INDEX / DIRECTORY / B&Q / DIGITAL

B&Q DIGITAL

DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE AUDIT UPDATED 2026-09-22
Digital Score 5.10 /10 C B&Q - BDS-1000 455
Digital 5.10

Evidence-only forensic audit. Scoring happens downstream - see the main dossier for the composite assessment.

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Enterprise Technology Stack & Vendor Relationships

B&Q Limited is an indirectly owned, consolidated Kingfisher plc subsidiary; its active PSC register identifies Kingfisher France Limited as holding at least 75% of shares and voting rights.1, 2 Kingfisher maintains a strategic IT partnership with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), including deployment of TCS OmniStore unified-commerce and point-of-sale technology across banners including B&Q.3, 4 Kingfisher also uses Alteryx for people-analytics workflows.5

Kingfisher’s disclosed multi-cloud approach uses Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure for cloud data; its 2023/24 report identifies engineering centres in Kraków and Cluj.6 Its 2022 five-year Google Cloud partnership covered infrastructure, platform services, AI, data analytics and migration of on-premises legacy workloads, while retaining a multi-cloud strategy.7 Microsoft Azure deployment was expanded through Intwo, including Microsoft Sustainability Manager tooling for carbon-footprint reduction.8 In March 2026, Kingfisher and Google Cloud announced an AI-powered shopping partnership spanning B&Q, Castorama and Brico Dépôt.9, 10

No public evidence identified of Kingfisher or B&Q holding a licensing, subscription, or integration relationship with Check Point, Wiz, SentinelOne, CyberArk, NICE, Verint, Claroty, Palo Alto Networks, or another identified Israeli-origin enterprise-security or analytics vendor.3, 4, 5, 8, 7, 9, 10 Searches concerning Palo Alto Networks’ acquisition of CyberArk located a Palo Alto Networks SEC filing but no Kingfisher- or B&Q-specific reference.11 no public evidence identified that the TCS, Google, AWS, Microsoft/Intwo, or Alteryx engagements mandate, recommend, or embed an Israeli-origin product in B&Q’s disclosed deployment.3, 4, 5, 8, 7, 9, 10

Surveillance, Biometrics & Retail Technology

Kingfisher’s disclosed customer-facing retail technology includes TCS OmniStore functions such as click-and-collect, scan-and-go, self-checkout and clienteling.4 The March 2026 Google Cloud partnership includes Vertex AI Search for Commerce, agentic shopping tools, product and data catalogues, and modernisation of Nucleus, Kingfisher’s central data lake.9, 10

Kingfisher announced its proprietary Athena AI orchestration framework in September 2023; it manages prompts and interactions with multiple large-language models and internally developed AI tools, with disclosed uses including product recommendation and personalisation, clearance optimisation, and supply-chain visibility.12 A November 2025 investor presentation states that group apps and loyalty programmes collect customer data and that the data lake supports recommendations, personalisation, virtual assistants and visual search.13

No public evidence identified of B&Q or Kingfisher using Israeli-origin facial recognition, biometric identification, gait analysis, predictive policing, social-media monitoring, sentiment analysis, or workforce-surveillance technology, including deployments from Trigo, BriefCam, AnyVision/Oosto, Trax, or comparable vendors.4, 5, 13, 12 The investor presentation does not identify biometric-data collection, an Israeli supplier, or the data-lake location.13 no public evidence identified of indirect or bundled delivery of Israeli-origin surveillance technology through TCS, Google Cloud, Microsoft/Intwo, or Alteryx.3, 4, 5, 8, 7, 9, 10

Cloud Infrastructure, Data Residency & Sovereign Cloud Participation

Kingfisher’s cloud footprint includes Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud and AWS, with the 2026 Google Cloud announcement confirming use of Google Cloud AI and Nucleus modernisation but not a storage, processing, routing, or legal-access jurisdiction for those data sets.8, 7, 9, 10, 6

Kingfisher’s careers privacy policy, updated November 2024, identifies Kingfisher plc, Kingfisher Information Technology Services (UK) Ltd, Kingfisher Digital Ltd and Kingfisher International Product Ltd as controllers for recruitment processing; it states that candidate data may be shared with B&Q Ltd, Screwfix Direct Ltd, and recruitment-related third parties.14 The policy states that recruitment-related email and collaboration transfers occur to the USA, Hong Kong, India, Canada, China, Egypt, Israel, Japan and Singapore, with Model Data Protection Clauses under GDPR Article 46.14 It describes candidate information that can include disability status, race or ethnic origin and, where appropriate and lawful, criminal-conviction history.14

This is affirmative evidence of a declared Israel transfer route for recruitment-related email and collaboration data, but the notice does not identify a supplier, Israeli recipient, hosting location, access model, transfer volume, retention period, or a connection to Israeli state, military, settlement, or security bodies.14 It also does not establish transfer to Israel of B&Q customer, payment, behavioural, product-search, loyalty, or store data.14

No public evidence identified that Kingfisher or B&Q operates, leases, or co-locates data-centre infrastructure in Israel; participates in Project Nimbus or a comparable Israeli state-backed cloud programme; or provides digital-sovereignty, data-residency, or infrastructure-resilience services to Israeli state institutions or military bodies.7, 9, 10, 14, 6 Kingfisher’s documented role in these cloud relationships is as a retail buyer of commercial cloud services rather than a technology vendor to state bodies.7, 9, 10

Defence, Intelligence & Security Sector Technology Relationships

No public evidence identified of a contract, partnership, or service agreement between Kingfisher/B&Q and the Israeli Ministry of Defence, IDF, Israeli intelligence agencies, or other Israeli security bodies.15, 3, 7, 9, 14 no public evidence identified that Kingfisher/B&Q technology has been deployed for Israeli military, intelligence, law-enforcement surveillance, offensive-cyber, or digital-weapons use.3, 4, 7, 9, 12

A distinct physical-goods procurement item is confirmed by Kingfisher’s April 2020 statement: Kingfisher, including B&Q and Screwfix, sourced approximately three million face masks from suppliers in China and Israel as part of a £1 million PPE and health-service funding programme across Europe.15, 16, 17, 18 Kingfisher’s disclosure and reviewed trade coverage identify Israel only as a country of origin, not a supplier company.15, 16, 17, 18 A specific supplier attribution could not be independently corroborated and remains unverified.15, 16, 17, 18 This was a pre-2020, one-off procurement; no continuing relationship is documented and its ongoing status is unknown.15, 16, 17, 18

No public evidence identified of Kingfisher/B&Q developing, selling, licensing, or maintaining offensive cyber capabilities or digital weapons systems.3, 4, 7, 9, 12

AI, Algorithmic & Autonomous Systems

Kingfisher’s disclosed AI and analytics activity includes TCS OmniStore, Alteryx people analytics, Athena, customer recommendations and personalisation, supply-chain and clearance tools, and Google Cloud’s Vertex AI Search-powered shopping deployment.4, 5, 9, 10, 13, 12 The available evidence identifies these as customer- and operations-facing systems.9, 10, 13, 12

No public evidence identified of Kingfisher or B&Q providing AI/ML, computer vision, autonomous decision support, training data, target generation, tracking, threat detection, or other AI capability to Israeli state, military, or security bodies.4, 5, 9, 10, 13, 12 no public evidence identified that Kingfisher AI platforms have been trained on, or given access to, civilian population data, intercepted communications, or surveillance-derived datasets originating from Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territories.4, 5, 9, 10, 13, 12

The checked text of A/HRC/59/23 contains no Kingfisher or B&Q mention; its discussion of Project Nimbus and third-party technology companies does not establish that Kingfisher’s Google Cloud relationship forms part of Project Nimbus without a documented contractual link.19

Technology Ecosystem & R&D Footprint

Kingfisher’s 2023/24 annual report identifies engineering centres in Kraków and Cluj, with no Israel location identified.6 no public evidence identified of Kingfisher operating an R&D facility, engineering office, innovation lab, or accelerator programme in Israel; acquiring an Israeli-origin technology business; investing in an Israeli technology startup or fund; or entering a patent, licensing, or co-development arrangement with an Israeli research institution.20, 14, 6

Kingfisher’s current leadership materials identify Claudia Arney as Chair, Thierry Garnier as CEO, and Bhavesh Mistry as CFO, alongside the disclosed non-executive board and Group Executive leadership.21, 1 Kingfisher announced on 6 May 2026 that Garnier had resigned but would remain CEO and a Board member during his 12-month notice period while a successor search proceeded.22 Kingfisher’s annual report records Silchester International Investors LLP at 10.97% of voting rights at 31 January 2026, subsequently notified at 9.97% by 23 March 2026; it also records BlackRock at 7.67%, T. Rowe Price Associates at 4.95%, and Norges Bank at 3.54%.1

No public evidence identified in the reviewed governance materials and targeted searches that the disclosed Chair, CEO, CFO, directors, Group Executive, or disclosed qualifying shareholder holds a disclosed investment, board role, or controlled vehicle in an Israeli surveillance, cyber, cloud, AI, biometric, or military-technology company.21, 1, 22 This finding is limited: public biographies and annual-report disclosures are not comprehensive registers of personal securities, family-office investments, or institutional investors’ portfolio companies.21, 1 No qualifying principal relationship was verified; consequently, no documented digital beneficiary, downstream Israeli state, military, security, occupation, settler, or anti-Palestinian use, or current/ceased status, was identified.21, 1, 22

Civil Society Scrutiny & Regulatory History

The checked full texts of the supplied OHCHR 2023 and 2025 settlement-database updates, A/HRC/59/23, and identified civil-society reports contained no mention of Kingfisher, B&Q, or “B and Q.”23, 24, 19 This is a document-scoped finding and does not establish absence from every live database, archive, or later publication.23, 24, 19

No public evidence identified of an organised boycott, divestment, or sanctions campaign specifically targeting Kingfisher/B&Q’s technology provision related to Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territories.23, 24, 19 no public evidence identified of a regulatory inquiry, legal challenge, export-control action, or sanctions investigation involving Kingfisher/B&Q technology sales or services to Israeli state entities.15, 3, 7, 9, 14 no public evidence identified of a digital product, platform, licence, franchise, or service supplied by Kingfisher/B&Q to an Israeli settlement or an entity operating in occupied territory.23, 24, 19

The November 2024 recruitment notice’s declared Israel email-and-collaboration transfer route post-dates 19 July 2024, but it identifies no recipient or beneficiary connected to Israeli state, military, settlement, or occupation activity; the available evidence cannot establish a continuation-of-provision finding.14 The recurring independently sourced Israel-related item remains the 2020 PPE and face-mask procurement, which is a physical-goods supply-chain item rather than a technology or digital-services relationship.15, 16, 17, 18

Footnotes

  1. https://www.kingfisher.com/~/media/Files/K/Kingfisher-Plc/Universal/investors/result-reports-presentation/2026/2526-annual-report-and-accounts.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  2. https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/00973387/persons-with-significant-control ↩

  3. https://www.tcs.com/who-we-are/newsroom/press-release/kingfisher-strategic-partnership-tcs ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  4. https://www.tcs.com/who-we-are/newsroom/press-release/european-home-improvement-company-kingfisher-plc-frictionless-customer-experience-tcs-omnistore ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11

  5. https://www.alteryx.com/resources/customer-story/kingfisher-transforms-people-analytics-with-alteryx ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  6. https://www.kingfisher.com/content/dam/kingfisher/Corporate/Documents/Other/2024/Kingfisher-Annual-Report-202324.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  7. https://www.kingfisher.com/media/news/2022/kingfisher-chooses-google-cloud-as-catalyst-for-growth-and-innov ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11

  8. https://www.microsoft.com/en/customers/story/1709351422272195952-kingfisher-azure-telecommunications-en-singapore ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  9. https://www.kingfisher.com/media/news/2026/kingfisher-and-google-cloud-partner ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16

  10. https://www.googlecloudpresscorner.com/2026-03-18-Kingfisher-and-Google-Cloud-Partner-to-Deliver-AI-Powered-Shopping-Across-UK-and-Europe ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  11. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1327567/000119312526045600/d40626dex991.htm ↩

  12. https://www.kingfisher.com/media/news/2023/kingfisher-launches-ai-powered-diy-assistant ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  13. https://www.kingfisher.com/~/media/Files/K/Kingfisher-Plc/Universal/investors/result-reports-presentation/2025/retail-investor-nov-25.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  14. https://careers.kingfisher.com/privacy-policy ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  15. https://www.kingfisher.com/media/news/2020/kingfisher-plc-which-includes-b-q-and-screwfix-provides-p1-mil ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  16. https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2020/04/kingfisher-donates-1m-worth-of-ppe-to-health-services/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  17. https://www.installeronline.co.uk/news/kingfisher-plc-includes-bq-screwfix-provides-1-million-worth-vital-ppe-equipment-funding-health-services-across-europe/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  18. https://www.insightdiy.co.uk/news/kingfisher-provides-1m-in-ppe - health-service-funding-across-europe/8294.htm ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  19. https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/country-reports/ahrc5923-economy-occupation-economy-genocide-report-special-rapporteur ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  20. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_multinational_companies_with_research_and_development_centres_in_Israel ↩

  21. https://www.kingfisher.com/about-us/our-leadership ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  22. https://www.kingfisher.com/media/news/2026/directorate-change ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  23. https://www.ohchr.org/en/business/bhr-database ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  24. https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/un-human-rights-office-updates-database-businesses-involved-israeli ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4