A major cryptocurrency exchange has mistakenly sent emails to 125,000 users, wrongly telling them their two-factor authentication settings had been changed.

Coinbase said the emails were “not the result of malicious behaviour”.

Two-factor authentication requires users to enter information, such as a texted code, in addition to a password.

And the alert caused alarm many among users, who feared their accounts had been hacked.

Under most circumstances, only someone with access to the account could change two-factor authentication settings.

“I got the reply and panicked someone accessed my account or made withdrawals,” one user tweeted.

‘Building trust’
The company said the error had been due to an issue with its notification system.

Coinbase apologised on social media, saying it was focused on building trust and “that issues like this can hurt that trust”.

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View original tweet on Twitter
And a post from a moderator support account on Reddit suggested the company was “crediting a small number of users” affected with $100 (£73) worth of Bitcoin.

Coinbase has experienced rapid recent growth, telling CNBC, in June, its more than 43 million registered users at the end of 2020 had grown to 68 million.

British business confidence hit highs not seen since April 2017 on hopes the economy is recovering strongly to pre-pandemic levels, according to a survey.

Employers in England’s North West and East registered the biggest jump in confidence, the latest Lloyds Bank Business Barometer found.

There was caution among companies about inflation and staff shortages.

But firms in manufacturing, services and construction all posted greater optimism that recovery would continue.

The monthly survey of 1,200 firms, conducted between 2 and 16 August, also saw business confidence in Northern Ireland turn positive after a negative response in July’s poll.

The barometer found that overall business confidence among UK firms rose by six points to +36% in August, driven by improvements in companies’ trading prospects and expectations of stronger growth in the year ahead.

Said Hann-Ju Ho, senior economist at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “Business confidence reaching its highest level in over four years tells a positive story about the country’s economic recovery.

“This confidence is driven by the continued success of the vaccine rollout, the removal of lockdown restrictions and adjustments to self-isolation rules.

“Staff shortages remain a challenge, but as the economy moves back towards pre-pandemic levels we can be optimistic that the momentum for business confidence and economic optimism can be sustained in the months ahead.”

Regional breakdown
Confidence increased in nine out of the 12 UK regions and nations in August with particularly strong rises in the North West, up 26 points to 64% and the East of England, showing a rise of 14 points to 39%.

Smaller rises were seen in the North East, up 6 points to 46% and London, up 4 points to 41%. For the North West, East of England and North East, confidence was at its highest since the survey sample was expanded in 2018.

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Increases in confidence were also recorded for Scotland (34%), the South East (32%), the South West (37%) and Wales (19%). In Northern Ireland, confidence rose significantly to 18% (from 6% in July), but it remains the region of the UK with the lowest level of confidence.

The remaining three regions saw slight confidence declines, with the West Midlands at 27%, Yorkshire & the Humber at 26%, while there was a larger 10-point fall in the East Midlands to 28%.

The improved mood echoes recent official statistics. Earlier this month, jobs data from the Office for National Statistics suggested that the labour market continues to “rebound robustly”.

Government borrowing has also fallen as furlough support ends and tax receipts rise.

But like other survey data, the Lloyds barometer suggested that inflation – which saw a surprise slowdown in the year to July, down to 2% from 2.5% in June – remains a worry.

“It is clear there is still some level of uncertainty on inflation and the impact of price pressures,” said Gareth Oakley, managing director for business banking at Lloyds. “The last few months of the year will be pivotal to the future of UK economic growth.”

A new law aimed at making school uniforms cheaper in England and Wales will not be in place in time for the start of this school year.

Headteachers are waiting for the new statutory guidance on uniforms, which will make schools place affordability at the centre of their uniform policy.

The government says schools should expect full details in the autumn.

But that means parents will not benefit from the changes as schools go back this September.

According to The Children’s Society, the average uniform costs £315 per primary school pupil and £337 per secondary pupil.

Mike Amesbury, the Labour MP who first introduced the legislation, said he would be “incredibly disappointed” if any further delays to the guidance meant that the changes weren’t fully in force for the start of the next academic year, beginning in September 2022.

He added that hundreds of thousands of children, parents and campaigners would be equally upset.

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It is expected that the rules will limit the number of logos on uniforms, allowing parents to buy more items from supermarkets and shops other than a school’s main supplier.

When this new law eventually comes into force, it will save families a big sum of cash.

At the moment, some schools require trousers or skirts to have the school badge on, alongside jumpers, cardigans, polo shirts, blazers – and that’s before you even get started on sports kits.

Each item that’s specific to the school costs more, so only having to buy one or two would mean big savings.

In the meantime some local sewing services have pattern school logos and might be able to embroider a badge onto a generic top to save some cash.

For years many, schools have had a link to a local uniform shop, where all pupils must go to get kitted out. Although many parents see this as a way of supporting local business, for plenty of other families it just limits their chances of getting something cheaper elsewhere. This new law is aiming to open up the way those deals with supply shops are signed, so it’s not done on a nod-and-a-wink, and will now have price as the central factor.

Parents will now have to wait and hope that the law is finalised before the next academic year begins to see the reality of those cash savings.

2px presentational grey line
Schools are also expecting a new tendering process, which will mean they can get the best value for money when selecting who makes and sells their uniforms.

Additionally there’s expected to be a process for parents and carers to complain if they feel that’s not happening effectively at their children’s schools.

While they wait for legislation to cut costs, many parents have taken matters into their own hands by forming groups and swap shops, often online, to offer others items that no longer fit and to find new kit for their own children.

Emma Ball started the Uniform Exchange in Winsford, Cheshire three years ago when her two eldest children left school and she was left with clothes she no longer had use for.

She now collects items from parents across the area and helps get them to families who need anything from a new blazer for high school to a pinafore for winter term.

Since starting the exchange she has helped more than 1,000 families and said that this year demand has doubled.

Emma says the issue of incorrect uniforms affects secondary school pupils in particular, with some schools sanctioning them or even sending them home if they arrive without wearing the right clothes.

“Children shouldn’t ever be punished for not having a school uniform” she said, adding that people shouldn’t worry about going to a swap shop for school wear as they’re keeping it out of landfill.

Parents Corinna Baker-Sinclair and Rebecca Benson have both used the swap shop in the town.

With three children in primary and another in secondary, Corinna said she would have to pay out well over £1,000 if she were to buy everything new each year.

For Rebecca it’s not just the financial cost of new uniforms that led her to use the uniform exchange. “When you look around and see how much there actually is that can be put to good use rather than going to landfill it makes sense to reuse,” she said. “You’d much rather spend that money making memories than just to buy a school uniform.”

When the law requiring government to introduce the new guidelines came into force earlier this year, school standards minister Nick Gibb said they would help families to save money and ensure that cost was never a barrier to accessing the best possible education.

However, with the new term starting imminently for most pupils in England and Wales, it’s likely to be a year at least before parents see any change in the amount they’re spending to kit out their children for school.