New electrical recycling plant opens on IOM

Published on 31 January 2012.

A new £1.2 million recycling plant has been unveiled on the Isle of Man.

A new site where waste electrical and electronic equipment can be recycled has been unveiled in Bride, Isle of Man (IOM).

The £1.2 million Northern Civic Amenity Site will provide facilities for householders to dispose of a variety of unwanted items and will feature a security hut with number plate recognition to avoid “commercial abuse”, the Isle of Man Examiner reports.

People will be able to dispose of TVs, fridge freezers and PC monitors, as well as card, glass, metal, plastic, clothing, car batteries, fluorescent tubes and waste oils.

Board chairman of the Ramsey Commissioners captain Nigel Malpass welcomed the new development and the facilities it brings to the local residents.

“Importantly, the site will contribute to promoting responsible domestic waste disposal and reinforcing a ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ culture,” he stated.

The news comes after the European Parliament announced new regulations regarding the dumping of goods such as mobile phones, computers and TV sets.

Posted by Otto Greenberg

Manpower agrees to increase data security following breach

Published on 29 January 2012.

A data security breach has led to Manpower being forced to improve its protection of sensitive information.

Data security at recruitment agency Manpower has been stepped up after an employee accidentally emailed personal information to inappropriate recipients.

Details relating to 400 individuals were sent in a spreadsheet to 60 staff members at the organisation, according to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Although the data was not considered sensitive under the official regulations, it was deemed too personal to have been so widely distributed.

As a result of the incident, Manpower has agreed to improve its data protection practices and ensure staff are aware of its policies on such information being transmitted either with password protection or in an encrypted format.

The agency has avoided a fine from the ICO, under the agreement that the company will step-up its security measures.

Elsewhere, a £375,000 fine was handed to Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals following a data breach that saw 232 hard drives containing confidential details enter the public domain.

Posted by Otto Greenberg

Fraud ‘on the rise’

Published on 28 January 2012.

Levels of online fraud have risen to the highest on record, according to new data.

Companies looking to recycle their old computers may want to ensure data destruction is thoroughly undertaken to remove all sensitive details from hard drives, as cybercrime is said to be on the rise.

New figures from the Credit Industry Fraud Avoidance System (CIFAS) reveal a nine per cent increase in fraud during 2011.

The body’s members reported 236,500 instances of information being illegally obtained or used, which is the highest amount ever recorded.

In addition, an 18 per cent surge in facility takeover fraud was noted, which is an increase of nearly 300 per cent in just five years.

CIFAS chief executive Peter Hurst commented that “prevention … remains better than cure” and urged all organisations to review their data security systems.

“Not investing in proper fraud prevention systems and approaches, from online security to data sharing, is tantamount to leaving an open till unguarded,” he stated.

Through CIFAS’ Protective Registration, individuals can protect against possible impersonation attempts by cybercriminals looking to uncover and use their personal details.

Posted by Salma Davidson

HP calls for WEEE compliance costs to be cut

Published on 27 January 2012.

IT manufacturer HP has claimed electrical recycling compliance costs are too high.

Calls have been made to lower the cost of compliance under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, as producers believe they are be being overcharged.

IT manufacturer HP has conducted research that reveals the increasing price of commodities has caused the value of electrical recycling goods to rise significantly, Edie.net reports.

Producers are said to be collectively paying £50 million more to meet their compliance obligations under the directive, which is considerably higher than the cost of recycling e-waste.

HP’s head of environmental compliance Dr Kirstie McIntyre said: “This hidden and complex price setting means that whilst the actual costs of recycling have fallen, the costs charged to producers have remained the same.”

It was suggested the market has settled into a convenient operating position at the expense of manufacturers and consumers.

The WEEE Directive was introduced into UK law in January 2007 and aims to reduce the amount of products being produced, as well as encourage recycling.

Posted by Otto Greenberg

Smartphones ‘store valuable data sought by criminals’

Published on 26 January 2012.

It has been suggested cybercriminals are increasingly turning their attention to smartphone data.

Data security or smartphones may become a priority for some individuals after hearing how handsets are now increasingly valuable to cybercriminals.

Tony Neate, managing director of Get Safe Online and member of e-Crime Wales Steering Group, explained how the amount of information held on such devices is now equivalent to desktop PCs from five years ago.

He claimed their ability to hold large amounts of “intrinsic data” makes them “very valuable” not just for the actual phone, but also the personal details they carry.

Aside from smartphone robberies, Mr Neate noted that online methods of retrieving information are being employed.

“We’re seeing applications being used from app stores on some of the phones … which are susceptible to having attacks made against them using different applications,” he stated.

Mark Dampster, associate of the Centre for Cyber Security, recently claimed all companies and individuals should make data security one of their key focuses in 2012.

Posted by James Rendell

EU introduces new e-waste laws

Published on 24 January 2012.

The European Parliament has passed new legislation on recycling electrical and electronic goods.

New rules on the disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment have been introduced by the European Parliament.

The body has passed a law that aims to stop the dumping of goods such as computers, mobile phones and TV sets.

Under the legislation, from 2016, European Union member states will have to collect 45 per cent of e-waste from electrical and electronic goods put on sale.

This will rise to 65 per cent by 2019, with officials noting around only one-third is currently treated appropriately.

Rapporteur Karl-Heinz Florenz of Germany, a member of the European People’s Party, commented: “Europe will now recover more raw materials, which is excellent news both for the economy and for the environment.”

He added that negotiations were “difficult”, but he is “very satisfied” by the agreed collection rates.

A recent study compiled by the Waste and Resources Action Programme revealed the amount of e-waste effectively being recycled in the UK is on the rise.

Posted by Salma Davidson

Smartphones ‘increasingly targeted by cybercriminals’

Published on 23 January 2012.

It is no longer just PCs that need data security protection, as smartphones are increasingly at risk, it has been claimed.

Individuals have been warned that it is no longer just their PCs that need protecting against data security attacks.

Norton security expert Simon Ellson explained how cybercriminals are constantly evolving their methods in order to keep up with the latest technology.

He described how they will “tweak their attacks” to follow current trends “whether it’s a popular topic on Twitter they can poison search engine results on, or a new mobile application”.

The evolution of technology makes people increasingly vulnerable, it was noted, with smartphone users advised they are steadily becoming the main focus for many cybercriminals.

However, Mr Ellson claimed systems such as the Norton Mobile Security Lite offer individuals a “simple and free” way to protect their devices against phishing scams.

Senior vice-president of international sales at Entrust Mark Reeves recently commented how apps are a key way in which viruses can be transferred to a phone.

Posted by Otto Greenberg

Bideford welcomes electrical recycling event

Published on 18 January 2012.

An electrical recycling event is to be held in Bideford.

Businesses and residents in Bideford are being urged to consider electrical recycling when clearing out their old and unused goods.

This is North Devon reports how a free event is being held today (January 19th) at the town’s cattle market as part of Electrical Waste Amnesty Day.

Among the items that can be dropped off are kettles, toasters, computers, televisions and other household appliances that would otherwise be taken to landfill.

Councillor Chris Leather, Torridge District Council lead member for Waste and Recycling, urged businesses with a lot of bulky items to take advantage of a free collection service.

He added: “It is hoped that if the amnesty day is a success it will be rolled out to other locations in Torridge.”

Elsewhere, the Thornbury News Gazette recently informed local residents there will be a series of recycling open day events in Yate and Thornbury later this month.

Posted by Salma Davidson

Encrypted devices introduced following data breach

Published on 17 January 2012.

A company has been ordered to ensure all devices containing sensitive information are encrypted.

A data security breach has led to a care provider company revising its information storage systems.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the Office of the Data Protection Supervisor (ODPS) for the Isle of Man ordered Praxis Care to ensure its portable devices are encrypted.

This comes after the firm breached both the UK Data Protection Act and the Isle of Man Data Protection Act when a memory stick containing personal information was lost.

Details relating to 107 Isle of Man residents and 53 people from Northern Ireland were stored on the device, with some of the documentation outlining individuals’ care and mental health.

Iain McDonald, Isle of Man data protection supervisor, said: “Today’s joint action aims to send a clear message to organisations that a lax attitude to data security will not be tolerated by either the ODPS or the ICO.”

Elsewhere, the ICO recently prosecuted Kent receptionist Usha Patwal after she illegally accessed her sister-in-law’s medical records.

Posted by Otto Greenberg

Decade-long security breach detected at US university

Published on 16 January 2012.

The City College of San Francisco has discovered hackers have been accessing personal information for more than a decade.

Students at a university in the US have been warned their personal details could have been compromised in a data security breach.

The City College of San Francisco has been forced to hire a specialist computer firm to help trace and eradicate viruses that are said to have plagued campus devices for years.

It was recently discovered that hackers have been scanning sensitive data for more than a decade.

With thousands of students returning to the university after the Christmas break, individuals have been encouraged to change all of their computer passwords and avoid using the school devices to make purchases or carry out banking.

Chancellor Don Griffin said in an email designed to reassure all students and employees: “In an effort to increase its network security, the college is now re-evaluating the settings for its two computer firewalls and is upgrading its antivirus software.”

The City College of San Francisco serves around 100,000 individuals across nine campuses.

Posted by James Rendell