The NHS Computer Records Fiasco
Fiasco is not too strong a word for it, as this report shows.
Isn’t the whole NHS records missing project something here?
If I deal with my bank, solicitor, utility and phone companies, or many shops, I can go on-line to see what is there and communicate directly by e-mail, telephone or post as I require.
Where is that objective in the specification?
After all we can’t let patients see what’s wrong with them as it would be a breach of their confidentiality!
But my body and mind are generally under my control, so why shouldn’t I have the right of access? In some ways, it’s going that way, as my previous GP let me read my past records without any cost or hindrance. Also nearly everything about me from Addenbrooke’s has either been copied to me directly by post and in some cases e-mail.
Interestingly, when the practice nurse and I went through my records a few years ago, we could see the pattern of coeliac disease , which no-one had picked up. I know this was with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and nothing really serious was missed, but is the reason doctors don’t like patients seeing their records, is that they might get sued? Doctors have told me my atrial fibrillation is fairly obvious, so perhaps I should have been referred to a cardiologist before I had the first stroke?
But what is the past is best forgotten!
I should say one thing though. In Hong Kong when I had the stroke, they wanted to know my cholesterol levels, to check them against. As I put them on this blog, they were able to read them. So now, I put things like that up here, so that if I need them at any time, they are there.
Surely, this illustrates the power of an on-line database, where we all have a simple ID/Password system so that we can access the data.
If I could access my bank records from any Internet connection and a browser, why can’t I do the same with my health records?
Are There Any Delphi Programmers Out There?
Delphi was and in some peoples’ minds still is a visual programming system. On Wednesday, I bumped into an old friend on Moorgate. We had a coffee and I said that I was still ewriting software in a small way using Visual Basic 6.
He indicated that someone he knows, is looking for someone, who can program in Delphi.
Is this an indication that like good literature, good software systems never die?
Remember, that software is not like hardware in that it rarely has a shelf life. In fact application software usually is retired because you can’t find any hardware to run it on. At least with Windows, Microsoft seem to be providing the hooks into all new versions to run software like Visual Basic 6 and Delphi.
A few years ago, when I said to a senior executive of Microsoft, that I still programmed in Visual Basic 6, he said that Microsoft had lots of experienced programmers who still used the language, often in difficult situations, where something reliable and tricky was needed yesterday.
So perhaps, some programming languages and systems, are a bit like Shakespeare and Dickens. Not of this age, but still very much to be enjoyed.
Byron Hamburgers
I ate in Byron Hamburgers at Islington Green tonight. It was good and it made a nice change for me to have a real gluten-free hamburger and chips.
I also got to thinking about the similarities between my father and Lord Byron.
For a start they were both poets, although my father’s output wasn’t very large and was much less famous and was meant to be spoken with a Cockney accent. But then my father was probably a better printer than the noble Lord.
They both married women with the surname of Millbank, although Byron’s wife had a spelling of Milbanke.
And then just like I am a computer programmer, so was Lord Byron’s daughter; Ada, Countess of Lovelace.
But that’s as far as the links go.
Beware of Order.zip
I’ve got another of this nasty things this morning. This one was actually addressed to one of my main e-mails, so perhaps the spammers have modified them to make them more likely to get through. The structure of the e-mail always seems to be similar.
The title of those I have received is usually something like ORDER and a number.
All of the bodies are similar to this.
Dear customer.
Your order has been accepted. Your order reference is 94636.
Terms of delivery and the date can be found with the auto-generated msword file located at:
http://www.xxxxxxx.xxx/order2/Order.zip?to_client: zzz@zzzzzz.zzz
==
Best regards, Tel./Fax.: (168) 000 52 337.
Obviously the xxx’s and zzz’s obscure the danger. The zzz’s in one case were my e-mail address.
Note the phone number at the bottom, which doesn’t mean anything to me.
This form of the e-mail is the first I’ve seen. It will change in the future, once the anti-virus companies get their systems updated to stop these e-mails.
The last e-mail I got used a domain registered in Germany. The e-mail came from Russia.
Another Scam Like The CFX Group
I have just received an almost identical e-mail to the one I received from the CFX Group.
Hello!
Your order has been accepted. Your order reference is 198668.
Terms of delivery and the date can be found with the auto-generated msword file located at:
http:\creacioweb.net\xxxx.xxx
Best regards, Tel.: (734) 687 65 784
The e-mail I received was actually addressed to a legitimate company who supply milking machines. Note the xxx obscure the dangerous bit.
One characteristic of the e-mails is that they contain a link to a file called Order.zip. This file probably contains some sort of virus. There are more details here.
Interestingly, the web site http:\\www.creacioweb.net is registered in Spain. The site containing the virus in the CFX Group case also was registered there!
Super Injunctions and Deep Searching Software
I have written software that in the past has been used to deep search the Internet. I did it when a company asked me if I could help trace anybody stealing their IPR. I didn’t find anything at all and in that case that was a good result, as it meant there had been no theft.
However software like that could be easily written to deep search the Internet for relationships that shouldn’t be happening. Let’s say two well-known Premiership managers decided to have a good lunch together after the season in a good restaurant. As well they might! Someone might see them and put the story in a blog or tweet and unless someone else was searching for it deliberately it wouldn’t be found. But the deep search software would find it, if it was properly set up, say with a database of the names of all Premiership managers and footballers.
So just as Google tracks the links with its search terms, other software can be written to find relationships.
So celebrities had better be even more careful.
Bad News for Chuggers
The Sunday Times is also carrying a story that Just Giving has developed a system with Vodafone to collect donations by SMS text message. A hundred percent of the charge will go to the charity.
They predict it will cut down the number of chuggers on our streets.
CFX Group
I’ve just had this e-mail from someone purporting to be the CFX Group.
Dear Customer
Your order has been accepted.
Order id: 879305.
Terms of delivery and the date can be found with the auto-generated msword file located at:
http:/www.noarconsulting.com/xxxx.xxx.xxx
Consult2 Group. Tel./Fax.: (831) 842 06 366
The link which I have replaced with safe xxx’s, pointed to a .zip file, which probably would have infected my computer with who-knows-what!
I have since heard from the owner of the URL and they have said this.
Our website was recently hacked by spammers to distribute malware.
You can safely ignore any email referring to an order placed with us.
We are sorry for the inconvenience caused.
So whatever you do, don’t click the link.
A Proven Scam: Engineering and Consultancy Services
I few days ago I had an e-mail purporting to come from a Bryan Green at this company.
Hello,
It’s Bryan Green, ENGINEERING & CONSULTANCY SERVICES, HR manager.
We found your e-mail in the base of applicants for a job. If you are not in search of a job and not interested in extra earnings, ignore this letter please and I’m sorry for mistake. If you need a job, you have a good chance to work in our company.
We are searching for:
– Financial Department Associate.
ENGINEERING & CONSULTANCY SERVICES (U.K.) LIMITED is connected to many technology purchases and sales, global distribution, manufacturing and consulting. We are concentrated on buying and selling technology in Europe and United States. We offer generous salary for our part-time employees and also some discounts and benefits.
Get in touch with us and join our company. E-mail : hr@engineering-and-consultancy.co.uk
Yours respectfully,
Bryan Green,
HR manager
It had all the hallmarks of a scam, especially as I haven’t applied for any jobs lately.
I have now found out that it is a proven scam, with at least one person having had money stolen from their credit card. The UK Police have been informed.
For that reason the original post has been protected with a password. This is so the police can have access to the original post.
Google 10th Anniversary Awards Centre
I received an e-mail saying I’d won.
It’s a scam.
If you don’t believe me! Just think why it’s not been on the news!
The Anonymous Widower 