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Last Friday marked the first major test of Making Tax Digital (MTD) since it came into force on 1 April, mandating all VAT registered businesses with a turnover over £85,000 to keep digital transaction records and submit their VAT returns via specialised software. It was the day that businesses that submit monthly VAT returns had to file their first return in an MTD-compliant way through software, rather than through HMRC’s online portal. It assessed whether the new digital record-keeping and submission process truly works as intended.

For those who used the new process, all the reports suggest it went off without a hitch.

However, despite this milestone, research from strategic insight agency Opinium shows 11 per cent of SME senior decision makers polled in a recent survey weren’t aware of the new requirement to be MTD compliant. 

Step change

Some of these business owners may have an accountant taking responsibility for the entire situation. But some won’t. There’s also an added complication that almost half – 46 per cent – of those polled who thought they were compliant were found not to be, while a quarter of compliant companies didn’t think they were set up correctly for the changes.

It is likely that there is an element of confusion at play; some businesses who already keep digital records, but only submit their VAT returns through their existing government gateway account, may think they are already MTD compliant. In fact, it will no longer be acceptable for them to file future VAT returns via the government gateway. Instead, they will need to use MTD-compatible software capable of securely transmitting data to, and receiving it from, HMRC without the need to manually type data on to a portal screen.

It is not uncommon for firms to be resistant to change, making them slower to adopt new ways of working, particularly when it comes to tax compliance. This is certainly what QuickBooks has found when it comes to MTD. There is no doubt that for some, achieving compliance marks a step change, but once they have made the change there are also countless advantages to making the move to digital record keeping, including access to near limitless reporting functionality giving a real-time view of financial health.

MTD is a huge opportunity to navigate digital adoption, to streamline operations, motor efficiencies and simplify tax. The same study found moving to being MTD compliant is for the vast majority either quicker (42 per cent) or only as time consuming (44 per cent) as anticipated, with just 13 per cent saying it took longer than they expected to prepare for the move.

As digital tax is embraced, our challenge is to help small businesses and accounting professionals digitize the engine of their business to help them supercharge productivity. By backing small business owners through the transition of MTD we can help accelerate cash flow management and allow them to get paid faster and run their companies more effectively.

Chris Evans is UK Country Manager and Vice President at Intuit QuickBooks 

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After a promising start to Cricket World Cup 2019 with a win against South Africa and a strong showing against New Zealand, Bangladesh went on to suffer a 106 run loss against England and saw their last match against Sri Lanka washed out. They’ll be wanting to get back on track against the West Indies who are on the brink with just three points from four matches following their stinging eight-wicket defeat to England.   

No matter where you are in the world you can watch this crucial match by using our guide below to getting a West Indies vs Bangladesh live stream.

With the top four qualifying for the semi-finals, the West Indies now have a fight on their hands to displace one of New Zealand, Australia, India and hosts England. It’s looking like they’ll need to win each of their remaining group games if they’re to stand a chance of reaching the last four.

The omens aren’t good for them getting back on track – recent form has seen Bangladesh winning seven of the last ten games against each other including a bilateral series triumph last July. More worrying will be the their attack’s poor display in their last match which saw them dismissed for just 212 by England at Southampton.

It’s a must-win match for both sides, and its one you’ll be able to watch with ease from anywhere in the world if you follow our West Indies vs Bangladesh live stream guide below.  

Watch a Cricket World Cup 2019 live stream from outside your country

If you’re in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, US or India and looking to find out how to watch the match, we’ve got all the details about the broadcaster in your region below. 

If you’re away from home country and looking to tune in you’ll likely to find you won’t be able to thanks to geo-blocking. Thankfully there’s a way to alleviate that frustration. By using a VPN you’ll be able to watch the game safely without having to take a chance on an illegal feed from a website that’s likely infested with malware.

How to stream West Indies vs Bangladesh live in the UK 

How to stream 2019 Cricket World Cup online in India

How to watch the cricket in Pakistan

How to watch West Indies vs Bangladesh: live stream in Australia

How to watch West Indies vs Bangladesh: US live stream 

How to watch the game in New Zealand live stream 

The latest console from Nintendo hasn’t wavered too much in price since launch (check out our Nintendo Switch review to see why) but you can be sure that we’ve found the best possible price on any consoles bundles or standalone units on this page. We’ve also rounded up the best prices for extra Pro controllers, Joy-Con controllers, and even some cheap memory cards.

If a retailer does offer a sneaky discount, or a terrific bundle, you’ll be able to see it below thanks to our automatically-updating price comparison charts. As more outlets start offering Nintendo Switch bundles with extra games and controllers, we’ll give the best ones a shout in this article too.

The latest Nintendo Switch deals:

Check out our live Nintendo Switch price comparison below for the latest and greatest Nintendo Switch prices, or visit our sister site Getprice.

While coverage surrounding the US government’s Huawei ban has focused primarily on how the Chinese tech giant will be affected, it’s worth remembering that the company’s US suppliers also stand to lose a great deal of money in the fallout of President Trump’s executive order. 

Now, it appears that US chipmakers, including Intel, Qualcomm and Xilinx Inc, have been quietly lobbying the US government in an effort to ease the Huawei ban, as reported by Reuters.

Citing sources close to the situation, executives from Intel and Xilinx Inc reportedly met with the US Commerce Department in late May to discuss a response to the Trump Administration’s decision to place Huawei on the ‘entity list’, effectively barring US companies from trading with the Chinese brand. 

According to four other sources, Qualcomm has also reportedly met with the Commerce Department to discuss the issue. The Semiconductor Industry Association trade group has confirmed that it arranged meetings with US government on behalf of the chipmakers.

While the American chip suppliers don’t deny the potential threat to national security that Huawei’s 5G networking technology could present, the US companies also argue that the Chinese firm’s servers and smartphones use commonly available components and are far less likely to pose a risk, sources also suggest.

Of course, the discussions are just that – a representative for the Commerce Department told Reuters that the governmental body “routinely responds to inquiries from companies regarding the scope of regulatory requirements,” but that the discussions do not “influence law enforcement actions.”

Looking out for number one

One thing that shouldn’t be confused is the real reason for the US chipmakers’ interest in the matter, which is to prevent the potential loss of billions in revenue. 

“This isn’t about helping Huawei. It’s about preventing harm to American companies,” said one of Reuters’ sources. 

The report also states that of the “$70 billion that Huawei spent buying components in 2018, some $11 billion went to U.S. firms including Qualcomm, Intel and Micron Technology Inc.”

Singaporean-owned (but US-based) chipmaker Broadcom has already reported a decline in Q2 revenues and has lowered its expectations for the rest of the year, citing the US Huawei ban as the chief cause.

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The three-way struggle between criminal hackers, law enforcement and privacy-centric tech companies is constantly evolving. Today’s smart devices have implemented increasingly tough security measures to protect users’ personal data, while criminals seek to unlock them for various nefarious purposes, and authorities try to crack them for the sake of uncovering potential evidence.

Israeli forensics firm Cellebrite is responsible for creating such a tool – the Universal Forensic Extraction Device (UFED),  and the security company now claims it can unlock almost of all of the latest Apple and Android smart devices thanks to its latest update.

Specifically, the latest version of the device (UFED Premium) is able to unlock and gain access to “Apple devices running iOS 7 to iOS 12.3” as well as “high-running Android devices including the Samsung Galaxy S6/S7/S8/S9 [and] models from Motorola, Huawei, LG and Xiaomi”.

The device will be available to law enforcement agencies “on-premise”, meaning they will be able to operate the machine themselves and get the results independently of Cellebrite. The tool promises “access to 3rd party app data, chat conversations, downloaded emails and email attachments, deleted content and more”.

Privacy for the people

This time last year, we saw the security-conscious Apple release a more aggressive version of its USB Restricted Mode in the iOS 12 update – a solution that supposedly plugged a loophole whereby certain tools (akin to UFED and GreyKey) could access data via an iPhone’s Lightning Port.

While it’s unclear which global law departments will make use of the Cellebrite technology, it was strongly suspected that the FBI used the company in 2016 to unlock the San Bernardino iPhone.

Although the latest version of iOS is technically 12.3, Cellebrite’s site doesn’t make it clear whether the new 12.3.2 update is included in this. Similarly, Samsung’s latest Android phone family – the Galaxy S10, S10 Plus and S10e – aren’t listed among the handsets the firm claims to be able to unlock, so it appears some forms of device encryption are still proving elusive.

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With just one month until the UK Porn Block comes into effect, a new report has warned that the government is failing to protect the privacy and security of those who view adult content online.

The Open Rights Group has analyzed the BBFC’s Age-verification Certificate Standard, which outlines measures for AV providers to demonstrate that they will protect users’ data, to reveal that the scheme provides little assurance to the 20m adults that are estimated to watch pornography online in the UK.

Executive Director at the Open Rights Group Jim Killock explained how the standard falls short in terms of data protection, saying:

“On July 15, millions of Internet users in the UK will have to make a decision about which age verification providers they trust with data about their personal pornography habits and preferences. Due to the sensitive nature of age verification data, there needs to be a higher standard of protection than the baseline which is offered by data protection legislation.

“The BBFC’s standard is supposed to deliver this. However, it is a voluntary standard, which offers little information about the level of data protection being offered and provides no means of redress if companies fail to live up to it. Its requirements are vague and a ‘tick box’ exercise. This renders it pointless, misleading and potentially dangerous as advice to consumers seeking safe products.”

Consumer privacy at risk

Pornography companies will have to apply age verification to all UK users beginning on July 15 but according to the Open Rights Group, there has been no government advertising to make the millions of users that view adult content online aware of the scheme.

In fact, a YouGov poll from March showed that 74 percent of the British public were not even aware that age verification is being introduced. In addition to not advertising its existence, the UK government has not offered any advice to consumers regarding what they need to do to keep their sensitive data safe.

Since age verification only applies to commercial providers of adult content, this means that those under 18 will still be able to access pornography on free sites or on social media.

Killock also explained how age verification could put UK citizens at greater risk of cybercrime, saying:

“A DCMS impact assessment outlined that this scheme could put UK citizens at risk of fraud and blackmail, which could have a devastating impact on individuals. We urge the Government to delay age verification until there are proper mechanisms in place to protect privacy.”

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In life, there is no reset button. I had to keep reminding myself of that while riding an electric scooter through downtown Los Angeles on the way to E3 2019 all week.

It felt exactly like a video game: I was in a sprawling open-world city, weaving my way through notoriously congested LA traffic, and listening to bits and pieces of dialogue from eclectic non-playable characters that lined the sidewalks – their words took on a familiar doppler effect as I sped by.

I thought ‘This is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Remastered for 2019’. I was able to easily commandeer my ‘vehicle’ from the popular electric scooter brands Bird and Lime, finding them on the sidewalk outside my hotel every morning. All it took to claim my ride was scanning a QR code via their respective apps (no actual GTA involved).

The good: a time, money and environment saver

Electric scooters represent a “last mile solution” to public transportation that can only get you so far, according to Boosted CEO Jeff Russakow. His company sells that idea via electric skateboards and now electric scooters to own.

Scooters, owned or rented, are thrilling, cost-efficient, and, importantly, time savers. Instead of my daily E3 commute taking 20 minutes to walk, I was consistently able to ‘fast travel’ to the Los Angeles Convention Center in just five minutes. This meant taking on more appointments and playing more [actual] video games.

Bonus round: both Bird and Lime sent push notification when I docked a scooter, thanking me for helping save the environment. It’s tough to measure how much carbon you’re actually preventing from going into the atmosphere, though we suspect driving a car or taking an Uber is considerably worse for the planet.

The bad: a first-gen ‘video game’

E3 2019 turned me into an electric scooter believer, though this is very much akin to a first-gen video game. It comes with hard-to-ignore bumps in the road.

Pay-as-you-go electric scooters are easy to rent via a dockless system that lets you pick them up on demand and leave them anywhere. But it has littered Los Angeles sidewalks (and, at times, LA streets when they topple over in a domino effect).

Drivers aren’t sure how to respond to scooters, and there are many first-time riders lured in by the $1 to start and $0.15 per mile rate. No one I saw on a scooter during E3 2019 had a helmet on, though it’s repeatedly recommended by the apps. Instead, people loved to ride with AirPods in both ears (which is illegal even on a bicycle).

Not all electric scooters zoom down the road equally. Rentable scooters get beat up over time and max out at 15mph (24kmph). They don’t have the durability or oomph like the foldable Boosted Rev. Sometimes it felt like I was left with a dud.

Electric scooters have become controversial in LA for these reasons. There are solutions to this last mile solution’s many problems: mapping out preferred parking zones where pedestrians won’t trip over scooters, slow zones where scooters slow down to 2mph in heavy foot traffic, and no parking zones where you can’t lock the scooter.

The Los Angeles Convention Center, home to E3, is one of those no parking zones. But I found a very video game-like glitch: lag. My phone’s GPS lagged behind, so I was able to park my first scooter in a geofenced no parking zone unknowingly, and other people did too. Worse, when I tried to park the scooter across the street correctly, I was unable to lock it until the GPS cooperated and realized I was out of the no-go zone. So I just had to… hang out for several minutes. Great.

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Nearly every time I parked a scooter near the Convention Center, people asked me how I was able to rent it. There was genuine interest in how everything worked.

“I downloaded the Bird app,” I said in one instance to a curious pedestrian. “I’ve been able to ride all week. Haven’t topped up yet.” He then repeated it to his family. “Can you believe it? He only spent $20 and he’s been riding all week!” Sounded like he was looking for permission to get his family (or maybe just himself) onto scooters.

I spent $19.89 to travel nearly a mile twice a day during E3 – from the hotel to the Convention Center and back. It changed the way I was able to book appointments, write about the games I saw, network with our team, and even sleep. I saved 30 minutes everyday, and during a convention week, that’s crucial. I’d sign up for a dockless scooter service in New York City, if it were available, to halve my commute.

Like a good video game boss battle, the many challenges faced by electric scooters are no match for the true hero of this story: not scooters, but a last mile solution. The concept seems to be more than a fad, even if scooters come and go.

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