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The UK’s cybersecurity isn’t in a good place right now. High-profile data breaches and soaring fraud costs highlight how easy it is for people and businesses to lose their data. After hackers obtained UK clients’ personal information through a third-party company, Renault and Dacia advised them to be wary. The London-based company Themis, which keeps an eye on financial crimes, has bought Pasabi, a startup that keeps an eye on fraud. The idea is to employ AI to help with a problem that costs the globe £4.01 trillion a year. This essay talks about these shifts, what they entail for people and businesses, and how crucial it is to have strong defences as digital threats grow. Some companies have a better standard that others.
Some companies have better standards than others, but many of these are in highly regulated industries. Take online casinos, for example, where you’d need to provide a lot of sensitive information to sign up at a site like NetBet just to play Slingo. There are strict rules around data protection to ensure customer safety here, and the same goes for other regulated industries where financial and personal information are required. Unfortunately, a large number of businesses online have insufficient and unregulated security protocols, leaving users at risk.”
Renault’s Data Warning: A Problem with the Supply Chain
After a compromise on a third-party data supplier, Renault and its sister brand Dacia delivered an urgent letter to UK customers on October 3, 2025. Hackers stole personal data such as names, residences, birth dates, phone numbers, vehicle identification numbers, and registration information. The company made it clear that they didn’t obtain any personal information, like passwords or bank account numbers. The attack is over, and Renault and Dacia’s internal systems are still running well.
Renault UK’s spokesperson remarked, “We’re sorry for what happened.” We are getting in touch with all of the clients who were affected to let them know about the cyberattack and to warn them to be vigilant about any unexpected demands for personal information. We apologise to any of our customers who were hurt. We are really sorry that this happened because we care a lot about keeping data protected. Renault didn’t reveal how many customers were affected because they were worried about safety. People who entered contests or gave information without buying a car might also be hurt, not just car owners.
This breach is part of a dangerous pattern. In July 2025, hackers got into Jaguar Land Rover’s computers, which is why the company ceased creating cars. The government gave them £1.5 billion to assist them get back on their feet. Asahi, Marks & Spencer, and Kido Schools have all had problems this year. This highlights how much bad data is getting for businesses. Lauren Wills-Dixon, who is in charge of data privacy at Gordons, said, “The main goal of these cyber attacks is to get to customers’ personal information and cause trouble.” It’s not a question of “if” businesses will be targeted, but “when.” It’s crucial to have clear plans for what to do if there is a breach, how to stop it from happening again, and how to keep things moving smoothly.
Customers should be on the lookout for strange conduct, change their passwords, and call the police if they see anything strange. Renault’s rapid notice, which was required by GDPR, is designed to make it less likely that someone will steal your identity. But this reveals how weak the connections are between third parties in the car business.
Themis’ AI Purchase: £4.01 Trillion to Fight Fraud
Because of the rise in cyber dangers, Themis, a London-based financial crime intelligence group, bought Pasabi, a startup that watches for fraud, on October 3, 2025. The UK Home Office’s National Security and Investment Act made the transaction permissible. The purchase gives Themis’s platform Pasabi’s AI-powered behavioural analytics. Themis can do more than just clean money and check things out. It can also uncover fraud, look at social media, and figure out how dangerous a purchase is. Dickon Johnstone, the CEO of Themis, called it a “turbocharge” for their goal. “Fraud is now one of the most common threats in the world of financial crime.” Adding Pasabi’s AI to our platform makes it harder than ever for criminals to get away with it and easy for businesses and customers to stay safe.
Pasabi started in Edinburgh in 2017 and employs “agentic AI” autonomous agents to discover problems across all platforms in real time. It exhibits big, strange patterns that help keep fraud from spreading too quickly. It is used by banks, marketplaces, and insurance companies. According to the UK’s National Crime Agency, fraud is responsible for 41% of all crimes in England and Wales. Fraud and other crimes like it cost the globe $5.4 trillion (£4.01 trillion) every year. “Fraud is the best way to wash money,” Johnstone remarked. It’s not only about keeping people secure from scammers. Taking on fraud harms the money that organised crime requires to stay in business.
The deal goes ahead even if the regulators don’t like it. In July 2025, the Financial Conduct Authority fined Barclays £42 million for not looking into the £46.8 million Fowler Oldfield matter enough. In September, Monzo had to pay £21 million for opening accounts that were too hazardous. When data is split up and processes are done by hand, McKinsey argues that compliance hours are spent. Agentic AI, like Pasabi’s, could be able to aid here. Interpol says that only 2% of illegal flows are identified, even though banks have to pay an extra 10% each year to keep in line.
The Fraud Epidemic: How Big It Is and What It Means
It’s shocking how much fraud is going up. Organised networks are like businesses that send groups of people who speak different languages to nice offices to commit scams and crypto frauds. A report from Interpol in 2025 says that a lot of people depend on trafficking and forced labour. Fraud is now responsible for 41% of home crimes in the UK, up from 35% in 2020. In 2024, it costs £1.2 billion. The UK has lost £4.01 trillion, and the whole world has lost $5.4 trillion. A lot of this is because of phishing, identity theft, and frauds that promise to help you invest. Themis wants to buy Pasabi, a company that makes software that looks for problems in social media and business. This goes along with what Themis is all about: doing their homework.
Problems in the industry and pushback from the government
The rules are getting tougher. The FCA fined Barclays because they didn’t investigate into their clients well enough, and Monzo’s fine showed that establishing new accounts might be risky. Interpol says these events illustrate that the system isn’t flawless because earlier models miss 98% of unlawful transactions. McKinsey claims that AI can help cut down on waste because compliance personnel spend 70% of their time performing things by hand. The Themis-Pasabi interface says it will discover faults in real time, which could cut down on false positives by 40%, as Pasabi’s tests in 2024 showed.
Wider Effects: People and Businesses
The purchase gives businesses the tools they need to fight fraud, which costs the world £4.01 trillion and protects their brands and earnings. Banks and insurance companies are Pasabi’s key clientele. They get monitoring that can be turned up, so they don’t have to check things by hand as often. AI may warn users about scams before they happen, which makes platforms safer for everyone. In 2024, there were 3.5 million cases of fraud in the UK. With proactive technology, the UK might save £500 million a year. But it’s necessary to grow in a smart way. “Trust is everything,” Johnstone said, and he made sure that AI keeps data safe without utilising it for its own purposes.
A Call to Action: Closing the Gap
The Renault attack and Themis acquisition demonstrate two sides of cybersecurity: weak supply chains and new ways to fight back. Renault’s quick response and alerts to customers set a standard, but the problem, which affected identities and automobile data, might lead to identity theft. The move by Themis, which was approved after an assessment of national security, puts it in a good position to break up fraud networks, but a lot of people need to utilise it. The government wants firms to share data better, but they also need to spend money on AI compliance. Customers still need to be careful and change their passwords and tell someone if they observe something suspicious.
A Safer Digital World in the Future
Fraud costs the globe £4.01 trillion, and Renault’s breach shows how catastrophic it can be. But getting something like Themis-Pasabi gives us hope. They could earn billions of dollars back by using AI to uncover fraud, but they need help from regulators and ethical scaling to do it. The UK needs to make sure that these tools are at the top of its list of things to do to keep its people and economy safe. Forty-one per cent of crimes are fraud. Cyber threats vary all the time, so the best way to stay safe is to be proactive and think of new ways to keep yourself safe.
