Software defined storage (SDS) promises many benefits in architectural simplicity, costs, scaling and mobility, but there are significant challenges to overcome as well. [ + ]

Responding to recent price cuts from rivals AWS and Microsoft, Google has announced sweeping price reductions to its own cloud services while also introducing new features and enhancements. [ + ]

The government has been criticised for sending mixed signals on whether its proposed metadata retention bill would be used for purposes that include pursuing online pirates. [ + ]

Hackers have breached unclassified White House networks in an attack that was reportedly discovered in October; Telstra's CIO Patrick Eltridge has resigned after four years in the role; and Australians' personal health information was potentially exposed in two separate data breaches during the 2013-14 financial year. [ + ]

Less than 20% of company boards worldwide have technology-capable members, leaving them at risk of losing out in the digital era, according to QUT doctoral student Elizabeth Valentine. [ + ]

The IT industry has room for a diverse workforce, diverse leadership and the best of talent regardless of gender, age and specialisation. [ + ]

Australian finance managers generally agree that their department's information management and analytics processes can be improved, but have so far been slow to turn to the cloud for a solution. [ + ]

Most medium-to-large organisations in Australia have realised the business benefits of implementing a streamlined approach to the IT and development teams, or DevOps. [ + ]

This week we look at ANZ's embarrassing spreadsheet fail, a $200m rocket that went nowhere, Elon Musk's fear of demons, James Cameron's fear of the SkyNet and how to prevent hackers from switching off your pacemaker. [ + ]

La Trobe University is deploying SAP's Simple Finance and Lifecycle Management suites as part of a five-year strategic transformation plan. [ + ]

The government has introduced legislation that would compel local telcos to retain customer metadata for up to two years. [ + ]

iiNet has teamed up with the Victorian government to deploy a $6.7m free Wi-Fi network in the CBDs of Melbourne, Ballarat and Bendigo. [ + ]

The CSIRO's free Workspace software suite is designed to make it easier for researchers to analyse complex data sets and publish the results. [ + ]

In 2014, network managers and engineers at all levels have access to levels of technology that would have been undreamed of only a few short years ago. But despite all the advances, there are potential bottlenecks looming. [ + ]

Claims of a data breach involving the personal information of hundreds of asylum seekers have been reported to the AFP; the ACCC will ignore payments that Telstra receives from its $11.2 billion agreement with NBN Co; and EMC has confirmed it will buy the majority of Cisco's stake in VCE. [ + ]