Vladimir Putin's Kremlin cyber spies 'ready to cripple UK with coordinated strike' warns minister

Vladimir Putin's cyber spies could 'turn retired the lights for millions', a authorities curate volition pass a Nato league pursuing a drawstring of attacks connected the UK by Kremlin-backed groups

A squad of elite cyber spies hired by Vladimir Putin are acceptable to cripple the UK with a coordinated attack, a authorities curate has warned.

Strikes by Moscow-backed hackers person the powerfulness "turn retired the lights for millions", Pat McFadden volition archer Britain's allies astatine a Nato league connected Monday, arsenic helium describes cyber attacks arsenic the "hidden warfare Russia is waging with Ukraine".

The Chancellor for the Duchy of Lancaster - who has work successful furniture for nationalist information - volition besides item the impacts felt astatine location pursuing a drawstring of targeted breaches by Kremlin-linked groups connected Britain's vigor infrastructure, governmental institutions, and NHS hospitals.

His expected comments travel arsenic Putin's cronies issued a question of threats aft British Storm Shadow missiles were fired by Ukrainian troops astatine Russian forces. Andrei Kelin, the Russian ambassador successful London, this week claimed that the UK is present "directly involved" successful the Ukraine war aft usage of the weapons was approved by Number 10 - portion successful September, Putin warned that lifting restrictions connected the usage of Storm Shadows and ATACMS missiles would mean Nato countries would beryllium astatine warfare with Russia.

At the to the Nato cyber defence league successful London connected Monday, the Telegraph reports Mr McFadden volition say: "In the UK, Russia has targeted our media, our telecoms, our governmental and antiauthoritarian institutions and our vigor infrastructure. Military hard powerfulness is 1 thing.

"But cyber warfare tin beryllium destabilising and debilitating. With a cyber attack, Russia tin crook the lights disconnected for millions of people. It tin unopen down the powerfulness grids." He volition besides emphasise the menace from "unofficial hacktivists" based successful Russia who are "not straight nether the Kremlin’s control" but are tacitly allowed to run arsenic agelong arsenic they bash not spell against Putin's interests, citing a caller onslaught connected South Korea aft it spoke retired against North Korea's deployment of troops successful Kursk.

Earlier this year, NHS hospitals successful London were forced to cancel thousands of appointments including cardinal operations, crab treatments and humor transfusions pursuing a large cyber onslaught by a Russian hacker group. Guy's, St Thomas' and King's College Hospital Trusts successful London were among those affected erstwhile Synnovis, a pathology laboratory that runs humor tests for the NHS, was the unfortunate of a ransomware onslaught thought to person been carried retired by Russian cyber transgression pack Qilin.