Cyberattack targets Ukrainian gov websites amid Russia tensions

A large cyberattack that hit Ukrainian government websites told visitors to “be afraid and expect the worst”.

Ukrainian authorities and companies regularly face cyberattacks that are suspected to primarily originate from Russian hackers, whether state-sponsored or acting independently. Many cyberattacks target critical infrastructure such as the power grid.

"Ukrainian! All your personal data was uploaded to the public network. All data on the computer is destroyed,...

14 January 2022 | Security

Jessica Rosenworcel is officially the FCC’s first chairwoman

The Senate has officially declared Jessica Rosenworcel as the Federal Communications Commission’s first chairwoman.

President Biden’s nominee has served as the acting chair of the FCC since January 2021 following the resignation of her predecessor, Ajit Pai.

The Senate voted 68 to 31 to confirm Rosenworcel as chairwoman which also grants her an additional five-year term.

“It is a tremendous honor to be confirmed and designated as the first permanent...

8 December 2021 | 5G

Virgin Media O2 completes its gigabit upgrade across 15.5M premises

Virgin Media O2 has completed its gigabit upgrade across its entire network of 15.5 million premises.

The most recent switch on delivered gigabit speeds to an additional 1.1 million homes. Any customer on the company’s Gig1 plan can now access ultrafast speeds with an average download of 1,130Mbps—22 times faster than the national average.

While such speeds are excessive for most of today’s applications, the network will speed up things like increasingly large game...

7 December 2021 | Broadband

Germany warns that Open RAN poses a security risk

Germany doesn’t agree with the assessment that Open RAN (O-RAN) provides a more secure alternative to certain vendors.

A US-led campaign warning that Chinese vendors such as Huawei pose a security risk led many governments to ban or restrict the use of such equipment in national infrastructure. The exile of vendors that have provided equipment for multiple generations of networks has been costly for operators and set back their rollouts.

O-RAN has been hailed as the...

24 November 2021 | 5G

OneWeb to provide LEO satellite connectivity services across BT Group

BT has signed a Distribution Partner Agreement with OneWeb that will see the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite firm provide connectivity services across BT Group.

The agreement builds on a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two companies in July. As part of the previous agreement, OneWeb promised to help BT to bridge “the last digital divides” across the UK.

BT says that satellite services form a key component of its vision to enable digital solutions anywhere...

2 November 2021 | Networks

FCC bans China Telecom from operating US services

The FCC has actioned a Trump-era recommendation to ban China Telecom from operating services in the United States.

China Telecom Americas is based in Virginia and sells mobile services which target Chinese Americans, tourists, and businesses.

In April last year, the Trump administration’s Justice Department recommended that the FCC revoked China Telecom Americas authorisations to provide international telecoms services to and from the US. The department went on to note...

27 October 2021 | China Telecom

Qualcomm will reportedly continue helping Huawei to skirt US sanctions with 5G-less chips

A tipster claims that Qualcomm will offer more 5G-less versions of its chips that enable Huawei to skirt US sanctions.

Huawei is among the Chinese companies sanctioned by the US. The sanctions predominately stop Huawei from accessing American products relating to 5G and limit the company’s ability to make its own Kirin silicon.

Qualcomm’s latest and greatest chips feature 5G, leaving Huawei – typically a key Qualcomm customer – out in the...

6 September 2021 | 5G

Let’s be FRANC, the UK wants to be a 5G OpenRAN pioneer

The UK Government has launched a £30 million scheme to cement the country’s leadership in developing the next generation of 5G networks.

FRANC (Future RAN Competition) will help to fund innovative R&D projects across the UK to help speed up the adoption of OpenRAN (Open Radio Access Network) technology. Projects vying to claim a share of the funding are encouraged to make proposals that will help to fast-track viable solutions and encourage further business and government...

2 July 2021 | Legislation & Government

UK opens £1M SONIC Labs to accelerate 5G OpenRAN deployment

The UK government has announced the launch of two new labs to accelerate the development, testing, and deployment of 5G OpenRAN.

One of the new “SONIC Labs” will be based in London while the other will be in Brighton. The sites will enable various manufacturers to supply components for 5G radio equipment and test them prior to real-world deployments.

Digital Infrastructure Minister Matt Warman launched the SONIC Labs at a virtual event this morning. He...

24 June 2021 | Legislation & Government

OneWeb acquires TrustComm as it deepens US government links

British satellite operator OneWeb is acquiring Texas-based TrustComm to offer Low Earth Orbit (LEO) network and connectivity services to US government clients.

OneWeb operates innovative LEO satellites which provide high-speed, low latency connectivity for governments, businesses, and communities around the world. 

The company was acquired by the UK government and Bharti Group last year and continues to make headlines. In April, GEO satellite giant Eutelsat took a...

11 May 2021 | Legislation & Government