What the UK Nuclear Agency is Bringing to its Cyber Posture
With the geopolitics of the world taking a significant spin in counter clockwise, the UK is taking steps to boost its defences.
Despite the news that the UK government is looking to raise defence spending to 2.5% in spring, moves are already being made across governmental departments to prepare for where the big battles are first likely to take place: the cybersphere.
Highlighting this commitment, the UK’s governmental agency Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has launched a specialised cyber facility to help them keep their operations secure.
Cyber centre capabilities
The NDA's new Group Cyberspace Collaboration Centre (GCCC), situated in Cumbria, is a multi-functional space for partners to explore how new technologies can support mission delivery and facilitate security operations, cyber exercising and training.
It aims to enhance collaboration among nuclear operators and their supply chains, focusing on innovative technologies such as AI and robotics to strengthen collective cyber resilience.
"The GCCC is further enhancing our collective ability to keep us safe, secure, resilient and sustainable in cyberspace," says David Peattie, CEO of NDA Group.
This initiative comes at a time when cyber attacks are an omnipresent threat across various sectors, including civil nuclear operations.
Threats in the cybersphere
Currently, the threat landscape is tumultuous. Yet, due to the geopolitical situation, where this differs is national infrastructure is increasingly bearing the brunt of attacks.
This is because hostile states wanting to do damage can do so by attacking things like the energy sector and can yield tangible effects against the nation as a whole: i.e. blackouts.
Indeed, the energy sector has experienced a 264% increase in cyberattacks in the past 2 years.
Where the NDA is concerned, which has objectives of eliminating site hazards and developing waste solutions and ensuring standards in safety, security and environmental management, a cyber attack could obfuscate the two.
Equally, with an additional focus of the centre being on technologies such as AI and robotics, ensuring these, which are being used by various companies to handle the removal of nuclear waste, are secure becomes vital for safety.
"All nuclear sites must have strong cyber security systems in place to protect important information and assets from cyber threats,” says Warren Cain, Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) Superintending Inspector.
The UK government’s has been re-examining its cyber security posture recently in response to the growing threat level. In September, they moved to classify data centres as critical national infrastructure.
This growing recognition of the importance of cyber resilience echoes similar initiatives taken by the Biden administration in the US to secure critical national infrasturcure following a series of high-profile cyber incidents.
Moreover, recent exercises conducted by European authorities to assess preparedness against large-scale cyber-attacks highlight that the effort to secure cybersecurity is collective, and the fears shared.
NDA and safety from cyber attacks
As the UK, US and the EU grapple with these challenges of infrastructure security, it is evident that vital assets are a bigger target than ever before.
Yet the UK's government agencies taking such initiatives reflect a growing awareness of the need for robust cyber defences.
By prioritising critical infrastructure and enhancing collaboration, it is positioning itself to tackle the complex challenges posed by cyber threats effectively.
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