More than 60 'nationally significant' cyber attacks dealt with in last year

The UK's cyber information bureau dealt with much than 60 "nationally significant" cyber attacks implicit the past year, an authoritative study has revealed.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), portion of GCHQ, did not straight specify what the attacks were, but did speech astir ransomware attacks against the NHS 111 helpline work and besides the h2o inferior company, South Staffordshire Water, which triggered nationalist responses.

"The menace from ransomware was ever contiguous - and remains a large situation to businesses and nationalist services successful the UK," the NCSC said successful its yearly review, released connected Tuesday.

It said a increasing absorption implicit the past twelvemonth has been supporting Ukraine's cyber defenders successful fending disconnected wide and assertive cyber attacks by Russia successful the aftermath of President Vladimir Putin's invasion.

The NCSC said the warfare had "brought the cyber information menace into sharper absorption successful the UK".

The UK authorities earlier connected Tuesday revealed for the archetypal clip a previously covert effort to assistance Ukraine support itself from cyber attacks nether a programme worthy much than £6m.

"Ukrainian authorities - assisted by the NCSC - created beardown cyber defences, limiting the interaction of Russian operations," the yearly study said.

"Ukraine's palmy antiaircraft operations was an exemplar to web defenders crossed the world."

The cyber centre besides touched connected China. It said Beijing's evolving technological capabilities volition apt beryllium the azygous biggest origin affecting UK cyber information successful the future.

Despite the hazard posed successful cyber abstraction by overseas states, the biggest menace to British civilians and tiny businesses online is from cyber criminals, according to the report.

This included phishing attacks and the hacking of societal media accounts. For example, determination were 2.7 cardinal cyber-related frauds successful the 12 months to March 2022.

Summing up its enactment implicit the past 12 months, the NCSC said its officials managed the effect to hundreds of cyber incidents. This included 63 events that it described arsenic "nationally significant".