In a new report, A hostage to fortune: ransomware and UK national security, UK’s House of Commons Committee explains how the UK is at high risk of a “catastrophic” ransomware attack and that the government is not prepared to deal with the threat.
The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy found that “large swathes” of UK critical national infrastructure are vulnerable to ransomware because they are operating on outdated IT systems, such as the NHS which largely operates on legacy infrastructure, putting it in a “particularly difficult position to protect itself from cyber-attacks.”
There is “next to no” state support for most ransomware victims, and often a poor understanding of cyber among police forces largely due to minimal funding and difficulties recruiting cyber specialists as the private sector pay and career progression is more appealing.
The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy set out many recommendations for the UK government to improve its ability to respond to a ransomware threat, covering responsibilities, funding and training.
David Ratner, CEO, HYAS Infosec had this to say:
“Attacks on critical infrastructure have the potential to not just cause damage but actually impact human lives; as such, the protection of critical infrastructure should be paramount around the world. Doing so requires not just updated IT systems and proper patching and processes, but a changed mindset of what protection really means — shifting from prevention to resiliency. With constantly changing attacks, the only real effective strategy going forward is for critical infrastructure everywhere to adopt operational resiliency approaches to ensure continued operations.”
The UK really has to get a handle on this. Because now that this report is out there, someone is going to take a shot at pwning them. Assuming someone isn’t in the process of doing so already.
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This entry was posted on December 13, 2023 at 3:24 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Security, UK. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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UK Infrastructure Unprepared For A Catastrophic Ransomware Attack
In a new report, A hostage to fortune: ransomware and UK national security, UK’s House of Commons Committee explains how the UK is at high risk of a “catastrophic” ransomware attack and that the government is not prepared to deal with the threat.
The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy found that “large swathes” of UK critical national infrastructure are vulnerable to ransomware because they are operating on outdated IT systems, such as the NHS which largely operates on legacy infrastructure, putting it in a “particularly difficult position to protect itself from cyber-attacks.”
There is “next to no” state support for most ransomware victims, and often a poor understanding of cyber among police forces largely due to minimal funding and difficulties recruiting cyber specialists as the private sector pay and career progression is more appealing.
The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy set out many recommendations for the UK government to improve its ability to respond to a ransomware threat, covering responsibilities, funding and training.
David Ratner, CEO, HYAS Infosec had this to say:
“Attacks on critical infrastructure have the potential to not just cause damage but actually impact human lives; as such, the protection of critical infrastructure should be paramount around the world. Doing so requires not just updated IT systems and proper patching and processes, but a changed mindset of what protection really means — shifting from prevention to resiliency. With constantly changing attacks, the only real effective strategy going forward is for critical infrastructure everywhere to adopt operational resiliency approaches to ensure continued operations.”
The UK really has to get a handle on this. Because now that this report is out there, someone is going to take a shot at pwning them. Assuming someone isn’t in the process of doing so already.
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This entry was posted on December 13, 2023 at 3:24 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Security, UK. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.