Market Watch

Cyber attacks against critical infrastructure are becoming more frequent, with knock-on impacts for everyone In December 2015, just a few days before Christmas, the world witnessed one of the most devastating cyberattacks it had ever seen. Over 230,000 citizens in Ukraine were plummeted into freezing temperatures and darkness after Russia launched a cyberattack on the country’s power grid. The attack completely shut down electricity for over six hours, and it demonstrated what many in the cybersecurity industry had been fearing for many years – cyber / physical attacks were becoming a reality. Fast-forward seven years, and devastating incidents affecting Colonial Pipeline, JBS Foods and Oldsmar Water have each demonstrated that cyberattacks have shattered through their traditional digital perimeters and can now directly hit society in the way of food, oil and gas and water shortages. Criminals have come to understand that if they want to cause damage to a country, they no longer need to have a physical presence in the state, instead they can launch a cyberattack on the country’s Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) from a far-off location and cause massive destruction remotely. Yet, the bad news is, these types of assaults are going to continue, particularly as […]

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David Shrier and Professor Chris Tucci with attendees The need for digital currency to help solve societal challenges in Africa was among the key issues discussed by Imperial experts at Davos 2023. In a discussion hosted by the Business School’s Centre for Digital Transformation , experts from the private sector, academia and government gathered to discuss how Africa can develop digital currency alternatives to address critical issues facing the continent. They discussed the best ways to help a developing economy using digital finance, drawing not only on the participants, but also prior work by Imperial College Business School in Tanzania. The discussion looked at the value of stablecoins – cryptocurrencies which aim to provide an alternative to the high volatility of more popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Stablecoins are especially helpful in Africa as they can help to offset inflation and avoid the devaluation of national currencies. Professor of Practice AI & Innovation, Business School The discussion also touched on the need to incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) and marry biodiversity within financial inclusion, how to manage the risks associated with central banks, the need to safeguard citizens and to effectively maintain monetary policy. Driving finance for climate […]

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Abdullah Alswaha, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, talks at the opening of Leap in Riyadh on Monday. Photo: Leap Saudi Arabia has announced more than $9 billion investments in its technology sector, as part of efforts to bolster digital transformation in preparation for the future economy. The investments are led by a $2.1 billion commitment from Microsoft , which will build a super-scaler cloud in the kingdom, Abdullah Alswaha, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, said at the Leap 2023 conference in Riyadh on Monday. They also include Oracle’s plans to invest $1.5 billion to boost the kingdom’s cloud-computing capacity and $400 million from China’s Huawei to enhance Saudi Arabia’s cloud infrastructure, he said. An additional $4.5 billion has also been invested in global and local assets across a number of technology sectors, the minister said. The investment was announced by the Arab world’s largest economy surpasses the $6.4 billion announced at the inaugural Leap last year . They are part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s plans for the "empowerment of the technology sector, which is one of Saudi Arabia’s most promising sectors amid unprecedented growth in the kingdom’s digital economy", Mr Alswaha […]

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Blakely Borough, PA, Feb. 06, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A transition from paper to digital processes is underway in Blakely Borough, Pennsylvania where local officials have sought greater efficiency in municipal operations and constituent services. The city recently partnered with GovPilot , a New Jersey based provider of cloud-based government management software. Officials from Blakely Borough are working with GovPilot to implement a number of digital capabilities and public facing forms that aim to make operations more efficient and services more convenient for constituents. The municipality, with a population of 7,000 is initially utilizing GovPilot to digitize forms and processes for Land Development, Zoning Permits, Construction Permitting, Landlord Registrations, Park Reservation, Zoning Variance, Business Occupancy Use Permits, Dumpster Permits, Employment Applications, and non-emergency constituent concern reporting. Officials from Blakely Borough have deployed GovPilot’s Report-a-Concern feature which enables residents to report non-emergency concerns such as potholes or general code violations directly via a digital form on the township website, or through an app on their phone, called GovAlert. The app, available to residents on Android and iOS devices is easy to use, and routes citizen concerns directly to the relevant municipal department so that the issue can be resolved quickly. […]

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CommerceHealthcare® has released its fifth annual Healthcare Finance Trends for 2023 report. The report includes an in-depth analysis of research combined with practice experience and identifies consideration for the industry given multiple intersecting challenges in the year ahead. The report’s key insights range across regulatory, financial, technological and supply chain considerations. The full article is accessible at CommerceHealthcare.com , but one trend that will continue to carry importance for healthcare leaders is the need for a digital transformation. Digital transformation is fundamental to healthcare’s business and care delivery model changes. IBM’s website succinctly captures the goal, “Digital transformation means adopting digital-first customer, business-partner and employee experiences.” A leading forecaster believes 70% of healthcare organizations will rely on digital-first strategies by 2027. 1 Transformation efforts need to accelerate. One study showed that “digital, technology and analytics strategies exist for nearly all organizations, yet only 30% have begun to execute on those plans.” 2 One functional segment ramping up digital transformation is finance. According to a recent survey, 94% of CFOs and senior leaders stated that such efforts will be at the forefront of financial operations and strategy for 2023-2024, and 79% described it as an “absolute need” for “commercial stabilization […]

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The Ministry of Defence (MoD) must transform itself to successfully execute its digital strategy, according to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). A report by the committee said that the department is “not well setup to implement digital change at pace and scale” and that change is needed. The MoD published its 10-year digital strategy in June 2021, aiming to invest an additional £1.6bn in digital , including establishing a “digital foundry”, a federated ecosystem of digital innovators and developers, and a defence-specific artificial intelligence (AI) centre. The strategy also aims to place a digital backbone at the heart of its approach, which will be the enabler for digital transformation. However, as a National Audit Office (NAO) report highlighted in October 2022, the department has yet to come up with a delivery plan for the strategy. The PAC report said that while the department is now working on a delivery plan, the committee is not optimistic that the strategy will succeed. “Despite the urgency and ambition of its digital strategy, the department does not yet have a delivery plan to measure and track progress. The department’s digital strategy sets out how it wants to share and exploit data effectively for […]

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As organisations continue along the road to Digital Transformation, many are reaping the benefits of engaging professional services to assist with the delivery of strategic goals. We hear from Richard Shaw, Director, Argantic, who says: “Professional services are essential for businesses to succeed in today’s rapidly changing technology landscape.” Professional services play a critical role in helping businesses to adopt cloud technologies and successfully undergo Digital Transformation. These services provide businesses with the expertise, experience and support needed to navigate the complexities of cloud computing and Digital Transformation, ensuring that technology investments deliver the desired results. Richard Shaw, Director, Argantic The widespread adoption of cloud computing has changed the way businesses approach professional services. Cloud-based solutions offer flexible, scalable and cost-effective alternatives to traditional on-premise technology solutions. As a result, professional services in ICT are increasingly focused on cloud migrations, cloud security and cloud management. Professional services are an essential part of any cloud adoption and Digital Transformation strategy. They provide businesses with the expertise, experience and support needed to ensure that their technology investments deliver the desired results and help them to remain competitive in today’s rapidly changing business environment. Whether you’re looking to migrate to the cloud […]

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Ajit Kolhe is the World Wide Partner Lead for Automotive at AWS. He builds and scales market differentiating solutions to solve customers’ unique business Digital Transformation Digital Transformation Digital Transformation Technology Magazine is the ‘Digital Community’ for the global technology industry. Technology Magazine covers the ‘7 Pillars of Digital Journey’ – Digital Transformation, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, Digital Ecosystems, Strategic Alliances, Data & Data Analytics and AI – connecting the world’s largest community of enterprise IT and technology executives. Technology Magazine focuses on technology news, key technology interviews, technology videos, the ‘Technology Podcast’ series along with an ever-expanding range of focused technology white papers and webinars.

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Jacob Lund via Getty Images Dive Brief: Corporate board directors are struggling to oversee the rapidly evolving threat of cyberattacks, according to a report from Diligent Institute , which specializes in corporate governance issues. They consider cyber and data security as their most challenging issue. The report, based on a survey of 300 directors, shows corporate boards are struggling to understand cybersecurity and digital transformation issues. Nearly half of board members are pursuing director education programs to prepare themselves for new breach disclosure rules the Securities and Exchange Commission is proposing, according to the report. Dive Insight: The report underscores how the surge in sophisticated cyberthreats – including ransomware – in recent years has challenged traditional corporate governance. Cybersecurity and business interruption are now considered the top corporate risks, according to research from Allianz Group. Data security is a priority issue at the most senior levels of U.S. corporations. Business leaders are now facing requirements to rapidly share intelligence with industry partners while remaining upfront with customers and transparent with investors and government regulators. “Overseeing cyber risk is incredibly challenging,” Dottie Schindlinger, executive director of Diligent Institute, said via email. “With the global cost of cybercrime expected to reach […]

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