Computer Sciences Corp. on Tuesday said it plans to cut about 5,000 jobs, or about 6 per cent of its work force, over two years and is considering selling the company, a provider of information technology services.
Its shares jumped $3.71, or 6.5 per cent, to $61 in premarket trading.
Computer Sciences said its board has decided to explore the company’s options for improving shareholder value, in response to recent expressions of interest, and has hired investment bank Goldman Sachs & Co. as its adviser.
The announcement came after The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter, reported in its Tuesday edition that Computer Sciences is in talks that could lead to a potential sale of the company for $10.6 billion or more. In Tuesday’s announcement, Computer Sciences said it would cut 5,000 jobs from its work force of 80,000 employees as part of a major restructuring to improve the company’s cash flow and earnings.
The restructuring plan involves 4,300 job cuts during fiscal 2007, which began Saturday, and 700 job cuts in fiscal 2008. Most of the reductions will come in Europe, the company said. "For some time it has been apparent to us, and to other companies in our industry, that there is excess capacity in certain geographies, particularly Europe," chief executive Van Honeycutt said in a statement.
"After lengthy consideration, we have decided that this is an appropriate time to deal with the issue through a restructuring," Mr Honeycutt said.
Computer Sciences exp-ects to take a related charge of about $345 million this fiscal year and $30 million in fiscal 2008. Without those charges, the company expects the restructuring to save it about $150 million this fiscal year
Computer Sciences to cut 5,000 jobs
April 5, 2006, 9:48 amICICI launches annuity card for pensioners
April 5, 2006, 9:46 am
In an effort to target the growing number of retirees, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance or ICICI Prudential, has joined hands with ICICI Bank to launch India’s first annuity card on Tuesday.
The card is expected to ease the process of annuity payouts for pensioners by allowing them to use their pension for cash withdrawals from ATMs. The card is available at no cost to all individuals who buy an annuity from ICICI Prudential.
Ms Shikha Sharma, managing director and chief executive officer, ICICI Prudential, said, "The number of retirees was 8.8 crores last year and is 9.9 crores in 2006. These numbers will grow every following year. It is with the aim to offer pensioners a hassle-free route to access their money, that we have launched the annuity card." Instead of waiting for the pension money to be deposited in the bank through cheques, the card is expected to smoothen the process by electronically crediting the card with the defined pension amount as per the specification of the pensioner.
ICICI Bank hopes that the card will give it an edge in the prepaid solutions space and help in the expansion of its card-base.
Ms Chanda Kochhar, executive director, ICICI Bank, said, "Today, plastic money has established itself as one of the most convenient ways to access and spend money, and we are delighted to offer ICICI Pru’s ever-expanding base of pensioners the same benefits and freedom. Given the immense potential of the pensions space, this is a product that is sure to grow in numbers, acceptance and usage."
The card is expected to ease the process of annuity payouts for pensioners by allowing them to use their pension for cash withdrawals from ATMs. The card is available at no cost to all individuals who buy an annuity from ICICI Prudential.
Ms Shikha Sharma, managing director and chief executive officer, ICICI Prudential, said, "The number of retirees was 8.8 crores last year and is 9.9 crores in 2006. These numbers will grow every following year. It is with the aim to offer pensioners a hassle-free route to access their money, that we have launched the annuity card." Instead of waiting for the pension money to be deposited in the bank through cheques, the card is expected to smoothen the process by electronically crediting the card with the defined pension amount as per the specification of the pensioner.
ICICI Bank hopes that the card will give it an edge in the prepaid solutions space and help in the expansion of its card-base.
Ms Chanda Kochhar, executive director, ICICI Bank, said, "Today, plastic money has established itself as one of the most convenient ways to access and spend money, and we are delighted to offer ICICI Pru’s ever-expanding base of pensioners the same benefits and freedom. Given the immense potential of the pensions space, this is a product that is sure to grow in numbers, acceptance and usage."
Refined virus to target servers
April 5, 2006, 9:45 am
The "Bagel" worm, that was originally designed to trick recipients into opening malicious programmes attached to emails, has returned to infect Indian servers.
However, this time around, the worm has been modified by hackers and comes equipped with rootkit technology (set of tools used to gain access to a ), that gives the worm the ability to bury itself in hidden locations, download programmes and capture information for days or weeks, without being discovered.
The improved Bagel worm also has the ability to delete any security related files, such as firewalls and anti-virus software, when opened.Last week, an e-security major from Finland, reported that an ISO 9001:2000 company in New Delhi involved in prosthetics, was hacked and infected by the Bagel worm. Warnings were issued to system administrators around the world to block access to the infected Indian server.
"These hackers are actively scanning all the systems, IP addresses and servers around the world, looking for vulnerabilities and attacking those that are not adequately protected. Unfortunately, there are many servers and systems in India which are not protected or patched. These therefore, become easy targets for hacking," said Mr Sahir Hidyatullah, e-security expert, Miel e-security Pvt. Ltd.
The fact that the new and improved Bagel worm remained undetected and hidden was evident from the fact that company officials in New Delhi were unaware that their system had been hacked even after a week following the attack. Although, their server appears to be disinfected, the company learnt of the breach only when this newspaper contacted the officials for a response. However, e-security experts suggest that it is unlikely that system administrators would reveal or admit that their systems were hacked, since such breaches could get them fired from their jobs.
However, this time around, the worm has been modified by hackers and comes equipped with rootkit technology (set of tools used to gain access to a ), that gives the worm the ability to bury itself in hidden locations, download programmes and capture information for days or weeks, without being discovered.
The improved Bagel worm also has the ability to delete any security related files, such as firewalls and anti-virus software, when opened.Last week, an e-security major from Finland, reported that an ISO 9001:2000 company in New Delhi involved in prosthetics, was hacked and infected by the Bagel worm. Warnings were issued to system administrators around the world to block access to the infected Indian server.
"These hackers are actively scanning all the systems, IP addresses and servers around the world, looking for vulnerabilities and attacking those that are not adequately protected. Unfortunately, there are many servers and systems in India which are not protected or patched. These therefore, become easy targets for hacking," said Mr Sahir Hidyatullah, e-security expert, Miel e-security Pvt. Ltd.
The fact that the new and improved Bagel worm remained undetected and hidden was evident from the fact that company officials in New Delhi were unaware that their system had been hacked even after a week following the attack. Although, their server appears to be disinfected, the company learnt of the breach only when this newspaper contacted the officials for a response. However, e-security experts suggest that it is unlikely that system administrators would reveal or admit that their systems were hacked, since such breaches could get them fired from their jobs.