Pinboard (guardiantech)

Why blocking extra-marital affair site Ashley Madison in Singapore makes sense

guardiantech — 2013-10-28T16:16:13+00:00

On one hand, the opposition in Singapore has grown vociferous, with a Facebook group attracting over 20,000 likes for a petition that calls on the government to block the website because it could undermine marriages, promote social disharmony, and ultimately “corrupt” Singapore. On the other hand, certain individuals say that the government should not play nanny. It should trust individuals to make informed choices about their personal lives. And therein lies the problem.

They may have the money, but we have the tools of technology. >> Medium

guardiantech — 2013-10-25T05:31:59+00:00

James Darling, currently working in the civil service, with a powerful (and personal) point of view:

I have a suspicion. I suspect that the idea of the public sector not only doing something well but better than most of the private sector offends them. Turns out the best way to piss off market libertarians is to make government work.
Sure, I hear moans from Silicon Roundabout that the government is sucking up all the best talent in London, but while they’re saying that, GOV.UK increased signups to the organ donations register by 10,000 every month with just a bit of clever A/B testing as a side project. I could be working on your socially network website that tries to convince parents that fruitshoot isn’t awful for their kids (I have actually done that), or I could be doing what I’m doing now, helping bring real change to the office of the public guardian so they can do their job better.

Govt. violates privacy safeguards to secretly monitor Internet traffic >> The Hindu

guardiantech — 2013-09-09T20:52:27+00:00

Shalini Singh:

Amid fresh controversy following reports of the U.S.’s Prism programme targeting the Brazilian President, and the impending launch of the Indian government’s own Central Monitoring System (CMS) project, an investigation by The Hindu reveals that the Internet activities of India’s roughly 160 million users are already being subjected to wide-ranging surveillance and monitoring, much of which is in violation of the government’s own rules and notifications for ensuring “privacy of communications”.
While the CMS is in early stages of launch, investigation shows that there already exists — without much public knowledge — Lawful Intercept and Monitoring (LIM) systems, which have been deployed by the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) for monitoring Internet traffic, emails, web-browsing, Skype and any other Internet activity of Indian users.

There was a big row a couple of years ago over BlackBerry encryption and India. Was this a workaround?

We’re not ‘appy. Not ‘appy at all. >> Government Digital Service

guardiantech — 2013-03-12T13:43:21+00:00

Tom Loosemore:

So mobile web usage is exploding, and the sooner we have all our transactions responsively adapting to mobile screen sizes the better. The forthcoming Digital by Default Service Standard will require it.
But does it follow that the government should also be investing heavily in mobile apps?
No.
Our position is that native apps are rarely justified.

One website for the UK Government. Extraordinary >> processcake

guardiantech — 2013-03-03T21:37:32+00:00

Corey Marttin, who works in government IT in Washington DC:

Every government has a complex hierarchy that makes little sense to most citizens. Their web sites often reflect this, requiring people to figure out which agency handles a particular subject matter.
GOV.UK turns this typical scenario on its head, allowing people to navigate by topic or service. Sure, someone can find out what agency is behind this, but many won’t care. The citizen has been connected with a government service without needing to understand an org chart.

Very quietly and thoroughly, gov.uk is integrating everything.

Datacatalogs.org

guardiantech — 2013-01-21T12:26:35+00:00

Simply: "a comprehensive list of open data catalogs curated by experts from around the world." Worth a bookmark, perhaps.

Prime minister’s special envoy ‘disappointed’ with open data use >> ComputerworldUK.com

guardiantech — 2012-11-19T18:04:51+00:00

Across UK government more than 9,000 datasets have been made available via data.gov.uk and the Cabinet Office plans to launch a £10 million Open Data Institute, headed up by inventor of the internet Tim Berners-Lee, to help businesses maximise the commercial value of open data.
[Michael] Anderson [PM Cameron's special envoy on the UN's post-2015 development goals] said: “I’m sure that a big part of [how much it is being used] is the kind of way that we are delivering the data. I recognise that we need to get better data out in a usable form.
“We still publish things in PDF files, which is awful. But we are going to improve, and we all have to move on this together.”

Can't expect much use if you publish data in PDF files.

Shipping the digital strategy >> Government Digital Service

guardiantech — 2012-11-06T18:14:52+00:00

A quick glimpse behind the scenes at the GDS: it's Agile, it's using a variant of Markdown, and Github was key. Hope you don't think government is behind the times any more.

Digital Landscape Research >> Cabinet Office

guardiantech — 2012-11-06T15:31:29+00:00

This independent research was conducted by 2CV to provide a comprehensive view of UK adults’ use of the internet and of government information and transactional services online.

Contains some fascinating nuggets.

Open Standards Consultation documents >> Cabinet Office

guardiantech — 2012-11-04T21:54:36+00:00

Plenty of them; get stuck in. Open standards are now mandated in government.

Government data PDF enthusiasts will be 'dealt with', says Maude >> Guardian Datablog

guardiantech — 2012-10-17T21:43:04+00:00

The Minister, in charge of the government's transparency drive, said that departments who continue to publish the data in their annual reports in PDF format would be 'dealt with'.
"Data in annual reports in PDF, that is in breach of our own open government license - and we will deal with that," [Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude] said.

You're urged not to be one of the people Francis Maude has to "deal with".

RIM set to lose stranglehold on government mobile market >> Computer Weekly

guardiantech — 2012-08-22T21:03:01+00:00

A government document seen by Computer Weekly stressed the importance of using appropriate commercial products to enable remote working in government at T1. This could include a greater use of consumer devices such as the iPhone and Samsung and HTC handsets.

Twitter Transparency Report >> Twitter Blog

guardiantech — 2012-07-03T06:19:36+00:00

Here's the full fat report.

Twitter releases data on government requests for user information >> guardian.co.uk

guardiantech — 2012-07-03T06:17:17+00:00

Almost 80% of all requests made to Twitter for information on its users to be released in the course of criminal investigations or other probes are made by the US government.

The speed of change >> Government Digital Service

guardiantech — 2012-06-26T21:11:33+00:00

When a user sent a tweet about a possible improvement on GOV.UK, it became a great example of how quickly an agile team can respond to feedback. Chris Heathcote from the GDS design team explains how size doesn’t necessarily mean slowing of processes.

BYOD won't save you money, says Blackpool ICT chief >> Guardian Government Computing

guardiantech — 2012-05-01T05:34:48+00:00

On the one hand, costs up because there are more calls to the support desk; on the other, fewer desks and more flexible working.

"Local authorities hoping to introduce similar [Bring Your Own Device] schemes should view it as a way of supporting employees and helping to bring about job satisfaction, according to [Blackpool head of ICT services Tony] Doyle.

Thanks @jforbes for the link; note this is where the article originally appeared - on the Guardian's Government Computing Network.

Government launches Digital Advisory Board >> Computer Weekly

guardiantech — 2012-04-26T05:28:44+00:00

The government has created a Digital Advisory Board (DAB) of industry IT heads and academics to support its digital by default agenda.
The board will be chaired by UK digital champion Martha Lane Fox and will meet twice a year to advise the Cabinet Office’s Government Digital Service (GDS) on the accessibility of online services, as they are rolled out across Whitehall departments.

Putting APIs first: legislation.gov.uk >> Government Digital Service

guardiantech — 2012-03-31T20:55:08+00:00

We are inviting people from outside The National Archives to work with us, to apply changes to the legislation in the database. Quality is maintained through our editorial practice and a stringent process of review. It is an exciting time as private sector companies are now investing, employing people to work with us to bring the database up to date and to maintain it.

Really interesting. Build the API first, make the API available, get people involved. And you think government is behind the times?

40% of US government Web sites fail security test >> Network World

guardiantech — 2012-03-18T21:38:12+00:00

Approximately 40% of federal government agencies are out of compliance with a regulation that requires them to deploy an extra layer of authentication on their Web sites to prevent hackers from hijacking Web traffic and redirecting it to bogus sites. It's been more than two years since federal agencies were required to support DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) on their Web sites. However, two recent studies indicate that around 40% of federal Web sites have not yet deployed this Internet security standard.

Faintly depressing.

The Department of Homeland Security is searching your Facebook and Twitter for these words >> Animal New York

guardiantech — 2012-02-28T22:36:23+00:00

Safety theatre, of sorts:

The Department of Homeland Security monitors your updates on social networks, including Facebook and Twitter, to uncover “Items Of Interest” (IOI), according to an internal DHS document released by the EPIC. That document happens to include a list of the baseline terms for which the DHS–or more specifically, a DHS subcontractor hired to monitor social networks–use to generate real-time IOI reports.

U.S. government, military to get secure Android phones - CNN.com

guardiantech — 2012-02-03T23:23:53+00:00

Bad news for RIM?

Some US officials this year are expected to get smartphones capable of handling classified government documents over cellular networks, according to people involved in the project. The phones will run a modified version of Google's Android software, which is being developed as part of an initiative that spans multiple federal agencies and government contractors, these people said.

So, another Android fork. It's not quite a win for Google - more a win for the US government. But for RIM, which has for ages had so much of the US government business, it's not good news.

MPs want changes to ePetitions system and website >> eDemocracyBlog.com

guardiantech — 2012-01-20T10:50:40+00:00

Basically, to water it down and have debates that arise from them shoved out of the Commons chamber.

MegaUpload Indictment in full >> Scribd

guardiantech — 2012-01-20T10:47:23+00:00

All 72 pages. If you found you couldn't get it from the US Department of Justice site for some reason...

Changes to the DFID website >> Department for International Development

guardiantech — 2011-12-14T06:54:41+00:00

"The homepage of the projects database has a new look. There is a list of our latest projects and the most recently published project documents, including new business cases. You can search by sector and keyword, or by finding a country on the world map. When you view a project, instead of just seeing the title and description, you now see a colourful pie chart showing the project budget by sector. Hover over each sector with your mouse to see the latest budget for that sector. This is an excellent way of illustrating how DFID-funded projects can target a variety of priorities." What's not visible is the number of very smart people who are working in the background to get more and more government websites not just up to date, but to incorporate some future vision.

Open Source Procurement Toolkit >> Cabinet Office

guardiantech — 2011-11-03T23:58:43+00:00

"The Government first set out its policy on the use of open source in 2004. This was restated in both 2009 and 2010. The Government ICT Strategy states that “Where appropriate, Government will procure open source solutions.” To support this, Action 3 of the Strategy says that “To create a level playing field for the use of innovative ICT solutions, the Government will publish a toolkit for procurers on best practice for evaluating the use of open source solutions.” "The following set of documents make up that toolkit…The purpose of this toolkit is to ensure that there is a level playing field for open source and proprietary software and that some of the myths associated with open source are dispelled. "It is intended for those who need to consider, evaluate or procure open source solutions as well as anyone just wanting to know more about open source." We strongly suspect this is the work of Liam Maxwell. In which case he has moved fast. This bodes well.

UK Central Government and Local Authority Public Spending 2012 - ukpublicspending.co.uk

guardiantech — 2011-09-20T21:16:50+00:00

Very nice, although it would be good to be able to drill down to more details such as suppliers. That really would be impressive. And it goes back to 1700. (That's not 5pm.)

Government wants open standards to be royalty-free >> eWEEK Europe UK

guardiantech — 2011-09-15T05:35:54+00:00

"Francis Maude has confirmed that it will adopt royalty-free standards, to deliver a level playing field for open source
"Maude, minister for the Cabinet Office, has clarified the government’s policy on seeking open standards when procuring IT equipment, following confusion over whether “open standards” means Royalty-Free (RF) or Fair, Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory (FRAND).Technologies available under RF conditions, can be used freely, while those under FRAND terms require users to pay a “reasonable” royalty. The HTTP protocol is free, for instance, while technologies for 3G communications are FRAND."

Important distinction.

Speech by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon George Osborne MP, at Google Zeitgeist 2011 >> HM Treasury

guardiantech — 2011-05-17T05:21:47+00:00

It didn't sound that content-ful when he read it out, either - open data hirings and cyberattacks apart.

If you started today, you would never build what we’ve got. You would build Alphagov >> Neil Williams

guardiantech — 2011-05-09T21:29:45+00:00

"We’re mere days away from the big reveal of Alphagov, the prototype ‘single domain’ website which will set a challenging vision of what a unified, user-focused front end to UK government could look like.
"I’ve been relatively close to the project, from unofficial chats with project lead Tom Loosemore and others in dingy Lambeth North pubs before the thing had a name, to more formal advice lately on how Departments do their digital communications – and how Alphagov could help them do it better. (Though if I’m honest, an index card saying “F*** IE6” is the contribution I’m proudest of).
"Without giving the game away too much, here’s a taste of what’s coming to a browser near you soon, and some speculation on the stir it will surely cause."

Read on...

A Manhattan Project for online identity >> O'Reilly Radar

guardiantech — 2011-05-04T20:28:23+00:00

"Governments are now faced with complex decisions in how they approach issues of identity, given the stakes for activists in autocracies and the increasing integration of technology into the daily lives of citizens. Governments need ways to empower citizens to identify themselves online to realize both aspirational goals for citizen-to-government interaction and secure basic interactions for commercial purposes."

Complex hardly begins to describe it.