The government has proposed new laws to strengthen the UK’s resilience against cyber attacks as the threat of breaches grows.
The laws would cover certain digital and essential services, notably the NHS, as well as energy, transport and water.
Under the proposals, IT service providers for organisations like the NHS will be regulated due to their position of holding trusted access to critical national infrastructure.
For the first time these firms will need to meet clear security duties, including reporting cyber incidents to the government and customers promptly and having robust plans in place to deal with the consequences.
As per the proposals, it will be up to regulators to designate critical suppliers to the UK’s essential services to impose these minimum security requirements.
“Cyber security is national security. This legislation will enable us to confront those who would disrupt our way of life. I’m sending them a clear message: the UK is no easy target,” said Tech Secretary Liz Kendall.
“We all know the disruption daily cyber-attacks cause. Our new laws will make the UK more secure against those threats. It will mean fewer cancelled NHS appointments, less disruption to local services and businesses, and a faster national response when threats emerge.”
Enforcement of these requirements would include turnover-based penalties for serious breaches in the hopes of discouraging cutting corners. The Tech Secretary would receive new powers to instruct how regulates oversee IT suppliers for critical services.
“The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill represents a significant step towards ensuring the nation’s most critical services are better protected and prepared in the face of an increasingly complex threat landscape,” said National Cyber Security Centre chief executive Dr Richard Horne.
“The real-world impacts of cyber attacks have never been more evident than in recent months and so we welcome the move to strengthen legislation and regulatory powers to help drive up the level of defence and resilience across critical national infrastructure.”
