Fifa World Cup faces threats from cyber attacks and hacktivists January 6, 2026 The 2026 Fifa World Cup faces the “very real risk” of cyber attacks from anti-Western “hacktivists”, according to experts. This summer’s tournament – being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada – is set to be targeted by rogue states determined to disrupt the global spectacle. An attempt to harm Fifa World Cup infrastructure [...]
Jaguar Land Rover sales tumble after cyber attack disruption January 6, 2026 Sales at Tata-owned Jaguar Land Rover tumbled in the last quarter of the year after a massive cyber attack wreaked havoc with the carmaker’s production plans. Wholesale volumes were down by more than 40 per cent to 59,200 in the three months to the end of December, while retail sales slumped 25 per cent to [...]
Labour pencils £210m cyber plan to curb escalating attacks January 6, 2026 The UK government has unveiled a £210m cyber action plan aimed at shoring up the public services, as ministers face mounting pressure to respond to a sharp rise in attacks on major British businesses. The plan, published on Tuesday, comes amid a backdrop of high-profile cyber incidents that hit retailers including M&S, Co-op and Jaguar [...]
Activity in UK’s embattled manufacturing sector hits 15-month high January 2, 2026 The UK’s embattled manufacturing sector took another small step towards recovery at the end of 2025 thanks to an influx of new orders. The latest UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) from S&P Global UK hit a 15-month high as the industry continued to grow for the second consecutive month. The PMI reading hit 50.6, up [...]
The great high street outage of 2025 December 24, 2025 On paper, British high streets have seen worse. Footfall has survived recessions, pandemics and price shocks before, and tills were just about still ringing. But this year it flickered, stalled and, in some cases, went dark – brought to its knees by a wave of cyber attacks that exposed the fragility of retail in the [...]
UK economic growth downgraded for second quarter December 22, 2025 Growth in the UK economy was revised downwards on Monday after fresh figures revealed economy expanded less than initially thought in the second quarter. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) cut the UK’s economic growth in the three months to June to 0.2 per cent from 0.3 per cent previously. The third quarter’s sluggish 0.1 [...]
Cyberattacks decaying Western economies, expert warns December 4, 2025 The global cyber environment has become a “society wide crisis”, where a recent slew of attacks are threatening the foundation of Western economies, an expert has warned. A year-long avalanche of detrimental attacks on British retailers; Co-op, M&S, and more recently, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR); has pointed to a far deeper concern, Charl van der [...]
OBR chair Richard Hughes resigns after leak ‘inflicted heavy damage’ on watchdog December 1, 2025 The chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) Richard Hughes has resigned after a report provided a damning assessment of management at the top of the fiscal watchdog after it leaked its fiscal report before the Budget. Hughes, who has faced pressure from the government since the leak, said he was taking full responsibility [...]
Would the new Cyber Bill have prevented 2025’s retail chaos? November 25, 2025 The 2025 UK cyber bloodbath, which saw JLR down for five weeks, M&S nursing a £300m hole, Co-op, Harrods, and more, all happened after the government had already spent four years consulting on cyber legislation. And when the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill finally slouched into the House of Commons on 12 November, the reaction [...]
Security minister vows stricter cyber regime after JLR fallout November 24, 2025 Security minister Dan Jarvis has pledged a more hard-edged cyber regime for UK businesses after a series of high-profile attacks on firms including Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and Marks & Spencer exposed weaknesses in the country’s digital defences. Speaking at the Parliament & Cyber Conference at Westminster on Monday, Jarvis said cyber incidents had moved [...]