Government issue official warning to UK over 'dangerous and malicious' COVID-19 related cyber threats
5 May 2020, 17:39 | Updated: 5 May 2020, 17:45
The UK Government has warned the public over a rise in coronavirus related cyber attacks happening across the world.
During today's briefing, Foreign Minister Dominic Raab announced that the UK's National Security Centre and the US Cyber Security and Infrastructure Security Agency have published a joint warning to organisations and the public over cyber scams.
They warned that they now have clear evidence that shows criminal gangs are "actively targeting nationally and international organisations".
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Dominic Raab explained in the briefing: "While the vast majority of people and countries have come together and rallied to this international mission to defeat coronavirus, there will always be some who seek to exploit a crisis for their own criminal and hostile ends.
"We know that cyber criminals and other malicious groups are targeting individuals, businesses and other organisations by deploying COVID-19 related scams and phishing emails."
These groups of people in the cyber security world are known as advance persistent threat groups, and are a sophisticated network of hackers who attempt to breach computer systems.
The fact that these groups are targeting people around the COVID-19 pandemic makes them "particularly dangerous and venal", Dominic Raab said.
He explained: "We are working with the targets of those attacks, with the potential targets and with others to make sure that they are aware of the cyber threat and that they can take the steps necessary to protect themselves."
The Government are now offering advice to the public over cyber threats, which will help prevent them from falling victim to any scams.
Many of these groups work in a way which allows them to steal bulk personal data, which they later abuse for their own gain.
Dominic Raab warned that this will continue and evolve in the next weeks and months, which is why preventive action is so important.
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