Firms lose faith in tech investments

IT is now a "non-growth industry" with spending lagging behind general economic growth as user organisations lose faith in the returns on their tech investments, according to Gartner. New research from the analyst house shows IT budgets globally will increase by just 2.7% in 2006, silicon.com reports.

Gartner VP and research fellow Ken McGee told silicon.com: "We think there is a slowdown taking place. Businesses don`t see the value [in technology] any longer. They find no compelling reasons for vigorous investment. It`s a non-growth industry."

This trend could put the future of the CIO and the existence of the IT department under threat as organisations increasingly go down the outsourcing route, says Gartner.

International brands were the main target of phishing attacks in April, pushing US companies into second place, RSA Security`s monthly survey has reported. According to the company, the UK now has the unfortunate status of being number two in the phishing brand league table.

Techworld reports that the US still leads in terms of the volume of attacks, but international brands now account for 57% of brands targeted globally. Of this, the UK accounts for 42%, Spain 26%, Italy 10%, Canada 10% and Germany 5%.

Criminals also appear to be shifting their attention away from the US and English-speaking countries, which dominated phishing lists since the phenomenon emerged.

Adult film studio Vivid Entertainment has introduced Vivid Burn to DVD, a service that lets viewers download the studio`s popular adult films directly and burn a personal DVD copy on a home computer.

The burned video discs will play in any standard DVD player, allowing viewers to watch them on TV in the same manner as DVDs purchased at retail stores, reports Tech News World.

The service will charge about $20 per film.

A criminal prosecution involving pirated software left the UK taxpayer with the largest bill for legal aid in 2004-2005.

Vnunte.com reports that Operation Blossom cost lb18.4 million in defence legal fees, making it the most expensive criminal law case to reach a conclusion in 2005.

The fees helped James Sturman QC scoop lb1.18 million overall to become the first barrister to be paid more than lb1 million from legal aid in a single year. Sturman`s client pleaded guilty to the charges and did not stand trial.