Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Biggest ever cyber crime threat as hackers target UK
CYBER criminals are launching more online attacks on British businesses and services than ever, say intelligence officials.
Some 34 “significant” hacks were waged against UK interests in just 15 months, said the National Cyber Security Centre.
There were 762 less serious incidents, typically aimed at single organisations.
The Wannacry hack blamed on North Korea was the biggest assault. It hit 300,000 computers in 150 countries and led to nearly 7,000 NHS appointments being cancelled.
There were also attacks against Equifax and previous assaults on Yahoo and Uber.
The NCSC, part of the GCHQ eavesdropping station, warns in a report today: “2018 will bring more of these attacks”.
The 30-page report states: “2017 will be remembered as the year of ransomware attacks and massive data breaches, supply chain threats and, of course, fake news stories. With attackers able to achieve many of their aims by using techniques that are not particularly advanced, the distinction between nation states and cyber criminals has blurred, making attribution all the more difficult.”
The report is published to mark the start of a Manchester summit attended by ministers, senior military and intelligence figures and industry experts.