Today, Telus has announced its purchase of human-resources firm LifeWorks for $2.3 billion, including debt, with plans to combine it with the operator’s existing healthcare subsidiary, Telus Health.
Toronto-based LifeWorks currently runs pension plans, absence management, and other health support services for corporate clients…
Military junta using Mytel SIMs to track deserters
This week, reports from the covert activist group Justice for Myanmar (JFM) suggest that Burmese operator Mytel is helping the military junta track defecting soldiers via their SIM cards.
Back in 2018, before the commercial launch of Mytel, the operator launched a sales campaign called Aung Ta Khon (‘Banner of Victory’), handing out free SIM cards to soldiers with the backing of military leadership.
Having been given access to data pertaining to the soldiers&rsquo…
Ofcom Add New Protections for UK Broadband and Mobile Users
Ofcom has reminded us that communications providers, such as those ISPs and companies offering broadband, mobile, phone and pay TV services, are today required to introduce a number of changes, including simpler contract details, more rights to exit your contract early and the introduction of an emergency video relay service. The changes, most of which […]
Broadband ISP BT to Scrap Email and Cloud for New Customers
New broadband and mobile customers of UK ISP BT will, from the end of this month, no longer be able to benefit from the operator’s included Email and online Cloud storage features. The good news is that existing customers will be unaffected, at least for now. The change flows from BT’s announcement in April (here), […]
YouFibre’s FTTP Broadband Service Goes Live in Wakefield
UK ISP YouFibre has today announced that the first customers can now connect to their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network in the West Yorkshire (England) town of Wakefield, which is impressive given that their network partner (Netomnia) only unveiled the build phase in January. Netomnia hired civil engineering firm MAP Group to support their […]
Hyperoptic Bring Full Fibre to 11,000 Social Homes in Hillingdon
City-focused UK gigabit broadband ISP Hyperoptic has reached a new agreement with the Hillingdon Council in London, which will enable them to expand the reach of their full fibre (FTTP/B) network to cover over 11,000 social housing properties across the borough. The first to benefit from this agreement (we suspect it’s a master wayleave deal […]
Three UK eSIM and Apple Watch Support Appears to Go LIVE
After years of waiting and a few false starts, customers of mobile operator Three UK are this week reporting that they’ve finally been able to connect their Apple Watches to the operator via a new eSIM supported mobile plan – the ‘Smartwatch Pairing Plan‘, which is intended to complement an existing mobile package. In case […]
Government Sets Out New UK Penalties for Nuisance Calls and Texts
The UK Government has today responded to an earlier consultation on their new Data Reform Bill (DRB) by, among other things, setting out how they’ll increase the financial penalties for those pestering people with nuisance calls and text (SMS) messages. But this probably won’t do much to stop calls made from outside the country. Ofcom […]
Jurassic Fibre Bring 10Gbps UK Broadband to 90,000 Premises
Exeter-based broadband ISP Jurassic Fibre, which is rolling out a new 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across rural parts of Devon, Somerset, Cornwall and Dorset in England, has today revealed that their network coverage has grown to “over” 90,000 premises in the South West. The operator is currently being supported by an investment of £250 […]
Contactless police smart cards trialled in US
The city of Alpharetta, Georgia in the US has become the first police department in the country to begin using a new Police Smart Card platform, designed to provide citizens with simpler and more verifiable way to access officer information.
Alpharetta police officers will carry a smartcard that can be scanned by a smartphone…