Industry news

In our last blog we tried to give a simple explanation of cloud computing and the three basic types of cloud service: IaaS, PaaS and SaaS.

This time we’ll look at the three main types of cloud - public, private and hybrid - and how you choose between them.

Public cloud – a service provider gives you access to IT resources over the public Internet. You share the resources of the cloud with other users. Your data and applications are independent of other people’s, so while Company A and Company B might share the same physical server or disk, A and B only see their own virtual resources.

Private cloud - where the physical servers and storage devices that make up the cloud are available to specific users only. In this case, company A and company B’s data live on separate physical servers and storage devices. A private cloud could be run by an external service provider or your own IT department.

Hybrid cloud – there are a few different definitions of hybrid cloud, but most people consider it to be where a company runs a private cloud in tandem with a public cloud service. The public cloud might be used as a kind of overspill resource, or the workload might be split between public and private according to the type of application and data involved.

So how do you choose between them? The first thing to consider is whether you should be using an external provider, cloudy or otherwise. For very sensitive data and ‘mission-critical’ applications it may still be preferable to host and manage them in-house (indeed, you may be required to do so from a legal and regulatory point of view.) That might suit an in-house private cloud, depending on the kind of workload you’re talking about, or even traditional dedicated servers. The decision here is more about the business need to maintain total control over IT, versus the cost of building, running, maintaining and managing it in-house.

The next step to consider would be using a private cloud provider, and some kind of ‘virtual data center’ service. Security will be an important consideration, but there is nothing inherently less secure about a properly-designed private cloud service. The hardware lives in a data center, just as it does if you run your own IT infrastructure, and as long as you’ve done your due diligence on your provider’s security credentials, you can reap the benefits of cloud scalability and resilience without the time and expense of managing the infrastructure yourself.

Finally, there is public cloud, which suits a huge range of applications and offers the greatest choice of provider, from your local hosting company to giants like Amazon. Here too there are probably fewer security issues than you might have thought. At the end of the pipe there are still data centers that need effective physical and electronic security measures in place, just like your own: in other words, there is nothing inherently insecure about public cloud, either, if it is designed and managed properly.

Consider an application like Salesforce.com, for example, that’s used by companies all over the world. That’s Software as a Service running on public cloud infrastructure - countless companies sharing the same boxes and disks for their customer, sales and marketing data, and just getting on with their business.

Finally, a word about pricing. Cloud services are often priced like a utility (per GB per hour, for example) but they don’t have to be: for many business users the flexibility of per-hour pricing isn’t as important as having predictable costs for IT. Shop around and you’ll find plenty of providers willing to offer public and private cloud services for a fixed monthly or even daily price, usually with the option to scale up on demand, if required.

Next time we’ll look at how to choose your cloud service provider.

Unemployment stands at 2.57 million, and it would seem that the government has no clear plan on how to get people back to work. An austerity plan is one thing, but getting folk back to work is vital. Employment wise, we’re heading in the wrong direction and have been for some time. It’s time for the government to take positive decisive action. That means generating growth, and if that means ringing the changes and thinking a bit more radically, then why not?

If the government can inject £ 75 billion into the economy with quantitative easing, which, in effect, is the artificial boosting of banks’ own bank balances, and trusting them to spread this ‘new money’ around the economy. Doesn’t quite work like that though does it?

Last time out, quantitative easing didn’t have a great deal of impact, because the banks took the ‘cash’ and simply sat on it. The money went straight to banks’ bottom lines, with small businesses experiencing all the same problems getting loans out of banks that they did prior to QE and this time the added risk that savers face a smaller pension income. Doesn’t seem such good idea does it?

Private sector job creation is failing to keep with public sector job losses and that needs to change. Cutting out public sector efficiencies is the way to but if people end up on the dole as a result, that could be a false economy long term. The government owes it to the people of this country to carve out opportunities for jobless people to get back on their feet.

QE’s cash might work better by bypassing the bankers, and infusing the money into the system more directly. QE is artificially cranking up bank balances – why not whack a zero onto deserving enterprises’ bank accounts instead? And by deserving, I mean those with a clear plan and commitment to generating jobs, perhaps bringing some outsourcing back to the UK? Government subsidised expansion plans, particularly for SMEs bidding for government business, could help give the economy the kick-start it so desperately needs.

Outsourcing, like spending, will more than likely always be an area that comes under scrutiny in the public sector. But with increasing areas of the public sector now being outsourced, it is probably no surprise that the question on everyone’s lips is – how to get the best out of this strategy?

It is understandable in the current climate, that public sector organisations have increased pressure to make this strategy work for them financially. There has been an intense focus on cutting costs for some time now and amongst other issues, this has led to strained relationships with suppliers as CPOs battle with limited access to cash flow. Pressure is on the public sector to adhere to budgets whilst maintaining service levels and with outsourcing’s biggest advantage being that it saves money it is a welcomed strategy by most.

But these reduced budgets don’t reflect in the expectations of quality or quantity required from outsourced services, which remain at times, unrealistically high. There is a tendency, which has been driven by cuts and budget limitations, for the public sector to need everything for the lowest price possible and this can lead to a juggling act between service levels and cost.

The potential issues this creates here, are self-explanatory. ‘You get what you pay for’ is a well-recognised motto in the private sector, but when it comes to the public sector it holds less weight. It appears that in the public sector there is an expectation to get ‘more for less’ and you’ve got to wonder why this is. Perhaps there is an underlying feeling that good will should come into play, but realistically this is just not the case. If you want a better service levels then you must pay a better price, regardless of what sector you’re buying for.

This being said, it is important for the public sector to follow careful steps in order to avoid dips in service levels and get the most out of their strategies. With careful planning, risk analysis and a considered approach to funding barriers better outsourcing results can be attained. Furthermore it is important for the public sector to be realistic about what the budget will afford them

Google Inc. has announced financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2011.

"We had a great quarter,” said Larry Page, CEO of Google. “Revenue was up 33% year on year and our quarterly revenue was just short of $10 billion. Google+ is now open to everyone and we just passed the 40 million user mark. People are flocking into Google+ at an incredible rate and we are just getting started!"

Q3 Financial Summary

Google reported revenues of $9.72 billion for the quarter ended September 30, 2011, an increase of 33% compared to the third quarter of 2010. Google reports its revenues, consistent with GAAP, on a gross basis without deducting traffic acquisition costs (TAC). In the third quarter of 2011, TAC totaled $2.21 billion, or 24% of advertising revenues

Powers to conduct compulsory data protection audits in local government, the health service and the private sector are needed to ensure compliance with the law, the Information Commissioner said today at the 10th annual data protection compliance conference in London.

Christopher Graham’s call came as figures showed that the ICO is being blocked from auditing organisations in sectors that are causing concern over their handling of personal information.

The only compulsory data protections audit powers the ICO currently has are for central government departments. For all other organisations the ICO has to win consent before an audit can take place.

Data breaches in the NHS continue to be a major problem. Of the 47 undertakings the ICO has agreed with organisations that have breached the Data Protection Act since April, over 40% (19) were in the healthcare sector. In addition, the most serious personal data breaches that have resulted in a civil monetary penalty occurred in the local government sector. Four of the six penalties served so far involved local authorities.

Businesses remain the sector generating the most data protection complaints. Despite this, as reported in July, just 19% of companies contacted by the ICO accepted the offer of undergoing an audit. The ICO has written to 29 banks and building societies and so far only six (20%) have agreed to undergo an audit. The insurance sector has also shown reluctance in this area. Of the 19 companies contacted this year by the ICO, only two agreed to an audit.

Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham said: “Something is clearly wrong when the regulator has to ask permission from the organisations causing us concern before we can audit their data protection practices. Helping the healthcare sector, local government and businesses to handle personal data better are top priorities, and yet we are powerless to get in there and find out what is really going on.”

“With more data being collected about all of us than ever before, greater audit powers are urgently needed to ensure that the people handling our data are doing a proper job. I am preparing the business case for the extension of the ICO’s Assessment Notice powers under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 to these problematic sectors.”

Barclays Bank has told staff it is cutting 65 jobs in Glasgow as it ships the work offshore to India.

The company has launched a consultation process, which will last up to three months, on the cuts after deciding it could reduce costs and gain greater flexibility to handle the peaks and troughs of demand by splitting the work between an in-house operation and a third-party supplier, both based in Chennai.

After redeploying some staff elsewhere in the company, it is expected that Barclays will make between 35 and 50 people redundant.

Hampshire County Council, Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service and Hampshire Constabulary have pledged their commitment to investigate the potential to combine support services - saving money and protecting and improving frontline services.

Amid unprecedented challenges in the face of reduced levels of Government funding and additional operational pressures, all three organisations have begun programmes which will transform and develop new and innovative ways of working. Identifying opportunities for efficiencies and service improvements through greater joint working and sharing of resources is key to this.

The three organisations will now explore ways to work together more closely to share support services, which will include areas such as information technology, human resources, finance, procurement, legal and property management. A detailed business case will be developed to this effect for each of their authorities to review and make a final decision upon.

BT has been awarded certification to a new British Standard in recognition of its Smart City partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council.

To achieve this BT has successfully demonstrated it meets best practice in terms of Collaborative Business Relationships following rigorous assessment of its 11-year ICT partnership with the Scottish local authority. It is the first ICT company to gain the BS 11000 certification – and it’s also the first time the new standard has been awarded to a local authority partnership.

In making the award, BSI (the British Standards Institution) highlighted the additional value created by the partnership, not just in identifying further opportunities that benefited both parties, but in getting involved in local community projects and even the Council’s staff awards.

The assessment looked at evidence from across all aspects of the partnership, from vision and values to working together, knowledge and skills, policies and people and commitment to continuous approval.

Andrew Unsworth, head of e-government at the City of Edinburgh Council, said: "Working with the right partner is essential for the City of Edinburgh Council to ensure we are delivering the best possible services.

“This certification reflects how far the partnership with BT has come in the last 10 years. It confirms the quality of our people and practices and demonstrates the added value that collaborative working brings."

Keynote Systems has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held Mobile Complete, Inc, doing business as DeviceAnywhere, a leading enterprise-class cloud-based platform for testing and monitoring mobile websites and apps, for approximately $60.0 million in cash plus a potential earn-out.

“We welcome DeviceAnywhere’s talented employees to Keynote. We are especially pleased that industry pioneers Faraz and David will continue to provide expertise, vision and leadership by heading up our new Keynote-DeviceAnywhere division.”

Umang Gupta, Chairman and CEO of Keynote, said: “Combining DeviceAnywhere’s leading testing and quality assurance (QA) cloud-based solutions with our strong mobile monitoring business firmly establishes Keynote as a leader in the mobile testing and monitoring markets. The resulting increased product breadth and scale meaningfully enhance our competitive position. In addition, the acquisition will expand our addressable market into the immediately adjacent enterprise mobile testing and quality assurance space, which we project could enable us to grow this into a $100 million business.”

Also based in San Mateo, DeviceAnywhere will continue to be led by its co-founders Faraz A. Syed, CEO, and David J. Marsyla, CTO, and will operate as a standalone subsidiary, similar to Keynote-SIGOS, after the transaction.

Gupta added, “We welcome DeviceAnywhere’s talented employees to Keynote. We are especially pleased that industry pioneers Faraz and David will continue to provide expertise, vision and leadership by heading up our new Keynote-DeviceAnywhere division.”

Sony has suspended over 90,000 user accounts after unauthorised login attempts were discovered yesterday.

Sony’s Chief Information Security Officer, Philip Reitinger, said: "We want to let you know that we have detected attempts on Sony Entertainment Network, PlayStation Network and Sony Online Entertainment (“Networks”) services to test a massive set of sign-in IDs and passwords against our network database. These attempts appear to include a large amount of data obtained from one or more compromised lists from other companies, sites or other sources.

In this case, given that the data tested against our network consisted of sign-in ID-password pairs, and that the overwhelming majority of the pairs resulted in failed matching attempts, it is likely the data came from another source and not from our Networks. We have taken steps to mitigate the activity."