Topic: Militarization of the Internet
Country: United Kingdom
Delegate Name: Joseph Murphy
School: Vicksburg High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All United Kingdom position papers GLIMUN 2013 committees
But with greater openness, interconnection and dependency comes greater vulnerability. The National Security Strategy categorised cyber attacks as a Tier One threat to our national security, alongside international terrorism. The threat to our national security from cyber attacks is real and growing. Terrorists, rogue states and cyber criminals are among those targeting computer systems in the UK.
The Strategic Defence and Security Review allocated £650 million over 4 years to establish a new National Cyber Security Programme to strengthen the UK’s cyber capacity.
To combat cyber threats, we will:
work with the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) to identify and analyse cyber attacks to our main networks and services and support the UK’s wider cyber security objectives.
To prevent cyber crime and make the UK a safer place to do business, we are:
setting up a National Cyber Crime Unit within the National Crime Agency in 2013, bringing together the Police eCrime Unit and SOCA
providing cyber security advice to businesses such as the 10 Steps to Cyber Security Booklet and tailored guidance for small businesses
building a ‘Cyber Information Sharing Partnership’ with businesses to allow the government and industry to exchange information on cyber threats in a trusted environment, in 2013
creating a joint ‘Cyber Growth Partnership’ with technology industry representatives Intellect, to support the growth of the UK cyber security industry and increase exports
introducing a single reporting system for people to report financially motivated cyber crime through Action Fraud – the UK’s national 24/7 fraud and internet crime reporting centre – recording incidents of fraud centrally enables intelligence being gathered about crimes to be shared and analysed, resulting in more targeted enforcement action.
To make the UK more resilient to cyber-attacks, we are:
establishing a UK National Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) in early 2014 to improve national co-ordination of cyber incidents
setting up a new Cyber Incident Response scheme in GCHQ to help organisations recover from a cyber security attack
extending the role of the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) to include working with all organisations that may have a role in protecting the UK’s critical systems and intellectual property
setting up a national cyber crime unit
To cultivate a safe, stable and vibrant cyberspace internationally, we are:
working with other countries to identify and manage cyber risks and develop principles to guide the behaviour of governments and others in cyberspace
working in international forums such as in the UN Group of Government Experts, the OSCE, the EU and the World Economic forum
setting up a Global Centre for Cyber Security Capacity Building within the UK network of Academic Centres of Excellence for Cyber Security in 2013
taking forward work over the coming months, summarised in the “Next Steps” document, following the Seoul Conference on Cyberspace held on 17-18 October 2013.
To develop the knowledge, skills and capabilities needed to defend the UK against cyber crime, we are:
developing a ‘cyber reserve’ of computer experts who will work with the government to protect the country from online threats, allowing the public services to draw on the wider talent and skills of digital professionals across the UK – the MoD will announce detailed plans in 2013
establishing and funding a network of Centres of Excellence for Cyber Security Research within UK universities in 2013, to help provide reliable and up to date research and academic prowess
funding Centres of Doctoral Training (CDT) to provide the research and skills needed to support the work of future doctoral-level cyber security experts
working with the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) to make cyber security part of software engineering degrees and support the Trustworthy Software Initiative to improve cyber security by making software more secure, by 2015
challenging the UK public to find ways of defending the government from cyber-attacks as part of the Cyber Security Challenge UK competition, sponsored by the National Cyber Security Programme
putting in a place a new national awareness and behavioural change campaign to ensure that people and small businesses know the risks and what steps they can take to protect themselves and their businesses online
