Verdict Email The issues you care about
Politics and policy
The latest political technology news, features and analysis from around the world. Verdict covers the political side of technology, from news on rules, regulation and policy to the role of governments in tech. Be it good, bad or somewhere in between, political technology is now a vital part of the wider world of tech and plays a key role in shaping the political sphere.
-
21 Jul
Russia report: UK should lead offensive cyber efforts against Russia
The long-awaited Russia report, which explores how Moscow has used digital and intelligence capabilities to meddle in UK electoral matters, has called the UK’s development of offensive cyber capabilities “essential” to combat the issue.
-
16 Jul
Companies “scrambling” as EU-US Privacy Shield data sharing voided
Companies that routinely transfer data between the EU and the US are currently scrambling to find a legal way to do so, after Europe’s top court voided the previous mechanism, the EU-US Privacy Shield.
-
8 Jul
Summer statement 2020: Technology sector reacts to chancellor’s pandemic recovery plan
Today Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered his summer statement, outlining the UK government's strategy for economic recovery in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
-
7 Jul
Andrew Yang: “We are experiencing 10 years of change in 10 weeks”
Andrew Yang, former US presidential candidate and founder of Humanity Forward, is deeply concerned about how the acceleration of technology in response to the pandemic is going to impact many American citizens.
-
25 Jun
Trump is using Twitter to magnify his base: Anthony Scaramucci
Anthony Scaramucci, the former White House communications director for US President Donald Trump, has rejected suggestions that US President Donald Trump’s divisive use of Twitter is a sign of stupidity, arguing that it is instead a shrewd move to boost his chances of winning the 2020 Presidential election.
-
25 Jun
Brittany Kaiser: Facebook should ban Trump disinformation
Facebook should ban inaccurate and misleading content posted by US President Donald Trump in accordance with its standards for non-political users, Brittany Kaiser, former Cambridge Analytica business development director-turned whistleblower, has said.
-
23 Jun
“Be kind”: Babylon CEO leaps to Matt Hancock’s defence
Ali Parsa, CEO and founder of digital health company Babylon, has refused to criticise the performance of Health Secretary Matt Hancock during the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that people need to stop criticising others.
-
18 Jun
Trump “backward-looking and out-of-touch” on Bitcoin: deVere CEO
US President Donald Trump has been slammed as being out of touch on Bitcoin and the wider world of cryptocurrencies by Nigel Green, the CEO and founder of deVere Group, a leading financial advisory firm.
-
16 Jun
UK’s Huawei 5G stance threatens to “fundamentally alter” US intelligence sharing, congressman warns
The UK government's current stance to allow Huawei into the non-core parts of the country’s 5G network threatens to “fundamentally alter” the intelligence-sharing relationship with America, a US congressman has warned.
-
16 Jun
Apple faces EU antitrust probe over App Store practices
The European Commission has launched a fresh antitrust investigation into Apple after e-book firm Kobo joined Spotify in filing a complaint alleging that the App Store has anti-competitive practices.
-
10 Jun
Matt Hancock: Humans work better for contact tracing than technology
Matt Hancock, the UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has downplayed the role of technology in ongoing contact tracing efforts to combat the coronavirus.
-
9 Jun
Brexit deal now unlikely without extension, and time is running out
Securing a full deal on Brexit within the required timeframe is looking increasingly unlikely, and with the deadline for an extension just weeks away, a no-deal Brexit is now a serious concern, according to a report published today by thinktank UK in a Changing Europe.
-
4 Jun
Absence of services sector from Brexit negotiations risks “profound impact”
The absence of the UK services sector from UK-EU Brexit trade negotiations could have a "profound impact" on businesses, according to one thinktank.
-
3 Jun
Google Cloud lays flag in UK public sector with government MoU
Google Cloud has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UK government in order to increase adoption of its products and technologies by the UK public sector.
-
1 Jun
Managing the end of Covid-19 lockdown: Beyond contact tracing
Managing the end of lockdown and returning to some semblance of normality is a priority for everyone at the moment. The lifting of restrictions on the use of public spaces, the tricky issue of getting back onto public transport, socialising, and even planning holidays presents challenges and huge implications for containing Covid-19.
-
28 May
Test and Trace: Data of those with Covid-19 symptoms will be stored for 20 years
Personally identifiable information collected by NHS Test and Trace for people with Covid-19 symptoms will be kept by Public Health England for 20 years.
-
15 May
NHS digital transformation before coronavirus slammed in government report
The digital transformation efforts by the NHS prior to the outbreak of the coronavirus have been heavily criticised in a report published today by the National Audit Office (NAO), the independent Parliamentary body responsible for auditing government departments.
-
29 Apr
Coronavirus: NHS contact-tracing app will fail without trust, academics warn
A group of 173 privacy and security academics have called on the NHS to be more transparent about its coronavirus contact-tracing application, warning that not enough people will use it to make it successful if data protection concerns are not addressed.
-
17 Apr
Virtual Parliament: MPs must “adhere to security precautions”
For the first time in 700 years, the Houses of Parliament is taking an "unprecedented step" by allowing MPs to take part in some parliamentary proceedings via Zoom.
-
16 Apr
Hackers tied to Syrian government use Covid-19-themed malware to spy on citizens
Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a malware campaign targeting Syrian citizens that uses Covid-19 to lure users into installing apps onto their phones that are then used to spy on them.
-
14 Apr
Supreme Court teleconferencing: The future of legal proceedings?
For the first time ever, the US Supreme Court will use teleconferencing technology to remotely hear arguments "in keeping with public health guidance" due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, it announced yesterday.
-
3 Apr
Tech Nation: Chancellor should do more to support early-stage tech companies
Today, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced further measures to support businesses during the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, but this does not fully address the needs of early-stage tech companies, according to Tech Nation.
-
2 Apr
Yuval Noah Harari: Coronavirus surveillance risks creating authoritarian regimes
The use of surveillance via technologies such as apps and smartphones to combat the spread of the coronavirus can be useful, but risks empowering authoritarian governments, historian and author Yuval Noah Harari has said.
-
1 Apr
UK Digital Services Tax brings in duty on social media, search revenue
The new Digital Services Tax came into force in the UK today.
-
24 Mar
UN platform to help governments protect telecom networks during coronavirus crisis
A global platform designed to help governments maintain the resilience and availability of telecom networks during the coronavirus crisis has been launched by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialised agency of the United Nations.
-
16 Mar
Record €1.1bn Apple fine sends shares sliding 13%
Apple’s share price fell 13% as markets reacted to a record €1.1bn ($1.2bn) antitrust fine and continued coronavirus disruption.
-
11 Mar
2020 Budget: What does it mean for the tech industry?
Today Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced the 2020 Spring Budget, the first for the new UK government.
-
10 Mar
MPs reject amendment to block Huawei from 5G network
British MPs have voted against an amendment that sought to prohibit the use of Huawei in the UK’s 5G mobile network.
-
6 Mar
UK government launches fresh Huawei 5G inquiry
The UK government has announced the launch of a new inquiry to investigate the security of its 5G infrastructure, focusing particularly on Chinese telecoms giant Huawei.
-
4 Mar
Domestic Abuse Bill makes tech abuse illegal
A new domestic abuse bill unveilled by the UK government will make tech abuse illegal.