January Coffee & Cake Briefing

Find this month’s top data stories that you might have missed below.

Workers Who Use Artificial Intelligence Are More Likely To Fear That AI May Replace Them There is a direct correlation between using AI and concerns about job security. According to a recent CNBC SurveyMonkey Workforce survey, 60% of employees who use AI regularly reported they worry about its impact on their jobs. 72% of respondents who use the technology recognise that automation significantly increases their productivity.

Information Commissioner’s Office launches consultation series on generative AI The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched a consultation series on generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), examining how aspects of data protection law should apply to the development and use of the technology.?Generative AI models are being used across the economy to create new content, from music to computer code. The first consultation examines when it is lawful to train generative AI models on personal data scraped from the web.

French data watchdog: imposes 10 million euros fine on Yahoo! over cookie policy French data watchdog CNIL has imposed a 10 million euro fine on U.S. web services provider Yahoo! for failings linked to the company's cookie policy. The watchdog accused the company of "failing to respect the choice of Internet users who refused cookies on its main website and for not allowing users of its e-mail client to freely withdraw their consent to cookies."

Data police: Ireland is the top country issuing GDPR fines Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) issued the lion’s share of GDPR fines in 2023, with the country remaining on top for data enforcement. That’s according to a new report from law firm DLA Piper, which shows that Ireland recorded the highest aggregate GDPR fines issued since 25 May 2018. The total value of GDPR fines imposed in Ireland to date is more than €2.8bn.

Find out how different companies and organisations used your data this month.

Airbnb, eBay, Vinted and other apps to share more information with HMRC

From 1 January companies including Vinted, Airbnb, and eBay are obliged to collect and share details of transactions with the tax authorities. That will allow HMRC to home in on anyone who should be declaring the extra income but isn't. While HMRC was already able to request information from UK-based online operators, from the start of this year there are new rules that the UK has signed up to via the international body, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).?

?The new rules require digital platforms to report the income sellers are getting through their site routinely. It will apply to sales of goods such as things that have been handcrafted and second-hand clothes, but also services including taxi hire, food delivery, freelance work and short-term accommodation lets. The information will be shared between countries that have signed up to the OECD tax rules. The government have said the new rules would help it "bear down on tax evasion", as sellers on digital platforms would now be treated more like traditional businesses.

Tesco Clubcard Unpacked reveals nation's favorite meal deal of 2023 Tesco Clubcard Unpacked, which works a bit like Spotify Wrapped, gives Clubcard members a unique insight into what they shopped for and saved in 2023. The UK’s favorite combination of Tesco's lunchtime meal deal remains unchanged from 2022 with Tesco Sausage Bacon & Egg Triple, McCoy's Flame Grilled Steak Grab Bag Crisps 45g and Coca-Cola 500ml taking first place once again.

However, this changed during the festive period when the Tesco Turkey & Trimmings Sandwich took over the coveted number-one spot!

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?Find out what experts at Carruthers and Jackson think about this month’s news.

Towards the end of last year, we completed the Carruthers and Jackson Data Maturity Index 2023. Based on the four sections of the Carruthers and Jackson Data Maturity Model – Purpose, People, Method and Tools - the Data Maturity Index is an annual poll of hundreds of data leaders to provide ongoing insight into how those with strategic responsibility for data perceive the true state of data maturity in their organisations. The Index measures the views of data professionals about their own organisation’s data opportunities and challenges and uses responses to paint a wider picture of global data maturity.?

Our CEO, Caroline Carruthers, Delivery Director, Dr. Ashley Cairns and the Technical Director of Praesto Consulting, David Atherton, will be discussing the findings from the report and the true scale of data literacy and data governance challenges for this month’s Coffee & Cake session!

Interestingly, this year’s Data Maturity Index revealed that organisations are suffering from an ‘AI-induced Paralysis’, with 87% of data leaders reporting that few employees are currently using AI in the workplace, with nearly two-thirds (61%) concerned that most employees lack the basic data literacy required to use AI in a safe and compliant way.

The Index shines a light on both the trepidation felt by data leaders about employee use of AI, and fear of approaching the governance of AI incorrectly due to the unpredictability of the current regulatory environment. Nearly two fifths (38%) of data leaders report that the use of AI had led to a significant increase in discussion of the ethical use of data, yet 41% reported that their organisation had implemented little or no data governance framework.

Despite the challenges, the research highlights clear signs that data leaders are successfully laying the technical groundwork for data-powered AI tools. In 2022, 55% of data leaders surveyed believed that their data either does not flow efficiently through their organisation, with that number falling to below half (49%) in this years’ Index. A further 68% report that tools including data warehouses and catalogs are mostly supporting their use of data.

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?C&J on the morning news! – Caroline was on LBC in January providing expert commentary on the world of data! Caroline spoke to Martin Stanford about how 2024 can be a positive year for data , from people better understanding how their data is being used through to the innovations that are making our lives easier.

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?C&J In The News - Our CEO, Caroline Carruthers, spoke to Verdict about the consequences of trusting data over human conclusions in relation to the Horizon scandal. Read Caroline’s full thoughts about why this remains a cautionary tale for any organisation that fails to recognise the importance of good governance here.