderson and Ingledew is the academic expertise of Professor Kim Graham and Professor Chris Speed.
“The ethos of the Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) is to challenge, create and make change happen,” explained EFI director Professor Speed.
“We have a purpose to pursue knowledge and understanding that supports the navigation of complex futures. So, the fit with Smart Data Foundry is perfect as they continue to challenge the way research is done and how they create synthetic data out of thin air to drive innovation.”
Professor Kim Graham welcomes the opportunity to work with Smart Data Foundry and the board to leverage talent and history of the University of Edinburgh to support the Smart Data Foundry’s mission to tackle the cost-of-living crisis.
“We have a world class reputation and standing for being a research-intensive institution,” Graham said of the University. “Working with Smart Data Foundry can only continue to propel us forward and enhance our reputation as one of the top five universities in the UK for research power.”
Helping to improve people’s lives is core to Smart Data Foundry’s purpose and chimes with Scottish Government Strategic Advisor Fiona Duncan’s 20 years of experience working in the voluntary sector in Scotland and overseas.
“This will demand Scotland takes a different approach to how it thinks about data, moving beyond ‘system’ measures to what the data is telling us and what really matters to the people,” Duncan said. “My current role as Independent Strategic Advisor to #KeepThePromise is a perfect fit with the ambitions of Smart Data Foundry. I look forward to using my experience and connections in government to help Smart Data Foundry improve people’s lives by unlocking the power of data.”
The new board members will work with Smart Data Foundry CEO Frank Gauld, who joined the organisation in 2022.
Frank Gauld said “This marks an important milestone in our history. As a young and growing business, to have the ability to attract such a talented board tells me we’re on the right track. 2022 was a year characterised by delivery for Smart Data Foundry.
“Our ground-breaking work with the FCA to generate and supply synthetic data to support their work to tackle the growing problem of Approved Push Payment (APP) Fraud is a great example of how we’re inspiring innovation in Financial Services.
“And we continued to support UK Government with a regularly updated COVID Economic Dashboard, creating an enduring record of how consumers saved, spent and earned before, during and after a pandemic. This level of insight is critical for policymakers to make decisions based on large-scale empirical data, no longer having to depend on survey data.”
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A unique partnership opportunity by XpoNorth Digital and Smartify will provide a digital boost to six Highland museums.
XpoNorth Digital, Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s specialist digital support programme for the creative and heritage sectors, and Smartify, the world’s most downloaded museum app, have collaborated to put six Highland museum collections on the world stage.
Offering a digitised version of each museum’s exhibitions, along with a curated video recounting their stories, a multi-media tour and even an e-shop, the Smartify app will allow smartphone users around the globe to engage with archives, artifacts, and memories from across Scotland’s north.
The app will help to bring the history of the Highlands and Islands into the light for a wider audience, allowing museums to improve accessibility and further optimise the possibilities offered in the digital era.
The six museums participating in the initiative are Inverness Museum and Art Gallery; Gairloch Museum; Highlanders’ Museum; Cromarty Courthouse Museum; Clyne Heritage Society (Brora Heritage Centre), and Stromness Museum, Orkney.
Lorna Cruickshank, Curatorial Manager at The Inverness Museum and Art Gallery said that the museum “is delighted to have the opportunity to take part in the programme, as it will help our charity to extend the accessibility of our museum collections.
“Smartify will support the museum to meet the needs and expectations of an ever-changing audience; local people, international visitors, and those with access needs. The museum looks forward to working with the Smartify team to re-charge the museum’s interpretation and enable new and fresh stories to be told.”
Other museums involved in the initiative include Gairloch Museum, which focuses on the north-west area of the region and includes a replica croft house and archives focussing on the involvement of local residents in World War I.
Meanwhile, the Highlanders’Museumat Fort George will be featuring artefacts and documents relating to the Highland military, and the Cromarty Courthouse Museum will recount the harsh judicial processes that took place within the seaport’s eighteenth-century courthouse.
Brora’s industrial past will be shared through the contributions of its Heritage Centre, while, moving further north still, Stromness Museum will showcase the Orkney archipelago’s extraordinary history, dating back to the Neolithic period and beyond.
Janette Parker, Curator at Stromness Museum, said: “The Trustees and staff at Stromness Museum are delighted that we have been chosen to benefit from the opportunity to work with XpoNorth Digital and Smartify on this project. This will enable us to raise our profile and attract more visitors to share our amazing collections with.”
The creation of a new Digital Content Creator role has also been facilitated by the project, which has been taken by Freya Samuel who will help guide the museums through the process of digitising and marketing their content.
Nicola Henderson, Digital Heritage Specialist at XpoNorth Digital, added: “We’re incredibly excited to announce the list of successful museums taking part in this transformational new partnership.
“Our collaboration with Smartify is a great example of XpoNorth Digital’s commitment to supporting the sector to explore innovative new opportunities.
“With over three million users worldwide, Smartify offers a fantastic platform for connecting regional, national, and international audiences with the long and impressive biography of the Scottish Highlands and Islands.”
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The Pubic Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA), which was set up in 2022 to help tackle fraud in the public sector, has partnered with Quantexa to use new data and cutting edge technokogy, including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Quantexa technology will help find and prevent more fraud across the public sector, and the £4 million contract is part of a wider investment across the government to root out fraud and use modern tools and techniques to stop it before it happens.
“Fraud against the public purse is unacceptable and we’re stepping up the fight against those who wish to profit off the backs of taxpayers,”Baroness Neville-Rolfe, the Cabinet Officer Minister said.
According to data from September 2022, public sector fraud and error loss is costing the public at least £33bn a year.
“Through the use of cutting edge technology, the Public Sector Fraud Authority will use data and AI to help us in the fight against fraudsters.”
The Cabinet Office previously worked with Quantexa to investigate potential fraud withing the government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme, which involved more than 100 million data items to be processed and analysed.
PSFA CEO Mark Cheeseman said: “We know that fraudsters are a capable and committed adversary and the way they commit fraud is diverse and evolving.
“As criminals develop more sophisticated tools, we too must innovate and modernise our approach to prevent fraud.
“By bringing together expertise and tools from the public sector and private sector we will raise our ambition and challenge ourselves to increase our impact on this often unseen and underestimated crime.”
The PSFA, backed by £25 million of funding, will be the centre of the government’s Counder Fraud Function. It has been tasked with modernising the government’s counter fraud response, working with departments and public bodies to improve their fraud defences and using leading practice and modern techniques to protect taxpayer money.
It has set a first-year target of £180 million of recognised fraud benefits, which it is on course to hit.
The Government Counter Fraud Function brings together the c. 13,000 people who work in departments and public bodies to fight fraud, including those working to understand and mitigate fraud risk within their organisations and those who work in the public sector to fight economic crime.
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Meta is facing a lawsuit for £3 billion as monetary compensation for user data on behalf of 45 million Facebook users in the UK.
The lawsuit alleges that Facebook used its market dominance to co-erce users to forfeit their personal data to the company without seeing any monetary gains, while Facebook was able to sell their data for personalised advertising to amass billions.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because the EU recently found Facebook guilty of a similar offence in their recent GDPR ruling.
Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were all found to be GDPR non-compliant for gaining ‘forced consent’ from users to access and use their personal data.
Meta was able to gain user ‘consent’ to track and store their personal data for advertising purposes by putting it in their terms and conditions. Essentially, this means users cannot access the service without giving up their data to advertising companies.
While the EU found this to be in breach of their data privacy legislation, the UK is still formulating their data protection regulations.
The current lawsuit was formed in 2022 and is spearheaded by international competition lawyer Dr. Liza Lovdhal Gormsen.
While the EU case had more to do with legality, the UK case is making a monetary argument, stating that the Meta set an ‘unfair price’ to their users to access the service.
Users paid for the service with their data, and were only compensated with access to the free Facebook service, while Meta profited off of their user’s data through advertisement revenue.
In the first hearing, Meta argued the case should be thrown out – which they also argued for all three GDPR cases.
Meta’s lawyers argued that the case did not recognise the ‘economic value’ Facebook provided to consumers.
The case is yet to be certified by the Competition Appeal Tribunal, which will have to certify that the collective cases can be tried together.
This is not the first case against Meta in the UK.
Last year, a high court case was progressing in which the claimant said Meta had continued to store and use her data for personalised advertising after she opted out of the service.
Meta has also been targeted internationally for its monopolistic tendancies and industry dominance which governments have claimed to be anti-competition.
Currently, the US is reviewing Meta’s practices for this.
Further, the EU-wide data protection commission has called in the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) to further investigate Meta for sharing data between it’s three main platforms – Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp – as well as its other data sharing practices. The Irish DPC has so far refused to investigate the company any further.
In the Uk, the case may have further backing as the Consumer Market Authority (CMA) declared Meta a monopoly in 2020, even saying that the company’s platforms were a ‘must-have mechanism’ for consumers to stay connected.
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The EU and US have strengthened their technology partnership in a new arrangement for AI.
Signing the Administrative Arrangement on Artificial Intelligence for the Public Good at a virtual ceremony were the US State Department and the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content, and Technology (DG CONNECT) for the European Commission.
The agreement builds upon principles expressed in the Declaration for the Future of the Internet and the shared interested and values using emerging digital technologies to address global challenges.
As part of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC), launched in 2021, the agreement is the latest in the platform for joint cooperation across emerging technology.
The new agreement focuses on AI applications reflecting the increased emphasis on AI for future technologies, following the reallocation of resources – and tech talent – across major companies including Alphabet and Microsoft.
The EU and US have also created a Joint Roadmap, introducing metrics for measuring AI trustworthiness and risk management methods.
It also holds the potential to inform and advance collaborative approaches in international standards bodies related to AI.
Thierry Breton, Commissioner for the Internal Market, said: “Based on common values and interests, EU and US researchers will join forces to develop societal applications of AI and will work with other international partners for a truly global impact.”
Increased collaboration on research will help identify and further develop promising AI research results that have the potential for bread societal benefits in areas ranging from climate change, natural disasters, health and medicine, electric grid optimisation to agriculture.
The joint agreement hopes to use AI collaboration to tackle the world’s most pressing issues including extreme weather and natural disasters brought about by climate change, improving agricultural yield and sustainability, and boosting medical research, treatment, and efficiency.
Most importantly, to reduce the divide seen between country’s infrastructure, the agreement will also aim to share findings and resources with international partners that share common values but lack relevant capabilities to help them manage such emergencies and challenges.
The UK
The agreement between the US and EU comes after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced the UK’s new priority in technology for innovation, echoing his goal to make the UK the world’s next Silicon Valley.
Hunt emphasised the need for the UK to commit to emerging AI technologies, claiming that Brexit would enable the UK to attract businesses through regulations and legislation.
While the EU-US partnership will at some point allow other countries to joint, the UK may find itself falling behind other European countries in advancements and applications of AI for the benefit of the public.
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Micro-upskilling may just be the solution to address the widening skills gaps across the tech and creative sectors in the UK.
To address the widening skills gap, the Data and Marketing Association (DMA UK) has worked with 16 international brands, charities, SMEs and agencies to understand how micro-upskilling can better address the growing skills gap.
Following the critical report released by the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee detailing the dangers to the creative sector due to the skills gap, new approaches were trailed to see how effective they were in upskilling.
Now, the DMA UK is calling on senior management teams across the UK to introduce continuous learning cultures within their organisation following their pilot in micro-upskilling.
The pilot found that micro-upskilling offers additional learner benefits compared to traditional training methods, but it must be spearheaded from the very tip to reach its full potential.
“Direction, support and structure are essential building blocks of a learning culture yet are also the main barriers to professional development,” said Rachel Aldighieri, MD of the DMA.
The DMA’s pilot served as an integral part of its wider campaign to move the marketing industry a step closer towards reducing industry-wide skills gaps and talent shortages – to fuel future growth in the UK’s digital economy through continuous staff development.
Micro-skilling essentially is training in bite-sized installements – participants committed as little as one hour a week to flexible e-learning and professional development.
Learners then took part in survey so the DMA could better understand the effect of the alternative learning approach.
Findings were largely positive, with 52% saying they felt more engaged with upskilling due to the micro-upskilling pilot.
46% also identified new skills they learned through the pilot programme they otherwise would not have been able to without the micro-skilling layout.
While only 36% said they found micro-upskilling better than previous learning experiences, 67% found the method made their organisation more engaged with their skills development.
“Our micro-upskilling pilot findings are really encouraging – demonstrating to businesses how they can develop these building blocks to supercharge skills acquisition in the short term, while instilling long-term learning habits across their organisation that benefits the employee and employer,” Aldighieri said.
Shifting the Culture of Learning
90% of pilot participants said they would like to continue micro-upskilling with their organisations.
This success means a shift in the culture of learning is likley necessary to keep employees engaged in upskilling efforts to address the skills gap.
A key challenge among participants (60%) was finding the time to upskill, with 55% also saying they had too many competing priorities.
If companies are worried about the skills shortage as well as employee retention, making their priorities clear and enabling their workers to upskill will be vital.
Despite employees overwhelmingly wanting to continue micro-skilling, only 35% managed to do micro-upskilling ‘most weeks’ during the pilot, with 39% only able to do it ‘some weeks’.
26% sad they were unable to ‘do it very often.’
Aldighieri explains: “In the current economic climate, financial and time constraints mean that traditional training approaches are harder to implement, yet it is critical that our industry doesn’t neglect skills development and the growth of our teams. Micro-upskilling provides an effective and productive way of investing in our people and, in turn, plugging skills gaps to drive business growth.”
Committing to Continuous Learning
63% of learners stated they would feel more confident and positive about their career if micro-upskilling was permanent at their organisation – 33% would be more likely to stay with them.
Aldighieri added: “The fact that the majority of participating talent mentioned that if micro-upskilling became permanent it would boost their career confidence as well as their organisational loyalty, suggests it has a huge role to play as an alternative learning method in our industry – supporting traditional approaches such as training days.”
The DMA has recognised micro-upskilling as a clearly important step in the right direction for facilitating meaningful change, so they will now expand their commitment to it.
“The DMA will now work with our wider community to introduce micro-upskilling as a key element of membership. A pledge will be introduced requesting member organisations to commit an hour a week to all staff’s L&D in our new People Pillar of the DMA Code. We aim to make continuous learning synonymous with the DMA community, so our marketers are regularly enhancing their skillsets and helping to drive responsible business growth,” concluded Aldighieri.
JD Sports, the Sports and Fashion retailer, has been the latest to suffer a data breach with about 10 million customers affected.
The company announced that historical online data on customer purchases had been compromised in the attack.
Information on orders between November 2018 and October 2020 was accessed.
JD Sports brands affected include JD, Size?, Millets, Blacks, Scotts, and MittleSport.
Assuring their customers, JD Sports claimed the information was limited as they do not hold full payment card details, and at the moment they have no reason to believe that passwords were compromised in the attack.
What may have been accessed in the attack consists of costumers’ names, billing addresses, delivery addresses, emails, phone numbers, order details and the final four digits of payment cards.
In their statement, JD Sports have said they have taken the “necessary immediate steps” to handle the incident, and are working with cyber security experts. They are also cooperating with the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office.
The company is also contacting affected customers to advise them of potential phishing scams.
Neil Greenhalg, CFO of JD Sports said: “We want to apologise to those customers who may have been affected by this incident. We are advising them to be vigilant about potential scam e-mails, calls and texts and providing details on how to report these. We are continuing with a full review of our cyber security in partnership with external specialists following this incident. Protecting the data of our customers is an absolute priority for JD.”
At the moment, no information had been provided on the method used to access the information.
This is just the latest in UK cyber attacks, coming just one day after Data Privacy Awareness Day.
Earlier in the year, Royal Mail suffered cyber incident that severely affected its services.
Further, PayPal suffered a massive data breach due to a successful credential stuffing attack. 4
While full payment details and passwords were not accessed, the data breach could leave millions more susceptable to phishing attacks and scams.
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New research by Juniper has revealed that bu 2023, the Communications Platform-as-a-Service (CPaaS) market will reach £23 billion by 2025, up from about £13 billion in 2022.
Most of the 80% growth, the study says, will be driven by SMEs.
According to their White Paper – Moving Beyond SMS: How CPaaS Will Evolve in 2023 – the number of communication platforms a businesses can offer will be a key measure of success, over the amount of traffic it generates.
Further, as markets become increasingly saturated with CPaaS service provision, CPaaS vendors must expand deeper into the SME sector.
Vendors will likely focus on valuable features from easy payment platforms to AI-based chatbots.
Sam Barker, a research author, said: “CPaaS vendors now compete on the capabilities of managed services to attract SMEs. As many of these smaller enterprises lack in-house development facilities, they will choose the CPaaS platform that provides the most comprehensive managed services for rich media channels.”
Growth Factors
The research also predicts at CPaaS platforms and vendors will have to be responsible for their own security, and, in order to succeed, implement advanced anti-fraud detection systems.
Implementing ID Networks for customers to safely and fluidly share data and information will also be vital to attracting more consumers to a platform.
Juniper also predicts the consolidation of CPaaS and CCaaS communication lines, which are consistently blurred. CCaaS, essentially is inbound communication from the user to the enterprise, whereas CPaaS is outbound from the enterprise to the user.
By creating an omnichannel experience, enterprises will be better able to regulation each line and ensure the same quality of service is offered across all channels.
While overall CPaaS platforms will need to continually prove themselves capable of handing rich media traffic over a variety of services, Juniper predicts that in-messaging payments will be a determining factor in setting certain platforms apart.
Customers are looking for ease – a one stop platform to handle everything, especially for businesses. Developing in-messaging payments will require close following of regulations, but could be vital to grow a consumer base among businesses.
SMS is predicted to stay the dominate channel for CPaaS revenue, accounting for 50% by 2024.
Part of SMS’s continued right as a cornerstone of comms is it’s established reliability in termination for traffic in Multi-factor authentication.
However, other channels, like email and social media, are also predicted to expand, and account for 40% of the 2025 market value.
Platforms failing to include managed services for rich media in their three-year plans risk missing out of the substantial growth predicted for the market.
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Jeremy Hunt’s statement at Bloomberg opened with a joke about ChatGPT, but any other specific references to tech innovations stopped there.
While Hunt echoed his goal to turn the UK into the next Silicon Valley, he went into no more specifics than he did in his autumn Statement.
What We Already Know
Hunt began speaking to statistics that the UK is already very familiar with.
The UK’s digital technology is a trillion dollar industry, and has more unicorns than France and Germany.
AI alone could increase UK GDP by up to 10% by 2030, and fintech funding in 2022 was higher than anywhere in the world outside of the US.
He also mentioned the UK’s leading role in green energy, with the largest offshore wind farm in the world.
What’s New
Hunt did say that while he plans on cutting taxes – highlighting his intention to introduce competitive tax rates to attract businesses – he is focused on lowering inflation.
The Chancellor did make one thing a bit more clear in this speech: he’s asking the tech industry for help, with commentators suggesting he should offer initiatives to grow it.
But intervention is needed in several weak points Hunt mentioned himself: the skills gap is stifling innovation and making security an even greater challenge, and a lack of funding is hurting start-ups from getting launched off the ground.
While the Chancellor did not go on to address these shortcomings directly, he did outline four priorities to make the UK the next ‘Silicon Valley.’
Enterprise
As well as creating a competitive tax environment, the Chancellor intends to use the ‘nimbleness’ allowed by Brexit to create an ‘innovation friendly’ regulatory environment.
Currently, the UK is yet to decide on their data protection protocols since they split from the EU-wide GDPR. GDRP has continually seen major tech companies face fines for non-compliance.
Further, the Online Safety Bill, which is still in a draft stage, is continually flipping through different phases of severity for large tech companies who fail to keep their users safe.
The UK’s post-Brexit landscape may provide more wiggle room for legislation, but currently provides little clarity to foreign tech firms looking to expand or set up shop in the UK.
He also echoed his pension reforms he hopes will lead to more cash flow that can be invested in research and development.
Education
Hunt’s next E is in education, not just for youth, but for all ages.
The chancellor echoes PM Sunak’s calls for increased English and maths skills for young people, and for opportunities to increase outside of traditional university pathways.
However, Hunt’s focus was not just on the youth, but on the older generation, many of whom retired during the pandemic. He’s calling on them to return to work to help the UK economy, and stop reliance on immigration for workers.
Employment
This plays directly into Hunt’s next priority in Employment.
Focusing on reskilling the population is a popular initiative – recently a study found that many over 55s would like more technical training to improve their digital skills and job prospects.
The UK however, is raising the retirement age to 68, meaning that many workers will have little choice but to retrain in order to maintain their jobs for longer.
Hunt wants to get people back into work, claiming the government will look at “the conditions necessary to make work worth your while.”
This is while the Conservative government refuses to raise wages for NHS nurses who are currently striking not just for wages but for a better quality of life, as well as rail workers and postal workers joining the fight.
While the Chancellor wants to work with the major tech companies in attendance, the UK saw its first strike at an Amazon warehouse, and last year saw an Apple Store in Glasgow take strike action – both strikes were part of GMB action.
The Chancellor’s vague statement provides little clarity to these issues as he neglected to mention any of the strikes in his speech.
Everywhere
Another priority would be to make the UK economy better everywhere, and not just concentrated in London and the Southeast.
This announcement follows the major pivot of the UK Digital Growth Grant from TechNation, the non-profit, to Barclay Eagle Labs.
The departure was claimed to be due to the concentration of TechNation’s efforts on London, but the UK government appears to be taking little notice of TechNations’ recommendations to strengthen support for start ups across the industry.
Hunt noted that the uneven spread of innovation and business has caused a socially divisive Britain, and claims that this makes levelling up initiatives all the more important.
The sentiment of the tech industry in reaction to Hunt’s speech appears to largely be one of disappointment.
Andrew Megson, CEO of My Pension Expert, said: “Hunt outlined some sound logic in this morning’s speech: we must boot the economy. To boost the economy, businesses must thrive. And for businesses to thrive, inflation must drop. But sadly, 30 minutes of fluff followed. He told those who retired during the pandemic that “Britain needs you”, but he did not explain how he would attract people back into employment – something that still risks undermining the freedom Britons should have to enjoy their hard-earned retirement.
“The Chancellor gave us a lecture, not a plan, saying we must wait for Spring Budgets and Autumn Statements for policies, spending commitments or detailed strategies. There’s no scope for such a rigid approach. Consumers need to clarity now on how the government will tackle economic issues like rising interest rates and double-digit inflation; financial planning is difficult when uncertainty hangs overhead. I would urge the Chancellor to focus on speeches of substance, not sweeping generalities, to help people navigate the challenges that lie ahead of them.”
On a more positive note, Amanda Brock, CEO at OpenUK, agreed with Hunt’s sentiment, but also did not see enough out of the speech, commenting:
“Britain has every chance of being the next Silicon Valley, if this is managed well – 2023 is a moment in time that must not be allowed to slip. Engaging around education, employment and enterprise is essential if the Government wants to see more high value jobs and more companies that succeed both in this country and internationally. However, understanding the right skills to ensure that the employment investment and GDP contribution needed to fulfil this aspiration is mission critical, and our approach has often missed the target.
“Building a long term strategy will involve understanding collaboration, communities, and the entrepreneurship needed to step up to be successful internationally. Skilling up to scale up must be nationwide and include the devolved nations and regions.”
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Glasgow-based SMS plc, an energy solutions firm, is leading a consortium for a new research project aiming to demonstrate how smart meter systems can be used to develop Internet of Things (IoT) enabled solutions for UK households.
Consumers could benefit from intelligently generated energy efficiency insights to reduce their home heating bills during the cost of living crisis.
Tom Woolley, Smart Product and Strategy Director at SMS said: “This exciting project is yet another great opportunity to show how the smart meter system can be used as a platform for innovation. Through the ongoing smart meter rollout, the UK Government, network operator Smart DCC, and industry pioneers like SMS are helping establish a digital backbone for the UK energy industry.
The temperature data along with corresponding outside temperature data obtained from weather reports, will be compared with consumption data from gas smart meters to then make accurate calculations of home heat efficiency.
SMS will use n3rgy, the energy data platform, to gain consumer consent to record data.
Heat transfer coefficient algorithms then analyse homes’ historic gas usage data to create different archetype groups and benchmarks.
Tailored advice and solutions can then be presented to consumers via an app suggesting how to use energy more cost effectively.
Recommendations on specific energy efficiency upgrade options will also be identified and offered to each home, including necessary fabric improves and more sustainable heating systems.
“This particular study will look at new ways of proving how our national, secure, and interoperable smart meter ecosystem can be used for more than just energy data,” Woolley expanded.
“The use case we have identified will enable a low-cost, mass-market opportunity using existing technologies to assess the heat loss coefficient of a property.
“In turn, we anticipate we will be able to intelligently identify solutions for homeowners, such as modelling the impact a heat pump would have in their home, as well as offering more practical advice on home energy efficiency.”
Also working with SMS on the project is Chameleon Technology, which built the temperature sensor in display devices. Ivie smart energy app will be utilised as part of the trial as well, to deliver insights to customers. Green Energy UK, the independent energy supplier, is also a consortium partner.
The project is part of BEIS’s new Smart Meter-based Internet of Things Applications Programme, which aims to support innovation to determine the feasibility of, and trial, the use of IoT sensor devices within the smart meter system.
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The UK government has announced the establishment of the Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) as an independent body.
The agency was established to fund ‘high-risk and high-reward scientific research as part of the government’s promise to bolster R&D.’
Designed with what the UK Government describes as ‘unique level of freedom’, the agency puts trust in the decisions of experts in their field, empowering them to quickly allocate funding in support of their research aims.
Hoping to create transformational research programmes with the potential to create new technological capabilities for the benefit of humanity, the agency is key part of the government’s plans for innovation.
UK Science Minister George Freeman said: “The UK has long been a leading light in scientific discovery research and pioneering technology: from the invention of the steam engine and discovery of DNA to the first computer and Formula 1 telemetry.”
He also announced that £39.8 billion would be committed to the R&D budget.
“Transformational discoveries come from world class scientists and labs with the freedom to explore the unknown. We have set up ARIA as an £800 million global super lab to do just that through frontier science and technology,” he said.
Dr. Ilan Gur, the founding CEO, and Matt Clifford MBE, the ARIA Chair, demonstrate the UK’s ability to attract global scientific and entrepreneurial talent as well as the continuing strength of the UK’s research base.
Five more board members were also announced, including Sarah Hunter, a public policy expert who has worked across Silicon Valley and London, who is the Global Director of Public Policy at X, the Moonshot Factory.
Other appointments include: Stephen Cohen, a UK Civil Service Commissioner, Professor Sir David MacMillian, a Nobel Prize winning chemist, and Dame Kate Bingham (DBE), former chair of the UK Vaccine Taskforce.
Antonia Jenkinson was also appointed at Chief Financial and Operations Officer – she was CFO at the UK Atomic Energy Authority.
The group combines unique experiences from across the science, technology, and investment sectors, ensuring ARIA invests in the high-risk research that offers the best change of high rewards, supporting ground-breaking discovers with the potential to transform people’s lives.
“Guided by their experience and judgement, ARIA will make bold bets that leverage the strengths of the UK research system to drive world-changing breakthroughs,” Dr. Ilan Gur said.
The creation of the ARIA buildings on the funding announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement and hopes to cement the UK’s position as a global science superpower.
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IBM is the latest tech giant to join the slew of lay offs affecting major industry players in the last six months.
The company announced that 4,000 employees would lose their jobs this week.
According to the Bloomberg report, however, the lay offs are not for the same reasons other companies have cited in their redundancies.
While other companies are downsizing after rapidly hiring during the pandemic, IBM is releasing workers who previously held positions in the Kyndryl and Watson Health units, which have since been spun off the company.
Chief Financial Officer James Kavanaugh estimated the layoffs will cost the company around $300 million.
Despite the cost, IBM has shared a healthy outlook for the coming year as the company continues to shift aware from infrastructure and toward cloud computing.
IBM will continue to look to hire in high growth areas.
While the layoffs do not represent a major shift in the company’s goals, their hiring practices may reflect their move to cloud services.
Kavanagh, in an interview with Reuters said IBM was “committed to hiring for client-facing research and development.”
The New York based company indicated net cash flow for 2022 was US$9.3bln, lower than the US$10bln forecasted.
“We grew revenue above our mid-single digit model,” said chief executive officer, Arvind Krishna, in the trading update, adding: “Looking ahead to 2023, we expect full-year revenue growth consistent with our mid-single digit mode.”
Other companies, like Google and Microsoft, made their priorities clear as they announced thousands of redundancies.
The companies cited an emphasis on AI in their restructuring, with Microsoft swiftly announcing the continuation of their partnership with Open AI.
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Cybersecurity is vital to digital transformation, UK tech leaders agree, with 41% of them identifying it as an enabler of innovation in their organisation.
New research commissioned by Telstra, the telecommunications and technology company, surveyed 301 technology decision-makers in the UK to find out what they thought was most important to their company growth.
Since the pandemic, the UK has experienced rapid levels of digital transformation, which only increased the security risks as more services moved to the digital landscape, and new devices were introduced to legacy systems.
Organisations are faced with the burden of balancing unprecedented digitisation with security amid a rise in global cyber threats.
Rob Robinson, Head of Telstra Purple EMEA said: “CISOs are continuously adapting to keep pace with the ever-changing threat landscape.
“Today, the evolution of the role means that CISOs now play a crucial part in shaping the security strategy of their organisation from within the board.
“The question now is how they can entrench security best practices and behaviours within the workforce in order to facilitate the digitisation that is required to keep pace with modern expectations for innovation.”
Senior technology decision-makers in the UK identified cybersecurity solutions (22%) as the most important factor affecting business transformation, ahead of business processes (17%), employee commitment (16%), leadership focus/buy-in (14%), and external investment and funding (13%).
Security is no longer an afterthought – in fact, it’s a key priority in digital transformation.
Though essential, simply investing in security technology is not enough, according to top decision makers. While a recent study showed that the average company could expect a near 1.8 time return on security spending, there’s more to robust security.
A culture which recognises the importance of security is essential – 83% of respondants beleive that they have an open security culture.
This would mean their security values openness and collaboration rather than a culture of blame, encouraging a transparent reporting process for security incidents.
Having a proactive (70%), collaborative (69%), transparent (68%), and inclusive (67%) team was also high on the list of importance.
Collaboration was also identified as a key characteristic securing companies against cyber threats.
Further, 75% of respondents agreed that removing silos and encouraging collaboration between business units would reduce cybersecurity breaches.
A people-centric culture, the research suggests, would be crucial in improving security and overall business transformation, growth, and success.
However, businesses also recognised the human risk element impacting their cybersecurity.
29% of organisations found human error as a key factor in their security failings.
Hybrid working (27%), a lack of security awareness across the wider business (26%), staff burnout (26%) and the skills shortage (25%) were among some of the most significant issues highlighted by respondents.
Extra stress on staff – which would result from new onboarding, team illnesses, or absence of team leaders – was ranked as the most likely reason causing a lapse in security.
Interestingly, major sporting events (36%), public holidays (35%) and even nice weather (31%) were blamed as potential events causing security failings.
Robinson added: “Our research shows that most decision-makers recognise the importance of security in enabling innovation. It is therefore essential that security becomes engrained into the organisations’ DNA as they continue their digital transformation journeys.
“The other side of this coin is the critical role of culture in enabling better security, as well as business transformation, growth and ultimately the success of the business.
“By focusing on people and actively creating a collaborative, proactive, transparent and inclusive culture, organisations can empower employees to deliver value for the organisation through flexible, adaptable and innovative business transformation.”
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Global technology and investment advisory firm GP Bullhound is bringing its Northern Tech Awards to Edinburgh on 20th April.
The awards, which showcase the fastest-growing and most promising tech companies in the North of the UK, are returning to the Scottish capital for the first time since 2018 for it’s tenth anniversary.
Javed Huq, Executive Director at GP Bullhound, said: “The tenth anniversary of the Northern Tech Awards will celebrate the incredible achievements of the region’s digital economy over the past 12 months, and we look forward to shining the spotlight on some of the most notable success stories.”
Since its inception, the Northern Tech Awards have featured Scottish tech stories, with keynote speakers at previous events including Skyscanner co-founder Bonamy Grimes and FanDeul co-founder Rob Jones.
Entries for the Top 100 are open until 17th March – firms will need at least three years of revenue growth and a minimum revenue of £500,000 in 2020 to apply.
An additional category, Northern Stars, is open to companies with revenues below this threshold.
Shortlisted companies will be revealed on 6th April in GP Bullhound’s annual Northern Tech 100 League Table of the fastest-growing tech companies in the north of the UK.
Previous Scottish winners at the Northern Tech Awards include TVSquared, acquired by US-based Innovid for £129 million in February 2022.
GP Bullhound has advised on multiple transactions involving Scotland-based companies in recent years, including the 2019 acquisition of DeltaDNA by San Francisco-based gaming group Unity Technology, and the 2017 acquisition of data analytics startup Aquila Insight by Maryland-based Merkle Group.
The awards will take place at Edinburgh’s assembly rooms, and more information can be found here.
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While strides have been made, challenges remain in improving the UK’s digital connectivity.
Edinburgh-based connectivity consultancy, FarrPoint, surveyed over 100 digital leaders at local authorities across Scotland, England, and Wales in December 2022 to assess their views on digital connectivity progress.
This is the first UK-wide research to look at priorities across fixed and mobile connectivity specifically within local authority areas – and the barriers that can prevent progress.
A range of topics – from gigabit broadband to 5G, smart places, telecoms and net zero – were touched on by the survey.
Dr Andrew Muir, Chief Executive at FarrPoint, said: “Our research highlighted some good progress on digital connectivity within local authorities, but there are still some areas for further development.”
Almost all responding councils (97%) believed their organisation recognised the priority and importance of digital connectivity and its fundamental role in their area’s competitiveness.
Gigabit-enabled broadband was recognised across the board as playing a vital role in enabling regions to remain competitive, with nearly all respondents saying their organisation has a role to play in ensuring gigabit is delivered in their area.
“With the focus from national government and industry on rolling out gigabit services and investments in fibre, it is not surprising that this was the area where we saw most progress from councils in 2022,” Muir said.
“There have also been improvements in 4G coverage, and to a lesser extent 5G, along with some advancements in smart places and IoT.”
100% of councils felt at least reasonably well informed about digital connectivity coverage in their area.
Despite this recognised knowledge and importance, only 43% of councils said they have an up-to-date digital connectivity strategy, with around 12% having no digital connectivity strategy at all.
Councils still appear to be catching up on several fronts: 60% of them want to ensure their area is fully covered by 4G before investing more in 5G.
Further, many councils felt under-prepared for the upcoming telecoms switch-offs, with over 25% having no plans in place to deal with this issue.
Even though Internet of Things (IoT) devices are becoming more and more the standard, only 43% of local authorities had deployed smart places technologies, with around one in four uncertain about the benefits.
Though achieving net zero is a UK-wide priority, 80% of councils responding to the survey were unsure how improved connectivity can reduce carbon emissions.
“The least progress was seen on ensuring digital connectivity is aligned with net-zero targets, suggesting this is an area that isn’t fully understood yet, despite the overwhelming majority of local authorities having declared climate emergencies in their area,” Muir commented.
Most councils listed a lack of funding from central government as the biggest barrier to improving their local connectivity, followed closely by deployment issues.
Up-take of digital connectivity was also a struggle, according to the report, with 27% of councils saying affordablity was a barrier, following by availability of services (24%), a lack of awareness (17%), and a lack of digital skills (13%).
Ceren Clulow, director of Connecting Cambridgeshire, who contributed to the report on the survey, added: “Digital connectivity is key to supporting regional development priorities with clear economic growth potential.
“As someone who works in a local authority, and closely collaborates with other councils, operators, and telecoms industry bodies, I really welcome this report.
“It raises the importance of connectivity and the key role local authorities have to play in achieving the leading edge digital infrastructure needed for businesses and communities to thrive.
“Having a unified digital infrastructure strategy, with clear actions and timescales, is essential for all local authorities.”
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