The new UK government plans to strengthen the nation’s defenses against cyberattacks, a month after a ransomware hack crippled London hospitals and health care providers.
Labour introduced the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill on Wednesday as part of its maiden legislative agenda, outlined in the King’s Speech to mark the first session of Parliament since the general election. Although delivered by King Charles III in a pomp-filled ceremony in Westminster, the speech is written by the government and lays out Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s priorities.
The bill aims to shore up defenses for supply chains, an increasingly attractive target for hackers. It will also mandate more comprehensive government reporting if companies are hit with ransomware attacks.
The focus on supply chains highlights the growing threat to the UK’s often-underfunded public services and the suppliers that plug into them. In June, hackers targeted Synnovis, a pathology provider that serves UK hospitals and conducts millions of medical tests annually. The attack suspended blood-testing services and led to the cancellation or postponement of thousands of operations and appointments. Services continue to be disrupted, the National Health Service said in its most recent update on July 11.
In a potentially devastating outcome for patient privacy, the hackers released around 400GB of data, including sensitive medical information on newborns and pregnant women, after failing to obtain a $50 million ransom from Synnovis. London hospital executives were aware of potential cybersecurity concerns around third-party suppliers for years before the attack, Bloomberg News reported in June.
The UK inherited its cybersecurity laws from the European Union but has not kept pace with legislative updates introduced by the bloc, according to a policy document outlining the draft bill. The nation’s laws need an “urgent update” to ensure its infrastructure remains comparably resilient, the document said.
On Wednesday, Labour also unveiled a draft law to open up more national data for digital services and scientific research. In his speech, the King said the incoming government will author “appropriate legislation” to govern the most powerful artificial intelligence models.
Photograph: King Charles III and Queen Camilla in the House of Lords on July 17, 2024 Photo credit: Henry Nicholls/Getty Images
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