Systems that underpin the UK’s critical national infrastructure (CNI) are under increasing cyber threat, according to a consultancy. Over seven in 10 cyber security decision makers at UK CNI organisations reported a rise in cyber attacks since the start of the Ukraine war, according to research by UK cyber security services firm Bridewell.
The survey of some 521 cyber security decision makers in the communications, utilities, finance, government and transport and aviation sectors, found a high degree of concern about cyber warfare among operators of UK critical infrastructure. Over three quarters (78pc) are worried about the threat of cyber warfare against the UK’s critical national infrastructure with a quarter concerned that their systems are vulnerable. One in ten also fear their team wouldn’t be able to cope with a cyber warfare attack.
Concern over cyber warfare is significantly higher in the transport and aviation sector with near all, 93pc worried about the threat of cyber warfare. Over eight in 10 (86pc) report increased cyber attacks since the start of the Ukraine war and a majority, 69pc worry their systems are vulnerable to attack.
What they say
Martin Riley, Director of Managed Security Services at Bridewell says: “As attacks rise in sophistication and volume, operators of critical national infrastructure must collaborate more effectively and share intelligence needed to protect infrastructure and society. Great progress has been made across the industry since the introduction of the NIS Regulations but it’s now imperative that organisations include threat intelligence in their cyber security strategies to strengthen resilience. Developing a culture of information-sharing among peers and supply chains is key to protecting our infrastructure and citizens.”
About the firm
Bridewell delivers services across critical national infrastructure, aviation, financial services, government and oil and gas. The company holds a number of industry accreditations including NCSC, CREST, ASSURE, IASME Consortium, SOC2, Cyber Essentials Plus, the information security management international standard ISO 27001, ISO9001 and can assess to the data security standard PCI DSS. Visit https://www.bridewellconsulting.com.
