UK to give details of cyber security threat it says is posed by China

Former British Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith urged the government on Monday (Mar 25)to classify China as "a threat." Duncan Smith, along with two other lawmakers, informed reporters at a press briefing that they have faced harassment, impersonation, and attempted hacking from China for a period of time.

Duncan Smith cited an instance where hackers impersonating him usedfraudulent email addresses to correspond with his contacts. These politicians are affiliated with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, an international advocacy group dedicated to opposing Beijing's expanding influence and highlighting purported human rights violations by the Chinese government.

The United Kingdom (UK) is all set to give details of a cyber security threat that it says is posed by China. British Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden is due to make a statement on the issue to parliament, a government official told the news agency Reuters. The official declined to confirm whether Deputy Prime Minister Dowden would announce reprisals including sanctions.

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The expected development comes as there have been growing fears about China’s alleged espionage activity in the UK, especially when a researcher at the British Parliament was arrested last year on suspicion of spying for China.

The researcher, who was involved in international affairs issues, had access to several Conservative MPs, a report by the Sunday Times said. The researcher had access to security minister Tom Tugendhat and foreign affairs committee chairwoman Alicia Kearns, among others, the report added.

Ahead of Dowden's statement in Parliament, British media reported that the government is expected to blame Beijing for a hack on the country's Electoral Commission in 2021.

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In 2023, the government said that Chinese spies were targeting British officials in sensitive positions in politics, defence, and business as part of an increasingly sophisticated spying operation to gain access to secrets.

Meanwhile, the Chinese embassy in the UK accused London of "making groundless accusations" when the head of MI5 accused China of carrying out an espionage campaign on an "epic scale."

(With inputs from agencies)