09/05/12 EU Privacy Directive Update

The UK government has updated the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations in response to the EU Privacy Directive but many UK websites have probably forgotten, or chosen to ignore, the upcoming changes with a risk of being fined up to £500,000 for a serious breach of the law.

The aim of this legislation is to increase online security and data privacy, giving users more control over what data can be held about them. It addresses how personal information is held and used.

The legislation forces websites to be transparent about how they are using cookies, detailing exactly what information each cookie holds and how long it will be held, and requires them to actively request permission from their users before cookies can be used.

Previously, the law dictated that websites had to explain how they were using cookies and how users can ‘opt out’. Most sites did so in their Privacy Policies, but this isn’t enough under the new law: users now have to ‘opt in’, having been made fully aware of the implications of doing so.

UK website ahv

10/01/12 Search Engines Are Winning the War on Content Farms

Largely as a result of the Google's algorithm update (code named Panda) 2011 saw low quality websites falling off the top of the search engine results.

Since then, Google has updated the algorithm a number of times, most notably with the September 28th Panda 2.5 update and the November 3rd Google Freshness update, which affected 35 percent of searches.

Over the course of the last year, a small number of our smaller site owners have felt they’d been unfairly penalised by Panda. The answer to this is to make sure you site contains plenty of fresh content, has good quality links pointing at it and the page content is relevant to your site. Basically you need to look at what can make your site an authority in your particular area so that Google values it.

04/01/12 Faster broadband speeds sooner than expected in parts of Devon

BT has announced that a further 45,000 homes and businesses across Devon will have access to faster broadband by the summer of 2012.

The company aims to upgrade exchanges in Crediton, Cullompton, Tiverton, Colaton Raleigh, Axminster, Ivybridge, Ottery St Mary, Seaton, Instow and South Molton.

The plans involve upgrading broadband speeds using copper lines rather than installing new fibre optic cables.

The scheme is part of major broadband improvements taking place across the South West. Cornwall is now seeing the roll-out of its £132 million superfast broadband programme.