Rural broadband ISP Airband, which is deploying a mix of Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) and gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) networks across various parts of the UK, has announced the appointment of Ian Fishwick as both their new Chairman of the Board and a Non-Executive Director. The operator, which is being backed by Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) […]

News

The South Korean electronics giant said staff would be restricted from using AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Google Bard following misuse by staff

This week, Samsung has become the latest in a string of major firms to raise a red flag over staff use of ChapGPT and similar AI solutions.

The company said that it had informed its staff in April that there had been cases of misuse of large language model (LLM) AI – a type of generative AI trained on massive data sets and capable of providing text-based answers to written queries.

According to a report from Bloomberg, Samsung had discovered evidence that staff had uploaded sensitive code to the ChatGPT platform, which would then theoretically be available to other users. As a result, the company has restricted staff from accessing such platforms using workplace equipment.

“We ask that you diligently adhere to our security guidelines and failure to do so may result in a breach or compromise of company information resulting in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment,” read the memo.

Samsung also advised its staff to use caution when interacting with ChatGPT and similar products in their private lives, suggesting they avoid exposing any personal or company-related information to the chatbots.

The ban is expected to be temporary, with the company saying it was searching for safe ways in which staff could interact with the technology in the workplace.

Concerns around the security and data privacy of AI platforms like ChatGPT are nothing new. The banking sector has been particularly cautious over the new technology’s capabilities, with the likes of Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan all restricting the use of such platforms for employees.

Part of the fear here is regulatory in nature; if these AI platforms can be shown to routinely share sensitive data – especially financial data – then national regulators are likely to impose their own restrictions, which could impact

Indeed, this regulatory process appears to have already begun in Italy, with the country’s privacy regulator announcing in March that it would block access to ChatGPT and investigate whether the platform complied with General Data Protection Regulation.

The regulator subsequently suggested numerous tweaks to the platform that would be required to assuage their privacy concerns, with OpenAI, the owners of ChatGPT, quick to make many of the requisite changes. As such, this week the regulator announced that it will lift its ban and allow Italian users access to the platform once again.

There is no denying the disruptive potential of generative AI, but with security and privacy questions still largely unanswered, it seems only natural that businesses will remain cautious over its use for some time yet.

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Also in the news:
ECTA calls on the European Commission to think again
Research claims FTTH reduces internet CO2 emissions by a third
Fibre will underpin our 5G future, says ITS Technology Group at Connected North

Press release

As part of the 2Africa subsea cable consortium, center3 and Meta have announced the landing of the longest subsea cable project in the world at two of the planned four landing locations in Saudi Arabia: Jeddah, and Yanbu.

The 2Africa subsea cable, with over 45,000 km of length, will be the longest ever deployed worldwide. The record-breaking cable system will connect 33 countries by the completion of the project in 2024, delivering reliable connectivity and internet services across three continents: Africa, Asia, and Europe. The 2Africa subsea cable is expected to make four landings in Saudi Arabia; Jeddah and Yanbu, which were just completed; followed by Duba later this year, and Al Khobar in 2024.

The 2Africa subsea cable will promote a surge in information exchange and digital business development, helping growth foster the next growth stage in many of the economies it connects. The 2Africa Subsea Cable will translate into economic growth for the surrounding population and
act as a catalyst for change in the broadband market, benefiting individuals and businesses.

The 2Africa subsea cable is extended into the Arabian Gulf region through “2Africa Pearls” cable extensions, adding landings in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Oman, the UAE, Pakistan, and India, along with the East Coast of Saudi Arabia.

According to Fahad A. Alhajeri, CEO of center3: “2Africa’s first landing in Saudi Arabia is a major milestone for center3, representing a significant step forward in our objective to make Saudi Arabia the regional hub connecting the three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. center3 will continue to invest in connectivity infrastructure providing world-class connectivity to our customers and contributing towards achieving the Kingdom’s 2030 Vision.”

Fares Akkad, Regional Director, Middle East and North Africa, Meta, said: “Our significant investment in 2Africa builds on several others we have made in Saudi Arabia. The COVID-19 crisis demonstrated how millions rely on internet access to do basic day-to-day tasks and connect with loved ones. Investing in subsea cables provides a better experience for people using our products and not benefits many other industries, including healthcare, education, and social services.”

The 2Africa consortium comprises center3, a recently formed subsidiary of stc, Meta, China Mobile International, MTN Global Connect, Orange, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone and WIOCC.

center3 will be joining Submarine Networks EMEA 2023 as a Platinum Sponsor and their CTO, Adil Alaskah will join the opening keynote panel on “What’s on the horizon for the submarine cable industry?” To hear from center3 and over 100 fantastic speakers, head to the Submarine Networks EMEA 2023 website to register for the event.

Broadband and mobile giant Virgin Media O2 has today announced that, as part of their efforts to reorganise and focus the company on a “customer-first, digital-first and converged mentality and mission that lays the ground for future growth“, they’ve appointed a new Chief Operating Officer (COO) and MD for Fixed Network Expansion. Firstly, VMO2’s current […]

Sources within Sky UK (Comcast) have reportedly told a major newspaper that sales of their Sky Glass product, which launched in late 2021 and is essentially a Sky branded TV that also streams content over your home broadband ISP connection (inc. WiFi) instead of via a Satellite dish, have “underwhelmed“. The product itself, which was […]

The first UK government-funded rural 4G mobile mast upgrade has today been completed in the Lockerbie area in Scotland, which forms part (£75m) of their industry-led £1bn Shared Rural Network (SRN) project with EE (BT), Vodafone, Three UK and O2 (Virgin Media). A further 120+ masts in Scotland are also set for upgrades. Just to […]

Abingdon-based rural broadband ISP Gigaclear, which has deployed a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to cover 380,000 premises (mostly in England), have today celebrated after they announced the connection of their 75,000th customer to the network. The Infracapital-backed ISP is currently investing up to £700 million to reach 500,000 UK premises (Ready for Service) across […]

The States of Guernsey has confirmed that their joint £37.5m project with incumbent broadband ISP Sure, which aims to build a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across the entire English Channel Island of Guernsey (30,000 premises) by the end of 2026, is running ahead of schedule and has now covered 9,000 homes. The project was first […]

News

With the Malaysian government reviewing its 5G equipment tender process, representatives from both the US and EU warned that Huawei should not be allowed to participate in the country’s growing 5G network

Today, a report from The Financial Times says that both the EU and US have sent letters to the Malaysian government urging them to disallow Chinese equipment vendor Huawei from participating in the country’s national 5G network.

According to the report, the letters from both parties raised this issue of national security, as well as suggesting that allowing Huawei to supply network equipment could impact international investment within the country.

“Senior officials in Washington agree with my view that upending the existing model would undermine the competitiveness of new industries, stall 5G growth in Malaysia, and harm Malaysia’s business-friendly image internationally,” said the US ambassador to Malaysia, Brian McFeeters, in a letter seen by The Financial Times. “The US and other countries prioritise a fair and transparent review process and contract sanctity, as does the international business community. Allowing untrusted suppliers in any part of the network also subjects Malaysia’s infrastructure to national security risks.”

The US banned Huawei from its own 5G networks back in 2019 and has lobbied governments across the world to do likewise. The EU, on the other hand, has taken a less prohibitive approach, rejecting an outright ban but encouraging telcos to steer clear of ‘untrusted suppliers’.

The news comes as the Malaysian government prepares to finalise a review of its 5G equipment tender process, which saw Sweden’s Ericsson win a $2.5 billion contract to provide 5G kit back in 2021.

Malaysia’s 5G journey has been more colourful than most. Back in 2021, the Malaysian government decided to forego the traditional 5G spectrum auction, instead setting up Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), a state-owned vehicle to build its own wholesale 5G network.

This decision was immediately controversial, with the country’s operators saying they would not buy services from DNB, arguing they could roll out 5G networks more efficiently themselves. It took over a year of threats and coercion from the government to finally bring the nation’s mobile operators to heel, who finally agreed to split a 70% stake in DNB between them in August 2022.

While these discussions with the domestic telcos were ongoing, DNB was wasting no time with the buildout of its 5G network.

The state-owned company announced that it had selected Ericsson as its key partner for its 5G project towards the end of 2021, with the Swedish equipment vendor agreeing provide a suite of 5G solutions, including the network core, radio access network (RAN), a various supporting services. The ten-year contract was valued at roughly $2.5 billion.

Since then, DNB has made considerable progress with its 5G rollout, saying at the start of the year that it had already covered just under half (47.1%) of the country’s populated areas.

However, the rollout was about to hit a bump in the road when, in November 2022, a snap general election led to a change of national government. This new government, led by Anwar Ibrahim, quickly launched a review into the Ericsson 5G tender process, citing transparency concerns.

This review process, which was due to be completed by the end of March, presented an opportunity for Ericsson’s rivals, including Finland’s Nokia and China’s Huawei, to restate their claim to a major role in Malaysia’s 5G future. Both companies duly began lobbying the government, arguing that they should be allowed to participate in DNB’s 5G network.

Potential outcomes of the review could include DNB’s privatisation, the creation of a second national 5G network, or that DNB hands over part of its current network build to another 5G equipment vendor.

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Also in the news:
ECTA calls on the European Commission to think again
Research claims FTTH reduces internet CO2 emissions by a third
Fibre will underpin our 5G future, says ITS Technology Group at Connected North

Interview

At this year’s Connected North conference, we were delighted to catch up with Mobile UK’s Director of Policy and Communications, Gareth Elliott, following his panel focussing on the digital divide in the North of the UK.

“Some of the main topics we talk about are making sure people have access to connectivity, but it goes beyond that. There are many issues around people having the will and trust to use connectivity, or the skills to use devices,” explained Elliott.

But how do we overcome these challenges and whose responsibility is it to provide digital skills training?

“It’s a collaborative effort,” said Elliott, noting the many initatives by the UK’s network operators to provide such training. “But I think fundamentally there’s a real role for local authorities and as an organisation we’re calling on the government to fund digital champions to really provide leadership at a local authority level.”

You can watch the full interview from the link below.

Is the government doing enough to support vulnerable customers during the cost of living crisis? Join the telecoms ecosystem in discussion at this year’s live Connected Britain conference

Also in the news:
ECTA calls on the European Commission to think again
Research claims FTTH reduces internet CO2 emissions by a third
Fibre will underpin our 5G future, says ITS Technology Group at Connected North