Debenhams owner facing scrutiny from data protection watchdog Retail Few quirks of modern life are so hated as the inability to cancel a subscription. For retail giant Debenhams, that ire could land it in hot water with the UK’s data protection watchdog. The retailer is facing scrutiny from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) after the watchdog received multiple complaints from consumers who could not [...]
Kids aren’t using VPNs to watch porn and skirt social media bans, VPN firms say Tech Only around one per cent of children use virtual private networks (VPNs) to access age-restricted content, research commissioned by VPN providers suggests, as the industry awaits a key announcement from government this week over how the under-16 social media ban will be enforced. A YouGov survey commissioned by the VPN Trust Initiative, founded by NordVPN, [...]
Exclusive: LinkedIn to train AI on UK members’ profiles Tech LinkedIn will begin using the profiles, posts, resumes and public activity of UK members to train its generative AI models from 3 November, City AM can reveal. The Microsoft-owned professional network’s new terms of service, which were updated on Thursday, confirm that while private messages are excluded, most public-facing data will feed into AI systems [...]
Should we be worried about Instagram’s map feature? August 20, 2025 Instagram’s new location-sharing feature, dubbed ‘Instagram Map’, has been rolled out to 170m users, but a journey through the platform reveals a perplexing reality: it’s a digital ghost town. While Instagram’s parent, Meta, has billed the feature as a “new, light way to connect”, many users are finding themselves alone on the map, prompting a [...]
Brits call for VPN ban for minors to curb Online Safety Act loopholes August 20, 2025 A majority of Britons believe children under 18 should be banned from using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) following a recent surge, a survey has found. Research from YouGov found that 55 per cent of the public supports a ban for minors, while only 20 per cent think they should be allowed to use them. This [...]
Hundred: ECB under fire over opt-out data transfer cut-off date August 15, 2025 Hundred organiser the ECB has come under fire for forcing fans to opt-out of having their data transferred to new franchise owners. At least 49 per cent of each of the eight Hundred franchises have been sold to overseas investors, with some teams selling a majority shareholding. And with it, as is common with ownership [...]
Passing the Public Authorities Bill will hand away Brits’ privacy rights May 13, 2025 The Public Authorities Bill is handing away Brits' privacy rights. Why aren't more of us worried, asks Rebecca Vincent.
Labour’s digital ID by the backdoor will be a honey pot for hackers May 7, 2025 Labour's attempt to usher in digital IDs via the backdoor is in urgent need of scrutiny, writes Jasleen Chaggar.
Murder prediction tools and Whatsapp arrests, is Black Mirror already here? April 16, 2025 Whatsapp chat arrests and sieges on Quaker meetings, it's easy to feel like we're already living in Black Mirror, writes Rebecca Vincent.
Signing up to a new AI tool? For the love of God, read the small print! March 18, 2025 Influencers are flogging AI programmes as "neat little tools", but failing to read the small print could prove costly, writes Paul Armstrong.