Eximium MD recognised as ‘Technology Entrepreneur of the Year’

Further to my previous posting about the Bright Sparc awards, I’m proud and honoured to announce that I was crowned ‘Technology Entrepreneur of the Year’ at the Bright Sparc awards evening at the Cranfield Management Research Institute, part of Cranfield University, on 13th May!!

This is the second award I’ve received so far this year, and represents a major achievement, particularly given the stiff competition I was up against. This is a reflection on the whole team at Eximium, and the quality of their abilities and approach, so I can’t take all the credit myself!!

My award was sponsored by The Open University, and so was presented by Brigid Heywood who is their Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise).

Here I am accepting the award.

I was given a free ticket and space to exhibit at Cranfield’s Venture Day on May 14th, which was an excellent event.  I was particularly inspired by terrific keynote speeches from Lord Karan Billimoria, CEO of Cobra Beer, and Mel Young, founder of the Big Issue in Scotland.

Cranfield University’s CMRI is a world class facility for the study of business management.

The Sparc Technology network is managed by the Milton Keynes Enterprise Hub and run by knowledge-based organisations for technology, who are seeking to develop face-to-face networking opportunities.  They run regular monthly events featuring high profile keynote speakers, an annual awards evening and competitive pitching for local technology led businesses.

Chris Dunkley, Sparc’s network director, said in their press release about my award: “The Bright Sparc Awards have provided an excellent opportunity to celebrate the achievements of some of the region’s most innovative entrepreneurs and technology-led businesses. Derrick Cameron has been instrumental in bringing the benefits of technology to businesses in the East of England. He has also enabled Eximium to both survive and thrive in the current economic climate through the adoption of the Procession tool.

“As a business Eximium is bringing the true power of IT within the reach and understanding of businesses throughout the region, by delivering its unique approach and the latest advancements in business software technology.”

I’m absolutely delighted to have been chosen for this prestigious award and I hope I can continue to live up to the standards that the judging panel felt I had set!

Start them early

They say that the children of today are more at ease with technology than generations who have gone before them. I can believe it when I see how they zip around the computer as if it were something as simple as a colouring book. They use computers in nursery schools now and I think it’s a good thing.

It is also said that children are much more susceptible to learning in the first five years of their lives and it has been suggested that languages should be introduced at a much earlier stage within schools to take advantage of this fact.

Bearing all this in mind, I am an avid believer in starting the learning process at a young age, but I think you can take things too far! Look at these photo’s of the youngest members of Eximium Limited hard at work on their latest project.

It’s just too cute.

UK ID Card Scheme

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has said that Post offices and pharmacies could act as enrolment centres for the Government’s ID card scheme. These cards will cost £60, £30 being for the card and £30 to cover the cost of collecting the data which is to be stored on a Government database.

The launch of the £5 billion scheme will take place in Greater Manchester this autumn. Anyone who lives in the city, who holds a valid UK passport and wants an ID card, or biometric passport as they are also known, can go to their local post office or pharmacy to have their fingerprints and a scan of their face stored. You can also sign up for information alerts at directgov website.

Ms Smith is meeting with pharmacy trade groups and post office managers to discuss the plans for them to become enrolment centres.

“The companies interested in working with us to deliver the service will play a key role in ensuring the public can apply for an ID card or passport simply and easily,” she said.

“While private companies will clearly benefit from the increased footfall from offering this service, their customers will benefit from being able to quickly provide their biometrics while they are out doing the shopping.

“With an identity card, people will be able to prove their identity quickly and conveniently while helping to protect themselves against identity fraud.

“ID cards will deliver real benefits to everyone, including increased protection against criminals, illegal immigrants and terrorists.”

Opposition parties believe that the scheme should be scrapped, as £5 billion is a lot of money to spend in the current economic climate, when the government’s finances are already being squeezed. The Home Office argues that it will save money in the long term, which is currently being spent on fighting crime, terrorism and fraud.

Our concern would be how are they going to protect the data once they’ve collected it? If past experience is anything to go by, they wouldn’t do a very good job! These ID cards are voluntary at the moment, so when you consider whether to get one, you need to consider whether you want to risk your information potentially getting into the wrong hands?

We have several articles commenting on security issues involving the government. They are Learn your lesson from Revenue and Customs to avoid a security meltdown, Another Security Meltdown and More Data Security Issues.

You can find further information on the proposed ID cards on the directgov website and the Identity and Passport Service website.

Everybody has a different opinion as to whether they think ID cards are a good idea or not. You can have your say on the BBC news website.

Bright Sparc Awards 2009

I’m extremely pleased to announce that I am a finalist for this year’s Bright Sparc ‘Technology Entrepreneur of the Year’ award.

The Bright Sparc awards are provided by the Sparc Technology and, this year, are in association with Cranfield University, Business Link and Bedford i-lab, among others.  The purpose of the awards is so that technology-led businesses and entrepreneurs from across the region have the opportunity to be recognised for innovative achievements and will honour those businesses or individuals who have truly excelled in their specialist field.

These are the second Bright Sparc Awards and are a great way for innovative companies in our region to showcase their work to an expert panel of judges and gain recognition for their achievements.  Milton Keynes and the surrounding regions are home to many technology companies all of whom are pushing the boundaries of their chosen specialism.  The awards were closely fought last year and gained significant recognition for the winners!

There are a total of 9 awards, in the following categories:

• Young Technology Entrepreneur of the Year 2009
• Technology Entrepreneur of the Year 2009
• Technology Led Business of the Year 2009
• Use of Sustainable Technology in a Business 2009
• Business Innovation Support Person of the Year 2009
• Best Interaction between an HEI and Business 2009
• The Best Use of Technology by a Business 2009
• Overall Bright Sparc Award 2009

The winners will be announced at an awards dinner on 13th May.  The evening starts at 6pm with drinks and the presentation of the awards at 6.30pm. There will be the chance to network over a glass of wine and a hot buffet until the end of the evening around 9pm. There are a limited number of additional tickets available, on a first come first served basis and can be purchased using a Ticket Request Form.

A great benefit of being a finalist for this award is that we will also have a free ticket to attend and exhibit at Cranfield University’s ‘Venture Day’ on the following day - 14th May.  Cranfield VentureDay 2009 is a one day conference and networking event for entrepreneurs and those interested in cutting-edge entrepreneurial performance. 

The event comprises keynote addresses by leading entrepreneurs, exposure to the latest research, exhibits by new enterprises and a networking zone.  The extensive range of workshops and plenary sessions will focus on business start-up, growth, finance and business strategy and will incorporate leading entrepreneurs, business angels, venture capitalists and academics.  Tickets for the event are £120 each.

I’m honoured and excited that we are part of this year’s awards and the Venture Day, and there is of course the possibility that I will actually win the award, which would be truly fantastic!!

Please do come and speak to me if you decide to attend either event.

Eximium Building Awarded ‘Excellent’ BREEAM Environmental Rating

We take environmental issues very seriously at Eximium, and we are always looking for ways to reduce the impact our work has on our planet.

A key part of our environmental strategy included an objective to house our operation in a ‘green’ building, and we achieved this in 2008 when we moved to the Basepoint Business & Innovation Centre in Luton. 

We’re now delighted to announce that the centre has been awarded an ‘Excellent’ rating and four stars on the international BREEAM standard, in clear recognition of the achievement this building represents.  The BREEAM standard, recognised worldwide, measures a building against 10 key environmental criteria:

• Energy: operational energy consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Management: management policy, commissioning, site management and procurement
• Health and Wellbeing:  indoor and external issues (noise, light, air quality etc)
• Transport: transport-related CO2 and location related factors
• Water: consumption and efficiency inside and out
• Materials: impacts of building materials, including lifecycle impacts like carbon dioxide
• Waste: construction resource efficiency and operational waste management and minimisation
• Land Use: type of site and building footprint
• Pollution: external air and water pollution
• Ecology: ecological value, conservation and enhancement of the site

As you can see, the criteria are comprehensive and consider many factors in addition to the building’s design and facilities, including many management measures.

This is an excellent accolade and proves the strong, ongoing commitment of the Basepoint management team to sustainability and conservation.  It also reflects extremely well on our own approach to the environment and to sustainability, and we congratulate the Basepoint team, Luton Borough Council and EEDA on their achievement!

Our next environmental goal is to become Carbon Neutral, which we are currently working towards.  We’ll let you know how we get on!

Growing IT in Your Business

I’m excited to announce that we’ve been asked by Business Link East to provide another series of seminars as part of their ‘growing business’ events programme.

We’ll be developing and presenting a 2 hour briefing session for them, aimed at SME business owners, directors and managers entitled ‘Growing IT in Your Business’, in their April 2009 to March 2010 events season. There will be 6 sessions at various venues across the region.

I’m pleased to announce that the dates and venues for each of the 6 sessions are:

• 17th Jun 09 - Thurrock, Orsett Hall
• 16th Sep 09 - Hemel Hempstead, Holiday Hill
• 23rd Oct 09 - Luton, The Leaside Hotel
• 10th Nov 09 - Bury St Edmunds, Ickworth Hotel
• 24th Feb 09 - Wisbech, The Boat House
• 24th Mar 10 - Norwich, The Forum Trust

You’ll be able to book online via their Events Service.

Fight the Credit Crunch with IT

I’m pleased to announce that the ‘Fight the Credit Crunch with IT’ workshop we delivered for EEDA’s takeITon campaign has now been published as 4 online rich-media seminars!  This was acheived using a recording of the morning workshop at the prestigious Hethel Engineering Centre in Norwich.  You get to see me delivering the seminar and see the presentation alongside, plus there are links to useful content from the workshop.  You can easily jump around the sections, as required.

This means that that people who came can revist some of the information, plus anyone who missed this workshop can now see me in action and get the benefits of the workshop directly from the takeITon website!

Just use this link to watch the 4 online seminars taken from the workshop: ‘Fight the Credit Crunch With IT’ Video

How to Market Your Business Online

I ran the first two of my ‘How to Market Your Business Online’ workshops for EEDA’s TakeITon campaign yesterday at Sprowston Manor Hotel, Norwich.  With more than 60 people attending, I was delighted to see how popular the sessions were and how engaged everybody was. 

The feedback was excellent with many people taking time to tell me what a great difference the briefing made to their understanding and approach towards online marketing.

This seminar is a follow up to the earlier ‘Fight the Credit Crunch with IT’ briefing for EEDA, which also forms part of their TakeITon initiative.   However, attending the previous seminar is not a pre-requisite!

I received some great feedback from Penny Lindop at Penny Lindop Designs this morning.  She attended one of yesterday’s workshops and was very complimentary of both the content and my delivery.  She has posted a great comment on her blog, which you can view by clicking the following link:

Card Art Norfolk blog

If you would like more information or to attend one of these free workshops, please use the following link:

TakeITon website

I’m off to Bedford on Thursday to deliver another 2 of these sessions.  It’s quite hard work delivering so many seminars in such a short space of time, but very rewarding – especially when business owners like Penny are finding them so useful!!

As I get older, I find that I am more and more aware of my own mortality.  As with everyone, I am finding people close to me are passing away and more often than not, from cancer.  I give more to cancer charities than any other now, because it is something close to my heart.

I have two teenage daughters who I rarely get to see these days. We pass in the hall way like flat mates as one or other of us dashes off to a work commitment, while the other is off to socialise with friends.  I am finding more and more now that I have to arrange and schedule quality family time otherwise it just never happens.

I was thinking about both of these a month or so ago, when it struck me that we could do the Race for Life together.  They were both very good cross country runners when they were at school and it’s something that I’ve been thinking about doing for a while.  We can train and do the race together, which means regular quality time together and we can raise money for a very worthy cause at the same time.  Both the girls agreed to run the race with me, so I signed us up for the 5k in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire on the 14th of June. 

If you have daughters and you would be interested in raising money for Cancer Research together then why not go to the Race for Life website and see where your nearest race is.

http://www.raceforlife.org/

If you do not wish to participate, but would be interested in sponsoring me, please click the link below:

http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/jackieeggleton

‘How to Market Your Business Online’ Workshop

As many of you will already know, we created and delivered a series of 6 workshops for EEDA starting in November last year, as a key part of their takeITon development programme.  These FREE seminars were aimed at SME business owners and managers and entitled ‘Fight the Credit Crunch with IT’, and I’ve now delivered this workshop 8 times, with a further 2 planned for next week.  It is also available online via the takeITon tv channel.  These events all went extremely well and the feedback received has been very positive.

So, I’m delighted to say that we have now developed the second workshop for the takeITon programme, entitled ‘How to Market Your Business Online’, covering the essentials of online marketing - including the creation of a online marketing plan during the session!  So far, this workshop is being held at three venues across the region with two sessions available each day, as follows:

• 17th March  — Sprowston Manor Hotel, Norwich
• 19th March — Bedford Swan Hotel, Bedford
• 26th March — Selwyn College, Cambridge

These sessions are all fully booked.  However, there is a further event being held at our very own Basepoint Business and Innovation Centre on 30th April, which still has spaces available.  To book, contact Basepoint directly by either calling Heather Pedder on 01582 434 206 or email her at heatherpedder@basepoint.co.uk.

However, there is every chance that EEDA will be able to run this again at further venues - watch this space!

For more information about the new seminar see the takeITon website.

ICT Training in Schools

I was interested to read an article about the content of ICT lessons in schools. My daughter left school without a qualification in ICT. After studying for two years, the whole year group discovered that the practical work submitted by the school, didn’t meet the qualifying criteria. A failing on the schools and the examining bodies part. Now I find an article about how the skills taught in these lessons are failing the brighter pupils.

Technology plays such a big part in all our lives today, both working and domestic, that we should ensure that we equip the kids of today with all the information and skills available to us. After all, they are the business people of tomorrow.

To read the article in full, click the following link:

http://tech.uk.msn.com/news/article.aspx?cp-documentid=14732444

NHS Data Integration

Here at Eximium, we are firm believers that data integration can improve your systems efficiency, thus saving time and money. I came across an article on the Guardian website today, by Michael Cross, about the governments plans to integrate the personal information the NHS keeps on us into one joint database. The idea is to breach the gap between hospitals and home care.

It’s a really interesting article. The theory behind the governments plan is sound and I can see how this could make some very real improvements within the NHS and how they work. My concern isn’t the integration, but the security of the data. Having everything in one place has enormous benefits, but also significantly increases the risks. This database will need to be extremely well protected and unfortunately, with the governments past record on data security, there are substantial doubts.

For help with your business systems integration or security from Eximium, click the following link:

 http://www.eximium.net/contactus.asp

To read Michael Cross’s article in full and have your say, click the following link:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/feb/16/nhs-data-social-care-liberty-central

Broadband for all

Lord Carter’s Digital Britain interim report has suggested that super-fast broadband should be available for the whole of the UK. The scheme hopes to provide access to at least 2Mbps broadband for every UK citizen by 2012.

The report recommends that the BBC play a lead role in promoting it and that the government reduces the amount of red tape that companies encounter if they want to build networks on the same scale as Virgin Media’s 50Mbps service. The government is also considering handing out financial incentives to companies who invest in the overhaul of the existing communications infrastructure and will use the full digital report in June to decide. The report will also contribute to the formation of a government led strategy group which will decide the best way to proceed.

The recommendations are as follows:

• Broadband for all: “We will develop plans for a digital Universal Service Commitment to be effective by 2012, delivered by a mixture of fixed and mobile, wired and wireless means. Subject to further study of the costs and benefits, we will set out our plans for the level of service which we believe should be universal. We anticipate this consideration will include options up to 2Mbps.”

• Recommendations to be made on who funds broadband Britain: “We will develop detailed proposals for the design and operation of a new, more broadly-based scheme to fund the Universal Service Commitment for the fully digital age – including who should contribute and its governance and accountability structures.”

• Development of public service champions to encourage people to get online: “We will encourage the development of public service champions of universal take-up. The Digital Inclusion Action Plan recommended the appointment of a Digital Inclusion Champion and expert taskforce to drive the government’s work on digital inclusion.”

• The BBC’s services should make people want to pay for their broadband: “We are inviting the BBC to play a leading role, just as it has in digital broadcast, through marketing, cross-promotion and provision of content to drive interest in taking up broadband. With other public service organisations, the BBC can drive the development of platforms with open standards available to all content providers and device manufacturers alike.”

The interim recommendations were;

• Create a strategy group to identify changes needed: “This strategy group will, by the time of the final Digital Britain report, assess the case for how far market-led investment by Virgin Media, BT Group plc and new network enterprises will take the UK in terms of roll-out and likely take-up; and whether any contingency measures… are necessary.”

• Make it easier for companies to roll out super-fast broadband legislation: “The government will, while recognising existing investments in infrastructure, work with the main operators and others to remove barriers to the development of a wider wholesale market in access to ducts and other primary infrastructure.”

• Consider offering incentives for companies to roll-out broadband networks: “We will, by the time of the final Digital Britain report, have considered the value for money case for whether public incentives have a part to play in enabling further next generation broadband deployment, beyond current market-led initiatives.”

• Set up an advisory body for community networks: “The government will help implement the Community Broadband Network’s proposals for an umbrella body to bring together all the local and community networks and provide them with technical and advisory support.”

Gary McKinnon – Will he be extradited?

There seems that there may be some light at the end of the tunnel for Garry McKinnon, as the saga of whether he will be extradited to the US to face charges of computer hacking continues.

McKinnon has repeatedly resisted attempts to extradite him on the grounds that the offence was committed in the UK and his lawyer, Karen Todner has written to Keir Starmer QC, who is the recently appointed director of public prosecutions, requesting that he be charged under the Misuse of Computers Act. Ms Todner said that her client would plead guilty to the offence, to which he acknowledged his guilt and that proceedings against him could now be brought because there is clear evidence of a crime having been committed.

McKinnon, who is 42, fears for his chances of a fair trial in the US. He is accused of hacking into the US defence and NASA systems in 2001 and 2002 and causing an estimated £525,000 worth of damage. McKinnon denies causing any damage, but admits to hacking into the systems and leaving messages saying “your security is crap”. He lost his appeal against extradition in the House of Lords last year.

McKinnon has been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome and in a letter to the DPP, his mother, Janis Sharp wrote; “Many people with Asperger’s have a heightened sense of justice and have obsessions, which can sometimes get them into trouble. Gary’s obsession was computers.” The National Autistic Society (NAS) has offered to provide evidence about the diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome, in order to support McKinnon.

McKinnon’s mother said that there were precedents for British based computer hackers to be tried in this country and they have the political support of about 80 MP’s who have signed an early day motion tabled by McKinnon’s MP, David Burrowes.

Tech spending to drop in 2009

As with all other sectors, the technology industry faces a decline in spending in the current economic climate. A report by Forrester Research expects the decline to be in the region of 3%.

This will be the first decline since 2002, when spending on computer products and consulting dropped by 6%, which followed the same 6% fall as the previous year. Thankfully the Forrester Report does not expect the fall to last long and predicts as much as a 9% rise in 2010.

The Forrester Report says that the strengthening of the US dollar also plays a part in causing the technology downturn, as well as the recession.  Many technology purchases are made in dollars, which meant that the weak dollar boosted the technology growth rate and the now stronger dollar will have the reverse effect. In Western Europe, technology purchases using dollars will be down 7% and purchases using euros will be up 1% in 2009.

We at Eximium believe that good IT systems can save you money and increase productivity in any business sector and improving the efficiency of your IT doesn’t have to be expensive either. Sometimes, a minor change to a system can make a dramatic difference and we recommend that you don’t cut IT spending, without thinking of the benefits you could be getting from it and be prudent with the money you do spend, ensuring that your IT is working effectively for you.

For a free, no obligation consultation to evaluate your existing IT, click the following link;

http://www.eximium.net/factfind.asp

The Birth of the .tel domain

I read an article by Bobbie Johnson, about a new domain. Bobby is the Technology Correspondent for the Guardian.

The new .tel domain that is hoping to become an online equivalent to the phone directory has gone on sale for the first time. It will allow you to create a virtual address book online and will be accessed by users according to where they are and how they connect to the service.

“The launch of .tel represents the most significant innovation in the domain name system since the advent of .com,” said Khashr Mahdavi, chief executive of Telnic, the UK-based company that is overseeing the rollout.

To read Bobby’s full article, click the following link;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/dec/03/internet-domain-name-tel

How will you adapt in order to survive the credit crunch?

As we see more and more high street shops falling around us, the uneasy feeling caused by the economic downturn is ever more difficult to ignore. The reduction in spending, experienced by the High Street, comes as shoppers are faced with soaring inflation, falling house prices and banks hiking up the cost of borrowing. Spending on the internet however, is rising. Traditionally the second Monday in December is known as ‘Cyber’ or ‘Mega’ Monday, as it is the biggest sales event of the year. The internet trade body, the IMRG expects internet retail sales to increase by 15 per cent this year, with customers predicted to spend an estimated £13.16bn online in the lead up to Christmas and a new record for internet sales volumes was set last Monday - typically the biggest trading day of the week online.

There are obvious categories that seem very well suited to selling online. Music, and increasingly games and films, can be bought and downloaded there and then. Availability is often better and you can find pretty much any book or DVD you want online. Sales of more tangible items, such as clothing, also do very well. As an example, online fashion retailer Asos doesn’t seem to be suffering the same fate as the High Street, recording 104% sales growth in the six months to the end of September. There are also benefits to moving online for the retailers themselves. It’s much cheaper to run a business online. The computer screen becomes your shop window, so you don’t need all those expensive high street branches, with high rents, staff to be paid, and energy bills. So it’s no surprise that internet shopping now accounts for around 7% of total sales, and is still growing fast. It seems that internet retailers definitely have the edge.

IT is definitely the way forward, as people are proving by their spending habits. As a business owner you need to ensure that your IT is working effectively for you. Good IT systems can save you money and increase productivity in any business sector, but if you have the advantage of providing a product or service that could be marketed through the internet, it’s something which you should seriously consider.  Improving the efficiency of your IT doesn’t have to be expensive either, as is often thought. Sometimes, a minor change to a system you are already using can make a dramatic difference.

For a free, no obligation consultation to evaluate your existing IT, click the following link;

http://www.eximium.net/factfind.asp

On This Day in History

On this day 40 years ago a man named Douglas Englebart first unveiled the ‘mouse’, at a 90 minute presentation to around 1000 people at Brooks Hall Convention Centre in San Francisco.

I found an article by Bobbie Johnson, who is the Guardian’s technology correspondent, about it today. Englebart is quoted as saying “You have a pointing device called a mouse, I don’t know why we call it a mouse – sometimes I apologise for it. It started that way and we never did change it.”

It really is a very interesting read and I thoroughly recommend it.

To read the full article by Bobbie Johnson, click the following link;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/dec/09/mouse-40

Internet Shopping at work

I came across an article written by Kelly Faircloth about the security issues caused by staff doing their Christmas shopping online. It’s particularly topical at the moment, but I’m sure that the basic principles behind it would be relevant all year round.

According to a report by Information Systems Audit and Control Association, online Christmas shopping poses a risk to the IT security of employers. The survey took place in America and found that 4 out of every 10 people aged between 18 and 24, will spend up to 5 hours shopping online.

This coupled with a recent survey of 973 employees, which found younger workers were the least concerned about workplace network security and that roughly half said they paid more attention to the security of their home computers. Only two thirds of employees over 25 said they worried about both home and office systems. This is a staggeringly low amount.

The survey also found that many employees don’t understand how to protect workplace computers. 22% admitted to having clicked on e-mail links to an online retailer, and more than a quarter said they either don’t bother or don’t know how to check a site’s security.  In another  survey, over half of the trade group’s 3,100 members said they allow shopping at work, even though many haven’t trained employees to guard against potential  security threats.

Kent Anderson, a member of the group’s Security Management Committee, said in a statement “The fact that Millennials [children born between 1977 and 1994] are planning to spend the equivalent of more than half a work day doing holiday shopping from their work computer, combined with their lack of concern for how secure their computer is, points to an urgent need for employee education,”.

As responsible business owners and managers, we need to ensure that we make the security of our businesses of paramount importance. Providing appropriate training for our staff and reliable anti-virus software on our networks has to be our responsibility. Here at Eximium we can help you with training for your staff and provide you with anti-virus, anti-spyware and anti-spam protection.

Click the following link for our training page;

http://www.eximium.net/training.asp

Click the following link for our managed security services page;

http://www.eximium.net/managed_security_services.asp

Fighting the Viruses

We are all concerned with protecting ourselves from the threat of computer viruses. People are continually finding new and sneakier ways to insert them into our technology and so we here at Eximium try to keep up with all the news and any new developments regarding this issue and report anything of any interest or benefit to you.

It was whilst I was researching this that I came across an article by Bobbie Johnson, who is the technology correspondent for The Guardian. He writes about Google donating 15 million dollars to research viruses of the medical kind. I was pleasantly surprised to find a big corporation ploughing some of its profits into something which will benefit everybody.

To read the full article for yourself click the following link:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/21/google-healthcare

The Blackberry bites back

There’s been a good deal of development in mobile technology recently, with more people wanting to access the Internet from their mobile phones.  As we have mentioned before, the advantage of having a reliable and useful link to your emails, business diary and the Internet, whilst on the move, is invaluable to business people today.  The mobile phone market has stepped up to the plate and produced the Nokia E61, the iPhone and the G1, which we have written about, among others.  Now, one of the original Smartphones, the Blackberry, is hitting back with the UK launch of the Storm last week.

Like the iPhone and the G1, the Storm is exclusive to one network provider, in this case Vodafone, and went on sale on 14th of November.   It’s free when you sign a 2 year contract at £35 a month or more.  This is cheaper than both of its main rivals.

Like the iPhone, it is a touch screen device.  Touch screens seem to be growing in popularity at the moment , however the new Google G1 does not have one.   HTC who make the G1 have recently launched their touch screen device called the HTC Touch HD and Nokia has a touch screen phone in the offing, but has not yet signed up an operator for it.  They have launched the E71 however, which looks like a usable and well put together alternative, as always.

Blackberry has a long standing customer base, who may be loyal to what they know and love, or they may be tempted to try something new.  Only time will tell.

Watch Out - The Spammers Are Getting More Devious Than Ever

There has been a new wave of spam emails we want to make you aware of.  They come with an attached ‘zipped’ file (i.e. ending in .zip) and claim to be contacting you with regard to your account.  Some are more sophisticated than others and can be very effective at fooling you into thinking you are looking at a genuine email.

The more obvious ones appear to be contacting you as a customer.  They are informing you that they have sent you the information you will need to ‘recover your account’.   You may receive emails supposedly from your credit card companies, informing you that there has been some suspicious activity in your account and asking you to check the purchases on the statement attached.  Others are from bogus customers claiming to have made some amendments to the contract attached and asking you to review it. 

The most deceptive of these claim to be from a courier service regarding a parcel delivery.  They say that they are from ‘United Parcel Services’ and have a ‘UPS Tracking Number’ in the subject, very neatly tricking you into thinking at first glance that they have come from a legitimate company. 

Some example text in the body of the email is:

‘Unfortunately we were not able to deliver postal package you sent on Oct the 28 in time because the recipient’s address is not correct.  Please print out the invoice copy attached and collect the package at our office’

With Christmas around the corner, your staff are likely to be caught more off guard than usual and some of these messages even go as far as to notify you that you have 10 days in which to collect your parcel or you will be charged by the day thereafter.

Here are our top tips on how to deal with potential spam:

1. Be vigilant. Always check that you trust the sender of the emails you are opening. Even if you don’t know them personally, you are likely to know of them.

2. Treat all emails which you are unsure of as spam.  If the mail is genuine, the person trying to contact you will try again and it’s easier to cope with a slight delay than the potential after effects of a virus, spyware, etc.

3. Don’t use unsubscribe. Never click on the ‘unsubscribe’ link of an email you are unsure of as that is another way of opening the flood gates, as it notifies them that someone is at that address and susceptible to spam.

4. Never open an attached file if you don’t know the sender. Even if the file is zipped and it appears that the sender has been security conscious - this is potentially a ruse.

There are things you can do to protect yourself, minimise the potential impact that this kind of spam can have on your business, and even stop the majority of these emails getting through to you.  It is very important to have good, strong anti-virus, anti-spyware and anti-spam protection in place.

For further information, please see the following link to our managed security service page:

http://www.eximium.net/managed_security_services.asp

More Data Security Issues

I came across an article this week which has alarmed me.  It is about a speech expected to be given by Richard Thomas from the Information Commissioner’s Office, regarding the use of ‘Giant Databases’.

It highlights the fact that there has been a significant increase in data loss and that the databases getting lost are holding more information than ever before.  In fact, most of them are in breach of the Data Protection Act!  He is currently investigating 30 ‘serious’ cases where this has been the case within companies, councils, government agencies and central government.

These larger databases increase the risk of the information getting into criminal hands.  Much of the information is irrelevant and should be removed and the risk is significantly increased when the database is moved between different agencies.

As we are all aware, there have been a number of reports of data losses in the news lately and I found some new statistics listed in the article.  Apparently around 100 incidents were reported to the Commissioner’s Office between November 2007 and April 2008 and there were 277 in total in the year.  These include breaches in website security and the theft or loss of computers and electronic storage media, such as memory sticks and CD ROMs.  The NHS has reported the most incidents, 65 in total, 27 of which were lost or stolen computers.  This number alone is as many as were reported by the whole private sector.

Here’s the really alarming bit.  There is no legal requirement to report losses of personal data so, as bad as all these statistics are, the real figures are probably much higher!

Richard Thomas is expected to say that he believes companies who hold personal data should hold less of it if possible and take greater responsibility with the data they do hold.  He also believes that companies who lose data should face tougher penalties.  His comments are likely to be seen as a direct criticism of the Home Offices’ announced intension to record details of every phone call, email and text message sent in the UK.

To read the article, please use the following link:

http://news.uk.msn.com/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=10478193

More information on the Data Protection Act can be found here:

http://www.ico.gov.uk/

Good News on Fighting the Credit Crunch

The government has announced that it will channel more funds into small businesses in order to help them through the credit crunch.  There will be £350m of funds from a pre-existing training programme diverted into training the employees of small business over the next three years. The training will be aimed at improving their business management techniques.

They have also pledged to pay any government suppliers who are small businesses within 10 days as opposed to the usual 30 days.  This is to help with cash-flow, which is the biggest cause of businesses failing in more buoyant economic climates and exacerbated by the credit crunch.

Small businesses have been hit very hard by the lack of credit available due to the crunch.  Three of the banks which accepted government assistance have given their assurance that they will continue to lend money to small businesses at the same level as 2007.  The government has said that it will be talking to other banks in an attempt to ensure the continuation of the credit and lending they had previously offered to small businesses.

The government feels that all these measures are necessary and they are designed to help small businesses survive the credit crunch, as they play such an important part in our economy and employ the majority of our work force as well as provide valuable services.  The Skills Secretary John Denham said in a statement, “Small businesses are an important engine of our economy and we must make sure that we support them during tough economic times”.

Conservative leader David Cameron has called on the government to give small businesses six months longer to pay their VAT bills.  He believes that tax breaks are an important way in which the government could be helping.

We are very aware of the credit crunch ourselves and are doing what we can to help our customers.  A great way to use your IT during this difficult time is to make sure that your systems are running as efficiently as possible.  A small change could increase your efficiency and your profit margin.  We offer a free, no obligation, evaluation of your systems - a service we call ‘IT Fact Find’.  For more information on this service, please use the following link:

http://www.eximium.net/factfind.asp

We also believe that training is a great way to improve efficiency and provide training for business people to help them get more from their IT.  For more information on the training services we provide, please see this link:

http://www.eximium.net/training.asp

Also, our MD, Derrick Cameron, is leading some workshops in November entitled ‘Fight the Credit Crunch with IT’, aimed at business owners and managers, in conjunction with EEDA and the TakeITon programme.  This session is designed to demonstrate how the IT you probably already have can help you boost your business when times are tight and you need to make the best use of your resources.

The workshop is being held at three venues across the region.

• 17th November – Peterborough Holiday Inn
• 18th November, Wyboston Lakes – Waterfront Centre (Beds/Cambs border)
• 25th November, Hethel Engineering Centre, Norwich

To book your free place on one of these workshops, you can email your request to takeiton@eeda.org.uk

Demand for Web Technology work continues to grow

As a key part of our work to help customers get more benefit from their IT systems, we’re often asked to work on systems that use web technologies, such as Microsoft ASP.NET, for either internal (’Intranet’) use, or external (’Internet’) use.

However, we’ve noticed recently that the number of requests for web technology work has increased by a factor of 20!

What has caused this change?  Well, we see a number of external factors that are affecting a lot of our customers, and forcing them to revitalise their current websites, revamp their Intranet systems, or embark on new projects using web technologies.

Aside from the obvious pressure we’re all experiencing to find new ways to maintain our margins, caused by the current economic climate, here are the top ten reasons we believe have caused the increased need for web-related skills:

1. Web technologies are very useful because you can build systems that can easily be accessed anywhere in the world.  With the move towards more home-based and remote working, this is becoming even more important for many businesses.

2. The Internet is an important sales channel for almost all businesses, and the amount of buying that is happening online has been growing rapidly.

3. The advances in functionality and features available on the Web have been increasing at an exponential rate.  Normal HTML (HyperText Markup Language, the original standard of the World Wide Web) based ‘online brochure’ style sites are looking a little tired now compared to feature rich sites. Users expect more and businesses need to deliver or stand to lose face and business to their competitors.

4. An increasing number of businesses have fallen foul of website developers that profess to be web designers, and need to undo the problems this has caused. Designing websites and developing them are not the same thing, much the same as designing anything and building it is not the same (think of architects and builders - you wouldn’t want one doing the other’s job!).  A good deal of good web design is firmly in the court of graphic designers, who know what makes promotional material look and feel aesthetically pleasing.  Pure developers on the other hand often make things look technical and cluttered, which is usually the opposite of what people are trying to achieve.

5. The search engine rating processes have changed to an extent where websites that stay the same are not being prioritised like they used to be. It’s now important to have lots of changing content on your site, to interest both your customers and the search engines.  Hence the reason that business blogging has become so popular.

6. Internet users have now broken the 5 search term barrier so, instead of searching simply for ’shoes’ or ‘brown shoes’, they are entering complex terms such as ‘brown leather size 9 oxford brogues’.  This makes it essential that search engines know the specifics of your product or service and businesses are having to revisit their websites to deal with this change.

7. Location has also become a big thing now for search engines like Google, so sites now need to be optimised for localised results.

8. Using systems that only require browsers, like Internet Explorer, to be able to gain access, make them simple to implement and change, as all the clever work is going on at the server end of things.  Changes can be made without needing to re-deploy the application onto individual computers.

9. Technologies such as Microsoft ASP.NET are providing increasingly powerful facilities to integrate with back office systems, and integration is a vital way to increase efficiency and get more value out of IT - something that we all need to be doing more of.

10. There is a continuing move towards ’software as a service’, i.e. the provision of applications that are not installed locally on your computer or server but are managed and charged for centrally.  For example, providing Microsoft Office via the Internet.  Web technologies provide a very efficient and cost-effective way to deliver software applications on this basis.

Of course, we don’t mind the current trend at all.  In fact, it’s quite helpful to us because it makes keeping the right skills available for our customers easier.  Not to mention that we’re getting very good at delivering web technology projects now, with all the practice we’re getting!

If any of these issues are affecting your organisation and you would like some free advice about how to proceed, please just drop us a line from our contact page http://www.eximium.net/contactus.asp.

Next Generation Broadband

I noticed an article today on The Guardian’s website, which talks about the massive cost involved in building Britain’s next generation broadband network.  We thought it raised some interesting issues.

A recent estimate, contained in a report published by the Broadband Stakeholder Group (BSG) found that the cheapest option would be to install the fibre optic cables to the cabinets at the end of streets and would cost £5.1 billion. The estimated cost to install the cabling to every home is £28.8 billion.

Interestingly, the same report advises the government not to provide aid to support the installation. It questions whether it would be a waste of money now that there is an increased use of Wi-Fi.

The other question raised is which areas should the next generation broadband be installed in.  An Ofcom consumer panel has called for it to be installed in areas which do not have first generation broadband, thus increasing broadband coverage over all and better justifying the initial costs.

To read this article in full, please use the following link;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/08/internet.virginmedia

Are we looking after our mobile data carefully enough?

After the numerous issues with data security over the last 12 months, the BBC has reported that over 60,000 mobile devices have been left in the back of black taxis in the last 6 months, from mp3 players to laptops.

You would think that the recent high profile incidents would have alerted us all to the dangers of leaving these sorts of items for thieves, but it seems that the warnings have gone unheard.  Although 80% of the taxi drivers claimed that the items were reunited with their owners, there were still 12,000 that were not, and this is just in London.  How many others are being given into the hands of thieves across the country?

With mobile devices being capable of so much more than ever before, they often contain sensitive business and personal information, and can give thieves the tools to start accessing other confidential information and a whole lot more.  We need to be more careful with the physical security of our mobile information devices, consider what sensitive information about us, our staff and our customers is being held on them, and how carefully it is protected.

We need to ask ourselves:
• Are we fully compliant with our obligations under the DPA, where mobile information is concerned?
• Is the information password protected or encrypted?
• Do the devices contain any sensitive information they don’t need to?

Otherwise, our confidential business and personal information could easily leak out into the public domain.

Another Data Security Issue

It doesn’t surprise me anymore when I hear of another Government data security issue on the news.  It has become such a regular occurrence that it doesn’t even make the headlines anymore.  The latest revelation is that EDS, who is the IT contractor involved, lost a 500GB external hard drive disk containing the personal data of 5,000 prison officers’ across UK.

As I said, I am not surprised, but what did worry me about this incident was that the government were unaware for more than a year.  It has been suggested that the information held on the hard drive was sufficient to endanger the prison officers concerned.  It included their names, date of birth, National insurance numbers and employee numbers.  It has been said that it could be used to seek revenge or to blackmail prison officers and give crooks a huge advantage in targeting prison officers to bring in illicit contraband, either by some gentle persuasion or by menace and threats.

Needless to say, there are reports that the future of the EDS contract is in jeopardy and the Ministry of Justice has launched an enquiry into who was responsible and how it happened.  It’s all a bit late now and anyone who would have needed to be relocated or given new identities will have been terrorised or killed already.

Has The DNA Database Project Gone Sour?

I recently wrote an article about the proposed expansion of the national DNA database:

http://www.eximium.net/blog/index.php/2008/06/business-advice-luton-6/

This subject and the controversy surrounding it, have featured in the news recently too:

http://www.eximium.net/blog/index.php/2008/09/business-advice-luton-19/

As this news item states, the enquiry by The Human Genetics Commission has recommended that the government removes all the DNA profiles of innocent people and those of criminals who have served their sentence. What I found particularly interesting about this was that this inquiry was funded by the tax payer on the government’s instructions. I thought that the government wanted every UK citizen registered on the database? Isn’t that what Tony Blair said, and was then backed up by Gordon Brown?

I have to ask myself why the government instigated an enquiry at this late stage that was at odds with their vision ‘every UK citizen will be recorded on the DNA database’. Surely this inquiry should have taken place at the outset of the idea, where it could have been properly debated and then acted upon.

Are they telling us that they have only just realised that it may not be a good idea to have innocent peoples’ DNA recorded on the database, so we had to organise an enquiry to cover ourselves? Or perhaps the thoughts at the outset were, ‘Well we know we may have some issues here, but we are going to do it anyway. The overall idea is good and we can sort out the teething problems later. It would be far too much hassle to have a detailed debate or enquiry into the suitability of such an idea, and anyway people might actually object!’

And so what are they going to do with this report?
• Ignore it?
• Act upon it?
• Instigate another enquiry that may have a more favourable outcome?
• Bin the whole idea of a national DNA database?

I think this just goes to emphasise the pitfalls of not carefully planning an approach to the introduction of a new idea, then strictly following the plan, right from inception through to implementation. This becomes even more important when technology is involved.

Ask yourself, does this scenario ever happen in my business, and if so what is it costing me?

Another Data Security Meltdown!

It would seem that the lessons which should have been learnt from the loss of sensitive data of people claiming child benefit were not learnt at all. Revenue and Customs lost disks containing personal details in the post, back in November 2007.

See our article on this:

http://www.eximium.net/blog/index.php/2007/12/it-advice-bedfordshire/

An investigation into another case of sensitive data not being protected began on Tuesday. The Government launched the investigation after a laptop containing the bank details of over a million people was sold on eBay for just £35!

Andrew Chapman, an IT manager bought the laptop and found that it contained customers’ credit card applications, account details, signatures, mobile phone numbers and mothers’ maiden names. Natwest Bank and The Royal Bank of Scotland have confirmed that their customer’s details are among the details found.

The computer belonged to a former employee of the company, Graphic Data, who digitally store information for a number of British banks and Building Societies. He placed it for sale on eBay, without erasing the sensitive data stored within it. A spokes person for Graphic Data said the company did not authorize the sale of the computer.The identity of the seller of the laptop has not been disclosed and Graphic Data and eBay have also launched investigations.

All this on top of the admission by the Home Office that it has lost 43 laptops and 94 mobile phones in 3 years.

The catalogue of losses are as follows;

August 26 2008: The sale of the laptop on eBay for £35.88.

August 22 2008: A memory stick containing details of 127,000 criminals in England and Wales is lost, including the names, addresses and dates of birth of 33,000 persistent offenders.

July 18 2008: Ministry of Defence admits that 658 laptops have been stolen and 89 lost in four years. Only 32 were recovered. It also admitted to losing 26 portable memory sticks since January 2007, with 19 of them classified as secret.

January 19 2008: A Royal Navy officer had his laptop stolen in Birmingham, containing the bank and passport details, National Insurance numbers, doctors’ addresses and family information details of 600,000 potential armed forces recruits.

January 18 2008: Details of benefit claims, mortgage payments and photocopies of passports were found on a roundabout in Devon. Other confidential data had been found at the same location before in November 2007.

December 23 2007: Nine NHS trusts admitted to losing patient records. In one case they lost the names and addresses of 160,000 children.

December 17 2007: The details of 3 million candidates for the driving theory test were lost in transit in Iowa.

December 11 2007: Two non-encrypted computer discs containing the names and addresses of 7,658 Northern Ireland motorists were lost.

November 20 2007: The two computer discs holding details of 25 million people including 7.25 million families receiving child benefit were lost.

When will the lessons finally be learnt? They are there for all to see and it would seem that they will be for a long time to come yet.

Living With The Apple iPhone 3G

July 11th 2008 saw the much-anticipated release of Apple’s iPhone 3G, the long-anticipated successor to the original 2G version.  The advantages for ‘on the move’ internet browsing were so apparent that many observers believe that it was responsible for the lower than expected sales of the 2G version on initial release.  Certainly there was a degree of ‘stock dumping’ in the form of a £100 price cut by O2 in the weeks preceding the announcement of the 3G launch date.  This led to the bizarre situation where it was cheaper to buy an 8Gb 2G iPhone than the equivalent iPod Touch which lacks the phone technology!

By common consent, the day of the launch was a disaster!  Reminiscent of the Heathrow T5 debacle, queues formed at Apple, O2 and Carphone Warehouse stores that quickly ran out of stock yet couldn’t even register the phones that they did have.  Impatient and frustrated would-be customers were given various explanations and excuses for the failures but, ultimately, the blame must lie with O2.  In an attempt to avoid the ‘unlocking’ of phones from the O2 network that bedevilled the 2G version – only possible because the phone was purchased separately from the contract – the contract for the 3G version must be taken out at the time of purchase and for whatever reason, the O2 network infrastructure could not cope with the entirely foreseeable demand.  That, combined with yet another ‘system failure’ that saw the loss of manually-collected customer details at the point-of-sale, merely exacerbated the frustration of customers already at breaking point.

With those problems overcome however, does the product merit the hype?  Overall, I would say yes.  Although some of the features don’t quite live up to expectations – that searching the phonebook sometimes seems to take an inexplicably long amount of time and the  ‘swipe to scroll’ interface can lack immediacy are just two examples of areas that I would expect to see improved in a future software update – the majority of the interface and functions simply feel so ‘right’ that it is difficult not to fall in love with the device.  Some of the features may seem like ‘data-feed gadgetry’ for the sake of it (I can’t see anyone to whom it really matters relying on the ‘Stock Prices’ or ‘Weather’ functionality…) but there are really useful features too, such as the GPS location facility and the high-speed internet browsing and email functions that are available whenever you have a 3G signal.  This really comes into its own if you subscribe to Apple’s MobileMe service with its ability to synchronise your mail, calendars, contact details and browser bookmarks across iPhone, Mac and Windows PCs and MobileMe platforms.  This shouldn’t be revolutionary but for the small business user who has not been able to justify the use of a full Microsoft Exchange installation, it is.   Give yourself a week of using it and you will wonder how you survived before!

So, what are the downsides?  Only one really – battery life!  Industry-watchers discussing the 3G iPhone before its release identified this as a likely problem as 3G is much more power-hungry than 2G.  To be fair, it’s no worse than other 3G phones with a full battery lasting a day of average usage.  The catch though is what’s meant by ‘average usage’. Here the iPhone is a victim of its own success – it’s simply so usable that you just want to keep using it!  The 3G, wi-fi and large, well backlit screen all have high power demands and the need to get through a working day on a single charge may, just may, mean that you will have to ration your usage.  My solution though would be to invest in a second charging unit for the desk and then not worry about it.

My advice?  Get one tomorrow – you won’t be disappointed!!