Brits should have their wits about them this festive shopping season, with cybercriminals looking to get hold of the most in-demand items this Christmas.

Figures from police forces across the UK have revealed a national surge in mobile phone thefts, with more than 225 devices stolen every day. The data, which was obtained through Freedom of Information requests, shows there were at least 83,900 phone theft offences recorded in the 12 months to July 2024 — almost double the five years previously.

In June 2025 there was a major data leak, exposing 16 billion login credentials linked to platforms such as Apple, Facebook, and Google. This underscored the growing inadequacy of the old password-based security. This extraordinarily large leak, compiled from various infostealer attacks over time, highlights a persistent vulnerability that cybercriminals are only too eager to exploit.

The Castle Howard Foundation (“CHF”) has been successful in its application to the Community Energy Fund for a grant to conduct detailed feasibility work into a geothermal system to decarbonise the heating of all the properties in the village of Coneysthorpe. The grant has been awarded alongside match-funding by Third Energy (a local energy company) and Castle Howard Estate Limited.

As most UK mobile operators prepare to raise their prices this April, SIM-only mobile provider spusu, which joined the UK market in 2023, has committed to protecting its customers from mid-contract price increases. As a result, the company has announced the continuation of its price freeze throughout 2025. This applies to both new and existing customers of its SIM-only plans.

In January 2025, rapper Stormzy was banned from driving for nine months after being caught using his phone at the wheel. Although drivers are four times more likely to be involved in a crash while using their phone, many still find the distraction all too tempting. In this article, SIM-only mobile provider spusu offers its advice for a safer driving experience.

Weekly national influenza and COVID-19 report, COVID-19 activity, seasonal flu and other seasonal respiratory illnesses.

Weekly national influenza and COVID-19 report, COVID-19 activity, seasonal flu and other seasonal respiratory illnesses.

Only the cleverest and most determined problem-solvers can quickly crack these tricky, technology themed brainteasers, created by the global engineering experts at RS. On average it takes just under one minute to solve both puzzles, which were designed specifically for World Computer Literacy Day, which is on 2nd December.

In October 2024, a Labour MP introduced the Safer Phones Bill with the aim to protect children from the negative impacts of excessive screen time and addictive mobile apps. However, parliamentary procedures mean that, even if it’s passed, the new regulations may take years to come into effect.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved an adapted version of the Nuvaxovid COVID-19 vaccine that targets the Omicron JN.1 COVID-19 subvariant.