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By April 2, 2015EU insight

By the London technology team

Cyber-security: Energy sector found wanting (again)

Newly discovered malware (dubbed Trojan.Laziokin) is targeting international energy companies. Researchers from Symantec drew attention to the malware in a recent blogpost, highlighting that the virus was designed to collect vital system information such as installed software, RAM size, hard disk size, GPU details and CPU details in order to determine whether it was a worthy target for further hacking attention. 

One of the most alarming aspects of this particular vulnerability is the fact that a patch has existed since April 2012. If the widely anticipated advantages of smart grids and a more connected energy system are to be realised, the sector’s cyber resilience will need to improve significantly, and soon.

Dan Goodin reported the story for Ars Technica.

London tech startups secure record investment

This week research from ‘London & Partners’ showed that investment in London’s tech sector startups (including companies such as World Remit, Transferwise and Shazam) has hit a record high. In the first quarter of the year London’s tech companies attracted $682m (£459m) in venture capital, an increase of 66% from Q1 2014.

Although the investment pales in comparison with the cash pouring into Silicon Valley, the figures clearly illustrate the strengthening investor confidence in London’s tech scene.

Rhiannon Williams covered the story for the Daily Telegraph (@RhiannonJudithW)

Women less likely to talk politics online

BBC Trending discovered that women were vastly outnumbered by men (75% compared to 25%) when discussing political views on Twitter, calculated by counting the use of campaign related hashtags.

The BBC speculates that stories about online abuse and trolling have put women off expressing themselves online, though Plaid Cymru, the SNP and Greens have engaged women better than the mainstream parties, suggesting that women relate better to parties with female leaders. The Lib Dems were the only mainstream party to speak to the BBC, highlighting their stats that show women are more engaged on Facebook than on Twitter.

@Mrs_H_Henderson reported for @BBCTrending.