The "did he jump or was he pushed" departure of Brian Hartzer, the CEO of WestPac Banking Corporation in Australia after it became known that it had more than 23 million cases in which it did not act correctly under counter-money laundering laws is the latest example of a CEO going from his job under a cloud. In the past, that's usually been an end to at least some of the discussion. But this time it's different. This time the failures were so big and so fundamental that it calls into question conduct of the entire organisation including the full board and much of the management structure. It also raises something else. In large, complex, highly regulated groups, is the role of CEO too big for one person? As the financial services sector moves inexorably (and I would argue rightly) towards personal responsibility, is it time to review where responsibility lies in relation to specific areas of management.

Optus Internet Pty Limited and Optus Mobile Pty Limited (Optus) have been ordered by the Federal Court to pay AUD6.4 million in penalties for making
misleading claims about home internet disconnections to consumers, following proceedings brought by the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC)

The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) announced this afternoon that new entrant into the flights market, ScandaSky, must cease marketing its services and stop marketing itself as an airline.

The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) announced this afternoon that new entrant into the flights market, ScandaSky, must cease marketing its services and stop marketing itself as an airline.

Analysis of many of the messages that begin the radicalisation of the vulnerable, often but not always teenagers and those in their early 20s, shows that there are a number of specific triggers that the originators use. At the heart of it is, of course, using the name of a deity which, for simplicity, we will call god (no capital G in this context) and, ideally, saying that god needs your support and that god will support you. But the form of the message is as important as the content.

In the past few days, the US Immigration and Customs has had the third major IT failure in two years. When you read of a "US government shut-down," this is not what one expects. It's not the only US Government department to go dark. And it carries lessons for all of those rushing to bring NewTech online before it is proven.

Is this how malware gets onto your mobile?

One of our rarely used e-mail addresses has been miraculously spam-free. Literally, no spam at all. Until about two weeks ago. Then something weird started to happen. And there's a pattern. Given the recent attacks on mobiles via WhatsApp, one has to ask: is this recent format spam directed at mobile users? Nigel Morris-Cotterill adopts a risk-averse approach while encouraging risk awareness.

The headline may be intemperate but the point should not be easily overlooked. The English Common Law has something that codified legal systems, such as those across much of the EU, do not have - flexibility. That is an extraordinary strength that is being eroded in many areas of law. In this case, the point is to solve a problem without codification. Even so, it's odd that, in the specific instance, it's taken so long to come to a consensus - after all, common law is generally common sense. In this case, it's all about cryto-assets and smart contracts in respect of which the UK Jurisdiction Task Force has issued a statement. It's not binding on courts but it's highly persuasive, as Nigel Morris-Cotterill explains.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (like the trendy lot they are they don't use the apostrophe that good grammar demands) seems utterly determined to set itself at odds with the profession it regulates. A litany of complaints against its seemingly never-ending list of demands, many of which are costly, is playing out over the requirement that solicitors' practices with a website add a so-called "badge" to their website. The SRA seems to be functioning in a dangerous state of ignorance and arrogance. Solicitors are growling but they are toothless in the face of an autocratic and often incompetent regulator.