Hostile States Behind 75% of Cyber-Attacks on UK CNI, NCSC Warns
Hostile States Behind 75% of Cyber-Attacks on UK CNI, NCSC Warns
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/hostile-states-cni-75-percent-ncsc/
Publish Date: 2026-06-18 05:10:00
Source Domain: www.infosecurity-magazine.com
Three-quarter of cyber incidents affecting UK critical infrastructure organizations over the past year originated from nation-state actors or were linked to hostile states such as Russia, China and Iran, according to Richard Horne, CEO of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).
Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) Annual Security Lecture 2026 on June 17, Horne said the agency dealt with 200 cyber incidents affecting critical nation infrastructure (CNI) between June 2025 and May 2026.
This builds on Horne’s disclosure in Aprill that the NCSC had dealt with 204 “national significant” cyber incidents at the time of its last annual review.
Cyber Threat Actors Operate in Near, Mid and Far Digital Space
Horne described the threat across three contested spaces he labelled far, mid and near.
In the far space, “the adversaries’ home turf,” he said the UK and partners press adversaries with intelligence collection, sanctions, law enforcement action and offensive cyber operations to disrupt and degrade their capability at source.
In the mid space, where digital infrastructure is shared by both legitimate and malicious actors, Horne warned attackers are exploiting cloud and open-source supply chains to spread malicious code and achieve scaled impact. He also cautioned that cloud-based AI services will play an increasing role in the future to enable attackers.
“This is where we can deliver collective scaled impact through hardening cloud, technology and telecommunications infrastructure and by disrupting adversary positions within those environments,” he urged.
In the near space, the systems of the targeted organizations, Horne urged boards to prioritise practical capabilities: understand exposure, defend and respond.
Cybersecurity is A Continuous Contest, Not A Risk
cybersecurity must be treated as an ongoing contest rather than a static risk, Horne argued.
“Many of you will recognize the sight of cybersecurity high on…
