Internet infrastructure

UK Treasury recruiting digital currency leader

The UK government’s investigation into the merits of a central bank digital currency gathers pace at it looks for a team leader Continue Reading

Neos Networks completes full-fibre access promise for key UK cities

Just over a year after UK business connectivity provider opened its first metro access network to offer last-mile services direct to nearly 10,000 regional businesses, such services are now live in four key UK cities as part of an ongoing expansion programme Continue Reading

Virgin Media O2 taps Juniper to upgrade core IP backbone for 800G readiness

Need for increased data capacity and flexible scalability highlighted by 32% traffic growth on its mobile network,16% growth in broadband data downloads and a peak traffic load of 22TB over the past year Continue Reading

Vodacom lands 2Africa subsea cable in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

What is described as ‘transformative’ subsea cable lands at the Vodacom facility in Gqeberha at South Africa’s Eastern Cape to provide a gateway to direct international connectivity for faster, more reliable internet services in the country and drive digital inclusion Continue Reading

Zayo expands 400G fibre to connect Paris and Marseilles

Leading global communications platform boosts European fibre infrastructure with a new fibre route to link up two major French cities, supporting traffic growth and making it easier and more secure for enterprises to send traffic to the rest of Europe and the US Continue Reading

UK government reveals Cornwall as next port of call for Project Gigabit

Latest contract in UK government’s Project Gigabit programme given to Wildanet to deliver ultra-fast broadband in south-west and mid-Cornwall connecting nearly 20,000 hard-to-reach homes and businesses Continue Reading

UK seeks to ban sharing ‘positive’ Channel crossing videos online

Under UK government amendments to the Online Safety Bill, video footage that shows people crossing the Channel in a ‘positive light’ could be added to a list of illegal content that all tech platforms must proactively prevent from reaching users, while senior managers could face further criminal sanctions Continue Reading

David Anderson KC to review UK surveillance laws

Home Office commissions independent review of the Investigatory Powers Act, known as the snoopers’ charter. It will include a review of bulk datasets and government access to internet connection records held by phone and internet companies Continue Reading

Nokia, Telefónica successfully test 25G PON technology in Spain

Noting ever-increasing consumer bandwidth demands and the need to support applications such as the metaverse, operator announces demo of new FTTH technology to offer new business services on same network as home connectivity Continue Reading

Orange juices JDE expansion with SD-WAN

Telco’s Business Services division selected by global coffee company to secure end-to-end connectivity offerings for more than 120 locations worldwide Continue Reading

Southern Cross switches on third 400GbE transpacific link

Specialist international capacity provider and optical network technology provider announce commercial availability of ultra-high throughput along 15,840km network Continue Reading

Cloudflare urged to clamp down on pirates, counterfeiters

A whitepaper produced by brand protection specialist Corsearch calls on Cloudflare to do more to stop online content piracy and sales of counterfeit goods Continue Reading

Unionised contract workers who train Google’s AI win pay rise

Google contract workers employed at artificial intelligence training supplier RaterLabs have secured their first-ever pay rise, following collective demands that Google fulfil its own commitment to pay its extended workforce a minimum of $15 an hour Continue Reading

AWS opens first Australian Local Zone in Perth

AWS’s first Local Zone in Australia will bring low-latency performance to companies such as Woodside Energy and Nearmaps Continue Reading

CityFibre continues gigabit roll-out to non-metro south of England

UK’s largest independent full-fibre platform begins work on £50m digital transformation project in Kent Continue Reading

Chrome vulnerability could have led to widespread data theft

A dangerous vulnerability in Google Chrome and Chromium-based browsers could have put billions of users’ files at risk of being stolen Continue Reading

UK net neutrality regulation failing all stakeholders

Leading analyst releases study showing net neutrality regulation is failing consumers, innovators and investors, calling for evidence-based broadband policy Continue Reading

Cloudflare completes SASE offer with Magic WAN Connector

Software-defined wide-area network functionality released by online application acceleration and infrastructure provider Cloudflare to complete single-supplier secure access service edge offering Continue Reading

Internet shutdowns cost global economy $24bn in 2022

Deliberate disruption of people’s access to the internet by governments is having a substantial economic impact and contributing to a range of human rights abuses, primarily against protestors Continue Reading

What’s happening with quantum-safe cryptography?

Chinese researchers claim quantum technology is reaching a point where a quantum device will soon be able to crack RSA 2048 public key encryption Continue Reading

‘Anomaly’ sees first UK space mission fail to reach orbit

Despite optimism surrounding historic first attempt to launch satellites from UK, mission reaches space but falls short of reaching target orbit Continue Reading

Launch window opens for UK’s first orbital mission

All systems go for first space mission in UK as project partners announce the official opening of the Start Me Up launch window Continue Reading

New UK laws to see homeowners, tenants get better access to fast broadband

UK government mandates that almost all new homes in England must be built with gigabit broadband connections during construction, making it easier for homebuyers, renters and some leaseholders to upgrade to ultrafast services Continue Reading

Cashless Denmark has no bank robberies in a year for first time

Denmark saw no bank robberies in a single year for the first time ever, but online fraud continues to increase Continue Reading

Top trends in tech, and retail’s early adopters

Computer Weekly identifies the retail industry’s early adopters of what McKinsey & Co deems the top tech trends Continue Reading

CityFibre and Vodafone complete first UK 2Gbps residential trial

Leading UK independent full-fibre broadband provider teams with comms operator and leading anchor tenant for trial of 2Gbps services, with scope to scale for introduction of services up to 10Gbps, made possible by recent upgrade to XGS-PON Continue Reading

Building culture within collaboration to make hybrid work pay

As hybrid working evolves, some firms are struggling to support non-office-based workers and management is unclear of its new responsibilities. What is being done to address this evolution? Continue Reading

Remote workers shun return to work

Study from UK gigabit broadband service provider reveals that despite received wisdom of home workers wanting to make at least partial return to pre-Covid working practices, stark contrast exists between employers and employees in their desire for staff to hit the office once more Continue Reading

Top 10 networking stories of 2022

Here are Computer Weekly’s top 10 networking stories of 2022 Continue Reading

Developed for Big Science in Europe, highly accurate time protocols ensure fair trading in finance

Protocols developed for use at the European Organisation for Nuclear Research are now being used for many other applications, including financial services Continue Reading

Freeing the hybrid workforce from quiet constraint

The rapid shift to hybrid working may be contributing to the trend of 'quiet constraint'. We look at how technology can be applied to really work for a distributed workforce Continue Reading

Microsoft, Viasat team to deliver internet access to global underserved communities

New collaboration through IT giant’s Airband Initiative designed to increase satellite broadband availability for people across Africa and the rest of the world by the end of 2025 Continue Reading

UK gigabit access breaks barrier but take-up remains slow

Ofcom’s latest investigation of connectivity across the country finds full-fibre broadband now available to more than 12 million homes and 5G reaching seven in ten properties, while the number of households without access to decent broadband has fallen by a third Continue Reading

BT boosts network monitoring to improve customer experience

Comms tech provider’s analytics software selected by leading UK network provider in five-year deal to improve operators’ fixed access customer experience Continue Reading

Truespeed targets in-building connectivity with new router, Mesh Wi-Fi

Gigabit broadband provider Truespeed switches focus from delivering high-speed connectivity to building and to around them, striking partnership with provider of wireless connectivity devices for homes and businesses Continue Reading

Telstra tunes up with orchestration to enhance automation, customer experience

Leading Australian operator taps global comms tech provider to support network-as-a-service (NaaS) strategies, enabling an enhanced experience for business customers through reusable and shared platform for improved network management and operational efficiency Continue Reading

Almost two-thirds of businesses fear IT estate incapable of supporting hybrid workforce

Research from managed workplace services provider finds current IT setup is preventing effective collaboration, putting remote workers at a disadvantage and driving up cyber risks Continue Reading

Medusa Submarine Cable to land on Orange infrastructure in Marseille

Orange will give users of Mediterranean submarine cable system the ability to access datacentres in French city and interconnect through fully redundant infrastructure Continue Reading

Onwards to 6G - the UK government's 'bold plan' for a connected Britain

The UK telecoms minister outlines the government's thinking on developing a digital infrastructure for the connected age Continue Reading

Openreach announces 12 new full-fibre build locations

London calling for BT-owned broadband provision division as it makes next step in plan to reach 25 million homes with full fibre by December 2026 and launches simplified online map showing when and where full-fibre network is being built Continue Reading

CityFibre extends reach across southern England as it files Openreach competition complaint

Just as it carries build-out momentum of 2022 to key towns in Suffolk and Berkshire, UK’s largest independent full-fibre provider protests to UK regulatory authorities about behaviour of arch-rival in gigabit broadband Continue Reading

Société du Grand Paris books in Nokia IP, private wireless for metro rail network

Nokia forms secure mission-critical communications system behind four Grand Paris Express lines that will transport two million passengers per day, delivering enhanced capacity, reliability and performance, and contributing to efforts to boost operations, safety and rider experience Continue Reading

CW Europe: Finland prepares for drone technology take-off

Finland is preparing for a future where it could rely on flying drone technology. Read about its plans in this issue. Also find out how a PhD student in the Netherlands is helping to detect hidden messages on the internet by using steganography. Continue Reading

Peeking into the metaverse

Extended reality is capturing the imagination of media and investors. Continue Reading

UK government accelerates satellite, fibre gigabit broadband access to remote regions

Mountain rescue base and 12th century abbey set to gain from government test of satellites to connect remote locations, while work also begins to connect 60,000 rural premises in North West England Continue Reading

Wi-Fi ‘essential’ to bridge the digital divide in rural areas

Report from trade association for wireless communications sets out strategies for mobile operators, fibre providers and cable companies to serve the estimated billion people unconnected to Wi-Fi Continue Reading

Microsoft 365 banned in German schools over privacy concerns

German schools cannot legally use Microsoft Office 365 over lack of clarity about how data is collected, shared and used, as well as the potential for unlawful transfer of European citizens’ personal data to the US Continue Reading

‘Legal but harmful’ clause dropped from Online Safety Bill

Online Safety Bill’s ‘legal but harmful’ provision will be dropped by the UK government in favour of public risk assessments, tools to help users control the content they consume, and new criminal offences around self-harm Continue Reading

Extended reality can be empathic reality

In the metaverse, eliciting empathy might become an important feature for many applications, including gaming and industrial uses, and there is even the potential that applications that focus on emphatic results will create their own market niche Continue Reading

BT aims to reign in industry where connectivity is king

In the latest part of its drive to evolve from a telco to a techco, BT unveils range of 5G-enabled robotics systems and reveals how it is driving the evolution of advanced communications in industrial applications Continue Reading

Internet of things market continues to surge

China and US to drive world adoption of internet of things with global demand for smart offerings from industrial to security use cases still rising Continue Reading

XR’s wide range of interface technologies: Achieving total immersiveness

Visuals are important to create convincing representations of the real world in extended reality, but they are neither inclusive nor do they provide a sufficiently authentic sensation in virtual worlds. Genuine immersiveness will require interfaces that address the breadth of human senses Continue Reading

XR and the real world: Feedback loops and spillovers

As the metaverse develops, the realism of advanced extended reality applications could allow users to take experiences, interests and strategies with them into the real world – creating spillovers from virtual to real worlds Continue Reading

CityFibre inks strategic relationship with Toob

Terms agreed to give rapidly growing full-fibre platform’s wholesale customers access to growing network footprints of south of England fibre-to-the-premise network provider Continue Reading

Cyber criminals target World Cup Qatar 2022

In this week’s Computer Weekly, as the FIFA World Cup opens in Qatar, we examine the cyber security threats from criminals targeting the event. We report from the Gartner Symposium on the latest predictions for enterprise software development. And we talk to the CIO of Kyiv City Council about managing IT in the shadow of war. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Virgin Media feels strain from Warzone, teams with TIP for Dublin Wi-Fi

Comms provider sees busiest day on record for UK data consumption, and teams with local authority in Irish capital to trial open, disaggregated Wi-Fi network with goal to provide city centre with free wireless internet access Continue Reading

GBI adds to optical network capacity to deal with World Cup traffic spike

Middle East-based smart and fully managed network provider deploys optical network engine ahead of expected increase in demand on infrastructure Continue Reading

Enterprises embrace SD-WAN but miss benefits of integrated approach to security

Research from managed network and security services provider finds virtually all enterprises have deployed software-defined wide area networks or plan to do so within the next 24 months, but nearly half reported they either don’t have security integrated with SD-WAN or have no specific SD-WAN security at all Continue Reading

Agility, business more important than cost, network management for IT teams

Cisco report finds new rules applying in a multicloud world, with IT decision-makers regarding security as the top networking challenge when managing distributed and hybrid workloads Continue Reading

Hispasat, Sencinet expand satellite broadband in Mexico

New agreement between managed services and solutions network integrator and satellite communications operator expands and extends currently contracted capacity until December 2024 Continue Reading

CityFibre celebrates Dundee anniversary, makes splash in Brighton & Hove

Full-fibre platform makes mark at both ends of the UK, racking up two-year presence in growing gaming hub in North East Scotland and arriving on shore of South of England’s leading coastal resort Continue Reading

Nokia, Optus unveil ultra-low-latency Sydney to Melbourne network

Australian operator takes on comms tech provider’s network infrastructure offering to upgrade its existing long-haul network and address growing market demands for bandwidth Continue Reading

Altnets announces fibre equipment partnership with HellermannTyton

Supplier to internet service providers inks partnership with custom-built telecoms products manufacturer to distribute broadband products to service providers across the UK Continue Reading

Keeping personally identifiable data personal

As it celebrates its 100th birthday, the BBC has begun a pilot looking into its role in enabling the general public to store their personal data Continue Reading

UK government approach to space industry lacks coherence and investment

As satellite broadband industry rockets, report from Commons Science and Technology Committee criticises government’s failures in key technical areas and continues to question value to taxpayer of OneWeb joint venture Continue Reading

Networks division stars as SES shows solid Q3 2022

Global satellite operator continues to benefit from its pivot away from video and to business connectivity, reporting a positive third quarter but continued revenue decline for its video business Continue Reading

BT sees fibre and 5G advances in H1

After ‘building and connecting like fury’, UK incumbent telco claims to be remaining on the front foot in current turbulent times and nears nine million mark in fibre deployment Continue Reading

Shadow digital secretary outlines Labour’s tech priorities

Labour’s digital and technology plans focus on reining in the power of the tech giants, boosting connectivity across the UK, and improving online safety Continue Reading

Can crypto recover from the crash of 2022?

What does the crypto wipeout of 2022 mean for an increasingly turbulent economy and can crypto bounce back in the months and years ahead? Crucially, how will regulators react? Continue Reading

Truespeed invests £22m into South-West full-fibre roll-out

With the addition of 12 new areas to its gigabit broadband network, Bath-based UK altnet expands full-fibre network access to parts of home city and regions of South Gloucestershire and North Somerset Continue Reading

Report reveals ‘clear gaps’ in UK’s broadband safety net

Latest update on progress of broadband roll-out guarantees from April to September 2022 shows worrying signs that as the cost-of-living crisis rolls on, swathes of the UK population could be priced out of gaining acceptable broadband Continue Reading

CityFibre furthers gigabit in UK Midlands and claims £283m Blackpool boost

Warwick and Leamington Spa added to growing list of gigabit broadband-enabled communities covered by UK’s largest independent full-fibre platform Continue Reading

Tearing down the barriers to full digital connectivity

Millions of households rely on good connectivity for work, study or leisure. But how much has fast and consistent broadband connectivity spread across the UK? Continue Reading

Virgin Media O2 trials 5G drone in Snowdonia

Comms operator trials new 5G drone technology to increase safety for millions of visitors at North Wales national park, delivering network coverage to remote areas and helping emergency services to respond to distress calls better Continue Reading

Government ups cyber support for elderly, vulnerable web users

DCMS announces a funding boost to help the elderly, disabled and other vulnerable groups stay safe online and avoid being misled by disinformation Continue Reading

Meta tightens purse strings as it spends on Reality Labs

Facebook’s parent company is betting the business on a long-term strategy to move social media into the metaverse Continue Reading

Putting metaverse concerns into perspective

All breakthroughs in technology have come with downsides, so what risks and concerns are there with the advent of the metaverse? Continue Reading

Dutch lawyers raise human rights concerns over hacked cryptophone data

Dutch defence lawyers say in an open letter that there is a risk of unfair trials unless they are allowed to test the reliability and legitimacy of hacked cryptophone evidence Continue Reading

Germany: European Court of Justice asked to rule on legality of hacked EncroChat phone evidence

Berlin’s Regional Court has asked the European Court of Justice to answer questions about whether the use of hacked EncroChat phone evidence complies with European law Continue Reading

Rural-urban broadband connectivity gap persists in UK

Research from UK communications regulator finds widespread use of video streaming and other bandwidth-intensive services mean people are demanding more of their broadband connections, but accessibility to ultra-fast connectivity is dependent on location Continue Reading

Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Cisco collaborate for inclusive, digital region

Networking tech giant and local council unveil region-wide, secure, digital infrastructure to underpin transformation of public services in social innovation programme designed to boost digital skills, innovation with SMEs and access to services Continue Reading

Did Truss authorise ‘war risk’ provocation over Black Sea?

A UK Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint spy plane was ordered to approach Russian territory in a Cold-War-style provocation just days after Liz Truss’s mini-budget collapsed Continue Reading

Broadband majors, altnets respond to cost-of-living crisis

With latest UK inflation figures set to see comms contracts rise, industry reacts to mitigate against worst effects of price rises for customers and staff Continue Reading

NBN selects Nokia 5G mmWave FWA technology for connectivity refresh

Much-criticised Australian national broadband infrastructure sees first large-scale, long-reach 5G mmWave FWA deployment in urban, suburban and rural environments Continue Reading

XR applications are already changing businesses

Many still regard the metaverse as a technology looking for an application. Yet company leaders would be surprised to learn how commercially usable augmented and virtual reality applications already are Continue Reading

The metaverse’s developing industry structure

Challenges to create seamlessly working metaverse solutions exist not only on the technology side, but also on the business and partnership side. But the developing commercial landscape has not yet gelled. Small players, startups and even individuals have the opportunity to carve out profitable niches, perhaps even create the next big players Continue Reading

Work in the metaverse: A Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

In this special edition of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, we speak to Wipro CTO Subha Tatavarti about the business metaverse Continue Reading

BT reveals role of robotics, IoT to transform and automate agriculture

First fruits revealed of leading UK telco’s dedicated telecoms civil engineering robotics test facility, designed to help fibre network development Continue Reading

Skype’s legacy and the rise of the ‘new Nordics’

Estonia and other Baltic states could be part of a ‘new Nordics’ of technology innovation Continue Reading

Vodafone, Altice create a fibre-to-the-home joint venture in Germany

A 50/50 joint venture partnership aims to build on operator’s next-generation network with broadband firm’s industrial expertise and proven fibre-to-the-home construction capabilities, enabling gigabit connectivity to customers in Germany Continue Reading

Neos Networks announces business-grade managed dedicated internet access

UK fibre connectivity supplier announces launch of the managed variant of its dedicated internet access service, providing businesses with fully managed, enterprise-grade, fibre-optic internet connectivity Continue Reading

GBI taps Nokia to enhances optical network capacity between Middle East and Europe

Cloud, connectivity and content enabler undertakes optical network capacity upgrade between key markets to scale wavelength speed by a factor of x4 to offer high-speed connectivity across subsea cable and terrestrial network links Continue Reading

CW Middle East: Qatar strengthens cyber defences ahead of FIFA World Cup

Being the first Arab country to host the World Cup is pressure enough on Qatar, but there is also a massive cyber security challenge associated with any event of this magnitude. Read about its preparations. Also in this issue, find out about the unique challenges of hiring IT professionals in Saudi Arabia. Continue Reading

UK gigabit broadband expansion rolls on for CityFibre, Hyperoptic

Deployment in South Yorkshire adds to largest independent provider’s estate as part of £8bn development plan, while fibre provider announces internal and external milestones as it clocks up 11 years in business Continue Reading

Indonesia’s NeutraDC outlines global ambitions

Formed from the consolidation of Telkom’s infrastructure assets, NeutraDC has set its sights on being a global player in datacentre and connectivity services Continue Reading

Qualcomm unveils next-gen MR, VR devices based on Snapdragon platform

New premium-tier extended reality platform is said to deliver 50% higher sustained power and 30% improved thermal performance to enable more immersive metaverse experiences in smaller, lighter form factors Continue Reading

French Supreme Court rejects EncroChat verdict after lawyers question secrecy over hacking operation

France’s Supreme Court has sent a case back to the court of appeal after police failed to disclose technical details of EncroChat hacking operation Continue Reading

Meta presents vision for business metaverse

How can hybrid teams collaborate seamlessly? Meta believes virtual reality tied to business applications is the way forward Continue Reading

ICO selectively discloses reprimands for data protection breaches

Data protection experts question ICO’s selective approach to publishing formal reprimands for contravening the law, after FoI request reveals the Cabinet Office was among the organisations reprimanded Continue Reading

Community Fibre secures £985m finance facility

London and South East-based gigabit connectivity provider announces massive cash injection Continue Reading