Public to be told how to prepare for cyber-attack and weather emergencies
Public to be told how to prepare for cyber-attacks and weather emergencies
Public to be told how to prepare - The UK government has announced plans to launch a public awareness campaign this year, encouraging citizens to adopt "simple yet critical actions" to ready themselves for potential food and water shortages during cyber-attacks or extreme weather events. Cabinet Office Minister Darren Jones highlighted these efforts during a recent parliamentary update, emphasizing the need for proactive preparedness.
Expanded Risk Register and National Exercise
A revised national risk register now includes seven new threats, such as the vulnerability of water systems to cyber-attacks. The register also features "digital resilience failure" as a top risk, referencing the recent global CrowdStrike outage that disrupted over eight million devices. This addition brings the total number of listed risks to 95. Meanwhile, the threat of gas supply disruptions from Russia has been removed, signaling the UK's reduced dependence on Russian energy sources.
"Throughout our history, the UK has faced challenges from plagues and pandemics to war and relentless weather conditions. It is vital we assess emerging risks and plan for future scenarios," said Jones.
He noted that the country's resilience has been tested in unprecedented ways by recent global events, including oil supply interruptions, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a hantavirus outbreak, and the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence. Despite these challenges, the minister stressed that the government is well-prepared and urged individuals to contribute to safeguarding themselves and their communities.
As part of its emergency readiness strategy, ministers will conduct a multi-day exercise called Operation Albiston Shadow next year. This will evaluate the nation's response capabilities to hybrid threats. Additionally, the government is revising its classified crisis plans, known as 'war books,' for the first time since 2004.