Online Catalogue to Boost Troubled UK Libraries

www.optelec.com : Newcastle City Library

An online national index of all public library catalogues is being developed to help make library stock more visible in internet searches, with the aim of driving traffic to library websites and increasing use of the libraries themselves.

An online national index of all public library catalogues is being developed to help make library stock more visible in internet searches, with the aim of driving traffic to library websites and increasing use of the libraries themselves.

The ‘national public library union catalogue’ ( http://bit.ly/gjdHGx ) will contain bibliographic data provided by up to 90% of libraries in England and Wales, with some data from Scottish libraries as well, and will be freely available over the internet.

The project is the result of collaboration between the global library collective OCLC (the Online Computer Library Center – http://www.oclc.org ) and The Combined Regions ( http://www.combinedregions.com ), an organisation promoting co-operation between UK libraries. The partners believe it will increase the prominence of public library stock through web searches using popular search engines like Google and Yahoo!

Katie Birch, director of delivery services at OCLC, told E-Government Bulletin that there has always been a need for a publicly available national union catalogue. “We’re looking to drive traffic into libraries, that’s the goal – making the public aware of the services and stock that libraries have, and linking them to their local library at a point where the user can see the individual item they’ve searched for.”

The new catalogue will be “transformative”, said Birch, and could bring about big change to the hundreds of libraries across the UK currently threatened with closure as a result of government budget cuts to local authorities.

The project is currently in its initial stages, with a ‘proof of concept’ – based on limited library catalogue databases – to be available to libraries in April, who can then provide full catalogue data to the project.

(E-Government Bulletin issue 327)

Singapore's EGovernment Goes Mobile

When it comes to online services, governments across the world still think of computers as the primary tool for access. But what happens when the government of a small island country with just over 5 million people finds that its mobile phone penetration has reached a stupendous level (over 140 percent) and has the fastest rate of adoption for next-generation mobile telephony?

It quickly bypasses computers and starts developing feature-rich services over mobile phones.

While many first-movers -- including the U.S. and UK-are still taking baby steps in crafting e-government strategies around the mobile phone, Singapore is leaping ahead.

http://forums.vr-zone.com

“You don't need a computer to access government services online -- not when you can use a mobile phone,” is the Singapore government’s latest catchword, as the government is surging ahead deploying m-government services. "To date we are offering over 300 applications over mobile phones,” says James Kang, assistant chief executive, Government Chief Information Office.

The government embarked on its m-Gov program back in 2005, when it realized that its mobile penetration was reaching almost 100 percent.

“The notably high mobile penetration and 3G/smartphone adoption rates in Singapore made the mobile channel an exceptionally suitable and powerful medium for the Singapore government to extend personalized, timely and context-aware public e-services to citizens,” says Kang

M-Gov has two broad objectives;

• One, to leverage on the high mobile penetration rate to make government e-services more accessible to the people and reduce digital gap. 
• And more importantly, to offer more convenient and timely e-services to the people, like searching information on-the-move, transacting on the spur of the moment.

A very important -- although secondary -- objective is also to deliver new and innovative services.

“While the Internet has enabled public services to be accessed round-the-clock, the complementary mobile channel has enabled public services to be accessed anytime and anywhere, enabling true ubiquity,” says Kang

For that matter m-Gov has also made the government’s arm longer. “Since not all government online services are suitable to be delivered over the mobile channel, the m-Gov Program focuses on the deployment of public services that leverage the unique propositions of the mobile channel -- simplicity, time-sensitivity and location-awareness -- to bring about relevant and value-added services to the people of Singapore.”

Not surprisingly then, the Information Office claims that m-Gov has been a big success. So much so that the number of government mobile transactions has increased significantly by 119 percent, hitting peaks of 3.3 million transactions per year.

Besides, m-Gov has also extended reach to those with special needs like those who are hearing or speech impaired.

For instance, the Singapore Police Force, along with a few voluntary welfare organizations, has developed a novel 911-like service called SMS70999, which gives registered members with disabilities like hearing and speech impairment, an emergency SMS helpline to contact the Police and emergency services via SMS. Prior to this, the ‘999’ voice helpline was not available to people with speech and hearing handicaps, says the Information Office.

“Singapore’s m-Gov Program is a whole-of-government initiative that focuses on the development of central platforms and infrastructure, sharing of best practices across government, and facilitating industry partnership and collaboration,” says Kang. “Our aim is to create the right environment to facilitate public sector agencies in their quest to deliver cost-effective, efficient and convenient mobile services.”

According to Kang, although the program is still evolving and faces challenges such as device fragmentation, privacy and security concerns, and lack of experience in mobile-specific design and implementation, the next wave of mobile services is already getting formulated.

Going forward, m-Gov would move on to enable simple mobile commerce applications like payment of train and bus fares, redemption of e-coupons, and even identity authentication like opening of doors with the tap of a phone against a wireless reader.

The Information Office claims that today, 7 in 10 persons in Singapore are “highly” satisfied with government information and services over mobile phones. Looks like the other 3 may join in soon.

( By Indrajit Basu  |www.digitalcommunities.com)

Transforming Government (tGovernment) Workshop 2011

The rapid development of information technology (IT) is contributing to the growth of interest in the use of technology as a powerful tool to enable and aid transformation in government organisations. The transformational government (or t-government) vision has the potential to bring enormous benefits to the operations and delivery of public services. eGovernment implementation efforts have now evolved from basic information provisioning to more integrated and joined up service offerings in most developed countries.

Having successfully implemented a number of transaction-based eServices by e-enabling front office and customer facing processes, most developed countries are now working towards realising transformational government. 

The transformational phase is considered the highest level of maturity for eGovernment programmes and encompasses redefining the delivery of government services by providing a single point of contact to citizens that makes the government transparent to citizens and businesses.

This phase involves reengineering and e-enabling back office processes and information systems to enable more joined-up and citizen-centric electronic government services. 

However, public sector transformation is a massive and complex undertaking involving distributed decision-making that requires a good understanding and evaluation of the political context, business processes and technology.

Also, from a demand perspective 

extensive efforts are required to increase citizens' awareness about the transformation of the delivery of government services and their online availability which would result in increased eParticipation. Despite the availability of innovative technologies, government agencies are faced with many technical, organisational, and socio-economic challenges and barriers that need to be addressed when developing, adopting and diffusing eGovernment systems and services.

Furthermore, from an organisational perspective

t-government has introduced an environment where most public institutions have struggled with the need to balance issues such as transparency and opaqueness, or social inclusion and professionalism.

Consequently, there has been increasing pressure on the academic and practitioner communities for research that focuses on bridging the gap between t-government theory and practice.

The aim of this workshop is to provide a common platform for academics and practitioners to discuss and present original research highlighting issues related with :

1. Technical 
2. Organisational, 
3. Managerial, and
4. Socioeconomic aspects of both (e) and (t)-government implementation and adoption.

This workshop calls for theoretical analysis, empirical research, or case studies that will provide us with a deeper insight into issues surrounding the use of ICT to achieve better government.

The workshop's programme and registration form will be made available at the event website.

Domain and topic:	eGovernment (eParticipation, eDemocracy and eVoting; Services for Businesses; Services for Citizens; Infrastructure; Interoperability; Policy; User-centric Services)
Organiser:	Information Systems Evaluation and Integration Group (ISEing) (Non-profit Organisation)
Website:	http://www.iseing.org/tgovwebsite/tGovWorkshop2011/tGovHomePage2011.html
Languages:	English
Scope:	International
Free:	Yes, participation has no cost
Open:	Yes, (event with unrestricted attendance)

Location: London (United Kingdom)

Date: 17 March 2011 - 18 March 2011

Event email: Muhammad.Kamal@brunel.ac.uk


(www.epractice.eu)

'One-Stop' E-government Website Launched

 ONLINE ELECTRONIC SERVICES

E-government services in Thailand have taken a major step forward with the launch of a new website that will be a one-stop portal through which people can access all available electronic services offered by government organisations, with a single sign-on.

The Cabinet has also approved a name change for Government Information Technology Services (GITS). Before the end of the current quarter, it will become the e-Government Agency (eGA), with the aim of driving the creation and adoption of e-government services.

The manager of GITS' Government Application Management Department, Ponpiboon Satangput, said the e-government portal, at www.egov.go.th and www.egovernment.go.th, will offer all the e-services of government agencies, as a means of simplifying equal and universal access to information and services.
The website will also enable access for disabled people, according to the Thai Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2010.

Importantly, the website will operate under a single sign-on system using a username and password to authenticate the identity of visitors, who will then be able to contact all government agencies or access their e-services without need for further proof of identity.

Users of the system will be divided into four groups: the general Thai public, businesses, government staff and foreigners.

GITS' director of Government Application Development Asis Unyapoth said there were now about 10 government agencies that provided e-services to Thai users through a single sign-on system, including the departments of employment, highways and religious affairs. Overall, 24 government organisations provide e-services to the public.

Information and Communications Technology Ministry deputy permanent secretary Thaneerat Siriphachana said the new e-government portal would be a one-stop centre for government services, allowing Thai people all over the country to make online use of government-agency e-services.

It will create a network of information and knowledge linking the government and the people, he said. It will also accept suggestions from Thai users aimed at improving the portal and extending e-government services.

A Thailand e-government fan page has also been established on the social-networking site Facebook, allowing a free exchange of information, photos and videos between government agencies and Facebook members. It represents an "alternative choice for new-generation Thais" to contact government agencies and access information, Thaneerat said.

In October last year, Thailand had about 5.4 million Facebook users, and the number was growing rapidly.
The Facebook page will also allow government agencies to communicate with the public and transfer both information and knowledge. A number of government agencies are already involved with social media, including the Prime Minister's Office and the Commerce, Agriculture and Cooperatives and Tourism and Sports ministries.

Thaneerat said the ICT ministry was also planning to lay down the government information network (GIN) infrastructure, connecting about 1,004 government offices, including links between agencies in Bangkok and those upcountry, before the end of this year.

GITS director Sak Segkhoonthod said the Cabinet had recently approved the establishment by the ICT ministry of a public organisation to be called the e-Government Agency. Its job will be to offer consultancy services among government agencies, to drive the expansion of e-government services and to operate these services on behalf of government agencies.

Taking on these responsibilities, Government Information Technology Services will soon change its name to the e-Government Agency (eGA), he said.

• Sak said the eGA would follow the e-government roadmap detailed in Thailand's ICT Master Plan 2009-2013. The agency is now planning to establish "m-Government" - or mobile government - enabling government agencies to provide services to people via mobile phones.

• In 2013, the eGA will provide "u-government" - or ubiquitous government - enabling government agencies to provide e-services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

• In 2014, it will be "t-government" - or transformed government - enabling government agencies to connect and transfer information through a variety of channels and devices.

(nationmultimedia.com)

Document Security Sets Safety Net for Going Paperless

Going digital is all the rage. Companies around the world have put a lot of resources into converting their paper documents into electronic files. This is a radical move for many organizations, but an enticing one; paperless businesses gain efficiencies, reduce their environmental footprints, and avoid the outrageous costs of courier and shipping services for sensitive documents.

Like so many other popular business initiatives, going paperless stems from a desire to save money. But without the right safety net, these savings come with some serious strings attached.

Clearly, there is a return on investment in going digital. The green factor is one compelling bit of ROI. No longer required to expend ink, paper, or fuel-driven delivery services, businesses get to save money while touting their environmental sensitivity. But unprotected digital document sharing can make it really easy for recipients to forward documents to others (accidentally or on purpose).

Customers or partners might leak your data to competitors or to the press (can anybody say WikiLeaks?), and employees might leave the company with all your documents on their laptops. Either scenario is troubling, but when you add in the regulatory implications, these occurrences are downright frightening. For these reasons, many businesses are hesitant to go paperless. The loss of revenue--or the irreversible damage of intellectual property leaks--needs to be addressed if organizations want green business practices without detrimental effects.

Many core business documents--product specifications, financial research reports, clinical trials results, reports to board members or limited partners--are so critical that companies remain reluctant to include them in electronic document sharing. The security risks seem too high, so, these organizations stick with physical shipment of documents or even resort to more extreme methods, such as shipping information on nonphotocopy blue paper.

That is a pricey choice. Consider this word problem: A company shares reports with a 1,000 customers on a monthly basis and may pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in shipping fees. This organization's reliance on paper is pounding its bottom line. Electronic delivery could save the business anywhere between US$100,000 and US$1 million each year. This seems like an easy choice for the business to make, right? The only problem is the executives fear data leaks, which could erase the savings from going paperless.

Some companies try to solve this problem with some long-existing technologies. They might place simple passwords on documents or use basic encryption techniques, but these inadequate approaches are bound to fail. Recipients can easily forward passwords along to others. Another solution frequently used in merger and acquisition transactions is a virtual data room, but that typically fails to prevent leaks once documents have been downloaded.

In any case, the lure of going green remains strong, and the current market offers a safety net for paperless initiatives. Today, document protection and control solutions ensure less waste and less risk by preventing unauthorized copying, printing, and forwarding of files at all times.

Further benefits of document protection and control include:

• Restricting the distribution of the documents by preventing copying, printing, and forwarding of these documents 
• The ability to yank access to documents even after they have been downloaded
• Options to track documents and see who viewed them, where, and when

Many companies put money into digital delivery without ever using the technology; they are too wary of data leaks. That was once understandable, but today's technology should give a green light to paperless efforts. Document security now lets companies manage, protect, and control documents throughout their entire life cycle, delivering on the promise of cheaper, greener information sharing. With a document security solution in place or a next-generation virtual data room service, businesses enjoy all the savings with none of the dangers. This means they can, and should, go green. Go forth and prosper, paperlessly.
=========================
by: Adi Ruppin is vice president of marketing for WatchDox, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that enables the confidential sharing of important or sensitive documents in an easy and secure way.

(www.zdnetasia.com)

Cyberwar: Reality or Exaggeration?

Parsing Definition to Determine True Cyberthreats

Eric Chabrow

Dare I suggest that the  Stuxnet attack on Iranian nuclear facilities was cyberwarfare?

A report this past weekend in The New York Times suggests that the United States and Israel worked together to develop the Stuxnet worm that's blamed for crippling Iran's program to develop a nuclear weapon. The worm reportedly knocked out one-fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges. To look at it one way, the alleged virtual assault on the Iranian nuclear facilities did what a real bombing attack would try to do: disable an enemy's capability to wage war. Isn't that warfare? Would a digital attack be cyberwarfare?

But many experts poo-poo the idea of cyberwar, at least as an independent undertaking. Reducing Systemic Cybersecurity Risk - a paper issued this past week by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a forum of 34 nations, that promotes democracy and the market economy - contends virtual attacks defined as cyberwar usually are temporary disruptions of Internet services, vandalism or spying, and muddle attempts to clearly analyze the damage they cause by digital assaults. Wrote authors Peter Sommer of the London School of Economics and Ian Brown of Oxford University:

"Analysis of cybersecurity issues has been weakened by the lack of agreement on terminology and the use of exaggerated language. ... Cyberespionage is not a 'keystrokes away from cyberwar,' it is one technical method of spying. A true cyberwar is an event with the characteristics of conventional war but fought exclusively in cyberspace.

"It is unlikely that there will ever be a true cyberwar. The reasons are: many critical computer systems are protected against known exploits and malware so that designers of new cyberweapons have to identify new weaknesses and exploits; the effects of cyberattacks are difficult to predict - on the one hand they may be less powerful than hoped but may also have more extensive outcomes arising from the interconnectedness of systems, resulting in unwanted damage to perpetrators and their allies. More importantly, there is no strategic reason why any aggressor would limit themselves to only one class of weaponry.

Is Stuxnet a Game Changer?

With Stuxnet, the designers identified new weaknesses, and if the news report is to be believed, its designers knew exactly how the centrifuges would react (including giving operators the false impression they functioned properly). And, in Israel's situation, there could be a reason to limit its armaments to one class of weaponry: the ramifications of a kinetic attack could cause far more damage to Israel. Imagine the fallout - and potential war - that would result if Israeli jets attacked an Iranian nuclear facility (see  Will Israel Nuke Iran's Nukes Virtually). Of course, if the report is true, Israel (or the United States, for that matter) isn't at war with Iran, since this conflict so far has been one sided, and most definitions of warfare involve at least two opposing sides (unless, of course, Iran retaliated virtually, but there's no evidence of).

Surviving Cyberwar author Richard Stiennon, in an interview last year (see Cyberwar: Defining It, Surviving It), said a cyberattack, in itself, isn't warfare, "just like shooting somebody in the street isn't warfare." In fact, he said cyberwar can only work in the context of a kinetic war, a view shared by James Miller, principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for policy (see Placing Limits on Cyberwar). But, in that conversation with Stiennon, he added: "But when it is state sponsored and the intents and purpose is war-like, in other words to somehow gain an advantage over another state adversary, that is when you start entering the realm of warfare. ... I don't think it would fall into the realm of warfare until there was shooting on both sides."

No shooting on both sides, yet, but with Stuxnet, it seems that Israel (and perhaps the U.S.) have entered the realm of warfare. It may not be a cyberwar, but it sure feels like one.

Cyberweaponry as Nuclear Deterrent

What does Stiennon think today? I e-mailed him Monday, and he responded that his view of cyberwar revolves around the risks, dangers and repercussions of the use of cyberweapons to upset the delicate balance of power established by procession of nuclear weapons, and Stuxnet is the most important development to date:

"If Stuxnet was indeed created by a state and if it's target was Iran's uranium-enrichment capability, then it was as much a weapon of war as a cruise missile or drone. Most would agree that a kinetic attack using cruise missiles, smart bombs or a nuclear warhead against another country's means of producing weapons is an act of war. Using carefully engineered software to accomplish the same thing would fall under the same definition."

Still, without a declaration of war, the Stuxnet attack could be viewed as cybersabotage, Stiennon says, adding:.

"Stuxnet is certainly a cyberweapon. How to classify its use is going to be up to Iran."

Whether the United States government was behind the Stuxnet attack really doesn't matter from a perception standpoint; most people abroad will believe it was, bolstering America's reputation as the nation most feared of launching a cyberattack (see  Which Nation is Most Feared in Cyberspace?), even if what happened wasn't cyberwar.


(Govinfosecurity)