IN THIS ISSUE:

• ‘Internet Buttons’ wins Technology4Good award
• County council fined £120,000 For data breach
• Public Sector Network is key to shared services
• New online hub for patent applications
• Service Birmingham moves jobs offshore
• UN promotes internet rights
• Cloud Computing: The EGB Masterclass

NEWS: ‘Internet Buttons’ wins Technology4Good award.

A service allowing anyone to set up a personalised web page of 'buttons' to help relatives, older people or anyone who is new to the internet to navigate the web has won the innovation category at last week's first ever UK 'Technology4Good' awards...

Read full story here, ‘Internet Buttons’ wins award

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NEWS: County Council Fined £120,000 For Data Breach.

The Information Commissioner's Office has fined Surrey County Council £120,000 for a serious breach of the Data Protection Act after sensitive personal information was emailed to the wrong recipients on three separate occasions...

Read full story here, Council fined for data breach...

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NEWS: Public Sector Network is key to shared services. The emergence of the public sector network (PSN) -a 'network of networks' combining existing commercial networks used by the public sector - will be a key factor in enabling more public sector bodies to share IT services, according to a new report from the Society of IT Management (Socitm)... Read full story here, Network key to shared services... Back to index

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NEWS IN BRIEF:

Patent Pilot: A pilot online hub allowing members of the public to search and examine pending patent applications and discuss their merits — becoming ‘peer reviewers’ — has been launched by the UK Intellectual Property Office, following successful trials of similar systems in the US and Australia. The ‘Peer to Patent’ pilot aims to create a ‘crowdsourcing’ resource for patent examiners to tap into public knowledge and expertise. Social networking features include the ability to give applications a ‘thumbs up’ or ‘thumbs down’. The pilot site is limited to patents concerning electronic data, and will run to 31 December 2011:

Quick link: Patent Pilot

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Offshore Moves: Service Birmingham, the joint venture between Capita and Birmingham City Council tasked with overhauling the city's IT services and business processes, has admitted “a limited number of back office technical roles” could be ‘offshored’ to India. In a statement, Service Birmingham said 17 roles transferred offshore in April, with a review of the transfer of 38 further roles set for August. Its overall workforce numbers 1,100. A spokesperson said: “It is still early days and we will actively work with our trade union representatives as our plans develop. It is important to emphasise this is a very small element of the work we do for the council and we remain absolutely committed to our Birmingham workforce”:

Quick link: Offshore Moves

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Digital Rights: The special characteristics of the internet to promote freedom of expression mean governments should only restrict its use by citizens in exceptional circumstances, according to a report to the United Nations Human Rights Council by Special Rapporteur Frank La Rue. Its interactive nature means the internet should also be regulated more lightly than other forms of one-way media, the report found. It said: “The right to freedom of opinion and expression is as much a fundamental right on its own accord as it is an “enabler” of other rights, including economic, social and cultural rights... [and] the rights to freedom of association and assembly. Thus, by acting as a catalyst for individuals to exercise their right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Internet also facilitates the realization of a range of other human rights”:

Quick link: Digital Rights

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Cloud Computing in the Public Sector:The EGB Masterclass More than a third of public sector bodies have already entered the cloud - at least partially. But cloud computing still holds risks and fears for government and local government. What is the best way forward? Lawrence Jones (pictured), founder of hosting specialist UKFast, has the answers in the latest in our E-Government Bulletin Masterclass series..... Read full story here, Cloud Computing Masterclass... Back to index