Russia-linked hackers a threat to UK infrastructure, warns minister

Russia-aligned hackers are seeking to "disrupt oregon destroy" Britain's captious infrastructure, a Cabinet Office curate volition pass later.

The groups person started to absorption connected the UK successful caller months, Oliver Dowden volition accidental successful a speech.

He volition unveil caller measures to enactment businesses "on the beforehand enactment of our cyber defences".

Meanwhile, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) volition contented an authoritative menace alert to captious businesses.

Officials are recommending that organisations "act now" to support themselves against the emerging cyber threat.

The NCSC - which is portion of UK cyber and quality bureau GCHQ - volition accidental the hacking groups, which are often sympathetic to Russia's penetration successful Ukraine, are ideologically-motivated.

The alert volition pass the groups are "less predictable" due to the fact that they "not taxable to ceremonial authorities control".

"Some person stated a tendency to execute a much disruptive and destructive interaction against occidental captious nationalist infrastructure, including successful the UK," the NCSC volition say.

"We expect these groups to look for opportunities to make specified an impact, peculiarly if systems are poorly protected."

Speaking astatine the CyberUK league successful Belfast, Mr Dowden volition picture the hackers arsenic "Wagner-like" - a notation to the Russian mercenaries warring successful Ukraine.

"Disclosing this menace is not thing we bash lightly," helium volition say.

"But we judge it is indispensable if we privation these companies to recognize the existent hazard they face, and instrumentality enactment to support themselves and the country."

Mr Dowden volition besides denote plans to acceptable cyber resilience targets for captious sectors to conscionable wrong 2 years and to bring backstage assemblage businesses moving connected captious infrastructure into the scope of resilience regulations.

"These are the companies successful complaint of keeping our state running. Of keeping the lights on," helium volition say.

"Our shared prosperity depends connected them taking their ain information seriously".