Shadow IT is the use of technology within an organisation without approval or formal oversight. This includes all kinds of software and hardware, but is increasingly dominated by online, Software as a Service (SaaS) tools. I’ve recently released a free guide called ‘Managing Shadow IT in unions’ via the TUC’s Digital Lab. Examples of Shadow IT could include the use of a private Google account to handle a union’s branch email account, setting up a WhatsApp group to communicate with members in a workplace, or storing sensitive member data on a union staffer’s personal laptop. Union staff and

Cyber security is a major and ever evolving risk for organisations. While the nature of the threats has evolved over time, the risks have arguably never been greater for trade unions. Download the free Cyber security for unions report . As data storage has moved online, this has seen an increase in the range and types of digital threats. This has resulted in a new phase in the ‘arms race’ between cyber security and malicious actors, with innovation in both the types of threats and the responding security technologies and protocols. For unions, who maintain a large collection of highly

Cyber security remains a critical and ever-evolving challenge. With the escalation of threats such as ransomware and sophisticated phishing attacks, fraudulent emails aimed at deceiving individuals into disclosing sensitive information, the stakes have never been higher. This issue is particularly pertinent for unions, who hold the personal details of thousands of members on their systems. Trade union membership itself is deemed as special category sensitive data under Data Protection legislation, and so even more care is needed around this. A government backed review into the most common

Phishing is the name given to fraudulent emails and messages designed to trick people into giving away their passwords and other credentials or to download malware. These types of attacks have been increasingly deployed by criminals over the last few years. The number of phishing attacks are estimated to have risen by 150%, year on year, since 2019. Unions are at particular risk, as they hold the personal data of union members. Union membership is classified as ‘special category’ sensitive data under Data Protection legislation. If, for example, a phishing attack managed to capture the

In the world of technology, security threats change over time. Currently, one of the most critical risks revolves around phishing emails. Phishing is where criminals use scams sent via email, SMS or phone calls to try and steal personal information or trick people into installing malicious software. Over the last few years, it’s been on the rise. It’s been estimated that about 90% of all cyber-attacks start with a phishing email. Attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated, with highly targeted attacks (known as ‘Spear Phishing’) that can be personalise more of the email content and design

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there have been even more changes in the workplace driven by technology. Many people were forced to work from home, which saw a big increase in video conferencing. It also accelerated the move to the cloud, as workers needed to be able to access data and carry out work remotely. With hybrid working becoming the new normal, the way that a lot of workers use technology has fundamentally changed. Some new technologies were coming along anyway, driven by factors like improving Artificial Intelligence and tighter data protection legislation. There are concerns that all

Shadow IT is the use of technology, such as cloud-based software, without the approval or oversight from the organisation’s IT department. Some examples of shadow IT include: Storing business data on a private Google account Using a personal account on an online survey platform to collect work-related data Saving sensitive work personal data on an unmonitored personal laptop Using a private Dropbox account to manage a spreadsheet of work contacts With the rise of online services in particular, more and more people have been able to use free or cheap tools to help with their work. These new

It’s been over a year since we entered the first lockdown in the UK. During this challenging period, there have been many changes to our lives, including how we work. Tech has played a crucial role in allowing companies and organisations to keep going. However, this has resulted in changes that will have a long-lasting effect. Video Conferencing Many people had never head of Zoom before the start of the pandemic, where now the product has become a verb for the new way of communicating. Workers who had to give up the office for their homes had to adapt quickly to videoconferencing. Now, even

Passwords are an essential part of life now, from carrying out the weekly shop, to accessing social media, to logging into your website. The problem with passwords is that many people use the same one multiple times, or use an insecure one which is easy to guess. We don’t have to wait long nowadays before we hear of yet another website where user details have been compromised. Most recently, Yahoo revealed in December that 1 billion user accounts had been breached, probably dating back to August 2013, making it the largest such security breach in history. Many other well-known and popular

PHP is a website programming language. It’s the World Wide Web's most popular code, estimated to power over 80% of websites, including the likes of Facebook and Wikipedia. In December 2015, a major new version of PHP was released: PHP 7. PHP 7 is the first major upgrade to the language for more than decade. The main improvement is speed. PHP 7 is estimated to be around twice as quick as the previous version. It's also more memory efficient, using as little as half the amount of memory as before. There are also other benefits that programmers can use to enhance websites. However, there's one