Rising shoplifting among pensioners amid the cost-of-living crisis
Retailers report a sharp rise in shoplifting by pensioners, driven by soaring living costs. Kingdom Services Group, monitoring hundreds of UK stores, notes a shift from organised gangs to desperate individuals, including elderly people and parents. Weekly, 5% of caught offenders are over 50.
Retailers often avoid involving police due to bad publicity. Shoplifting in England and Wales hit a record 517,000 cases in 2024, with actual numbers likely higher. Retail theft, costing £2.2bn annually, also triggers violence. Retailers are investing in AI surveillance, while legislation aims to toughen penalties and protect staff from assaults.
Google settles Texas privacy lawsuits for $1.375 billion
Google has agreed to pay Texas $1.375 billion to settle lawsuits alleging it tracked users’ locations, incognito searches, and biometric data without consent. Filed in 2022 by Attorney General Ken Paxton, the suits mark the largest privacy-related settlement against Google by a state.
Paxton said the company secretly collected sensitive data for years. Google denies wrongdoing and won’t change its products as part of the settlement. The lawsuits follow broader scrutiny, including antitrust rulings against Google. Meta previously settled a similar case with Texas for $1.3 billion over facial recognition. Google says the claims concern outdated policies.
Unhealthy conflict hampers B2B deals, says Gartner
A Gartner survey of 632 B2B buyers found 74% of buying teams face unhealthy conflict, often due to conflicting goals or external interference. Teams reaching consensus are 2.5 times more likely to secure high-quality deals. With buying groups ranging from 5 to 16 members across functions, CSOs must train sellers to foster alignment.
Tailored content that emphasises group relevance boosts consensus by 20%, while individually focused content can reduce it by 59%. Buyers exposed to relevant group messaging are three times more likely to report better outcomes, underscoring the need to prioritise shared goals over individual preferences.