UK underestimates threat of cyber-attacks from hostile states and gangs, says security chief

Hostile activity in the UK cyberspace has increased in ‘frequency, sophistication and intensity’, Richard Horne will say. Photograph: Tim Goode/PA

The UK is underestimating the severity of the online threat it faces from hostile states and criminal gangs, the country’s cybersecurity chief will warn.

Richard Horne, the head of GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre, will cite a trebling of “severe” incidents amid Russian “aggression and recklessness” and China’s “highly sophisticated” digital operations.