Jeweller Cartier and fashion brand The North Face are the latest victims of cyber attacks.
Cartier, whose watches are worn by stars such as Cate Blanchett, said: “An unauthorised party gained temporary access to our system.
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“We contained the issue and further enhanced the protection of our systems and data.”
North Face said it discovered a “small-scale” attack in April. It advised customers to change their passwords.
Both brands said customer names and email addresses were taken, but not financial information.
It is the latest in a wave of attacks that began with Marks And Spencer and the Co-Op facing severe disruption in April. Last week, Adidas was also hit.
Global cybersecurity adviser Jake Moore said: “It remains a race against time to get businesses better protected.”
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Thames rescue down the gurgler
Thames Water has been plunged into further crisis after a £4billion rescue deal collapsed yesterday.
US private equity giant KKR pulled out of plans to buy the firm, raising fears Thames will need emergency government help.
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The company was fined a record £122.7million last week and is £19billion in debt.
Britain’s biggest water supplier, which has 16 million customers, has faced public fury over leaks, sewage spills, soaring bills and failed infrastructure upgrades, as well as dodgy dividend payments.
Thames is now trying to finalise an alternative plan drawn up by lenders.
Chairman Sir Adrian Montague said: “While today’s news is disappointing, we continue to believe a sustainable recapitalisation of the company is in the best interests of all stakeholders and continue to work to achieve that goal.”
Environment Secretary Steve Reed said nationalisation was not the answer and insisted Thames remains “a stable, ongoing company”.
But he said ministers are “ready for any eventuality”.
Water watchdog Ofwat said it is liaising with the firm on its next steps “to ensure its equity raise process continues to secure improved financial resilience and performance”.
Thames was fined a record £122.7million by Ofwat last week after it broke rules over sewage treatment and paying out dividends.
The firm increased consumer water bills for customers by an average of 31 per cent in April.
Russ Mould, of AJ Bell, said: “KKR’s U-turn is a surprise, given its investment seemed like a done deal.”
Sinking feeling
The owner of South West Water has seen losses deepen after it was hit by a parasite outbreak in Devon.
Pennon unveiled a pre-tax loss of £72.7million for the year to the end of March, after a £9.1million loss 12 months ago.
It paid out £21million following last year’s incident in Brixham, which left people in hospital.
Bosses said 800 staff spent eight weeks making the water safe to drink.
It increased bills by 28 per cent on average in April, saying it needed to fund infrastructure investment.
Probe on UK solar company
The Serious Fraud Office is investigating UK solar farm firm Rockfire Investment Finance after a struggling council invested hundreds of millions of pounds.
Thurrock Council in Essex was effectively declared bankrupt in December 2022 with debts of more than £1billion.
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It invested through a bond scheme sold by Rockfire Investment Finance and other companies in the Rockfire Group between 2016 and 2020.
Rockfire offered returns of up to 6 per cent on renewable energy bonds as well as the return of the initial bond cost.
The group has since gone into liquidation, the SFO said.
Its director Nick Ephgrave said: “This is a significant step in our investigation concerning this suspected criminality.”
Thurrock Council is taking Rockfire and its former director to court in a separate case.
It said it has recovered £650million of public money.
No room for bid…
Ireland’s biggest hotel chain Dalata yesterday rejected a £1.1billion bid from a Norwegian and Swedish consortium.
After Dalata declined the offer from Pandox and Eiendomsspar its shares soared 11 per cent, but they fell back slightly.
The firm runs 55 hotels under the Maldron Hotel and Clayton Hotel brands.
It said it continues to engage in “constructive discussions” with other parties.
Nicotine boost
Rising sales of oral nicotine pouches have helped boost cigarette maker British American Tobacco.
The flavoured products are placed between the gum and lip so nicotine can be absorbed through the mouth.
BAT, which still makes most of its money from cigarettes, said revenues could grow 2 per cent, twice as much as previously forecast.
But boss Tadeu Marroco said BAT’s vape sales were being affected by illegal products in the US and Canada and urged crackdowns.
Car insurance price quotes fell 11 per cent over the past year with over-50s benefiting most.
Prices for older folk fell 26 per cent, while under-25s only benefited from a 3.4 per cent drop.
Consumer Intelligence said “competition remains strong”.
Gleeson slump
Shares in housebuilder MJ Gleeson slumped more than a fifth yesterday after it issued a profit warning.
The group said it faced a 15 to 20 per cent hit to its profits this year after higher build costs, flatter selling prices and several bulk sale transactions.
Gleeson, which specialises in building low-cost homes and land promotion, warned planning delays will continue to affect the business next year.
It said the “pace of the housing market recovery has not been sufficient” to offset “a number of headwinds”.
