For the record 16 April

16-04-2008

by Ciara O'Brien

Women happy to swap passwords for chocolate | Starbucks, iTunes in free music deal

It seems that some women will do anything for chocolate -- even give away their passwords to total strangers on the street. A new study by Infosecurity Europe found that of 576 office workers surveyed, 45 percent of women and 10 percent of men handed over their passwords while filling out a "market research" questionnaire outside Liverpool Street station in London. Over 60 percent of office workers were also willing to impart information such as their date of birth, telephone numbers and names to the researchers, a worrying sign that the message on ID theft has still to get through. However, it's not all bad news. The same survey last year discovered that in total, almost two-thirds of workers would hand over their password for chocolate, compared to just 21 percent overall this year.

Managed network and telecoms services provider Complete Telecom has been awarded the Cisco Ireland Premier Partner Award for 2007. The title is given to the Cisco Premier Partner that delivers the best service, value and innovation in implementation of Cisco solutions for customers in Ireland. Cisco currently has more than 130 partners in Ireland, including telecoms companies, managed network services providers and datacentres. Cisco Ireland said Complete Telecom had "consistently delivered a market-leading service to our joint customers" but what swung it for the firm was its introduction of a series of "new, innovative Cisco solutions" to the Irish market in 2007.

Northgate Information Systems has teamed up with Newry-based builders' merchants, the Murdock Group, to implement and manage its new, more robust and efficient IT system, which Murdoch hopes will help it to better manage its expanding client base. The family-owned Murdock Group employs more than 300 staff, with nine merchant branches throughout Ireland including Banbridge, Dungannon, Belfast Kennedy Way, Belfast Duncrue, Balbriggan, Derry, Dundalk, Newtownards and Newry. The new systems include a Microsoft Exchange Server with full spam and anti-virus protection, enhanced back-up and a full, real time disaster recovery system. IT manager for the Murdock Group Michael Rooney said the improvements had already shown benefits for the organisation, with efficiencies across the operation and a greater responsiveness to client needs.

Mobile banking is set for an explosion in popularity, according to a report by Juniper Research. It claims that the number of consumers accessing banking services and products using their mobile phones will reach 816 million by 2011. This represents a tenfold increase on the number using such services in 2007. The number of transactions is set to rise from 2.7 billion in 2007 to 37 billion by 2011, with a wider number of services deployed worldwide. However, barriers to overcome include financial regulation, payment transaction costs, revenue share issues and customer support difficulties.

Free music with your venti cappuccino? Starbucks in the US has struck a deal with Apple to offer free iTunes tracks to customers of the coffee chain. The 'Pick of the Week' scheme will see customers get an iTunes Store download card free of charge which will allow them to 'buy' a song or music video from an artist of Starbucks' and iTunes' choosing. Artists include Duffy, Adele, Counting Crows, Carly Simon and others.

The majority of UK consumers don't feel completely safe using their home computer, a new survey has revealed. The YouGov research found that less than one in 10 respondents said they felt safe, but the number of UK consumers who installed the most basic IT security measures has fallen in the past year. Only 78 percent installed antivirus software on their computer, while a mere 53 percent have a firewall, a fall from 85 percent and 56 percent respectively in the last survey carried out.