Issue Offensive cyber pre-positioning against UK critical sites

Summary

The report expects that a rising risk of future conflict could lead hostile states to pre-position offensive cyber capabilities more often at locations of critical importance to the UK. It finds that the emergence of state-aligned actors is expanding the global cyber security threat landscape. Nation states back cyber attacks against UK companies and research bodies in order to earn money through ransomware or to steal sensitive material such as intellectual property. The report anticipates a worsening international security environment in which state threats grow and diversify. The National Security Act 2023 and the work of the National Protective Security Authority are presented as mitigations. In the report's view, reducing cyber attacks and espionage makes UK digital and physical assets safer.