Julian Bajkowski

If Microsoft Corp. chairman Bill Gates thought he had worries about open source stealing market share from Microsoft in the Australian public sector, Malaysia has just proved to be a much bigger problem.

Australia may be an international laggard in terms of broadband take-up, but that hasn't stopped the Australian Communications Authority (ACA) taking to the world stage in an attempt galvanize a global counteroffensive to spam.

It's full steam ahead on Australia's biometric-cum-facial recognition passports. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has requested both restricted and open tenders for integrated circuit chips, inlays, hardware, software and services for the first batch of prototype, new-age travel documents.

It is the extreme IT makeover Bill Gates never wanted to see. Sun Microsystems Inc.'s Solaris and Linux have emerged as the big winners in a comprehensive IT architecture and infrastructure overhaul to make Sensis, Telstra Corp. Ltd.'s A$2 billion (US$1.44 billion) directory, search and content cash cow, a lean, mean Web services machine.

Six months after Treasurer Peter Costello publicly reprimanded Telstra Corp. Ltd. for sending 400 IT jobs to India, Minister for Communications, IT and the Arts Daryl Williams has flatly ruled out the introduction of any curbs on IT offshoring.

After suffering a year of badly eroded customer confidence caused by scam e-mails linked to ghosted bank Web sites, the financial industry has swallowed its pride and slipped into bed with police to fight online fraud.

In a scorched earth budget that has spent A$8.39 billion (US$5.84 billion) of surplus taxation revenue to appease voters, the Australian government will spend more money than ever on new technology to nail down security

With only days until the government delivers its big spending, pre-election budget, IT and Communications (ITC) Minister Daryl Williams has pulled out the check book to the tune of A$308 million (US$226 million) to prop up ITC research and development.