Month: February 2010

Questions have been raised over some of the security measures introduced by HSBC to protect online banking customers, including the decision to allow ID information to be saved.

In a statement released this week, HSBC announced that it has introduced a security application called Rapport from tech company Trusteer – based in the US and Israel – for download by its customers. Despite being frequently described as “new software” in the HSBC statement, Rapport is already being used by several other banks including RBS, Alliance and Leicester and Natwest, according to Trusteer.

Commenting on the availability of Rapport to its customers, HSBC’s digital security manager Nick Staib said that downloads of the software had surpassed expectations. “I am delighted that so many customers share our interest in keeping personal and banking details safe,” he said. “Rapport is software that I use myself and I am happy recommending to friends.”

According to Trusteer and HSBC, Rapport works by “locking down browsers to prevent unauthorised access to web pages and to the confidential information that flows through the browsers”.

But despite the recommendation by HSBC, and Trusteer’s own claims, security experts have questioned some previous claims about the software. Consultant for rival security specialist Sophos, Graham Cluley said he wouldn’t comment on how effective Rapport was but referred to an earlier blog posting about RBS’s claims for the software.

For more go to: eWEEK Europe UK

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), which has been hit by strikes over redundancies, has signed a massive desktop services deal with Fujitsu, which itself has been hit by strike action over pensions.

In a statement released this week, DWP IT director general and chief information officer John Harley said that the department had awarded its desktop services contract to Fujitsu with the new contract due to start on 1 September 2010. The exact worth of the deal has not been disclosed but some reports have placed it in the region of £1 billion.

Although DWP has already used Fujitsu for some IT services, this latest agreement sees the computer services specialist oust HP from one of the largest IT contracts in the UK. The deal involves around 140,000 desktops and, according to Fujitsu, is the single biggest desktop and thin client outsourcing deal in the UK.

For more go to eWEEK Europe UK