Irish Tech News Audio Articles Irish Tech News

Evolving from its roots as an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) service provider, Spectrum.Life announces its strategic rebranding to a clinically backed digital health, mental health, and wellbeing solutions provider. This move better reflects the company's position as the premier digital health partner for those in the insurer, workplace and education sectors seeking to support their members, employees and students to thrive.
"We needed a new brand to reflect where we are now - without losing sight of who we are as a company - and one that can grow with us. Our new brand identity represents our evolution into a HealthTech innovator, delivering scalable digital health solutions while remaining true to our founding principles. This shift underscores our commitment to innovation and our relentless pursuit of empowering individuals to flourish.
"As a second-generation HealthTech company, we are dedicated to make a lasting impact on the future of digital health and wellbeing, prioritising sustainable growth through strategic partnerships built on shared values", said Stephen Costello, CEO and Co-founder of Spectrum.Life.
With a focus on global growth, the company launches its rebrand to align with its current market position and embrace future opportunities.
"Over the past 24 months, we have been rethinking the supply-demand dynamic for healthcare and pushing for a more efficient and effective model. Technology is reshaping care, making it accessible and patient centred. Our rebrand embraces this shift to holistic digital health, seamlessly integrating technology into daily wellbeing. We're leading healthcare into a new era, driving digital transformation with cutting-edge platforms and dedicated AI teams", Costello continued.
"As part of our rebranding, we're excited to unveil several new products and services, including Virtual Primary Care, Child and Adolescent Mental Health supports, Online Neurodiversity Assessments, and Digital Mental Health offerings", said Johnny O'Connell, Chief Customer Officer at Spectrum.Life.
"These additions to our portfolio demonstrate our commitment to meeting the evolving needs of our clients and their employees, ensuring health and mental health support is timely, on-demand and delivered by experts in the field. Our suite of services will provide first-in-class support for the people in need.
There is also a new logo, and a new strapline "Full Spectrum Care, For A Full Spectrum Life" which embody the essence of Spectrum.Life, representing every facet of life with a new look and new feel."
This year, Spectrum.Life has made substantial investments to boost its clinical credibility, adding expertise at both the Board level and within its clinical team. These initiatives underscore the company's unwavering dedication to providing evidence-based services that prioritise user well-being. In a strategic move to bolster its clinical leadership, Spectrum.Life has appointed Dr.
Paula Franklin, former global Chief Medical Officer of Bupa Group, as an Independent Director of the Board and Chair of the Clinical Advisory Board. Together with a team of eight doctorate-level professionals, Spectrum.Life stands at the forefront of clinical innovation.
"With these exciting changes and advancements, we realised the need for a new brand identity that reflects our current position in the market while staying true to our core values and identity. Our new brand will serve as a symbol of our evolution and growth, enabling us to continue serving our partners and customers as best as we can", explained O'Connell.
Spectrum.Life remains steadfast in its mission to empower individuals and organisations to thrive like never before.
See more stories here.

Ireland witnessed 255k leaked online user accounts in Q1 2024, a 5x increase compared to Q4 2023, according to the Global data breach monitoring tool by cybersecurity company Surfshark. For comparison, the US had 90M breached users in the last quarter and the UK had 5.7M. Analysis shows Ireland as the 46th most breached country in the world, with 23 million leaked accounts since 2004.
Surfshark's analysis of data breaches over the last 20 years shows that out of the 22.9M compromised internet accounts, 6.1M have unique email addresses, which means the average email was breached 4 times. Ireland has had a total of 67M personal records exposed since 2004.
On average, each email address is leaked with 3 additional personal records. Ireland has had a total of 67 million personal records exposed. For example, 18M passwords were leaked together with Irish accounts, putting 79% of breached users in danger of account takeover, which might lead to identity theft, extortion, or other cybercrimes.
Biggest public breaches from Q1 2024 in Ireland
In the last quarter, Pandabuy had the biggest instance of a publicly known data breach in Ireland, with almost 19k emails leaked. Other notable breaches of Irish accounts: Cutout.Pro (12k), Mr. Green Gaming (47). Other data breaches are yet to be disclosed publicly.
Globally, the number of data breaches is rising
"Surfshark's extensive monitoring of data breach trends over the past two decades reveals an alarming digital reality: data leaks persist as an ongoing global threat. Since 2004, a staggering 17 billion user accounts have been leaked worldwide, with 400 million occurrences recorded at the start of this year," says Lina Survila, a spokesperson at Surfshark.
"We urge everyone to remain vigilant, create strong passwords, refrain from reusing them, and exercise caution when sharing personal information online."
Out of 17B leaked user accounts, 38% of them are unique email addresses. A total of 60.9B data points have been exposed (17.2B of them have been email addresses) since 2004. On average, each email address is leaked with 3 additional data points. American and Russian accounts are leaked the most often.
In descending order, the ten most breached coutries since 2004 were, The US (3.0B), Russia (2.4B), China (1.1B), France (521.6M), Germany (486.7M), Brazil (354.2M), The UK (321.9M), India (320.5M), Italy (266.8M) and Canada (213.8M).
The countries with the highest breach density since 2004 (number of leaked accounts per resident): Russia (16.8), The US (9.0), South Sudan (8.1), France (8.1), Czechia (6.1), Singapore (5.8), Germany (5.8), Canada (5.5), Australia (5.3), The UK (4.8) and Portugal (4.7).
When an email account is breached, the user is at risk of social engineering and identity theft. Scammers might send fake emails pretending to be from legitimate organizations, and those emails might contain links with computer viruses or requests to disclose even more personal information. If the email address was leaked with more personal information like name and address, scammers might even be able to impersonate the victim for various malicious purposes.
If you suspect your information has been breached, you should:
1. Change the passwords to your accounts immediately
2. Enable two-factor authentication where possible
3. Contact your bank if your credit card information was leaked
4. Scan your devices for malware
5. Keep an eye out for scams if your email, phone number, or other contact information leaked.
See more stories here.

Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, has announced the opening of its new Ireland corporate headquarters in Citywest, Dublin, after relocating staff and operations from its offices in Maynooth, Co. Kildare.
The new office space was selected because the power supply to the building is 100% electric, in line with the company's global policy to use all-electric sites and reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Smart digital monitoring tools that control temperature and lightingin the office based on occupancy will cut energy waste to create a sustainable workspace.
The new office space is equipped with the latest smart building controls and management systems to ensure maximum comfort for the occupants, while always maintaining energy efficiency. This is achieved using a network of integrated sensors that collect data, which is fed into a building management system (BMS) that controls lighting, heating and air conditioning.
Using data and analytics, the BMS adjusts energy use for temperature and lighting to suit the number of occupants and create a healthy indoor environment.
The hybrid office workspace has capacity for up to 70 plus occupants and includes 32 separate workstations, plus meeting rooms with the latest digital conferencing facilities. A digital desk booking system is integrated directly with the BMS to update the number of occupants in the building. The Citywest location places Schneider Electric closer to its corporate customers, and the company will use the site to showcase its products and solutions.
Schneider Electric has installed its own Energy Management Solutions at the Citywest site to ensure the workspace is more sustainable, efficient and people-centric. This includes the EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert solution, that provides visibility of the site's electrical systems and energy consumption to help make informed decisions to improve the building's performance.
The site's BMS is supported by the EcoStruxure Building Operation solution, to help the Citywest site achieve sustainability targets, improve occupant experience and lower its operating costs.
The office is also equipped with a smart building security system supported by the EcoStruxure Security Expert solution, to enhance building safety. The integrated control and intrusion detection solution unifies building security with the BMS.
It's also part of an integrated network that connects the Citywest site to Schneider Electric's larger facility in Galway, linking building operations to ensure around the clock management and maintenance, delivered remotely by a team of dedicated technical experts.
Speaking at the opening of the new offices, Chris Collins, Country President Ireland, Schneider Electric UK and Ireland, said: "Expectations of buildings today have changed. They need to be smarter and more sustainable. Our integrated solutions have enabled us to deliver a comfortable and energy efficient working environment for our staff. The location appealed to us because it allows us to maintain our commitment to sustainability and inhabit all-electric buildings.
"But it's also closer to our customers in the ICT and Life Sciences sectors that are leading decarbonisation efforts across their facilities in Ireland. We intend to showcase our latest products onsite, but we can also showcase the site itself as a model of how intelligent management systems can improve the performance of a building. It will demonstrate how organisations can prioritise energy efficiency and reduce their carbon footprint."
See more stories here.

Ireland's largest outdoor science engagement event, Cork Carnival of Science, has announced a STEMtastic programme for this year's festival, which will pop up at Fitzgerald Park from 8th - 9th June.
Supported by Cork City Council and Science Foundation Ireland and organised by Cork City Council's Lifetime Lab @ Old Cork Waterworks Experience, this hugely impressive and high quality 2 day STEM engagement event will see Fitzgerald Park transformed into a science super park for the weekend.
Curious kids and fun-loving families are invited to explore, investigate, experiment, and discover the wonders of science, which will delve into climate and the natural world from a scientific point of view.this year.
Almost 25,000 people attend each year and this year's budding scientists are invited to unlock nature's secrets and explore more than 45 different STEM based activities.
There will be 26 live seated science shows in Circus Top and Stretch Tents, demonstrations throughout the scenic park, walkabout scientific performers, the animal roadshow, interactive stands, an active zone, microscopic wonders, lego mania, remote controlled robots, DNA investigations, and discoveries big and small along the way - all for free.
Topping the bill are, of course, the live science shows performed by stars of the science education and entertainment realm. These seated shows draw large crowds and offer regular performances throughout the day. This year's headliners include Airforce' by Simply Science physicists Dr.
Stephen Davitt and Phil Smyth from RTÉ's Home School Hub, 'The Crazy Weather Show' by Science 2 Life's wonderfully dramatic Scientific Sue, 'Now that's what I call Science' by W5 from Belfast 'Its Only Water' by Science Made Simple, 'Airheads' by Thunder Bolts & Lightning and 'The Circus Science Show' by Inspirational Science.
New activities on the programme for 2024 include 'Bee-ology' a circus-science performance that juggles bee and insect stories and facts. There's also 'OurKidsCode' offering parents of primary school aged children taster coding club workshops which they hope will inspire a network of coding clubs around the country.
UCC will be on hand to showcase their Free Hydro Cells research project which aims to create energy from sustainable materials. Also new on Discovery Drive will be the Curiosity Cube where kids can join the team from Merck and investigate the life cycle of a t-shirt in a fun and hands-on way.
This year's theme will put nature under the microscope with a number of activities. The Irish Tree Network will take you on a remarkable journey through the world of plants where you will learn about plants as sources of oxygen, food, fuel and medicine, habitats, mitigators in climate change and importance in health and wellbeing.
The Marine Institute will bring their Explorers Education Programme which aims to encourage greater understanding of the marine world and encourage more young people to become ocean champions in Ireland. Cork's very own Lifetime Lab will be on hand to demonstrate the use of microscopes to get up and close with mini beasties from our rivers and the Animal Roadshow will bring along their petting zoo featuring lizards, snakes, spiders, owls, frogs and more.
Large scale favourites making a welcome return include the Stardome Giant Inflatable Planetarium from Blackrock Castle Observatory and the 40ft walkthrough inflatable model of the human digestive system from APC Microbiome Ireland, while the Active Zone will feature a host of 'science of sport' activities facilitated by Transport for Ireland, Cork City Sports Partnership, IRFU and FAI.
Guiding you on your scientific adventure will be themed routes including 'Exploration Avenue', 'Innovation Way' and 'Discovery Drive' which will map out where rows of workshops and interactive experiences are located within the park. Here hands-on workshops will offer the chance to try out a broad variety of science-based tasks.
Families wishing to make a d

Pure Telecom, Ireland's high-speed broadband and telecoms provider, today announces the results of its annual Connected Lives survey, which shows that one-in-five (19%) voters have changed their voting choice based on posts they have seen on social media. The research found that this is significantly higher for younger voters, with 28% of those aged 18 to 24 saying social media has led to them changing their ballot preference.
The nationally representative survey of 1,006 adults in Ireland was conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Pure Telecom. It examined the growing crossover between politics and social media and how that is impacting public opinion. In doing so, the research found that 38% of adults in Ireland believe that social media is now the most important political campaigning platform, rising to 47% for those aged 18 to 24.
The research shows that many adults turn to social media to keep themselves informed on political discourse. Of those who use social media (85%), more than a quarter (26%) credit it with helping them to see alternative political points of view, while 32% say it supports their knowledge of election and referendum issues. Despite this, just 41% of social media users fact-check political social media content, while 27% will only follow people and accounts whose political opinions they agree with.
Pure Telecom's survey showed that there is an appetite for politicians to have a presence on social media, with many saying they would like to see more of it. Almost half (49%) of adults who use social media said they like politicians to use it because it makes them more accessible, while 49% like them to use social media as it keeps them up-to-date on their progress and opinions.
It's not just election issues that adults in Ireland are interested in seeing from politicians. Almost half (47%) of social media users would like politicians to give more personal insights on social platforms to make them more relatable. Meanwhile, one-third of adults (33%) believe that politicians should make TikTok videos to appeal to younger generations. This rises to 45% for those aged 18 to 24.
When it comes to voicing their own opinions, the population is less sure. While 27% of men who use social media say they share their political opinions on social media, just 13% of women do it.
Paul Connell, CEO, Pure Telecom, said: "Social media is making politics more accessible to the general public, while also helping people to get up-to-speed on important political issues. It can help the population to stay informed on local issues and developments, while also having a greater awareness of national issues, elections and referenda.
However, with so many admitting to being influenced politically by social media, it is incumbent on all of us to make sure we carry out some fact-checking before forming an opinion.
"With voters set to return to the ballot boxes at least twice over the next 12 months, staying connected and informed will be important for all of us in deciding which way to vote. At Pure Telecom, by providing high-speed broadband connectivity to any location in the country, we are proud to empower people to make the choices that are right for them."
See more stories here.

We look at the latest offering from Google. The Pixel 8a continues the recent strategy of launching the new edition and then, approximately six months later a slightly standardised and one size fits all reason. At the same time, simply due to the passage of time, there are often some degree of upgrades, tweaks and patches with the a-series devices too. See more about the product here.
Google Pixel 8a is launched, product review
The price point is sightly lower than the 8 and 8 Pro, which came out around six months ago now. The Pixel 8a is pretty good straight out of the box. It does a lot of things well and builds on the new baseline that the Pixel 8 brought in. A use-case question might be, who is this aimed at. Hard core fans probably got the 8 when it came out, and extreme fan boys and girls might then be happily using that and then waiting for the 9 to come along.
Who is then keen for the Pixel 8a? Our testers felt it is a good to great to piece of kit. Once you start using the camera, unless you go to the upper range of phones, you will find it hard to then revert to lower res devices. At the same time are people still buying new phones every six months? Some might be, but, thankfully, these phones are relatively robust, and not prone to breaking too fast.
Sure we have accidentally taken out some, but, with the better cases and their slightly smaller sizes, they are more pocket friendly, and less likely to instantly die on you, if you do drop them.
The Pixel 8a does have some slight upgrades in terms of memory, slightly better processing capabilities, and all and any of the other over the air upgrades that have been issued for the Pixel 8 since it came out. Our testers are happy to recommend the Pixel 8a if you need a decent, hard working, upper threshold, but not price busting device. At the same time they are also curious and interested to see where the Pixel 9 goes too, probably late this year or early in 2025.
What is included in the Pixel 8a box
Your Pixel 8a purchase comes with a 1 m USB-C to USB-C cable (USB 2.0), quick start guide, Quick Switch adaptor (for data transfer) and SIM tool. Pixel 8a does not come with a 30 W USB-C power charger, but that can be purchased separately.
The Google Pixel 8a is here! Powered by our latest Google Tensor G3 chip, it's equipped with many of the same must-have AI features as Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, like Best Take, Audio Magic Eraser and more. Designed to capture amazing photos, save you time and keep you and your loved ones safe, the Pixel 8a offers unbeatable value starting at €559.
Fun colours and a fresh design
Our refined A-Series design feels even better in your hands with rounded edges, a matte back and a
polished aluminium frame. Its durable design - which has an IP67 rating - can handle slips, spills and dust, making Pixel 8a the most durable A-Series phone yet. Plus, its new Actua display is 40% brighter than Pixel 7a's, and the faster 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling smooth.
There's two new A-series colours: Aloe (a limited-edition colour!) and Bay. Or choose from one of our neutral colour options: Obsidian or Porcelain.. And for the first time ever, there's a larger storage capacity option at 256 GB, giving you more space for your favourite content.
Amazing photography, made simple
Ranked the best smartphone camera in its category, Pixel 8a features a powerful dual rear camera with a 64-megapixel main lens and a 13-megapixel ultrawide lens. It comes equipped with a 13-megapixel front facing camera as well, with a large field of view to fit even more into your shots.
Where can I find setup instructions and tips?
Move your stuff over, personalise your settings and explore Pixel features to get the most out of your phone. Get to know Google Pixel.
Display details
6.1-inch Actua display1
20:9 aspect ratio
1080 x 2400 OLED at 430 PPI
Smooth Display2 (up to 120 Hz)
Corning Gorilla Glass 3 cover glass
Always-on display with At a Glance and Now Playing
Up to 1,400 nit